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MORNING GLORY: Trump should demand a clear victory over Iran and reject weak compromises
Since the battle with Iran began on February 28, there have been so many reports of "deals" with the rump regime atop the ruins of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps that it seems almost silly to respond to another one.
But Israeli journalist Amit Segal usually cross-checks all reports of deals — including the most recent one from Axios’ Barak Ravid — with senior Israeli officials, so I pay attention to Segal’s posts. On Wednesday, Segal quoted Ravid, posting on X:
"According to @BarakRavid the U.S. and Iran are at the closest point to an agreement since the war began. The framework includes:
STEVE FORBES: NO MORE DELUSIONS — AMERICA HAS TO FINISH THE JOB IN IRAN
That would be a terrible "deal," one that would draw fierce criticism from the GOP’s Iran hawks who want President Trump to "finish the job" and do so in dramatic fashion.
The "end game" doesn’t have to be humiliation of the remnants of the rump regime atop the ruins of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps atop the shattered Iranian "government." But they are "lunatics" as both President Trump and Secretary of State Marco Rubio has called them — "insane in the head" Rubio added Tuesday from the White House press podium — and that’s generous.
The "leaders" left standing in Iran (the ones with the guns at least) are fanatical killers who cannot be trusted. The blockade should stay in place until full commercial traffic to every country not named Iran resumes through the Gulf. The repudiation of enrichment has to be complete and the remains of the highly enriched uranium, now buried under rubble at various sites after U.S. precision strikes, has to be dug up and turned over to us. The Iranian missile and drone programs must have caps on its numbers of missiles and their range, and those programs must be subject to a strict verification regime. Finally, the regime must turn on the internet for its people and turn off the money spigot for Hamas, Hezbollah and the Houthis.
These are reasonable demands and the fanatics in Iran — unless they are irrational (they may be) — must see them as such. President Trump doesn’t surrender leverage. He’s got it. We have to hope he uses every ounce of it.
Special Envoys Steve Witckoff and Jared Kushner don’t want their names on a "second Munich agreement," and they have walked away before. President Trump should not want to risk the victory he has won that is one for the ages by letting Iran off the floor.
I don’t believe anything, but worry about everything. Iran is finally cornered and desperate. Let’s pray that President Trump finishes off this radical and piratical regime and goes down in history as the the president who brought stability to the Middle East.
America’s answer to Iran’s energy threats begins with Alaskan power
Claims of Democrat naysayers notwithstanding, President Trump understandably saw a need to take military action in Iran. Allowing a regime that has called the United States "the Great Satan," and has promoted terror across the world for more than half a century, to have a nuclear weapon would pose an unacceptable threat to the American people.
But because roughly one-fifth of all global oil flows through the Strait of Hormuz, the conflict has caused a temporary shortage of oil and gas. Thankfully, however, President Trump realizes that the solution to this real problem for American families lies right here at home — by increasing production of reliable, affordable American energy.
The President recently determined that "domestic petroleum production, refining, and logistics capacity," along with coal and gas transmission and supply chains and energy infrastructure, are "essential to the national defense" under the Defense Production Act. These determinations will allow for government purchases of important technology items, along with other actions "for the encouragement of exploration, development, and mining" of these vital natural resources.
STEVE MOORE: FIVE ENERGY TRUTHS THE MEDIA IGNORE AS AMERICA’S OIL BOOM BLUNTS THE IRAN WAR’S IMPACT
The President’s statements rightly noted that oil "fuels the nation’s armed forces, industrial base, and crucial infrastructure," and that inadequate gas production and storage capacity "would leave the United States and its partners dangerously exposed in times of crisis." Indeed, some Asian countries are having to implement work-from-home orders and four-day work weeks due to ongoing energy shortages. These developments overseas echo scenes from the oil crises of the 1970s — and we should work night and day to make sure they never happen on our shores.
Thankfully, President Trump has spent the past 15 months working to promote domestic energy production, including in the Last Frontier. On Day One of his second term, he signed an executive order overturning many onerous restrictions the Biden administration placed on energy development, as part of a strategy to unleash Alaska’s extraordinary resource potential.
