Tearful Rudy Giuliani breaks down over death of Bernie Kerik
'I was a better man for having known Bernie,' Giuliani said on his 'America's Mayor Live' podcast shortly after Kerik's death was announced. 'I don't know what I'm going to do without him.'
Earlier this month, Kerik was hospitalized with a serious illness from which he was expected to recover. Giuliani said he had planned to visit his old pal on Saturday and regrets not doing so earlier.
'I feel like I should've been with him,' the choked-up Brooklyn native told listeners.
Giuliani recalled the times he spent with Kerik, which included fighting crime in New York City, moving the city forward after the 9/11 terror attacks and supporting President Trump's efforts to overturn the results of the 2020 election.
The former mayor also praised his longtime friend for his 'honesty and integrity,' claiming Kerik was targeted by 'lawfare' when he served three years in prison for tax fraud.
Giuliani became increasingly emotional recalling Kerik's service to law enforcement in the U.S. and overseas during the Iraq War, as well as their work together in the private sector.
'I've gone through difficult times, right, and I found out who my friends were,' he confessed. 'Bernie was there for every single thing.'
The water works began when Giuliani once again said he wished he'd been at Kerik's bedside when he died.
'I wish I was there for you Bernie, you were always there for me,' he sobbed before saying a prayer for Kerik.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
New York Post
an hour ago
- New York Post
$25 million taxpayer cash handed by DHS, FEMA to groups with extremist ties: report
Taxpayer funds totalling $25 million were handed to US groups with alleged links to terror organizations or extremist ideology, a bombshell new study has found. In a twist of irony, the funds were originally allocated to help deradicalize would-be terrorists, but may have ended up in the pockets of groups that support Hamas, Hezbollah and the Iranian regime, according to the report. The Department of Homeland Security gave out the cash through its disaster relief programs, including the embattled Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), between 2013 and 2024, according to the report released by the Middle East Forum, a think tank based in Philadelphia. 5 The Department of Homeland Security granted more than $25 million to extremist groups in the US, including nonprofits that support Hamas, a new study says. AP 5 Hostage Noa Argamani being abducted by Hamas on Oct. 7th, 2023. She is one of the fortunate hostages who has been released. AP 'We've seen the left allocate billions of dollars towards the latest woke pet projects, but the Middle East Forum's study of DHS spending uncovered something far more sinister,' said Ben Baird, a project director at the Middle East Forum and co-author of the study. 'Instead of protecting the homeland, the federal government is bankrolling extremists who idolize 9/11 hijackers and sympathize with the perpetrators of the October 7 massacre in Israel. 'Taxpayer dollars meant to strengthen American security were used to undermine public safety.' The group says it is now working with DHS to 'rescind grants to extremist groups' and work on making the granting process more transparent. Under President Biden, DHS established the Faith-Based Security Advisory Council (FBSAC) that works with the secretary of DHS to help with the security and emergency preparedness of religious institutions. 'The FBSAC provides advice and recommendations to the Secretary and other senior leadership on matters related to protecting houses of worship, preparedness and enhanced coordination with the faith community,' according to a description of the council on FEMA's website. 5 The Biden administration appointed CAIR founder Nihad Awad to a FEMA agency to consult on which religious groups should get funds for security and emergency preparedness. AFP/Getty Images Among the leaders appointed as consultants to the group was Mohamed Magid — director and imam of a controversial Virginia mosque complex that was raided in a federal counterterrorism investigation in 2002, although no charges were brought. Salaam al-Marayati, founder of the Muslim Public Affairs Council, who once blamed 9/11 on Israel, was also a consultant to the group. Al-Marayati later said that his comments were taken out of context but he did not apologize for them, according to the Los Angeles Times. Neither Magid nor Al-Marayati returned a request for comment this week. Some of the groups DHS allocated money to have ties to extremists. Ones named in the report include: The Council on American Islamic Relations, which has links to extremist groups, including Hamas, received nearly $250,000 in DHS security grants to its national office in Washington as well as chapters in Miami and Los Angeles, the report says. 5 The Islamic Circle of North America has alleged links to Jamaat-e-Islam, which has been associated with terrorist attacks in Bangladesh. ICNA has denied that it works with the group. FEMA Federal prosecutors named CAIR as an unindicted co-conspirator in the 2008 Holy Land Foundation trial, the largest terrorism funding case in US history. Ghassan Elashi, one of the leaders of HLF was also a founder of CAIR Texas. He was convicted and sentenced to 65 years for funneling $12 million to Hamas. And after the Hamas attacks on Israel on October 7, 2023, CAIR's founder Nihad Awad said he was 'happy to see' the terrorist strikes on the country. He later said his comments were taken out of context and that he condemned the violence on October 7. CAIR's spokesman Ibrahim