Category: News

Mike Lindell has been waging war against an unexpected source: rightwing media. Last week, MyPillow Guy, who’s so ride-or-die for Trump he’s willing to lose his entire fortune over baseless voter fraud claims, fomented a protest against Fox News. Almost no one showed up. Then he failed to pull off a 96-hour Thanksgiving marathon dedicated to conspiracy theories about the 2020 election. Dozens tuned in. Then he pulled ads from a popular rightwing Christian news network who he felt were insufficiently bonkers. Thing is, they don’t care.

As per The Daily Beast, Lindell spent part of his aforementioned marathon railing against Salem Radio Network, which airs the likes of Seb Gorka and Dennis “I’m Happy I Caught COVID” Prager. They hadn’t had him on in a while, he whined, and called them “worse” than Dominion, the voting system company suing him for $1.3 billion. So he took his toys — i.e., ads that could have convinced people to purchase his product and therefore supply him with cash flow — and went home.

But a spokesperson for Salem said they’re unfazed. “No, we’re not upset. He has the right if he wants to do that,” they told The Daily Beast, adding that no one is making a concerted effort to convince him to reverse that move. Do they at least hope he’ll reconsider? The spokesperson said, simply, “No.”

What they did say is that, despite what Lindell told his dozens of listeners, none of their hosts are prohibited from discussing conspiracy theories. “There is no block on any of my hosts from talking about the Supreme Court or anything else,” they said. “My hosts are not banned from talking about anything.”

It’s not the first time Lindell has pulled MyPillow ads from conservative media. He did the same to Fox News, which must have hurt, considering they have so few big time advertisers considering the sometimes dangerous nonsense that spews from their hosts’ mouths. But then he changed his mind.

(Via The Daily Beast)

Ever since it was announced that none other than Ariana Grande would be replacing Nick Jonas as a judge on The Voice, Ari and fellow judge Kelly Clarkson have become fast friends. There was that time they teamed up to give Aretha Franklin’s “Respect” the proper dual cover it deserves, and it looks like Ariana is always having fun when she’s with her new coworkers. And what could be more fun than getting into a diva medley face off? During an appearance on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon‘s segment “That’s My Jam,” Ari and Kelly went head to head singing snippets from famous diva bangers.

Since this happened last week when plenty of people were already completely checked out for the holiday, and maybe even traveling since that wasn’t really an option last year, I’m posting it now so everyone can see what happens when Ari tackles a little bit of Britney. Coming on the heels of the announcement that Britney is finally free of the conservatorship that ruled her life for years, Ari happily launched into “Oops I Did It Again” when that track came up on the wheel. She even remembers all the dance moves to the song, and does Britney proud with the snippet. Check it out above, along with Ari’s take on Cher and Kelly’s take on Shania, plus many more.

Back in October we first learned that Ed Sheeran and Elton John had made a Christmas song together, and in November Sheeran let us know the song title. Though “Merry Christmas” might not seem like the most original name, apparently there were no other songs with that exact title! Who knew.

Anyway, the song is going to be here very soon, as in, this week soon. And in order to let fans know that his very quick follow-up to a brand new album, =, would be coming this week, Ed did a little Love Actually cosplaying. Recreating that infamous scene from the movie when a friend of Natalie Portman’s husband comes to the door to privately let her know he loves her, Sheeran let us all know that Elton would be helping him bring some cheer very soon. Check it out below.

Here’s the news the video delivers, via the notecard trick: Hello, Last Christmas I received a call from my mate Elton John. And he told me we should do a “Christmas Song” and I replied, ‘Yeah, maybe in 2022.’ But I actually wrote the chorus that day, and here we are. Our Christmas song, “Merry Christmas,” is out this Friday. Go pre-order or pre-save it now. It has sleigh bells a lot of them…”

As Elton notes in his tweet, all the proceeds from this year’s Christmas period are going to the Ed Sheeran Suffolk Music Foundation and the Elton John AIDS Foundation.

The college football coaching carousel has been spinning at an alarming rate this season, reaching mach speed on Sunday when Lincoln Riley shockingly left Oklahoma to become the new head coach at USC, completely overshadowing Florida’s hire of Billy Napier earlier in the day.

