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In the middle of this postseason race, there are plenty of reasons to watch these games and see what happens. Most of the National League divisions are already secured, but the Wild Card race still has some intrigue. The American League has virtually every race still up in the air.
It is likely that the Rays, Yankees, and Red Sox make the postseason in some order, but the Astros, Rangers, Guardians, Blue Jays, Orioles, and White Sox are all fighting for two division spots and one Wild Card entry.
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The Brewers hurler is in line to take home the first of likely many Cy Young Awards. One of the main reasons for the success the Brewers have had this year is thanks to Jacob Misiorowski. For the year, Misiorowski is 14-5 with a 1.95 ERA, 236 strikeouts, and a 0.80 WHIP. His ERA, strikeouts, and WHIP are first in baseball. He has been a bit worse on the road than at home this season, but his 2.39 road ERA is something any pitcher would take. This will be his second start against the Pirates this season. In his first, he went six innings and allowed six hits, three earned runs, and struck out nine hitters.
Lindsay Clancy holdout juror ‘looked at the case and he made the call,’ his brother says
The lone holdout juror in the Lindsay Clancy murder trial cast his vote after "he looked at the case, and he made the call," according to his brother.
"For me, that’s how I would do it," a brother of the lone holdout juror told the New York Post. "I would just listen to the case with all the evidence, and go from there."
"His choice was good for some people, but not good for other people," he said.
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The brother also disputed claims that religion was a factor: "I don’t think religion had anything to do with it."
Clancy, 36, faced three counts of first-degree murder in connection with the slayings of her children — 5-year-old Cora, 3-year-old Dawson and 8-month-old Callan — who were discovered strangled at the family's home in January 2023.
Judge William Sullivan declared a mistrial on Sept. 4 after jurors could not agree on a unanimous verdict, with the panel split 11-1.
This is a developing story.
Joe Manchin calls on Trump to freeze AI IPOs, claims president has 'power to save humanity'
Former Sen. Joe Machin, D-W.Va., called on President Donald Trump during a Monday appearance on CNBC's "Squawk Box" to use executive authority to pause new artificial intelligence IPOs until Congress passes legislation establishing safeguards for the rapidly developing technology.
Manchin framed the request as an urgent step to prevent companies developing advanced AI from facing additional pressure to race ahead before lawmakers establish rules governing the technology.
"The president of the United States has the power to save humanity," Manchin said. "They must be concerned about this thing can take off and think on its own and make its own decisions and override anything of humans and we can't stop it. If that's what they're concerned about, then stop it now when you can."
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Republican National Committee member and Human First chairwoman Amy Kremer, who had previously called for AI safeguards while opposing a broad moratorium, pushed back on Machin's specific proposal, saying an IPO freeze would interfere with capital markets without addressing the underlying safety concerns.
"I do not support a president using executive authority to interfere with the markets," Kremer said in a Tuesday statement to Fox News Digital. "An IPO freeze is the kind of top-down mandate that conservatives have long opposed, and it would not even address the actual risk."
"What the president should use his executive power for is to demand pre-deployment testing begin immediately. That is where the real safeguards belong, not in blocking companies from raising capital," she continued.
PRESIDENTIAL FLIP? GOP INSIDER PREDICTS TRUMP CHANGE OF MIND ON KEY AI POLICY AHEAD OF MIDTERMS
The White House, in a statement to Fox News Digital, pointed to three Truth Social posts from Trump addressing the growing debate over AI risks and efforts to slow the technology's development.
Trump separately rejected growing calls Monday for additional AI restrictions, arguing the United States should not give up its lead over China and saying existing government powers could be used against companies engaged in wrongdoing.
Trump said additional regulatory "guardrails" were not the answer to concerns surrounding the technology.
"The only control or ‘guardrails’ that AI needs is a STRONG AND SMART (High IQ!) PRESIDENT, and the U.S.A. has that, in spades!" Trump said.
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The debate intensified after Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei called for frontier AI developers to slow the pace at which they increase the capabilities for their most powerful models.
