Riverside Sheriff Chad Bianco remains steadfast in his pursuit of the California governor’s seat, despite appeals from the Republican camp urging him to step down in favor of leading conservative candidate Steve Hilton.

Hilton, taking the lead in recent polls, has pushed for Bianco to withdraw to bolster the chance of a Republican presence in the general election. However, Bianco stands his ground, expressing skepticism about Hilton’s ability to defeat a Democrat in the November showdown.

Bianco has accused Governor Gavin Newsom of intentionally strengthening Hilton’s campaign, suggesting Democrats prefer to challenge the ex-Fox News presenter.

“Gavin Newsom and his allies on the left are actively funding mailers to ensure that Steve Hilton becomes their opponent,” Bianco stated on X this Tuesday.

According to Politico, the Democratic Governors Association has recently circulated mail highlighting Hilton’s strong conservative credentials.

“They know a 1 on 1 with Steve ensures a Democrat win in November,” Bianco said.

Hilton pleaded with Bianco to end his campaign in a California Post opinion piece, writing: “Chad, let’s do this for the sake of the state we both love.”

“The numbers don’t lie: You can’t win, but your continued presence in the race means that California could lose — big time. The power to avoid that is in your hands,” Hilton wrote.

A poll published Tuesday by the California Democratic Party shows Hilton and Democrat Xavier Becerra leading the field, with Hilton getting 22% voter support compared to Becerra’s 21%. Bianco had just 10% support with just two weeks remaining before the June 2 primary.

The top two vote-getters will advance to the November general election.

Hilton cited Newsom’s recent reference to a “break the glass” strategy to stop two Republicans from advancing to the general election.

The governor didn’t elaborate much on the specifics, but alluded to “action efforts” behind the scenes, saying he is “making my case” to “encourage that doesn’t happen.”

Ansley Brown never anticipated that the unassuming home nestled in the woods of rural Georgia—purchased by her mother during a time of financial hardship—could one day be claimed under eminent domain for the development of sprawling AI data centers.

“They are literally taking my childhood home,” the 27-year-old shared in an exclusive interview, standing outside the residence she first moved into in 2002, where her mother continues to reside.

“They plan to demolish this property, including all two and a half acres, to erect transmission poles for the AI data centers,” she expressed with a mix of disbelief and frustration.

For her mother, Angela Hall, this house symbolizes a significant achievement hard-won through perseverance.

“Before this, I was a very poor single mother,” Hall, 49, recounted from her living room, reflecting on the struggles she overcame to secure a stable home for her family.

‘I lived in a housing project when Ansley was tiny. I worked my butt off for this house.’

Now Hall has until August 1 to find and buy a new home she can afford – and move her furniture, dogs, cats, chickens, and 20 koi fish out of the property she thought she would someday leave to her granddaughter.

Brown said she had never heard of the multi-billion dollar industrial projects tied to the AI boom that are popping up all over the US until representatives from Georgia Power began showing up in the area about a year ago to conduct surveys and assessments.

Ansley Brown, 27, stands outside the Georgia home where she grew up – a property her family says could now be taken through eminent domain to help power AI data centers

Brown’s mother, Angela Hall, 49, escaped poverty and public housing to buy the rural Georgia property she says she hoped to someday leave to her grandchild

Later, she said, they came to her mother’s door and visited other homeowners nearby. 

Brown says residents also received what she called ‘intimidating’ letters saying their properties would be taken through eminent domain and that they had no choice.

Electric utility firm Georgia Power says it needs additional transmission lines to meet soaring electricity demand driven by the rapid expansion of AI data centers, particularly in Coweta and Fayette counties.

As many as 21 homes and 330 properties – sometimes just vacant private land – are reportedly being taken by Georgia Power, although the company said in a statement that they are planning to pay homeowners above market value for their houses and that they are in positive negotiations with many residents including Angela Hall.

Brown’s fight, which began with TikTok videos that went viral, centers specifically on Georgia Power and the land needed for transmission infrastructure.

But across the area surrounding Newnan, a broader battle is unfolding over the AI buildout itself.

