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New York Post
a day ago
- Politics
- New York Post
LA anti-ICE rioters enrage locals with revolting anti-American displays and contempt for law and order: ‘Everything that is happening is very bad'
LOS ANGELES — Rioters called for the destruction of the US and spit on a flaming American flag while chanting 'burn it down' in a sickening caught-on-video display — as the violent protests entered their fourth day in the City of Angels. The sickening scene unfolded Sunday night as other rioters looted businesses and rained bricks, scooters and other deadly missiles onto cops from a highway overpass. And many Angelinos are fed up with the anti-American madness. 'Everything that is happening is very bad,' said Maria Fabila, owner of a Mexican dress shop near the site of a rash of smash-and-grab looting Sunday night, adding that customers have forfeited deposits on dresses and suits because they're afraid to go out in the streets. The protests began Friday after Immigration and Customs Enforcement executed a series of raids around the city, rounding up more than 100 illegal immigrants. Hundreds took to the streets in opposition, waving anti-ICE signs and Mexican flags while facing off against cops and federal immigration officers. Anti-ICE protesters burned and ripped up American flags. CAROLINE BREHMAN/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock But the demonstrations soon descended into anarchy in downtown LA and the nearby cities of Compton and Paramount on Saturday and Sunday night — as rioters burned cars, vandalized public buildings and property and even looted local businesses, much of the destruction captured on video. An ICE source told The Post the protesters — whether they know it or not — are advocating 'for the actual criminals … sex offenders and the terrorists' the agency is targeting in its raids, exhibiting a gross misunderstanding of who is guilty or innocent. 'You have criminals, gang members, terrorists, child molesters, sex offenders that are being arrested, but since people don't know the background of the case or what's going on, everybody's innocent,' the source described. 'And that's who they're protesting for, the actual criminals that are being arrested, the sex offenders, the terrorists, all that.' Thousands of protesters flooded the streets of downtown LA throughout the weekend — including at least one group with ties to the Democratic Party and another linked to the Chinese Communist Party. Disturbing footage of one downtown riot shows a rowdy mob setting an American flag on fire in the streets, spitting on Old Glory as a man with a bullhorn spewed anti-American slogans through a megaphone to egg on the braying herd. One group of demonstrators burned an American flag in the middle of the street while angrily spitting at Old Glory. AFP via Getty Images 'This is not just a gesture, this is something we need to make real. We need to take down this empire once and for all,' the man called out to the crowd, some of whom stepped into the circle to spray the flag with lighter fluid. On Sunday night, the havoc devolved into looting as thugs smashed their way into businesses — including a Foot Locker, a T-Mobile store and a local convenience shop — and helped themselves to anything that wasn't nailed down. In an act of absolute lawlessness, a gang of hoodlums rushed inside the shoe store and emerged minutes later with large stacks of Nike sneakers still in the box as onlookers cheered them on. Footage of inside the businesses filmed through the destroyed front doors showed the stores had been virtually picked clean by the criminal thugs, who fled into the night with their plundered lucre. Pedro Perez, who was working at a Boost Mobile store in a Compton strip mall that was hit by vandals, said the criminal behavior ran counter to the stated purpose of the protests. 'Spray painting and all this damage, that's not helping anybody. And right here whey they were spray painting, mainly all these people are all Hispanic owners,' he told The Post. 'The whole point is to be united, and you guys are damaging your own people's businesses. I just think it's stupid.' Most residents interviewed by The Post in this bright blue city said they blame Trump for escalating the situation — even as they acknowledged that the rioters are making everything worse. Earlier Sunday, at least 2,000 anti-ICE protesters took over LA's 101 Freeway, bringing traffic to a standstill as California Highway Patrol officers in riot gear responded and corralled the crowd onto an exit ramp, forcing them off the roadway. The freeway briefly reopened, but was shut down again around 7:30 p.m. after rioters began hurling objects including bricks onto southbound lanes, damaging police cards, the LAPD said. The simmering violence became so out of control that President Trump ordered the deployment of 2,000 members of the National Guard to Los Angeles on Saturday, and mobilized 700 active-duty Marines early Monday evening. California's lefty Gov. Gavin Newsom said he plans on filing a lawsuit against the Trump administration over the National Guard deployment, and dared Trump's border czar Tom Homan to slap him in cuffs in an interview with NBC News. 'Come after me. Arrest me. Let's just get it over with, tough guy,' he taunted. This prompted the president to fire back that he would arrest Newsom if he was Homan. Speaking on MSNBC Monday, Homan said the ICE raids that sparked the riots in the first place had nothing to do with rounding up migrants. They were part of an ongoing criminal investigation into money laundering, tax evasion and customs fraud. 'It was to serve of three criminal warrants at locations based on a large criminal conspiracy that ICE is investigating,' Homan told the outlet. However, ICE was spotted operating across Southern California again on Monday — with federal law enforcement sources saying, 'We're going harder now … we're not backing down.' The Justice Department said that anyone who broke the law will be found and punished. 'This Department of Justice is actively investigating several cases for prosecution and working to identify any rioter who broke federal law.'