OpenAI CEO Sam Altman and Elon Musk were among the technology leaders who expressed support for slowing frontier development, while Trump and other Republicans warned that unilateral U.S. restrictions could benefit China.
House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., rejected an emergency AI moratorium on Sunday, telling CNN that Congress should work with AI companies to determine appropriate safeguards rather than abruptly halt development.
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Kremer told Fox News Digital that the escalating dispute also reflected what she views as Congress’ failure to establish clear federal AI rules before the technology reached its current stage.
"This moment is a reminder of what happens when Republicans do not govern," she said. "When Republicans fail to act, the solutions Democrats offer will be disastrous. Lawmakers have had years to establish clear rules for artificial intelligence, and they have not done it. The responsibility now falls on the executive branch to act where Congress will not."
The Trump administration has already established a voluntary federal framework for evaluating advanced AI models.
Trump's June executive order allows developers of covered frontier models to give the federal government secure early access before release for testing and cybersecurity purposes, while explicitly stating that the framework does not create mandatory federal licensing, pre-clearance or permitting requirements.
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There are 15 games on the docket for tonight’s baseball slate, starting at 6:40 PM ET and running until the last one between Miami and Arizona has an opening pitch at 9:40 ET. There are a number of great games to choose from in tonight’s lineup.
The Cubs and Atlanta are a potential playoff matchup, and they battle each other tonight at Wrigley Field. Perhaps you’re looking for a Cy Young-level performer — you can get that from Jacob Misiorowski or Christopher Sanchez; both are taking the hill tonight for the Brewers and Phillies.
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There are few games that have as much of an impact on the playoffs as tonight’s game may. The White Sox are letting their division lead slip away, and with just 11 games remaining in the season, the Guardians are looking to sneak in just as they did last season. There is no guarantee the loser of the American League Central makes it to the postseason, either, as the Blue Jays and Orioles are very close to grabbing that third and final spot. Davis Martin vs. Foster Griffin is your pitching matchup, one of the best on the schedule.
‘Still waiting on the DOGE check’: Battleground state voters cast doubt on Trump’s new $5K promise
Voters squeezed by rising costs are skeptical of President Donald Trump’s proposed $5,000 dividend — with at least one resident pointing to a previous DOGE dividend proposal that never materialized.
"I feel like that's a pitch to get more votes," Yolanda Lewis told Fox News Digital. "I'm still waiting on the DOGE check that he promised that we never received, so until he gives us a definite date saying when we're gonna get that and receive it, then I'll take that into consideration."
Trump suggested in February 2025 that a portion of savings generated by the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) could be returned to taxpayers, while Elon Musk entertained a proposal that envisioned payments of as much as $5,000. Trump later backed the idea of returning 20% of DOGE savings to Americans. DOGE reported $110.3 billion in savings from contracts, grants and leases, though a Government Accountability Office review later found that some of its estimates were inaccurate or lacked sufficient supporting evidence.
Now, with affordability a top-of-mind issue for voters across the country, Trump has unveiled a new "Trump dividend" plan at the Midterm GOP Convention last Wednesday that would give $5,000 to American adults if Republicans maintain control of Congress.
Several Detroit voters, interviewed by Fox News Digital at the Detroit Health Department’s annual Block Party on Sept. 12, rejected the proposal, with some calling it a "bribe" and others questioning whether the money would ever be paid out.
"I think it's kind of irresponsible because what is the long-term impact of this money?" Jahdante Smith, the Green Party candidate for the state House of Representatives 9th district, told Fox News Digital.
Smith, who supports Medicare for All, pointed to the nation's roughly $40 trillion debt in questioning how the proposal would be funded.
"So where does that money come from? Where do you divert those funds from? Also, I think that it is sort of a bribe," Smith said.
Michigan, which Trump won by 1.4% in 2024, has become a key battleground in the fight for Senate control as Democratic Senate candidate Abdul El-Saye and Republican Mike Rogers are both vying for Michigan's open Senate seat.