As part of that energy dominance strategy, President Trump has promoted the Alaska LNG Pipeline on multiple occasions, including his 2025 State of the Union address. This major pipeline would facilitate the easy export of liquid natural gas to nations like Japan and South Korea, creating jobs in Alaska and making these countries less dependent on energy sources controlled by hostile powers. Action by Alaska’s Legislature in the coming days could help clear the way for this economically and strategically important project.
Congress has likewise acted to encourage energy exploration and dominance. Last year’s working families tax cuts act included provisions reducing the royalty rate for oil and gas extracted on federal lands, which will incentivize companies to purchase additional leases — and drill hundreds more wells. The law also required new rounds of onshore and offshore oil leases, including in Alaska.
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By contrast, the Biden administration worked to squelch energy production domestically, as part of its campaign to appease leftist climate activists. The last administration blocked access to areas required by federal law, and cancelled leases on Alaska’s Coastal Plain, which a judge called illegal.
The Biden administration’s actions didn’t end Americans’ need for affordable oil and gas. Instead, they just made us more dependent on hostile powers like Russia and Venezuela for our energy supply. But with Alaska alone holding proven reserves of 3.4 million barrels of oil and 125 trillion cubic feet of natural gas, it makes no sense for the United States to give money — not to mention crucial leverage — to foreign dictators when we have abundant, affordable energy resources here at home.
Thankfully, President Trump realizes what his predecessor did not. His latest determination under the Defense Production Act continues the efforts of the past year-plus. Individually and collectively, those actions will make Americans more secure, help bring down gas prices for hardworking families, and increase energy production and jobs in the Last Frontier and across America.
WILLIAM BENNETT: California's welfare state is a fraud machine. It could make all Americans into victims
It’s a difficult time to be an honest Californian.
The state faces the highest cost of living in America and some of the highest taxes, levied to fund a massive welfare state. For that investment, taxpayers do not get less poverty or a better quality of life, but rather an epidemic of fraud — with an estimated $180 billion or more stolen under Gov. Gavin Newsom alone.
Consider this a warning for America as Democrats look to export the state’s model nationwide. Fraud is not merely an enforcement problem, as the Left wishes to believe. It is the inevitable result of policies that ignore human nature and expand government beyond its constitutional and moral bounds.
America’s Founders understood an essential truth: People are not angels. They are shaped by human nature and by incentives. Government can only influence the latter, and California’s handout economy is incentivizing joblessness, fraud and the breakdown of social order.
DAVID MARCUS: BLUE STATE FRAUD SCANDALS HIGHLIGHT SHOCKING REALITY IN RED STATES
Take the state’s unemployment insurance program, among the most expansive in the country. With no time limit on benefits, no work requirements and minimal oversight, it has turned joblessness into a vocation and the program into a magnet for opportunistic criminals. At one point, there were more applications for jobless benefits than Californians over the age of 18. One rapper bragged in verse, "You gotta sell cocaine, I can just file a claim."
The pattern repeats across programs. In the state’s hospice system, hundreds of sham facilities — some with addresses at burrito stands and auto body shops — have received millions for nonexistent dying patients. Medi-Cal’s budget has ballooned following Newsom’s push for "guaranteed health care" for all, only to lose around a quarter of its spending to fraud each year.
This is a moral collapse, and not just on the part of the fraudsters. California’s government is betraying the fundamental duty of any government, which is to protect law-abiding citizens and the fruits of their labor. By transferring those fruits to the unscrupulous, it forces middle-class taxpayers to pay twice — first through punishing taxes, and again through degraded services and a worsening quality of life.
CALIFORNIA MAN ARRESTED FOR ALLEGEDLY STEALING MILLIONS IN HOMELESS FUNDS
Our Founders also understood another truth on display in California: The bigger a government grows, the more self-serving it becomes.
Consider how San Francisco spends more than $100,000 per homeless person per year on "eradicating homelessness," with few improvements to show for it. It’s because the funds go to a shady network of nonprofits with a clear and perverse incentive. Why would these groups solve homelessness when it would mean the money stops flowing?
It is equally unsurprising that dozens of California public employees have been charged with fraud or embezzlement since 2024. Even the governor’s own chief of staff faced corruption and fraud charges, only to receive a $50,000 payout for unused vacation time after she resigned.