Along with a sudden opening at Oklahoma, LSU still was seeking a new head coach — ironically, Riley was shooting down LSU rumors on Saturday night, less than 24 hours before bolting for USC. The Tigers were always expected to try and make a splash, and with Riley getting poached it seems the folks down in Baton Rouge got an idea for how to try and do the same. On Monday, rumblings began picking up that Notre Dame head coach Brian Kelly was atop the Tigers wish list, but few expected him to be able to be wooed away from South Bend.

However, later in the evening Yahoo’s Pete Thamel — who broke the Riley to USC news on Sunday — brought word that a deal was expected to be done within the next 24 hours, creating another massive domino situation in college football. Ross Dellenger of SI confirmed the news shortly after.

Kelly officially has a 113-40 record in 12 seasons at Notre Dame, including an 11-1 record this season that has the Irish, potentially, eyeing another Playoff berth should some things shake out in their favor this coming weekend. For him to leave for Baton Rouge means the money must be outrageous, and also means Notre Dame is in the market for a new coach — which will surely lead to another major opening.

Cincinnati head coach Luke Fickell will be the expected frontrunner for the Notre Dame job, as he’s led the Bearcats to an undefeated 12-0 season, handing the Irish their only loss of the season in the process, and if there’s a non-Ohio State job he’d leave Cincinnati for, most feel Notre Dame would be it. Otherwise, you could see a number of other prominent coaching names on the Irish wish list, but what’s certain is there will only be more and more ripple effects felt from this seismic shift.

The tragedy that was this year’s Astroworld festival left a number of attendees dead, and the youngest of which is a nine-year-old boy. Though Travis Scott has been deeply apologetic about his deadly event, and even offered to help cover funeral costs for those who lost loved ones at the festival, some families of victims aren’t interested in his money.

The lawsuits against Travis and the festival organizers are still coming in, though, including one filed by Treston Blount, the father of Ezra Blount, the nine-year-old who was trampled to death during the festival. Ezra was laid to rest last without any help from Scott, though Scott’s lawyers said the rapper’s offer to cover expenses would have no impact on the lawsuit.

“Your client’s offer is declined,” Blount family attorney Bob Hilliard said in a response obtained by Rolling Stone. “I have no doubt Mr. Scott feels remorse. His journey ahead will be painful. He must face and hopefully see that he bears some of the responsibility for this tragedy. There may be, and I hope there is, redemption and growth for him on the other side of what this painful process will be — and perhaps one day, once time allows some healing for the victims and acceptance of responsibility by Mr. Scott and others, Treston and Mr. Scott might meet, as there is also healing in that.”

Ezra was on his dad Treston’s shoulders during the festival, until the two were trapped in a crowd surge and Treston passed out. Ezra was later found in a coma at a nearby hospital, but ultimately succumbed to his injuries.

As the old saying goes, “do good and it will come back to you in unexpected ways.”

Sometimes those “unexpected ways” come in four-wheel drive.

Oscar Rodriguez is a Navy veteran, church leader and personal trainer in Culver City, California. More important than that, he is a good person with a giving heart. In addition to taking care of his 75-year-old mom, he also makes meals for women victims of domestic violence.

Rodriguez thought he won the ultimate prize: going to a special VIP screening of Dwayne Johnson’s new film “Red Notice,” and getting pulled up on stage by The Rock himself. But it only got better from there.

Thanking him for his service, praising him for giving back to his community and bonding with him as a fellow “mamma’s boy,” Johnson stands with Rodriguez on the stage exchanging hugs … until Johnson says “I wanna show you something real quick.”

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A video on The Rock’s Instagram shows the two walking out to a giant black Ford Raptor pick-up truck, where Johnson grabs a note and hands it to Rodriguez, saying, “I wrote this card for you. It’s a little thing.”

Playing along, a bewildered Rodriguez reads: “Thank you for your service brother. Enjoy your new tru-”

Rodriguez collapsed with tears before finishing his sentence. And rightly so. It’s not every day you’re gifted Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson’s very own custom truck.

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The caption on Johnson’s post explains that he originally planned to give Rodriguez the same Porsche Taycan driven in the movie. Porsche said no, but the Rock still said yes, and aimed to “do one better.”