El-Sayed called Trump's $5,000 proposal "unserious" during a rally in Lansing, Michigan.
"Funny thing about it is like there's no world in which you can pay for it," El-Sayed said. "So how about you actually do some governing and like solve the Social Security problem. How about we guarantee people health care so they don't have to pay so much for that."
Rogers' campaign did not directly comment on the former congressman's stance on Trump's $5,000 dividend plan. Instead, it pointed to El-Sayed's support for implementing a progressive tax plan.
"You know what’s not serious? Challenging Mike to a 1:1 football scrimmage, taking money from Designated Terrorist Organizations and advocating to raise taxes for Michiganders while they’re already paying for Democrats’ mismanagement," said Alyssa Brouillet, communications director for the Rogers campaign. "Funny enough, those are things Abdul does."
Prices are an acute concern in Detroit, where roughly a third of residents live below the federal poverty line. The city's median household income is below $40,000, according to U.S. census data.
"Well, as a city Detroit retiree, affordability is very important, and I think the prices since Trump's been back in office have gone up on everything, especially gas, diesel, you know, affordabilities went out the window," William Davis told Fox News Digital.
The current cost of gas in Detroit is $4.11 per gallon. Before the Iran war, gas prices hovered between $2.81 and $2.92 per gallon in January.
TRUMP FACES RECKONING AS GOP FIGURES LABEL $5K PROMISE A 'SOCIALIST VOTE-BUYING SCHEME'
Martesha Adams, a young mother and nurse living in Detroit, told Fox News Digital at the Detroit Health Department Block Party that she also viewed the $5,000 proposal as an attempt to win over struggling Americans.
"The whole time I feel that he's been in the office, it's been a kind of game," Adams said. "America has been laughed at from everywhere. And the $5K for bribery, that's nothing. So I hope that people do not go for that bribe, and they really look into the politics."
For Shelby Campbell, a 2023 graduate of Wayne State University, affordability has already forced significant changes. She said she sold her car because she could no longer afford Michigan's no-fault auto insurance and has struggled to find an affordable rental in Detroit.
Campbell called Trump's $5,000 proposal "disgusting."
"He shouldn't be able to offer people money if we have one party in office," Campbell said. "It's supposed to be about everybody and what we all want and need, so it's just bribery in my opinion."
Campbell, who said she plans to vote for El-Sayed in the general election, argued that money already plays too large a role in politics.
"I think he's genuinely a good guy, and he wants to get money out of politics, and I am all for that," Campbell said. "We seriously need that because big corporations buy our elections just like Donald Trump is trying to do."
Other Detroit residents echoed Lewis' skepticism about whether Trump would actually deliver the proposed payments.
BILLIONS SPENT BY KEY FEDERAL AGENCY HASN'T MADE AMERICAN DREAM OF HOMEOWNERSHIP ANY EASIER: REPORT
Trump also proposed a separate $2,000 dividend last year funded by tariff revenue, though those payments never materialized.
"I don't think it's realistic to think he's going to do that," Davis said of Trump's latest proposal.
Fox News Digital reached out to the White House for comment.
House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., said Sunday on "Meet the Press" that the $5,000 payments would require congressional approval, while pledging to work toward Trump's proposal.
"I never go out and give big commitments on the front end because I’ve got to work through it, and that’s what we do every single day," Johnson said.
While Trump's proposal has garnered mixed reactions within the Republican Party, Sen. Bernie Moreno, R-Ohio, posted on X that he'd work to prepare a bill and get it passed before the election.
House Majority Whip Tom Emmer, R-Minn., rejected the idea that Trump was seeking to "bribe" voters.
"The only thing that I knew of was that he has this concept of a dividend of all Americans being able to share in the success of America," Emmer told Politico.
"Let the policy guys draft it. Let them debate it. Let them move it through committee," Emmer told Politico. "You get it to the whip’s office. We’ll pass it."