Most revealing of all is the state’s response. Instead of combating the fraud, Democrats in the state Assembly want to make it harder to expose and prosecute.
One proposal, the "Stop Nick Shirley Act," named after the journalist who exposed the Somali day care fraud in Minnesota, would allow fraudsters to conceal their identities while criminalizing efforts to expose them online. Another would lower penalties by raising the threshold for felony welfare fraud from $950 to $25,000.
Whose side are these lawmakers on? Certainly not the taxpayer, but not the needy either. Even in a world with zero fraud, their welfare schemes would only subsidize poverty and homelessness, not lift people out of them.
RED STATE GOVERNOR TOUTS MEDICAID SAVINGS AS MINNESOTA GRAPPLES WITH WIDESPREAD FRAUD ALLEGATIONS
Wisconsin faced a similar problem in 1996. The state was spending enormously on anti-poverty programs with few results. So it began requiring recipients to search for work and created new incentives for the welfare bureaucracy: Counties would be allocated funds not based on the number of recipients, but on the number of recipients placed in jobs and taken off benefits.
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This led to a swift reduction in poverty and a cascade of welfare reforms across dozens of states. These policies succeed today because they acknowledge human nature and incentivize the values of hard work, honesty and self-reliance. They understand that government is not a parent — that its capacity to help is limited but its capacity to harm is not.
Thomas Jefferson once warned about a government intent on "wasting the labors of the people under the pretense of taking care of them."
That’s the California system — but it’s never too late to improve it, nor is it particularly difficult. The state can do more by doing less: shrinking its welfare programs, allowing taxpayers to keep more of their money, and fostering the virtues that sustain a republic.
We won’t hold our breath. But for the rest of America, California’s predicament is our choice. We will either learn from its example or repeat it nationwide.
Rob Noel is a speechwriter who serves as president of Washington Writers Network.
Rubio heads to Rome with Trump’s Iran clash looming over Pope, Meloni talks
Secretary of State Marco Rubio previewed a high-profile trip to Rome from the White House briefing room Tuesday, delivering sharp warnings to Iran and flashing easy command of the podium that drew praise from conservative allies online.
"The trip is really not tied to anything other than the fact that it would be normal for us to engage, and other secretaries of State have done that in the past," Rubio said at the White House press conference on Tuesday of his trip to Italy.
The briefing came two days before Rubio is set to visit the Vatican and Italy for meetings amid heightened tensions between President Donald Trump, Pope Leo and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni over the U.S.-Iran conflict. Rubio used the briefing to defend the administration’s posture toward Tehran, downplay the timing of the Italy visit and signal that Washington is not backing off its pressure campaign.
RUBIO TO VISIT ITALY, VATICAN AMID TROOP DRAWDOWN CALL, TENSION WITH TRUMP, POPE LEO: REPORTS
"The message to Iran ... these guys are facing real catastrophic destruction to their economy, generational destruction to their economy, generational destruction to the wealth of their country imposed on themselves by the actions that they're taking," said Rubio of Iran on Tuesday.
"They should check themselves before they wreck themselves in the direction that they're going," Rubio quipped, referencing Ice Cube's rap song, "Check Yo Self."
Rubio, a Catholic, is expected to meet with Pope Leo on Thursday morning, at a time when the pontiff has criticized the Trump administration’s Middle East peacemaking efforts.
RUBIO OVERHAULING 'BLOATED' STATE DEPARTMENT IN SWEEPING REFORM
"There has also been this threat against the entire people of Iran, and this is truly unacceptable," the pope said in April. "There are certainly issues of international law here, but even more so a moral issue for the good of the whole entire population."
RUBIO’S TRUMP ADMIN JUGGLING ACT GROWS AS MEME-WORTHY ROLE LIST BECOMES REALITY
The comments were seemingly in reference to one of Trump's Truth Social posts, where he wrote, "A whole civilization will die tonight, never to be brought back again. I don’t want that to happen, but it probably will... God Bless the Great People of Iran!"
Trump told reporters on Wednesday in the Oval Office he only has one message for the Pope.