The 35-mile radius around her home has become a flashpoint for activism against a spate of data centers planned for what residents describe as tranquil, pastoral neighborhoods.

‘They think we’re a bunch of rednecks and they can dump these centers here and we won’t be able to do anything about it,’ Brown said.

Residents in Coweta County say sprawling data-center projects are threatening to transform peaceful countryside into industrial zones dominated by warehouses and power lines. Pictured: An AI data center in Ashburn, Virginia 

Electric utility firm Georgia Power says it needs additional transmission lines to meet soaring electricity demand driven by the rapid expansion of AI data centers. Pictured: Stock image of an AI data center in Indiana

The biggest fight is against Project Sail, a proposed $17 billion AI data center planned on roughly 830 acres of rural land in western Coweta County near Newnan.

The current plan calls for nine buildings totaling more than 4.3 million square feet and an estimated 900 megawatts of power demand — enough electricity to rival a nuclear reactor’s output.

Despite a year of fierce opposition, Coweta commissioners approved the project in a 3-2 rezoning vote in April, allowing the land to shift from rural conservation to industrial use.

But groups like Stop Project Sail and Citizens for a Rural Coweta have since taken legal action, arguing the county ignored its own land-use plans and environmental concerns.

Among those fighting the project is Laura Beth Sofolo, a 47-year-old mother of six in Newnan.

She said her family moved to Georgia seeking peace and open space after leaving Colorado.

She and her husband bought a home on acreage with woods and a creek where their children ride bikes and take evening walks, only to discover in December 2024 that Project Sail was slated to be built next door.

‘They’re saying 10 years of constant construction,’ Sofolo told the Daily Mail.

Brown’s viral TikTok videos documenting the battle over her family home have drawn national attention to the hidden costs of the AI boom

Georgia Power said it was aware of Ansley Brown’s videos and told the Daily Mail it spent months negotiating with her mother and made her an offer that was 125% higher than her appraiser’s valuation, but Hall ultimately chose not to finalize the agreement

‘The roads here are not very safe, and now they’re talking about putting in roundabouts and redoing roads, and these are just local two-way country roads.’

‘We have kids on the spectrum,’ she said. ‘I’m very worried about the generators going off and them getting upset, and just the constant noise. 

‘One reason we moved out here was because they need the peace and quiet.’

‘Now we don’t know what to do, or what we can do. Property values here have already nosedived. There are houses near me that have been listed for months.’

Georgia Power said it was aware of Ansley Brown’s videos and told the Daily Mail it spent months negotiating with her mother and made her an offer that was 125% higher than her appraiser’s valuation, but that Angela Hall ultimately chose not to finalize the agreement.

The company added that eminent domain is used only as a last resort and occurs in fewer than 1% of its land transactions, with most agreements providing compensation above market value or additional benefits for homeowners.

Ansley Brown said the higher offer came only after her TikTok video went viral and they had offered much less money originally.

But she said she and her mother want to fight to keep her home.

Brown says the modest property was meant to be a ‘forever’ home that she and her mother believed would be kept in the family for generations

Now Hall has until August 1 to find and buy a new home she can afford – and move her furniture, dogs, cats, chickens, and 20 koi fish out of the property 

Georgia is hardly alone in this battle. 

Across the US, similar fights over AI data centers are unfolding in Virginia, Colorado, Arizona, Tennessee, Michigan, and Texas, where residents have raised concerns over noise, water use and rapid industrial growth.

In Utah, backlash has grown around the proposed 66,000-acre Stratos AI Project. Box Elder County commissioners approved the project earlier this month after contentious public hearings and thousands of objections.

Ansley Brown says she sympathizes with residents there.

Going up against the companies driving the AI data-center boom leaves many people feeling powerless, she said.

‘It makes you feel like America is not free,’ Brown said.

‘When you have a billion-dollar company and you yourself are just an average American, what are you supposed to do?’

Steve Swope, 69, a retired businessman who lives on a farm in Newnan, is among the activists fighting Project Sail, although he says he’s not opposed to all AI data centers.

Across Georgia, in Decatur, demonstrators are seen participate in a protest against a planned data center in the Ellenwood neighborhood in December 

Demonstrators participate in a protest against a planned data center in the Ellenwood neighborhood of Decatur, Georgia 

‘Technology is important,’ Swope told the Daily Mail.