Honestly, I don’t know which is more heartwarming: the fact that this fan gets the ultimate surprise from one of his heroes, or seeing two grown men with such a huge display of emotion.

Bursting up from the ground, Rodriguez goes in for yet another hug with the Hollywood icon. His voice high and cracking from passion, he exclaims, “Yo, I can’t tell you how many times I’ve seen you in this truck,” while sobbing and holding his chest. Rodriguez then Facetimes his girlfriend, and shrieks of “oh my god” can be heard from the phone.

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As Rodriguez peels out of the parking lot in style, Johnson tells viewers “his laundry list of caring credentials, it’s pretty amazing. So it’s just an honor for me to bring a little bit of joy to a dude who deserves probably a lot more than just my truck.” Not missing a beat, he adds “and now I can figure out…how to get home.”

The Rock might be without a car, but Oscar Rodriguez now has a daily reminder that kindness matters, and that acts of generosity do get noticed. Something tells me that he does these things from something other than extrinsic motivation. Still, a new car always helps.

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On Thanksgiving, Rodriguez posted that he plans to emulate Johnson’s positivity, using the “new whip” to pay it forward by encouraging people and lifting their spirits, bringing cheer.

As Rodriguez’s story reminds us, “it’s just love.” Wonderful, surprising moments happen when we remember to act from our hearts.

Most Americans know by now that Joe Biden has worked hard to overcome a stutter he’s had his whole life. His story of success, living a life of public service as a senator, vice president and now president of the United States, has inspired many who struggle to get their words to come out the way they want them to.

A video of Biden talking to a little girl who stutters has gone viral on Twitter, with people praising the president for his kindness and decency. Rufus Gifford, who shared the video, wrote, “My amazing niece and goddaughter Avery has struggled with a stutter much of her life. She was just told by a guy who knows a little something about it that she can be anything she wants to in this world. A day she will never ever forget. Thank you sir.”

In the clip, Biden tells Avery, “That’s all you have to do, and it’ll go away, I promise. You just keep at it.”

“Thank you,” the girl says as she gives the president a hug.

My amazing niece and goddaughter Avery has struggled with a stutter much of her life.nnShe was just told by a guy who knows a little something about it that she can be anything she wants to in this world. nnA day she will never ever forget. nnThank you sir. pic.twitter.com/RDP5Y0FfTa

— Rufus Gifford (@Rufus Gifford)
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Biden then invites Avery and her family to the White House, which Avery is clearly thrilled about.

This is not the first time we’ve seen President Biden inspire a kid who stutters. During the 2020 presidential race, Joe Biden met a 13-year-old from New Hampshire on the campaign trail. Brayden Harrington struggled with a stutter and the two bonded over it when they met.

“Don’t let it define you,” Biden told him. “You are smart as hell.”

Brayden ended up writing and delivering a speech endorsing Biden at the Democratic National Convention and also recited a portion of a John F. Kennedy address for Biden’s presidential inauguration.

To go from worrying about stuttering to giving two speeches in front of millions in a matter of months is incredibly impressive. That’s the power of encouragement and inspiration.

“I’m just a regular kid, and in a short amount of time, Joe Biden made me more confident about something that’s bothered me my whole life,” Brayden said in his DNC speech. “Joe Biden cared.”

In 2015, when he was serving as vice president, Biden gave a speech on stuttering at the American Institute for Stuttering. He explained how, as a child, he would recite passages from Yeats and Emerson in the mirror and practice controlling his face and speech. He described how his mother encouraged him to not let his stutter define him. And he shared how having a stutter made him a more compassionate person.

“I learned so much from having to deal with stuttering,” he said. “It gave me insight into other people’s pain, other people’s suffering. It made me understand that everyone—everyone—has something they’re fighting to overcome, and sometimes trying to hide.”

Presidents have power and influence that goes far beyond politics. Thank you, President Biden, for showing others who stutter that their struggles don’t define them and that they definitely don’t have to hold them back.

Of the abuses Donald Trump heaped upon the American people over his four years in office, Melania’s Christmas decorations rank low on the totem pole. They were more of a punching bag than a cause for concern, an annual chance for people to do some therapeutic holiday dragging. There were the blood-red trees, which many thought looked suspiciously/unnervingly like The Handmaid’s Tale. Last year, her final stint, people were making jokes even before the tree was dragged into the White House.