"I can tell you this, that as far as the Pope is concerned, and it's very simple. Whether I make him happy or I don't make him happy, Iran can not have a nuclear weapon. And he seemed to be saying that they can. And I say they cannot, because if that happened, the entire world would be hostage. And we're not going to let that happen," he said.
TRUMP MEETS WITH ITALIAN PM GIORGIA MELONI AT HIS MAR-A-LAGO RESORT
Rubio will also meet with Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, who has been distancing herself from the U.S. amid mounting domestic and political pressure over the widening Middle East conflict.
The meeting comes as President Donald Trump intensifies pressure on NATO allies to align with the U.S. against Iran, including ordering the withdrawal of 5,000 troops from Germany — a drawdown expected to unfold over the next six to 12 months.
Meloni said Tuesday she would not support any effort to reduce the U.S. military presence in Italy, drawing a contrast with Trump’s broader push to reposition American forces in Europe.
Italy remains a key U.S. security hub in Europe, hosting nearly 13,000 active-duty American troops across six bases as of the end of 2025.
Rubio heads to his high-profile meetings fresh off of social media commenters and conservative leaders applauding how well he stepped in for Karoline Leavitt behind the podium after she took maternity leave late last month. The secretary joked with reporters, fielded questions in multiple languages and delivered pointed warnings to Iran, giving supporters a glimpse of the presence he will likely carry into the Rome trip.
"Marco Rubio is showing the nation & the world what we’ve known about him for decades," said Republican Florida Rep. Carlos Gimenez on X. "Rubio is one of the most eloquent, articulate, & incredibly capable statesmen of our times."
"President Trump made an EXCELLENT choice in him. He proves it every single day," he added.
How the media, in the digital age, help fuel a climate of anger and violence
The media are part of the problem.
What problem? Well, there’s a long list. Take your pick.
In the pre-digital era, I used to say that cable news encouraged inflammatory rhetoric by lawmakers because so many of them wanted to break through the static and get their sound bite on the air.
Things are a thousand times more complicated now with the rise of podcasts, group chats, Snapchat, TikTok, X, Facebook, Instagram, Threads, YouTube and Substack. But the principle remains the same. How, amid this deafening noise, do you get heard?
TUNING OUT: WHY MANY AMERICANS ARE SICK OF THE NEWS – ESPECIALLY TRUMP NEWS
It’s a much angrier atmosphere now, and some attribute that to President Donald Trump. But he didn’t create this environment, he just exploited it, with constant attacks on journalists, political opponents and a retribution campaign against his enemies. He is also on the receiving end of a decade of denunciations depicting him as a Nazi, fascist, dictator, danger to democracy and not a very nice person.
Another major shift is that there are so many more journalistic stars now, from legacy media to online influencers, to the point that some lawmakers have quit (or been retired) to become network and cable contributors, even anchors.
That’s why this essay in the Atlantic, by Michael Scherer, is so revealing.
WHY META AND GOOGLE ARE LOSING COURT BATTLES FOR DAMAGING KIDS BY TRYING TO GET THEM ADDICTED
Scherer, who previously reported for Time and the Washington Post, says he feels "complicit" in the new world of endless attacks. He wrote this after attending the White House Correspondents' Association Dinner that erupted in gunfire in the third assassination attempt against President Trump – and unleashed a torrent of comments from idiots who claimed the assault was somehow "staged," though we watched it unfold on live television.
He listed a spate of political murders, from Charlie Kirk to the CEO of United Healthcare, and sees the cycle of political violence getting worse.
Scherer once co-authored an article about Trump comparing himself to Napoleon, Alexander the Great and Julius Caesar, with no hint of political violence, that triggered a wave of obscenity-filled attacks against the president.
Here’s the formula: "The more a story taps an emotional vein—usually outrage or grievance—the more traffic it will tend to attract from social media. I am in the business of writing long and complicated stories full of nuance. Yet I am at the mercy of platforms that want to turn my words into cortisol and endorphins, often for people who will never click the link to read what I wrote. Regardless of my intentions, my work can fuel the false division I despise."
And aren’t most journalists guilty of this to some degree, whether it’s squeezing a short line onto the platform previously known as Twitter, or slapping a tendentious headline on a podcast? That’s part of the escalation.
