In the political landscape of northern Kentucky, Republican voters faced a crucial decision during Tuesday’s House primary, choosing between the seasoned U.S. Rep. Thomas Massie and the fresh-faced challenger Ed Gallrein. This contest served as a litmus test for President Donald Trump’s sway within his own party, as he personally endorsed Gallrein in hopes of unseating the incumbent.

The race in the 4th District intensified dramatically as the primary drew to a close. Massie, eager to illustrate his alignment with Trump, rallied support from fellow Republicans, notably Rep. Lauren Boebert, to assure voters of his compatibility with Trump’s vision. In contrast, Trump launched a barrage of social media critiques against Massie, branding him as “an obstructionist and a fool,” while Gallrein shared the limelight with Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth at a significant campaign event on Monday.

Throughout his second term, Trump has consolidated his influence over the Republican Party, often sidelining those who deviate from his directives. Massie, however, has remained one of the few vocal dissenters, standing firm against the tide. A loss for Massie would underscore Trump’s potent hold on the Republican electorate.

This primary was not just a battle of ideologies, but also of financial muscle, marking it as the most expensive U.S. House primary in history. The stakes were high, with Massie, who has served since 2012, pitted against a newcomer who pledged unwavering loyalty to Trump.

Massie’s history of challenging the administration includes urging the release of the Jeffrey Epstein files, a move that proved politically troublesome for the White House. He also publicly criticized military actions in Iran and withheld support for Trump’s hallmark tax cuts, citing concerns over the escalating national debt.

In response Trump visited Kentucky to boost Gallrein in March. The president has had a string of success defeating dissenters in his party, pushing to oust Sen. Bill Cassidy in Louisiana and several Indiana state senators who defied him on redistricting.

The winner of Tuesday’s primary is expected to take the general election in the deeply red 4th Congressional District, which stretches along the state’s northernmost border.

Republicans statewide were also choosing their nominee to replace Mitch McConnell, the longtime U.S. Senate leader, in a contest representing a generational changing of the guard for the party. Rep. Andy Barr, endorsed by Trump, faced Daniel Cameron, a former state attorney general. The final polls were scheduled to close in the western part of the state, which is in the Central time zone, at 6 p.m.

Can Republican voters support both Trump and Massie?

Massie’s challenge was to win over voters who generally think favorably of Trump, the same man telling them to vote for Gallrein. It’s not the first Republican primary Trump has tried to sway, but Massie’s overt rebelliousness has been a particular challenge to the president.

Gallrein, a retired U.S. Navy SEAL, embraced the role Trump gave him, and focused his pitch to voters on his personal history and unwavering loyalty to the president. Massie, he argued, betrayed Trump and the party.

Hegseth made a visit to the district Monday to boost Gallrein and lambast Massie, a break from tradition that came while the nation is at war. Hegseth said he was speaking “as a private citizen.”

Some voters were already fed up with Massie bucking the party.

George Scherzer, who lives in the small town of Crestwood, supported Massie in past elections but did not like his lack of support for some of the president’s agenda, including last year’s tax and spending bill, known as the One Big Beautiful Bill.

“Some of his votes just did not make sense to me,” Scherzer said.

Massie argued that voters did not have to choose between Trump and him, nothing that he voted with his party the vast majority of the time. As for the remainder, he said those were on proposals that violated his America First principles such as adding to the national debt and getting into military entanglements like the war with Iran.

Massie has voted against U.S. aid to Israel and faced accusations of antisemitism. He has denied the charges, arguing that he is generally against all foreign aid. But the race drew in millions of dollars against him from pro-Israel interest groups, including from the Republican Jewish Coalition Victory Fund.

That became a stump topic for Massie, who said the attempt to oust him was to send a warning to other lawmakers who oppose the president or aid to Israel.

In a last-minute pitch to Kentucky Republicans, Boebert posted photos of her with Massie and with Trump on the social platform X, saying, “I support both of these men.” Replying to that, Massie said: “she likes both Trump and me! Yes it’s possible!!”

Trump lashed out at Boebert on his Truth Social platform, asking for a Republican to challenge her even though the filing deadline in her home state of Colorado has already passed. “Anybody that dumb deserves a good Primary fight!” he wrote.

McConnell went largely unmentioned in primary for his seat

Barr and Cameron tiptoed around their relationship with McConnell, whom they previously called a mentor.

McConnell criticized Trump over the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol and more recently voted against some of his Cabinet picks. He is stepping down after becoming the longest serving Senate leader in American history, coinciding with a transformation of the party under Trump.