Yahoo
22-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Fact Check: Banner of Trump hung next to Lincoln on USDA building in a move critics said echoed fascist dictatorships
Claim: In May 2025, the U.S. Department of Agriculture hung a large banner of President Donald Trump on its building in Washington, D.C. Rating: Context: The banner of Trump was placed near a similar one of former President Abraham Lincoln on the same building. In May 2025, social media users — on platforms Instagram (archived), Threads (archived), Facebook (archived) and Reddit (archived) — posted pictures of giant banners displaying the faces of President Donald Trump and former President Abraham Lincoln hanging on the U.S. Department of Agriculture building in Washington, D.C. A manipulated version of the image appeared to show Lincoln — who founded the agency — flipping Trump off; one post (archived) of this image received more than 2.8 million views, as of this writing. While the image of Lincoln flipping Trump off is fake, it is true that the U.S. government hung the two banners on the USDA building. In a statement to Snopes, the USDA confirmed the Trump banner was real. A spokesperson wrote via email: USDA has much to remember in the coming months: the 163rd anniversary of the Department's founding on May 15th, the sacrifice of our nation's fallen on Memorial Day on May 26th, the 248th anniversary of the adoption of Old Glory on Flag Day on June 14th, and the 249th anniversary of the ratification of the Declaration of Independence on the Fourth of July. USDA is the only federal agency located on the National Mall. The banners on the building's façade observe these moments in American history and acknowledge the vision and leadership of USDA's founder, Abraham Lincoln, and the best advocate of America's farmers and ranchers, President Trump. Several angles of the building are publicly viewable on Getty Images using the keywords "USDA building 2025." In addition, Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins posted several images and a video of the banners, official USDA social media accounts posted the image and other sources independently captured similar images. Therefore, we rate this claim true. On May 14, Rollins posted several images on her X account showing workers putting the two banners in place. She wrote (archived): "163 years after Lincoln founded @USDA, President Trump's bold vision is ushering in a Golden Age for our farmers." A day later, she posted an image of both banners draped over the USDA building, writing, "Happy 163rd birthday to the USDA!" Lincoln founded the department on May 15, 1862, according to the official USDA site. In a joint post by both Rollins and the official USDA Instagram account, a video also briefly displayed an image of the banners on the building. "This isn't just a milestone — it's a rebirth," the post read. Other sources, including D.C. TV station WUSA, independently verified the existence of the banners. "We sent one of our photojournalists to investigate a Reddit post showing the banner and we saw it for ourselves just a few hours ago," the station reported. Commenters across social media compared Trump's banner (archived) to the practice of publicly displaying images of dictators by authoritarian regimes throughout history. (X user @marlene4719) In sum, the images showing giant banners bearing the faces of Trump and Lincoln on the USDA building in Washington, D.C., were authentic, as confirmed by various news sources and the USDA itself. '"Deeply Creepy": Enormous Brooding Banner of Trump Now Hangs next to Lincoln Outside Department of Agriculture'. Yahoo News, 14 May 2025, Held, Lisa. 'USDA Hangs Massive Banners of Trump and Lincoln'. Civil Eats, 15 May 2025, - YouTube. Accessed 15 May 2025.