Hooper said 'the American Muslim community has the same right to apply for nonprofit grants as other faith communities.' He added CAIR 'condemns all forms of unjust violence, including hate crimes, terrorism, ethnic cleansing and genocide as well as all forms of bigotry, including ani-Black racism, Islamophobia, antisemitism and anti-Palestinian racism.' Elsewhere, DHS earmarked $10.3 million in disaster relief to the Islamic Circle of North America following Hurricane Harvey in 2017. The group was accused by the Middle East Forum and other think tanks that study extremism of acting as the US-based proxy for Jamaat-e-Islam, which has been linked to violence and terrorism in South Asia. ICNA has denied being a proxy for the group. The Islamic Society of Baltimore, a mosque and community center where the FBI conducted surveillance after it caught one of its members plotting to bomb an Army recruiting center in Maryland in 2010, was awarded $375,000 in DHS grants between 2017 and 2023, the report says. The group was under surveillance by the FBI for several years beginning in 2010 and was dubbed 'a breeding ground for terrorists.' The group did not return a request for comment. Mosques in Michigan and Texas that preach Iran's extreme brand of Shi'a Islam received $750,000. 5 A founder of CAIR Texas was sentenced to 65 years in federal prison for providing Hamas with more than $12 million. The terrorist group organized the October 7, 2023 attack against Israel that left 1,200 dead. The Islamic House of Wisdom, a mosque in Dearborn, received $330,000 in 2023, according to the report. The group is led by Imam Mohammed Ali Elahi, who has close ties to the Iranian regime and mourned the 2010 death of Mohammad Hussein Fadlallah, Hezbollah's spiritual guide and a proponent of suicide bombing. Elahi did not return repeated requests for comment. Other groups with alleged ties to radicalism received the rest of the $25 million in grants, per Middle East Forum. 'DHS officials must be more discerning,' said the report. 'Under FEMA's latest… guidelines, grantees may use security grants to install bulletproof glass and security fencing, or even to hire armed security guards [at their US-based offices]. 'Should an insular, fundamentalist commune that expresses loyalty to Al Shabaab or Al-Qaeda receive funding for these purposes?' Since taking office, the Trump administration has fired hundreds of DHS employees in order to streamline the bureaucracy of the federal government. 'We won't rest until Congress ensures that future administrations cannot fund extremists in the name of fighting extremism,' Baird told The Post.
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
Teen Spent 11 Days in Coma. When He Woke Up, He Used Sign Language to Tell His Mom an Important Message (Exclusive)
'We are very grateful for his progress and pleased we are finally moving in the right direction,' Stephanie Neely tells PEOPLE of her son's condition since surviving three days without food or water NEED TO KNOW Dakota 'Cody' Trenkle Jr., 13, was missing for three days until he was found at the bottom of a ravine on Wednesday, July 30 He was then airlifted to a St. Louis hospital, where he was placed in a medically induced coma On Wednesday, Aug. 13, his mother, Stephanie Neely, tells PEOPLE that despite Dakota still being at the start of the recovery process, his family is "very grateful for his progress" Dakota "Cody" Trenkle Jr., the 13-year-old boy who was missing for over three days before he was found at the bottom of a ravine, has woken up from an 11-day medically induced coma, his mother, Stephanie Neely, tells PEOPLE. "[It took] 11 long days after being missing for 80 hours' for her 'to have hope that Cody was going to be okay," Neely says. Dakota went missing on Sunday, July 27, after he was last seen skateboarding in Goose Creek Lake, Mo. The young teen went more than three days without food or water. On Wednesday, July 30, his brother discovered Dakota's skateboard a half a mile from their home. Later that day, the Farmington Correctional Center (FCC) K-9 unit deployed their bloodhound named Darrell, who found Dakota lying in a foot of water. Dakota was airlifted to a St. Louis hospital, where he was placed in a medically induced coma with a brain bleed, his mom previously told PEOPLE. He suffered deep wounds to his body, as well as severe head trauma, several brain bleeds, an additional fracture on his skull, weakened kidneys and needed a ventilator to breathe. After nearly two weeks of Stephanie waiting by his bedside, Dakota was alert and there were signs of him waking up on Friday, Aug. 8, per the Facebook group dedicated to providing updates, titled "Dakota Strong." By Saturday, Aug. 9, Stephanie tells PEOPLE that he was alert enough to share his affection by signing the American Sign Language gesture for 'I love you.' 'That moment was pivotal to me. It's made the last couple weeks of stress, heartache, hope, gratitude, sadness, and pain worth it because that small gesture meant my boy was coming back to me,' she says. He was off the ventilator by Sunday, Aug. 10. 'He is doing so well!!' a post on the Facebook page read. 'We still have a long recovery road ahead, but this is huge progress!!!!!!' On Monday, Aug. 11, Dakota enjoyed his first meal: a burger and a Coke. 'When Cody was being weened off sedation, off the ventilator, and became more alert, he looked at me and said 'Mama, I'm thirsty, I need a 16 ounce coke from McDonald's!' ' Neely says. 