‘Data centers are going to be important going forward. They’re essential infrastructure for our country, but they need to be put in the proper place, not in rural neighborhoods on top of families.’

But Swope also believes the economics driving the AI boom may prove unstable.

Swope sees parallels to the dot-com collapse of the late 1990s. Recent estimates suggest building the infrastructure needed for the AI boom could cost between roughly $3 trillion and more than $5 trillion globally over the next several years.

‘But revenue generated by data centers in 2024 was somewhere around $600 billion,’ Swope said.

‘How is ChatGPT going to make up their investment in data centers by selling $20 subscriptions to the general public? The answer is no. That will never happen.’

Swope warned that partially completed facilities could become abandoned industrial shells if the market cools before construction is finished.

‘What happens to those buildings?’ he asked. ‘Who’s left holding the bag? The big companies like Microsoft will just walk away.’

‘They’ve despoiled the land. They literally ruin people’s lives, and they’ve got basically … giant rat farms.’

Last year the White House issued an executive order accelerating construction of data centers.

Critics say the order weakens regulatory review, offers loans and grants to developers and opens federal land for projects they view as noisy, electricity-and-water-intensive eyesores at best — and surveillance behemoths at worst.

Supporters, who often have financial ties to the AI data centers, argue the projects are an inevitable transformation necessary for economic growth and competition with China.

But Ansley Brown says it’s a ‘war’ for her and she won’t stop fighting.

‘This is supposed to be a forever home for my mom, and this home is actually supposed to be left to my daughter. So they are taking away from three generations.’

Her mother said she does not know whether her home can ultimately be saved, but hopes her family’s experience serves as a warning.

‘Let us be a red flag for what’s coming down the road,’ she said. ‘These data centers are destroying our way of life.’

‘We got to stand up, we got to get together and stand up and fight for what’s right.’

According to a recent report aired on Lebanon’s MTV television network, Hezbollah, a terrorist group recognized by the U.S. and based in Lebanon, is reportedly utilizing children from its scouting programs to participate in jihadist missions, often resulting in their deaths.

This alarming report, translated by the Middle East Media Research Institute (MEMRI) in Washington, D.C., emerges alongside U.S.-facilitated peace negotiations between Israel and Lebanon.

The report alleges that Hezbollah honors child fighters with grand funerals and public adulation, aiming to inspire other children to join their cause. According to MTV, Hezbollah views the sacrifice of child soldiers as a step towards achieving victory.

During a Jerusalem Day event in Nabatiyeh, Lebanon, on August 1, 2013, Hezbollah’s al-Mahdi scouts were seen parading with large images of Iran’s late leader Ayatollah Khomeini and the current Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. (Photo by Hussein Malla/AP)

It also claimed that Hezbollah uses its scout movements to cultivate an entire generation of obedient children prepared to die, through rhetoric that glorifies death and martyrdom. The MTV report, according to the MEMRI translation, said that “Hezbollah child soldiers have been used since the 1980s by this outlaw armed group. Not just as armed fighters but as Khomeini-loyal scouts.”

The late Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, founder of the Islamic Republic of Iran, reportedly exploited the use of Iranian children during the country’s 1980-1988 war against Iraq.

Matthew Levitt, a leading scholar on Hezbollah from the Washington Institute, said that “Hezbollah’s recruitment and radicalization of youth through its Mahdi Scouts is long documented,” other experts talking to Fox News Digital concurred.

“Hezbollah has boy scouts, and they have been taught jihad, and it is a well-known thing in Lebanon,” Mideast expert Walid Phares told Fox News Digital.

The Lebanon expert said they could be termed “children jihadists” who are preparing to become full Hezbollah fighters. Phares said they mostly assign them [the children of Hezbollah fighters] to spying and transporting ammunition. He argued if the scouts are getting funding from a ministry or national boy scouts association in Lebanon, they should be sanctioned if they have the evidence.