Yahoo
16-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Fact Check: Huge banner of Trump hung on USDA building next to Lincoln's
Claim: In May 2025, the U.S. Department of Agriculture hung a large banner of President Donald Trump on its building in Washington, D.C. Rating: Context: The banner of Trump was placed near a similar one of former President Abraham Lincoln on the same building. In May 2025, users across multiple social media platforms — including X (archived), Facebook (archived) and Reddit (archived) — posted images of large banners displaying President Donald Trump and former President Abraham Lincoln (who founded the agency) hanging on the U.S. Department of Agriculture building in Washington, D.C. In a statement to Snopes, the USDA confirmed the authenticity of the images. A spokesperson wrote via email: USDA has much to remember in the coming months: the 163rd anniversary of the Department's founding on May 15th, the sacrifice of our nation's fallen on Memorial Day on May 26th, the 248th anniversary of the adoption of Old Glory on Flag Day on June 14th, and the 249th anniversary of the ratification of the Declaration of Independence on the Fourth of July. USDA is the only federal agency located on the National Mall. The banners on the building's façade observe these moments in American history and acknowledge the vision and leadership of USDA's founder, Abraham Lincoln, and the best advocate of America's farmers and ranchers, President Trump. In addition, Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins posted several images and a video of the banners, official USDA social media accounts posted the image and other sources independently captured similar images. Therefore, we rate this claim true. On May 14, Rollins posted several images on her X account showing workers putting the two banners in place. She wrote (archived): "163 years after Lincoln founded @USDA, President Trump's bold vision is ushering in a Golden Age for our farmers." A day later, she posted an image of both banners draped over the USDA building, writing, "Happy 163rd birthday to the USDA!" Lincoln founded the department on May 15, 1862, according to the official USDA site. In a joint post by both Rollins and the official USDA Instagram account, a video also briefly displayed an image of the banners on the building. "This isn't just a milestone — it's a rebirth," the post read. Other sources, including D.C. TV station WUSA, independently verified the existence of the banners. "We sent one of our photojournalists to investigate a Reddit post showing the banner and we saw it for ourselves just a few hours ago," the station reported. Commenters across social media compared Trump's banner (archived) to the practice of publicly displaying images of dictators by authoritarian regimes throughout history. (X user @marlene4719) In sum, the images showing giant banners bearing the faces of Trump and Lincoln on the USDA building in Washington, D.C., were authentic, as confirmed by various news sources and the USDA itself. '"Deeply Creepy": Enormous Brooding Banner of Trump Now Hangs next to Lincoln Outside Department of Agriculture'. Yahoo News, 14 May 2025, Held, Lisa. 'USDA Hangs Massive Banners of Trump and Lincoln'. Civil Eats, 15 May 2025, - YouTube. Accessed 15 May 2025.
New York Post
25-04-2025
- Business
- New York Post
Camping World CEO Marcus Lemonis forced to shut down North Carolina store amid battle over massive American flags
The Camping World CEO claims he was forced to close down one of his North Carolina stores as he defied local politicians over the massive American flags flying over the locations. Marcus Lemonis made the shocking revelation that one of the national RV dealerships in Greenville, NC, was shuttered on April 18. Lemonis says he was forced to shut down operations at the smaller of the two locations after the city council sued him and the company for violating city ordinance with the larger-than-life flags, and continues to impose fines. Advertisement 5 A large American flag flies over a Camping World dealership. Camping World 'We think the ordinance is wrong,' Lemonis told local radio station WTIB, according to WITN. ' I think it's also wrong council members have been working very actively to disparage my business and on Friday I had to consolidate modification of 2 dealerships in town.' The unexpected closing of Camping World's Forest River RV retail comes as Lemonis continued his legal battle against the Greenville City Council and defied lawsuits to fly the massive 'Old Glory.' Advertisement Camping World had two stores in Greenville, North Carolina, where the controversial flags flew outside until the Greenville Boulevard site was shut down, Lemonis told the local radio station. Lemonis said the affected Greenville store had been 'been unfortunately impacted uniquely' by the city. Greenville notes that the flag is almost the size of a basketball court, spanning 3200 square feet. The pole it flies from is around 130 feet tall, almost double the current allowance. 'This has never been about removing an American flag or the type of flag. It is about bringing the flag into compliance with City Code,' Greenville Communications Manager Brock Letchworth said. 'We look forward to finding a resolution that will result in the continued display of the flag, but in a way that does not violate local laws.' Advertisement 5 Marcus Lemonis speaks at TSP Game Plan 2023 at The Hotel at Avalon in Alpharetta, Georgia on Jan. 27, 2023. Getty Images The 51-year-old CEO suggested the city ordinances violated North Carolina state law, but didn't specify an exact legislation. Lemonis, who was born in Beirut, Lebanon, stood firm in his decision not to take down the 'Stars and Stripes,' citing the hard work he put in moving to the US. 