Many Republicans, while admiring McConnell’s achievements, see him as out of step with the Make America Great Again and America First movements spawned by Trump. Both Barr and Cameron took note, and while ingratiating themselves to the president, they put some distance between themselves and the senator.

For a keen NBA analyst, the Hack-A-Mitch strategy should never be implemented half-heartedly.

Kenny Atkinson, the coach of the Cavaliers, must either fully commit to this tactic, even if Mitchell Robinson makes a few successful shots, or abandon it altogether.

“If you decide to take that path, then stick with it,” Tim Legler, ESPN’s lead analyst for Tuesday’s Game 1, advised The Post. “Don’t back out if he makes two in a row or hits three out of four. Absolutely not. Let him take eight or ten shots.”

At 28, Robinson has established himself as a formidable rebounder for the Knicks, a reputation he solidified three years ago when he dominated the Cavaliers in a first-round playoff matchup. However, his inconsistent and often poor free-throw shooting has plagued his court time, as evidenced by his average of just 14.4 minutes per game in the playoffs, with a free-throw success rate of only 38 percent.

Amid the persistent hum of a hovering drone, the future was being pieced together right before our eyes: new beginnings taking shape from the remnants of the past, one empty plot at a time.

Developers were already eyeing their opportunities. On February 18, 2025, a crisp winter sun cast its light on the scarred earth where a home once stood at 575 Via de la Paz. The land lay bare, cleared and leveled.

Earlier that same morning, a team from the Army Corps of Engineers had meticulously covered the exposed soil with a plastic tarp. This synthetic covering stretched out like a protective layer, starkly contrasting the gray dust beneath.

The property at 575 Via de la Paz was the inaugural site among thousands slated for clearance in the weeks ahead, a process quickly heralded as a significant achievement.

Governor Gavin Newsom, speaking from Sacramento, celebrated the progress, describing it as an unprecedented pace of recovery. He emphasized the collaborative effort, stating, “We’re working hand-in-hand with President Trump and his administration to remove debris as swiftly as possible, enabling Angelenos to return and begin rebuilding their homes.”

The Olympics remained the goal and by now the governor had publicly declared the summer event ‘The Recovery Games,’ linking the Olympics and its impact on the economy directly to the rebuild.

‘The mayor and the governor were thrilled with the progress,’ said one City Hall staffer. ‘The Olympics became its own kind of branding for the rebuild.’

That made 575 a perfect photo op.

The Olympics were dubbed ‘The Recovery Games’ in the race to rebuild LA

Mayor Karen Bass and Governor Gavin Newsom tour downtown as the Palisades Fire continues to burn

What was designed as efficiency quickly became what critics described as reckless acceleration, says Vigliotti

Mayor Karen Bass appeared at the lot in a city-issued field jacket, standing beside an Army Corps engineer. It was 18 days after the Palisades fire was declared fully contained. What the Army Corps had once projected as an 18-month slog of hazardous cleanup was now being celebrated as conquered in weeks.

The mayor’s jacket, the bandaged earth, and the official line all broadcast the unmistakable message that Los Angeles was moving forward.

Bass’s words carried the triumph of speed: ‘Our focus is on making sure we rebuild the Palisades as quickly and safely as possible, and today marks a major milestone that’s months ahead of expectations. This underscores my commitment to drive this wildfire recovery forward in record time.’

What emerged was not recovery but a race – and Bass, Trump and Newsom had all waved the checkered flag welcoming residents in.

To speed the process, the city unveiled a ‘One-Stop Rebuilding Center,’ a single hall meant to collapse years of red tape into a matter of days for residents who were now officially allowed back in.

Under its roof sat every desk that once dragged a homeowner across town: building and safety, planning, permits, zoning, even insurance liaisons. Forms that used to require months of back-and-forth could now be stamped in an afternoon.

But what was designed as efficiency quickly became what critics described as reckless acceleration. Within days, some realtors marketed cleared parcels as investment opportunities. Listings boasted that new homes could rise 10 percent larger than those lost, and that groundbreaking could happen quickly.

‘Now made easier with expedited permitting under the Mayor’s Executive Order, this property offers a rare chance to create your dream home without delay,’ one ad teased.

The fires burn a building on Sunset Boulevard – the city’s recovery became a race against time

Wreckage of homes that were destroyed were cleared in record time

The hazardous clean-up in the aftermath of the fires was completed in weeks – despite a more than year-long projection

‘This street-to-street lot has been professionally cleared and is ready for immediate construction, with fast-track permitting in place allowing for up to 10% additional square footage,’ promised another.