Savannah Guthrie thanks Allison Janney after emotional Emmy tribute: 'Our family is in such pain'
Savannah Guthrie became emotional after Allison Janney used her Emmy press room moment to express support for Guthrie’s family and remember her missing mother, Nancy Guthrie.
Janney, who won the Emmy for outstanding supporting actress in a drama series for her role in "The Diplomat" at the 78th Primetime Emmy Awards on Monday, spoke about Nancy while talking with reporters backstage.
"I honestly can say I think about her every day, and think about the loss and what Savannah and her family are going through," Janney said. "I don’t think I’m alone. I think all of America is thinking about her."
Guthrie later thanked Janney during an emotional conversation on the "Today" show.
SAVANNAH GUTHRIE PLEADS FOR TIPS AS RANSOM NOTE CLAIMS MOM IS DEAD: 'SOMEBODY KNOWS SOMETHING'
"I was so touched to see her do that," Savannah said. "It was her moment, her triumph. For her to sit and just take a moment to think about our family — it meant so much."
She said she never misses an opportunity to talk about her mother and the pain her family continues to endure.
"I never let a moment pass if I get one to talk about my mom, how much I miss her and love her," she said. "My whole family is in such pain. We need help."
"Thank you, Allison Janney, for remembering us and giving me an opportunity to renew that call," Savannah continued. "We just want our mom home to give her a proper goodbye. That’s all."
Nancy, the 84-year-old mother of Savannah, was taken from her home in Tucson's upscale Catalina Foothills neighborhood in the early hours of Feb. 1, according to the Pima County Sheriff's Department and the FBI.
She was last seen there just before 10 p.m. on Saturday, Jan. 31, when a relative dropped her off.
The home's doorbell camera recorded a masked intruder disconnecting the cameras at approximately 1:47 a.m. Feb. 1.
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At 2:28 a.m., her pacemaker lost its Bluetooth connection to her cellphone, according to the Pima County Sheriff's Department.
The Pima County Sheriff's Department released a series of ransom notes in July, six months after Nancy's suspected abduction.
Shortly after the release, Savannah made a desperate plea for the public's help in a social media post, exactly six months since her mother was reported missing.
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"This is our beautiful Mom. Six months ago, someone took her out of her bed in the dead of night. We have lived every moment, every breath, and every heartbeat in agony and despair ever since," Savannah wrote to open her Instagram message.
"Every day, we wake up and try to be strong and go on — because that’s what our joyful and resilient Mom taught us to do," she continued. "But make no mistake — our hearts are in ruins. Cam and Kristine, Annie and Tommy, Mike and me — we spend every waking moment thinking of her, longing for her, looking for her."
"There is a hole inside us that can never be filled," Savannah wrote. "There is an ache that cannot be softened. And there is a determination in us that cannot be quenched — to find out what happened to her, so that we can give her the dignity of a proper goodbye — a celebration of her remarkable life that she so deserves."
"We are begging for help. We are desperate," Savannah's post continued. "We need someone to come forward. Someone knows something. Someone suspects something. Someone recognizes the writing in the ransom demand notes."
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"Someone has noticed something different, strange, troubling or just unusual — perhaps with someone they deeply love," she wrote. "Perhaps they are afraid to come forward. Perhaps they are conflicted. Perhaps they are angry or upset for being in this situation. There is a way out — to tell what you know. You can do so anonymously. The reward is available. There is a way to end this situation and do the right thing."
"We are real people, facing real grief, doing the best we can, and counting our many blessings along the way — most especially the prayers and love from good people, which we feel deeply. We need your prayers, we need your kindness. We need the good to be stronger than the evil. If you are following this story for entertainment or for profit, you are not on her side — you are part of the harm perpetrated against her."
"We will never stop looking for answers — and we will never stop looking for the light. We will always be hoping and praying and believing in the best of our world — in spite of circumstance. This is what our faith makes possible. Please. Bring her home."
Fox News Digital's Michael Ruiz and Robert McGreevy contributed to this post.
Trump blasts Supreme Court 'disaster' after justices rule against him on mail-in voting
President Donald Trump lashed out at the Supreme Court on Tuesday after justices ruled against his administration on a major mail-in voting initiative.