'I wasn't born in this country. I emigrated from Beirut, Lebanon. Came here to Miami, Florida and had an opportunity to live the American dream in this country. I've put a lot of sweat and tears into building this business for my people, for the country. And it's my love letter to tell everybody how grateful I am this country provided me an opportunity where it didn't have to. To make money, to be a capitalist, to provide jobs in America,' he wrote. Advertisement 5 The 51-year-old CEO suggested the city ordinances violated North Carolina state law, but didn't specify an exact legislation. @marcuslemonis/X On Thursday, he shared a video that featured veteran customers and employees who praised the flag and the company's patriotism. 'I am a veteran and I served for three years in the US Army. I stand over the bay every morning and look at the flag waving. Just makes me proud to work here,' Technician Michael Monday said. Lemonis captioned the post with the hashtag NeverComingDown. Along with Greenville, NC, Camping World is facing a lawsuit from the city of Sevierville, Tenn. 5 Workers help raise the giant American Flag at one of the company's dealerships. Camping World 5 On Thursday, he shared a video that featured veteran customers and employees who praised the flag and the company's patriotism. @marcuslemonis/X Sevierville, located 30 miles outside Knoxville, argued the flag in its city can be a distraction to drivers. Advertisement 'Let us be clear: the City of Sevierville is not, and never will be, against patriotism,' officials wrote. 'Excessively tall structures can create visual distractions for motorists, pose potential safety hazards, and impact the scenic views that are a vital part of what makes Sevierville a destination for residents and visitors alike.' Camping World received the backing from Evangelical leader Rev. Franklin Graham. 'These American flags are HUGE—and I love it! The bigger, the better! Shame on the city governments that are trying to sue Camping World and get CEO Marcus Lemonis to take down the American flags he has flying over his businesses,' Graham wrote on Facebook. 'Yes, his flags and flagpoles exceed the city codes, but the American flag should be an exception.'
Epoch Times
23-04-2025
- Politics
- Epoch Times
Trump Paying to Install ‘Big, Beautiful' American Flags at White House
WASHINGTON—President Donald Trump announced on April 23 that he intends to pay out of his own pocket to install massive American flags on the north and south lawns of the White House. 'We're putting up a beautiful, almost 100-foot-tall American flag on this side and another one on the other side. Two flags, top of the line,' Trump told reporters during an impromptu press gathering after touring the lawn. 'So, we're putting one right where you saw us, and we're putting another one on the other side, on top of the mounds. It's going to be two beautiful poles.' He was seen walking with Dale Haney, chief White House groundskeeper, a handful of aides, and surrounded by Secret Service agents while surveying the North Lawn on April 23 for sites to build a flagpole. Agents cleared the street in front of the grounds and blocked off Lafayette Park nearby to safeguard the president while the group reviewed the site. Trump said the upgrades are a long time coming, with the only existing sites for flags on the rooftop of the executive mansion. Related Stories 4/23/2025 4/23/2025 'They've needed flagpoles for 200 years,' Trump said. 'It was something I've often said. You know, they don't have a flagpole, per se.' White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters later in the day that Trump is a hands-on leader with a keen eye for property management. 'The president is a real estate developer at heart, and he's always looking for ways to improve the White House complex, not for him, but for future generations, for future presidents,' she said. 'He has some fun ideas for this complex, which we've kept you all apprised of, as they have happened and will continue to do. 'So, you can expect to look up, I think, quite soon, and see a very big, beautiful American flag, perhaps on the North Lawn and the South Lawn.' No further details were provided regarding the dimensions of the flags or when construction could begin. The president has embraced the Star-Spangled Banner throughout his presidential campaigns and while serving as the nation's leader. Pictures from the campaign trail show the flag displayed prominently on stage and around venues. An extra-large Old Glory was flying overhead in Butler, Pennsylvania, on July 13 of last year and was captured in iconic images of Trump moments after a would-be assassin took shots at the then-presidential candidate. Trump is no stranger to super-sized Stars and Stripes, having installed a 15-foot-tall by 25-foot-long American flag at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Palm Beach in 2006. Local elected officials complained about the installation, arguing that no permits were issued and that construction of the 80-foot-tall flagpole was in violation of local ordinances that limited poles to 42 feet and flags to four by six feet in size. Their argument was rejected by Trump at the time. 'The day you need a permit to put up the American flag, that will be a sad day for this country,' he said. Trump battled local lawmakers over the flag before suing Palm Beach for $10 million, then upping the damage claim to $25 million. He alleged that the city was infringing on his constitutional right to free speech and argued that any flag smaller than what he had flying would not appropriately reflect Mar-a-Lago's patriotism. The city responded with $120,000 in penalties, though both sides agreed to a settlement that saw Trump donate $100,000 to local veterans' groups in lieu of fines.