Empty lots, branded now as ‘rare opportunities’ sold for more than they had before the town burned.

In the Palisades, the selling point was no longer the house but the absence of it. Even the lack of guardrails became part of the pitch: ‘Exempt from full Coastal Commission review, the lot provides significant advantages for streamlining the permitting process.’

By the end of February, the first foundations were being poured. Construction began even as the cleanup remained unfinished, and before the risks were fully understood.

At the very moment residents were being allowed back into the Palisades to rebuild, local public health crews were pulling soil samples. Testing stretched from late February into late March. The findings were sobering.

In the Palisades, where nearly 7,000 homes and businesses had been destroyed or damaged, the soil tests revealed that 15 percent of properties – both cleared and awaiting clearance – showed elevated levels of cancer-causing toxins, including arsenic.

Across the San Gabriel foothills in Altadena, where over 9,400 structures were lost, the contamination was even more pronounced: Roughly one in three lots tested positive for heavy metals and PAHs.

The poisons did not respect lot lines. They drifted in the wind, settled on lawns, and clung to clothing.

The results were not publicly released until April 10. By then, some families were already rebuilding or returning to homes that weren’t destroyed. Public health officials urged residents to take precautions.

For those returning to their lots, the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health recommended wearing gloves, washing hands after contact, and using N95 or P100 masks to guard against inhaling ash and dust.

Governor Gavin Newsom said the rebuild was happening at ‘a record pace never seen before at this scale’

Reality TV star Spencer Pratt picks through the wreckage of his Pacific Palisades home

In the Palisades, nearly 7,000 homes and businesses were destroyed or damaged

Soil tests revealed that 15 percent of properties showed elevated levels of cancer-causing toxins, including arsenic

Residents were also urged to seal contaminated soil beneath fresh topsoil, grass clippings, and wood chips. Even mulch and plastic tarps were suggested as a temporary cover to keep toxins from blowing across neighborhoods.

The irony was complete: the same carpet of green plastic laid down at 575 Via de la Paz to mask a wound was also being suggested as a shield against carcinogens still loose in the air.

Families were moving back into homes and onto lots where the dust itself carried risk. And at the center of it all stood the mayor, government-issued jacket zipped against the February chill, the public face of ‘safety’ promising a return that was anything but.

The Olympic rush to rebuild outran the science.

And in that same rush, another flawed promise took hold. One that sounded, at first, like progress.

Officials assured residents that what would rise from the ash would be safer. Every new home, they said, would be built to modern fire codes. For a community where many of the homes lost had been built decades earlier, before those standards existed, it carried the weight of transformation.

But what was left unsaid was far more consequential: Modern code had already failed.

Hundreds of the homes destroyed in the Palisades had been built to those same standards. They were not relics. They were compliant.

They burned anyway.

Because ‘meeting code’ is not the same as being built to survive. Fire code sets a floor. A minimum threshold for approval, not a guarantee of protection. And in Los Angeles, that floor is where the rebuild has largely remained.

Concrete composite panels and steel framing, materials proven to withstand extreme heat and ember intrusion, offer dramatically greater fire resistance than wood-built homes that meet code.

They are not experimental. They are not prohibitively expensive. In many cases, they are cost-comparable. Homes built this way have not only survived wildfires, they have secured stable insurance in a market where insurers are rapidly retreating.

New homes are being built to code – but ‘meeting code’ is not the same as being built to survive

Homes being rebuilt are surrounded by cleared lots – but is the rapid rebuild coming at a cost?

But choosing them would have required something the rebuild was designed to avoid: Time. Education. Friction.

And time was the one thing leadership had already decided to eliminate.

So the system defaulted to what it knew. Permits were issued. Plans were approved. And across the Palisades, the rebuild began not with reinvention, but with repetition – a community erased by fire, rebuilding to the very standard that had failed it.

In the year following the fires, Los Angeles outpaced other disaster zones in permitting. Roughly 20 percent of destroyed homes received residential building permits within a year, compared to about 2 percent in Lahaina after the 2023 Hawaii fires, and roughly 5 percent in Paradise after the 2018 Camp Fire.

It was, by every official measure, a success, even as many homeowners have struggled to break ground because of shortage in architects and builders.