"Republicans just got another bad decision from the United States Supreme Court, one that the Court System took forever to give, and then blamed it, in part, on no time left to implement a solution to our totally CORRUPT and out of control Mail-In voting 'disaster,' which is a laughing stock all over the World, and where we are the only country that has to endure such a Nation Destroying SCAM," Trump wrote.
The president went on to praise Justices Samuel Alito and Clarence Thomas, who dissented from Monday's order. Trump called the pair "legends."
SUPREME COURT REJECTS TRUMP BID TO REVIVE STRICT MAIL-BALLOT RULES BEFORE MIDTERMS
"It is a big loss for Republicans, and America itself, and makes cheating by the Radical Left 'Dumocrats,' on Mail-In Ballots, a much easier thing to do – And now they have an open field to do so!" Trump wrote.
Trump went on to list a series of cases where the Supreme Court has disappointed him, including its decision to strike down his tariff policies and void his executive order ending birthright citizenship.
TRUMP CRITICIZES 2 SUPREME COURT JUSTICES BY NAME OVER TARIFF RULING
"It is not easy for me to write this criticism of the United States Supreme Court – it will likely cost me dearly for years to come – but I feel it my obligation and duty, as President, to do so for the America we love!" he wrote.
The Monday order rejected the Trump administration's request for a stay in the implementation of a universal injunction against new mail-in ballot rules from the U.S. Postal Service.
The rules would require federal ballot mail to be sent in envelopes bearing an election-mail logo, capable of being scanned by high-speed equipment and carrying a barcode unique to each voter.
State and local election officials would also be required to submit envelope designs to the Postal Service for review and upload basic voter information to an online USPS portal.
Under the USPS rule, mailings that failed to comply would not be accepted and would instead be returned to election officials to correct and resubmit.
The court's Monday order went unsigned, but Justice Brett Kavanaugh wrote a concurring opinion that allowed room for a potential Trump victory down the line. He nevertheless argued that it is too close to Election Day to realistically implement the rules for the 2026 midterm elections.
"In my view, based on the briefing the Court has received at this interim stage, there is at least a fair prospect that the final rule falls within the Postal Service’s statutory authority," Kavanaugh wrote. "But applying the rule in the 2026 elections would be arbitrary and capricious in violation of the Administrative Procedure Act because state and local election officials do not have sufficient time to reasonably implement the rule before the elections."
PGA Tour CEO Brian Rolapp reiterates it is not considering a returning member program for LIV golfers
The PGA Tour officially shared the details of what the new-look, two-tiered competitive model debuting in 2028 will entail on Tuesday, and CEO Brian Rolapp also made it clear that, as things stand now, LIV golfers will not be a part of it.
The word "pathways" will be discussed ad nauseam leading into the 2028 PGA Tour season, with players looking to earn a spot on the upper-tiered Championship Series. It, however, will not be a term used for players on the once-backed Saudi breakaway circuit, as it was in January, when Brooks Koepka took advantage of the Returning Member Program window.
Rolapp addressed the topic of LIV Golf and players looking to return to the Tour at the top of his press conference on Tuesday before being asked a question about the proposition.
"Before we get to your questions on this announcement, I will briefly address LIV because I know it has been in the news recently, and I expect it may come up today," Rolapp began. "As I said a few weeks ago in Atlanta, there are really three things when it comes to anyone who wants to compete on the PGA TOUR.
"One, the PGA TOUR is built on meritocracy. Every player, whether they are a member or want to become one, must earn their place. Two, we are a membership organization; we have rules, and those rules exist for lots of reasons, including fairness and competitive balance. Rules matter, and they must be enforced.
"Which brings me to number three, accountability and discipline. These are essential elements for any sports league and are certainly for the integrity of the PGA TOUR and the sport. It's what holds the TOUR together. Those are guiding principles for us. In terms of where we are today, we are not currently contemplating a returning-member program like the one you saw in January."