Multiple Fox News Digital Emails and phone calls to the World Organization of the Scouting Movement (WOSM) were not immediately returned. The U.S. branch of WOSM referred Fox News Digital to WOSM, which is in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

A Hezbollah expert from the Israel Alma Research and Education Center, Sarit Zehavi, called for action against the exploitation of children by the terror group.

“The only way to bring a change is to designate all of these allegedly civilian activities of Hezbollah and close the movement of its scouts, and enable the Shiites of Lebanon to have a different source of services, whether it is educational, formal or informal, which will be part of the Lebanese state, and not part of Hezbollah. The loyalty will be to the Lebanese state and not to Khomeini and the Islamic Republic.”

She added, “This is only something Lebanon can do with a lot of international pressure, of course, led by the United States.”

An Israeli diplomat, Tammy Rahamimoff-Honig, posted on X: “Hezbollah sacrifices Lebanese children to further the ambitions of the Iranian regime. This isn’t ‘resistance’. It’s child abuse.”

Lebanon’s Ambassador to the U.S. declined to provide comment for this article.

WASHINGTON (AP) — The NAACP has issued a call to action for Black athletes and supporters, urging them to boycott sports programs at public universities in states where, according to the organization, Black voting rights are under threat.

Unveiled on Tuesday, the “Out of Bounds” initiative appeals to Black athletes, their families, alumni, and fans to refrain from offering athletic or financial backing to significant public universities located in states that have taken steps to curb, diminish, or abolish Black voting influence.

Should Black athletes adhere to the boycott, it could significantly impact the rosters of leading football and basketball teams within the Southeastern Conference and Atlantic Coast Conference.

The NAACP joins other groups in response to widespread gerrymandering following a U.S. Supreme Court decision that weakened a critical component of the Voting Rights Act of 1965.

This boycott emerges amidst a surge of civil rights activism throughout the Southern U.S., where demonstrators are challenging Republican state legislatures’ redistricting strategies that dissolve majority-Black congressional districts. Activists are seeking ways to exert pressure on these GOP-led states, employing tactics such as mass protests and economic boycotts to counteract the redistricting plans.

“Across the South, Black athletes have helped build some of the most profitable college athletic programs in America,” said NAACP President Derrick Johnson. Johnson noted that the programs “generate hundreds of millions of dollars in annual revenue, national television value, alumni donations, merchandising sales, ticket sales, and brand equity — much of it powered by Black football and basketball talent.”

The NAACP’s campaign calls out Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, Texas and South Carolina as states to boycott, arguing that the athletic programs of those states’ flagship universities are especially reliant on Black athletic talent and should protect Black political interests.

“Black athletes should not be asked to generate wealth, prestige, and power for state institutions while those same states strip political power from Black communities,” Johnson said.

The timing of the initiative comes at a moment in the college athletic calendar that might make it difficult for it to have any immediate impact. The transfer portals for the high-profile Division I sports of football and basketball are all closed until 2027.

There may be an opportunity to influence prominent high school recruits who are still weighing their college prospects for the fall of 2027 and beyond. While many schools have received nonbinding verbal agreements from football and basketball players, those agreements won’t become official until late fall at the earliest.

The signing window for basketball opens in mid-November — about a week after the midterm elections — and the 72-hour early signing period for football arrives in the first week of December.

There is a chance that recruits could attempt to put pressure on flagship institutions in the targeted states by threatening to sign somewhere else. The reality, however, is that the pockets of those schools run deep, and asking a teenager to factor politics into a decision that could produce a life-altering financial windfall before they are even old enough to vote could prove tenuous.

Black lawmakers themselves are also putting pressure on athletic leagues to take action against Republican-led states that may redistrict longtime Black members of Congress.

The Congressional Black Caucus on Monday sent a letter to the commissioners of the SEC and ACC athletic conferences, as well as NCAA President Charlie Baker, that its members will oppose the SCORE Act, a bill to standardize athletes’ contracting rights across the country, unless conference leaders oppose GOP-led redistricting efforts in states that include major conference members.

“The Congressional Black Caucus believes institutions that profit from Black talent and Black communities have a responsibility to stand with those communities when their fundamental rights are under attack,” the CBC said in a Monday statement. “Silence in the face of injustice is not neutrality — it is complicity.”