What has sprung from lots in the Palisades resembles a lumber yard. Fresh wood framing rises where neighborhoods once stood. Sheets of plywood climb into place – house after house, lot after lot – recreating, almost exactly, what the fire erased.

At 15532 Bowdoin Street, one home breaks from the pattern. Its frame is steel. It stands out not because it is extravagant, but because it is rare.

The science is settled. The next fire is not hypothetical. In this landscape, it is inevitable. The only question is what will be left standing when it comes.

Copyright © 2026 by Jonathan Vigliotti. From the book TORCHED by Jonathan Vigliotti, published by One Signal/Atria, an Imprint of Simon & Schuster, Inc. Printed by permission. 

In a related case, federal prosecutors have charged a Canadian man residing in Massachusetts with illegally participating in multiple federal and state elections by misrepresenting his citizenship status.

Sunny Manhertz, a lawful permanent resident of the United States, allegedly registered to vote in Saugus, Massachusetts, and is accused of casting ballots in various local, state, primary, and federal elections spanning the years 2008, 2012, 2016, 2020, and 2024, according to the Justice Department.

Manhertz faces charges of unlawful voting by an alien and the procurement, casting, or tabulation of ballots known to be materially false, fictitious, or fraudulent under state law.

He appeared in federal court in Boston on Tuesday to address these charges.

Sunny Manhertz, 40, allegedly checked “Yes” on a Massachusetts registration form that asked “Are you a Citizen of the United States of America?” (Justice Department)

On March 1, 2016, Manhertz submitted a Massachusetts Official Voter Registration Form under his own name. On the form, he checked “Yes” in response to the question, “Are you a Citizen of the United States of America?” according to charging documents.

Despite his non-citizen status, he continued to represent himself as a “qualified voter” by signing nomination papers for political candidates as recently as 2026, authorities said.

Manhertz, 40, became a permanent U.S. resident in 1987 but never applied for citizenship, court documents state.

People fill out their ballots at Cathedral High School in Boston, Mass., on Nov. 8, 2022. A Canadian man living in Massachusetts admitted to illegally voting in multiple local and federal elections since 2008, the Justice Department said. (Joseph Prezioso/AFP)

On Feb. 13, 2019, he allegedly submitted an application to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to replace his permanent resident card.

In response to a question regarding his legal status, Manhertz allegedly checked the box stating that he was a “Lawful Permanent Resident.” According to Saugus records, Manhertz has voted in multiple federal elections, including the 2012, 2016, 2020 and 2024 elections. 

When questioned by investigators outside his home on May 11, Manhertz allegedly admitted to filling out the 2016 voter registration form and voting in elections since 2008.

To confirm his participation in the most recent election, authorities obtained cell site records from his cellular provider.

Voters cast ballots during early voting at the Board of Elections Loop Super Site in Chicago, Ill., on Oct. 4, 2024. (KAMIL KRZACZYNSKI/AFP via Getty Images)

The records tracked his phone’s location, showing it “pinged” off towers near his assigned polling station on Nov. 5, 2024, prosecutors said.

Manhertz faces up to six years in prison.

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WASHINGTON — Billionaires Bill Ackman and Charles Schwab are spearheading a new advertising initiative in the nation’s capital this week, showcasing President Trump’s American Dream Accounts. The campaign, funded by their organization, Save Match Grow, aims to highlight retirement options for millions of workers lacking access to traditional 401(k) plans or similar workplace accounts.

Save Match Grow is deploying a mobile billboard to navigate through Washington, D.C., disseminating crucial information about these retirement accounts. “Congress has a pivotal opportunity to enhance the financial security of countless Americans by broadening the scope of American Dream Accounts,” stated Jessica Anderson, spokeswoman for Save Match Grow. “It’s imperative that our leaders capitalize on the momentum generated by the administration and work towards legislation that expands eligibility and increases the federal match’s value.”

Anderson emphasized the innovative nature of the program, describing it as a transformative policy that supports workers in achieving their American Dream. “The public is already showing strong support for this initiative, and it’s crucial that Congress moves swiftly to solidify this forward-thinking and practical proposal,” she urged.

Photographs released by the organization depict the billboard vehicle making its rounds near the U.S. Treasury Department on Monday, capturing the attention of passersby.

Photos from the group show the billboard car driving near the US Treasury Department on Monday.

On April 30, Trump signed executive action setting up the IRAs for low-income earners who will each receive a yearly federal matching contribution of up to $1,000.

Individuals making less than $35,500 annually, heads of household making $53,250 per year, or couples making $71,000 each year are all eligible, amounting to more than 40 million Americans without traditional retirement accounts.