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The Returning Member Program offered in January was made accessible to previous Tour members who have won The Players or a major championship between 2022 and 2025. Koepka was the lone player to take advantage of the opportunity and met the criteria having won the 2023 PGA Championship.
In April, Rolapp specifically stated that "Koepka’s path won’t be treated as a precedent if and when others seek to do the same."
The only other LIV players who met the Returning Member Program requirements were Bryson DeChambeau, Cameron Smith, and Jon Rahm.
While it is quite clear that a direct path from LIV to the PGA Tour does not exist, there could be a hidden door, if you will.
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In the Tour's detailed announcement about requirements and eligibility for players in 2028, it included a note about the DP World Tour.
"Access available to top performers from the DP World Tour is being considered as part of the ongoing discussions regarding the future of the Strategic Alliance," the Tour's statement read.
Current LIV golfers who opt to compete on the DP World Tour, which could require fines and certain requirements, may potentially (emphasis on potentially) seek a path back onto the PGA Tour by going that route.
The biggest uncertainty of it all is the actual status of LIV Golf itself after the circuit's recent bankruptcy filing, leaving its status a giant question mark.
Iran's regime came for teenage twins. Their fate offers a glimpse of Tehran's widening death campaign
Taraneh and Romina Rahimi were 19, still in high school and living with their mother when masked men came for them in the middle of the night.
According to their U.S.-based cousin, the twin sisters were dragged from their beds with bags placed over their heads about a month after they joined anti-regime protests in Isfahan. Their family was given no explanation and spent months searching courts, hospitals and government offices trying to determine where they had been taken.
Four months later, their mother, Marzieh Nourmohammadi, was finally allowed to see them at Dowlatabad Prison. She barely recognized her daughters.
ONE GLARING ISSUE GOES UNADDRESSED IN UN CHIEF'S HIGH-STAKES TALKS WITH IRAN'S PRESIDENT
Their cousin, Masoud Nourmohammadi, told The Guardian that the twins had badly swollen and bruised faces, injuries to their elbows, hands and feet, and significant hair loss that he said resulted from guards pulling them by their hair as they were moved between cells. He said their mother also learned that the sisters had been held in solitary confinement.
Now 20, Taraneh Rahimi faces execution over her alleged role in the January protests, while her twin sister could spend decades in prison, in a case unfolding amid a sharp rise in Iran’s use of the death penalty.
Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA) reported that Taraneh was sentenced to death and an additional 11 years in prison, while Romina received a 36-year sentence. The sentences were issued by Branch 1 of the Isfahan Revolutionary Court and remain initial-stage verdicts.
The twins are among 16 defendants prosecuted in what has become known as the "Isfahan Shohada Square" case. HRANA said 10 defendants received death sentences and the 16 defendants collectively received 256 years in prison.
The sisters’ family says the abuse was intended to force confessions.
IRAN JAILS PSYCHOLOGIST OVER TRUMP PLEA AS REGIME DEMANDS HE MAKE AMERICANS ‘LOOK STUPID’: FAMILY
Nourmohammadi told The Guardian that Taraneh was threatened that prison guards would rape Romina in front of her unless she signed a confession. The outlet reported that Taraneh later told the court that admissions attributed to her had been obtained through torture. Her mother was not permitted to attend the trial, according to the family.
Radio Farda separately reported, citing Nourmohammadi, that the sisters suffered physical and psychological abuse and were forced to confess to accusations they deny. The Hana Human Rights Organization told Fox News Digital they have verified the torture allegations.
Concerns about torture extend beyond the sisters. HRANA reported that another defendant in the same case, Ahmadreza Saeidi, told judges during the hearing that the investigating judge personally used an electric stun gun on his neck and genitals. Defense lawyers also reportedly complained that they had not been given access to substantial portions of the case file or adequate time to examine evidence before trial.
The sentences come as rights organizations document a sharp rise in executions across Iran.
The Washington-based Abdorrahman Boroumand Center for Human Rights in Iran documented 901 executions during the first seven months of 2026, including 56 people executed on political or national-security charges.