'The next day, I had ordered him a Whopper from Burger King in hopes to get him to eat." Never miss a story — sign up for to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories. After Cody woke up, he 'was still on sedation for a few days to help ease him out of the coma,' Neely explains to PEOPLE. She notes as of Wednesday, Aug. 13, he is no longer on sedation, so the 'last 24 hours have been very difficult for him pain-wise.' 'He can't walk due to injuries and also loss of muscle mass during his time in the coma,' she says. 'He is struggling to talk for long periods of time out of pure exhaustion, the pneumonia, and his other infections he is fighting.' Neely previously told NBC affiliate KSDK that the water caused him to contract "a lot of infectious bacteria," which led him to develop pneumonia. Additionally, because he fell into the 240-foot deep ravine, he also suffered severe wounds on his back because he was submerged for so long. 'His brain injuries are still very prominent, and are being monitored very closely,' Neely tells PEOPLE. She notes that he will be transferred to a pediatric hospital inpatient unit that specializes in physical, occupational, and psychological therapies. 'We are very grateful for his progress and pleased we are finally moving in the right direction,' she adds. "I've known he was a fighter since he was born," Neely told KSDK. "He was born super preemie, and he fought for his life then, and now, almost 14 years later, he's doing it again." "Just proving to all of us just truly how strong he is, how resilient, and how stubborn he is, which is honestly what saved his life," Neely told KSDK. "He wasn't going to give up. And he's like, 'I'm not just gonna lay here and die.' For him to finally come out of it two weeks after he went missing is huge. He's still proving to everyone, 'I'm fighting, I'm still here, I can survive.' " Read the original article on People Solve the daily Crossword
Fox News
an hour ago
- Fox News
Homicide investigator warns against rushing bikini designer's yacht death probe as lawyer reveals new details
Martha Nolan was an Irish expat and New York fashion designer – until she turned up dead on a 54-foot yacht at a luxe marina on Long Island's East End. Ten days later, her cause of death remains unknown – leaving friends, family and followers to ponder what exactly happened to her on Aug. 5. According to Suffolk County police, forensic pathologists completed Nolan's autopsy a day later. They found no signs of violence, but her final cause of death is pending additional investigation. Police are likely waiting for the toxicology results, which typically will take longer than just a week or two. As a general rule, the county medical examiner doesn't provide a timeline for results, but they are expected to be shared with police when they come back. For their part, police have been largely silent as homicide detectives do their work. "It makes me nuts when police say 'no signs of foul play' too early in the investigation," said Joseph Giacalone, a retired NYPD sergeant and professor of criminal justice at Penn State Lehigh Valley. "The standard line should be, 'We treat every death as if it's a homicide until we conclude our scene investigation, confer with the ME (medical examiner), and get back all necessary reports.' What police discovered at the scene and what the toxicology reports tell us, will allow the ME to make a certification." Town of East Hampton police arrived at the Montauk Yacht Club around midnight on Aug. 5 in response to a report of an unconscious woman on a 54-foot Sea Ray docked there. When officers arrived, good Samaritans were attempting CPR, according to authorities. But first responders pronounced Nolan dead at the scene. A preliminary scene investigation was inconclusive, police said. Suffolk County homicide detectives are now leading the investigation, and they have met with her family, according to their high-profile New York lawyer, Arthur Aidala. Aidala is disputing some reports that suggest a drug overdose is expected in Nolan's death, and he urged patience as the family awaits more information and investigators continue to probe the incident. While the homicide squad is working the case, Giacalone said it looks like they may be digging into someone other than the yacht owner. The yachtsman reportedly woke up people on a neighboring boat to call 911, according to the New York Post. "Running from boat to boat and throwing things at boats to wake people up is unusual if this is a homicide," Giacalone told Fox News Digital. "He owns two boats and no cellphone? Unlikely. He's 30-plus years older, and it sounds like panic. I hope they did more than a cursory scene investigation, however, hope is not a plan for death investigations." Aidala, the family's lawyer, also revealed Wednesday that police are conducting a comprehensive "technological analysis" as part of a "deep, deep" probe into the circumstances surrounding Nolan's death. "The text messages may play a part in this, however, she's going through a divorce, in some 60-year-old guy's yacht, she may not have told anyone exactly where and what she was doing," Giacalone told Fox News Digital. "Since 'sources' have said an overdose, maybe that will lead to the dealer, who can be prosecuted. One thing DA Tierney has done is prosecuted a number of dealers that have caused a death. That's why publicly stating a drug overdose is not helpful to the future investigation." Nolan was the founder of East x East, a boutique fashion company focused on beachwear and sunglasses. It also offered a Montauk-themed hoodie, emblazoned with the slogan, "I only love you in Montauk." The yacht owner was reportedly an investor in Nolan's business. At the time of her death, she was also going through a divorce from her husband, Sam Ryan.