So when the current First Lady, Dr. Jill Biden, unveiled her perfectly adequate, more traditional decorations, which didn’t make people feel like they’d stumbled into an unhappy person’s darkest nightmare, there was much rejoicing.

Dr. Biden, unlike Melania, really loves Christmas. She also wanted her maiden voyage decking the White House halls to reflect what she’s learned from the American people. The year’s theme is “Gifts From the Heart,” and she even went so far as to write a commemorative guidebook explaining her methodology.

“The things we hold sacred unite us and transcend distance, time, and even the constraints of a pandemic: faith, family, and friendship; a love of the arts, learning, and nature; gratitude, service, and community; unity and peace,” Biden wrote. “These are the gifts that tie together the heart strings of our lives. These are the gifts from the heart.”

So there are gingerbread houses, and photos of loved ones, and stockings above the fireplace, and it’s all very nice. But people are focusing more on the absence of Melania.

Some admitted that they perversely missed Melania’s hellscape Yuletide sense.

But not everyone was a fan of Dr. Biden’s decorations.

The Trump era was one of constant anxiety and unexpected, even inventively surreal destructions of norms. Joe Biden effectively ran on restoring order and sanity, and his wife is following suit. But if you’re fearing that one day, in a few years hence, Donald Trump could return, then Melania is probably right there with you.

(Via The Daily Beast)

The Golden State Warriors are off to a flying start in 2021-22, posting the NBA’s best record at 18-2 and dominating on both ends. With Stephen Curry operating at an MVP level and Draymond Green anchoring what has been the league’s top defense through 20 games, the Warriors are clearly giving off fun vibes again, and Golden State has a prime time showdown against the similarly hot Phoenix Suns on Tuesday. In advance of that high-profile tilt, Curry chatted with Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports and, in the midst of a highly intriguing discussion, he explained why the Warriors not making the NBA’s Orlando Bubble in 2020 was his “lowest point” of a trying two-year period.

“Watching the bubble was the lowest point of those two years,” Curry told Haynes. “There was a part of me that felt it was nice to get refreshed, and a part of me really missed playing on that stage. That was the first time in seven years of not being in the playoffs. We know each player had their own experiences in the bubble, but I would have loved to have been there competing. I would say that was the lowest point in terms of my basketball experience because I felt so far away from it. This is what I love to do.”

Curry later said that he is “used to performing in certain times of the year,” and that likely contributed to some of it, especially as he watched his contemporaries vying for a title. From there, Curry said it was hard “because we know what it’s like to prepare for the playoffs and into a championship chase and how much fun that is,” and noted that was the “motivation (he) needed.”

It should be noted that it wasn’t as if the Warriors set the league ablaze in 2020-21, but Golden State did mount a much better performance and came on very strong down the stretch of the campaign. That may have set the stage for the “beautiful game” basketball that Steve Kerr’s team is exhibiting in the early going, and the Warriors might be even scarier in the near future if Klay Thompson can return at anything approaching pre-injury levels. It certainly makes sense that Curry generated motivation from not being in the Bubble environment, but this was a particularly interesting revelation in that the absence really seemed to hit him hard and also instill a renewed drive.

Though Mary J. Blige‘s last album, Strength Of A Woman, only came out four years ago, in 2017, she’s already ready to blow fans minds with a whole new record. That album might’ve had a Kanye verse, and Blige went on to get nominated and perform at The Oscars the following year, she’s still convinced that her new material is going throw fans for a loop. During a recent appearance on Tamron Hall, the legendary R&B star opened up about some of what she went through, a very public divorce included, that inspired this next project.

“Wait till you hear it, it’s gonna blow everybody’s mind,” Blige said. “And it’s because it’s something I had to do, and something I had to say when I was in my darkest, darkest moments in that life, to build myself up to this person that I can see and accept my nose, accept my eyes, accept my cheeks, accept all the things that I used to hate. When I wake up with no hair and makeup, I’m accepting that chick that goes to the bathroom and I like her. I hang out with myself a lot. I’m my own best friend.”

Check out the full interview above.