Behnam Ben Taleblu, Iran program senior director at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, told Fox News Digital that the executions should be viewed as part of a broader campaign by Tehran to suppress dissent at home.
"Despite the war in the region, despite the drone war, the missile war, the war over the Strait of Hormuz, the real war is the one that's happening on a day-to-day basis inside the Islamic Republic," Ben Taleblu said. "The Islamic Republic is quite literally cracking skulls, cracking down on civil society, on dissidents, on protesters."
Among those imprisoned in Iran’s broader crackdown is Seyed Ahmad Seyedabdollahi, a 32-year-old psychologist whose case Fox News Digital reported in August.
Seyedabdollahi posted an English-language video on Jan. 4 appealing directly to President Donald Trump to support Iranian protesters, according to his relatives and Fox News Digital’s previous reporting. He was arrested 10 days later and ultimately sentenced to seven months in prison and barred from government and public services for five years.
His relatives told Fox News Digital that Iranian authorities later pressured him to record another video insulting Trump and Americans and alleged that he was subjected to solitary confinement and torture.
The Hana Human Rights Organization reported Aug. 9 that Seyedabdollahi had been held in Borujen Prison since July 7 and that authorities opened a second case against him on a charge of "propaganda against the system of the Islamic Republic." Hana also confirmed that he was serving a seven-month sentence and had received a five-year disqualification from public and governmental services.
His relatives confirmed to Fox News Digital that authorities have continued pressuring him to say he was a "foreign agent" paid by the U.S. government. They also said authorities revoked his professional license, adding financial pressure on his family.
Ben Taleblu said Tehran has followed a similar pattern after previous periods of external conflict, turning its attention inward against perceived opponents.
INSIDE TEHRAN: IRANIANS DESCRIBE IRGC'S BRUTAL RULE, POVERTY — ASK TRUMP TO 'STAY THE COURSE'
"We saw this trend in the aftermath of the 12-day war as well," Ben Taleblu said. "Lose a war abroad, come home and pretend like you're the victor."
"Simply here, the Islamic Republic is continuing the longest war it's ever fought, which is the 47-year war against the Iranian people," he added.
Wednesday marks four years since the Sept. 16, 2022, death of Mahsa Amini, a 22-year-old Kurdish Iranian woman who was detained three days earlier by Iran’s morality police over what authorities described as "improper hijab." Her death sparked nationwide protests that became known internationally as the "Woman, Life, Freedom" movement. The U.N. said reports that Amini had been beaten in custody warranted an independent investigation, while Iranian authorities maintained that she died of "natural causes."
'KILLING OFF THE COUNTRY': IRAN EXECUTES DOZENS, ARRESTS 4,000-PLUS IN WAR CRACKDOWN
The 2022 uprising was itself part of a longer cycle of unrest. Nationwide demonstrations beginning in December 2017 rapidly spread across Iran and represented the largest challenge to the government since the 2009 Green Movement. The 2017-18 protests were followed by another major nationwide wave in 2019 and then the 2022 Woman, Life, Freedom uprising.
Ben Taleblu argued that whenever another major protest movement emerges, Western governments should be prepared to help Iranians communicate with one another and the outside world, particularly when authorities shut down internet access.
"We know every single time another major protest is happening, the way the regime cracks down is to first turn off the internet," he said. "That means the regime fears what comes of coordination between Iranians and fears what comes of when the Iranians are able to send their message outside to the international community."
"The partners of the Iranian people, America, Israel, the West, these are largely all cyber superpowers," Ben Taleblu said. "We should not let the Iranian people continue to die in the darkness."
Smithsonian move reignites 'woke,' 'Marxist' criticism as Latino museum avoids congressional approval
The Smithsonian designated its Arts and Industries Building as the permanent home of the controversial National Museum of the American Latino, a move critics say will allow the institution to move forward without another congressional fight over a museum they argue should not exist.