The Treasury implemented the accounts by leveraging the Federal Saver’s Match program to boost IRA savings.

The American Dream Accounts will particularly help independent contractors, part-time workers, such as those who work gig jobs for Uber, small business employees and self-employed individuals.

TrumpIRA.gov — which launches in January 2027 — provides Americans with the opportunity to enroll in the “high-quality, low-cost” IRA plans offered by private-sector financial institutions, according to the White House.

“I promised to make the same types of retirement accounts enjoyed by federal employees available to all Americans, and that’s what we’re doing. It only seemed fair,” Trump said when signing the order in April.

The Trump administration has effectively halted any potential future IRS audits concerning Donald Trump, his family, or his business entities. This move could potentially save him from a tax liability estimated at as much as $100 million.

A Department of Justice document indicates that the IRS is now permanently restricted from conducting any “examinations” of Trump, his “related or affiliated individuals,” and any associated trusts or businesses.

This stipulation was included in a recent agreement, part of a settlement reached this week to resolve a $10 billion lawsuit Trump had filed against the IRS. As part of the settlement, a $1.8 billion fund was set up for his political allies.

The directive was signed by Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche, who previously served as Trump’s personal attorney. It was discreetly uploaded to the Justice Department’s website.

An earlier IRS audit in 2024 on Trump’s tax returns could have resulted in a tax bill exceeding $100 million. It remains uncertain if that specific audit has been finalized or if Trump and his affiliates are facing any other audits currently.

Current IRS procedure mandates an annual audit of President’s tax returns.

Federal law prohibits the president, vice president, and other White House officials from instructing the IRS on audits. 

The Justice Department, however, appears to be using a loophole that allows the attorney general to halt existing tax investigations.

Donald Trump’s administration is moving to block the Internal Revenue Service from ever pursuing past audits against the President, his family, or his businesses, a maneuver that could spare him a tax bill estimated at up to $100 million

A prior IRS audit in 2024 on Trump’s tax filings could have cost Trump more than $100 million

The one-page order was signed by Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche, Trump’s former personal attorney, and quietly posted to the Justice Department’s website

The audit, uncovered in May 2024 by The New York Times, revolved around Trump’s Chicago skyscraper, the Trump International Hotel and Tower. 

The IRS accused the President of writing off his losses on the building twice by first claiming his investment was ‘worthless’ on a 2008 tax return. 

Trump then allegedly changed ownership of the property into a new partnership he also controlled to declare another $168 million in losses over the next ten years. 

Tax experts told the Times that the revision sought by the IRS could leave Trump owing more than $100 million, plus interest and potential penalties.

The current settlement deal by the IRS is tied to a $1.776 billion fund which will have the power to issue formal apologies and monetary relief owed to claimants who were subjected to ‘lawfare’ under the Biden administration.

This is believed to include some 1,600 January 6 defendants, as well as Trump’s political allies.

While Trump is barred from directly receiving payments from the fund, entities associated with him are not explicitly prohibited from filing additional ones.

The President, his sons Don Jr and Eric, and the Trump Organization initially filed suit against the Treasury and IRS in the Southern District of Florida federal court after the leak of their tax returns in 2019.

Five commissioners will be appointed to oversee the fund and disburse payments to those seeking redress for alleged political persecution under Biden.

The audit, uncovered in May 2024 by The New York Times, revolved around Trump’s Chicago skyscraper, the Trump International Hotel and Tower

‘QAnon Shaman’ Jacob Chansley, right with fur hat, during the January 6 riot in 2021

Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche, Trump’s former attorney who defended him during his criminal trials, will be responsible for appointments to the commission. Trump has the authority to remove any member.

Blanche was grilled by a Democratic senator on Capitol Hill Tuesday, with some calling it the most corrupt act in presidential history.

The AG defended the fund, stating that it would not be limited to Republicans or those investigated by the Biden DOJ. Blanche said all payouts will be a matter of public record.

He described the fund as ‘a lawful process for victims of lawfare and weaponization to be heard and seek redress.’

Democratic Senator Chris Hollen pressed Blanche on whether Capitol rioters who assaulted police officers would be eligible for payment.

‘Anybody in this country is eligible to apply if they believe they were a victim of weaponization,’ Blanche replied.

It was not immediately clear who precisely would stand to benefit from the fund, but its creation reflects Trump’s long-running claims that the Justice Department during the Biden administration was weaponized against him.