The decision comes as the Smithsonian faces intensifying scrutiny over its historical exhibits. Mike Gonzalez, a former Bush State Department official and longtime critic of the Latino museum, argued its inaugural exhibition promoted a far-left worldview and said selecting the Arts and Industries Building was an effort to avoid a contentious Capitol Hill battle.
"We need to fire the Smithsonian leadership," Gonzalez said. "We need to get rid of the Latino museum. It needs to be de-authorized. It should not exist."
Shortly after the interview, his wish partially came true when the Smithsonian's top official, Secretary Lonnie Bunch III, announced his retirement after four decades with the institution.
Gonzalez examined the Latino museum’s inaugural 2022 exhibition, "¡Presente!," in a Heritage Foundation report shared with Fox News Digital. He also testified alongside National Museum of American History Director Anthea Hartig during congressional hearings in July.
The Smithsonian declined comment on Gonzalez’s report or his comments to Fox News Digital.
Gonzalez argues the location decision matters because the Smithsonian already controls A&I, unlike the National Park Service sites previously under consideration.
"They want to use this as kind of a ruse," Gonzalez said, arguing that the institution can avoid another congressional fight by placing the museum on property it already controls.
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Gonzalez examined "¡Presente!," and argued that a series of panels reflected what he described as an anti-Western, anti-American worldview. He pointed to its use of the idea "we didn't cross the border, the border crossed us" as historically inaccurate and said it is a favorite mantra of those on the left who criticize immigration law enforcement.
He said the language casts U.S. westward expansion primarily through the lens of displacement while obscuring the history of Mexicans who remained in territory acquired by the United States and later became American citizens.
"I guess your guest today would count as one of them," he said of himself. "Even though I don't… run around calling myself a Hispanic. I'm a proud American of Cuban heritage."
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His report also highlights exhibits dealing with gender identity, immigration and the veneration of Marxist luminaries and political figures. Speaking to Fox News Digital from Israel, he said such attacks on national identity would never "fly."
One exhibit featured in Gonzalez’ report was titled "Jose Julio Sarria: Drag and Politics" and described Sarria as a "legendary drag performer [and] the first openly gay person to run for public office in the U.S." Another panel featured a Cuban transgender HIV/AIDS activist who fled the country during the Mariel Boatlift.
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"They create[d] a hothouse, an incubator of grievances among these 70 million Americans of Hispanic descent," he said, adding that Sarria and another featured figure prove that point.
That example involves Orlando Letelier, a foreign minister under former Marxist Chilean President Salvador Allende.
A photograph from the exhibition shows a 1976 quote from Letelier discussing his imprisonment under the Pinochet dictatorship and his later "liberation" in the name of restoring human rights.
"Orlando Letelier has nothing to do with America, other than the fact that he died in a car explosion in Washington D.C., in 1976, but I'm old enough to remember that he was a cause-celebre of the left [then]," he said.
"This is not an American story. The only reason he's there is because the curators who worked in this exhibit betrayed who they are... They're Marxists."
Gonzalez, who said his father was imprisoned by Cuba’s former "tin-pot dictator" Fulgencio Batista before the leader was overthrown by Fidel Castro in 1959, said the Latino museum also does a rank disservice to the true history of Marxist-Leninist rule in Havana.
"Havana perhaps has not been at war since the British invasion of 1763 and yet it looks like it’s been carpet-bombed: It’s been carpet-bombed by socialism."
The exhibit on Batista omits the oppressive reign of the Castro brothers and also features a cartoon mocking the U.S. for the Reagan-era Iran-Contra affair, the report said. Gonzalez noted the latter aged poorly because the Daniel Ortega regime the U.S. opposed in Nicaragua is back in power decades later and has recently eliminated elections.
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Rep. Carlos Gimenez, R-Fla., a Smithsonian Regent and someone who also fled Cuban socialism, said the institution is a "crown jewel" of the United States and should be held to that standard.
"The Congressman believes that the Smithsonian should be fair and balanced, aim for truth, and present both sides of the equation," Gimenez spokesman Rey Anthony told Fox News Digital.