Meanwhile, Kash Patel’s lawsuit may be taking a troubling turn.
MS NOW reported yesterday that there is concern among FBI agents that the bureau has "launched a criminal leak investigation" aimed at the Atlantic journalist who wrote the offending piece, Sarah Fitzpatrick.
That would be strange, because the story contained no classified information. It was a negative portrayal of his conduct in office and alleged drinking habits. This would, if accurate, mean that Patel was in charge of the alleged probe while pursuing a $250-million suit against the magazine.
A bureau spokesman denied the story, saying: "This is completely false. No such investigation like this exists and the reporter you mention is not being investigated at all."
SUBSCRIBE TO HOWIE'S MEDIA BUZZMETER PODCAST, A RIFF ON THE DAY'S HOTTEST STORIES
"If confirmed to be true," said Editor-in-Chief Jeffrey Goldberg, "this would represent an outrageous attack on the free press and the First Amendment itself. We will defend the Atlantic and its staff vigorously; we will not be intimidated by illegitimate investigations or other acts of politically motivated retaliation."
Take the denial for what it’s worth. But keep in mind that in January, the FBI, armed with a search warrant, entered the home of Washington Post reporter Hannah Natanson, seized her iPhone and other devices, as part of a leak investigation and still hasn’t returned them – though they include such personal information as her wedding plans. Natanson just won a Pulitzer.
Oregon burglary suspect nabbed after crashing SUV during police chase: video
A burglary suspect was taken into custody and is now facing a slew of charges after crashing his SUV during a police pursuit in Oregon, according to authorities.
Clackamas County Sheriff’s Office deputies responded to a report of a burglary in the 17000 block of Southeast River Road on Tuesday at around 4 p.m.
A 911 caller had reported observing a man enter their garage and steal various items after reviewing home security footage, according to deputies.
When deputies arrived, the caller shared images of the suspect and told them that the man was driving a white Ford Explorer.
Deputies later identified the suspect as Scotty Nicholas Oldfield. His vehicle was spotted by a deputy on Southeast Roethe Road before he sped off past the deputy.
Deputies began pursuing the vehicle and attempted to stop Oldfield.
Oldfield eventually crashed into another occupied vehicle near Southeast Oatfield Road and Southeast Park Avenue and rolled the SUV he was driving before hitting an unoccupied parked vehicle.
The driver of the other occupied vehicle declined medical treatment at the scene.
Oldfield was taken into custody and transported to a local hospital to be treated for serious injuries.
When deputies searched Oldfield's vehicle, they located suspected stolen items.
Oldfield was charged with several crimes, including second-degree burglary, first-degree theft, attempting to elude a police officer, reckless driving, reckless endangerment, DUII, identity theft, driving while suspended or revoked, third-degree assault (DUII) and criminal mischief.
Investigators later learned that Oldfield had multiple outstanding warrants out of Oregon and Washington state for charges such as failure to appear, DUII, driving while suspended, false information, identity theft, assault, reckless endangerment, robbery, malicious mischief and criminal trespass.
Investigators believe Oldfield may have targeted additional victims. Anyone with information about Oldfield's criminal activity is urged to contact the sheriff's office.
Rudy Giuliani out of ICU, continuing to recover in hospital: 'He's winning this fight'
Former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani is out of the ICU but will continue to spend time in the hospital before being discharged, according to a spokesperson for the former politician.
"The mayor and his family appreciate the outpouring of love and prayers sent his way," Ted Goodman, a political strategist who launched a livestream program with Giuliani, said in an update posted to social media on Wednesday.
"Mayor Giuliani—the man who took down the Mafia, saved New York City, and ran toward the towers on September 11th—is the same fighter he's always been, and he's winning this fight," he continued.
Goodman added that the "power of prayer is working" and the former mayor "feels it," encouraging people to keep them coming.
RUDY GIULIANI'S PRIMARY CARE PROVIDER GIVES UPDATE ON HIS CONDITION
Giuliani, 81, was hospitalized in critical but stable condition on Sunday because of severe breathing issues.
On Monday, Giuliani's doctor, Maria Ryan, told Fox News correspondent Danamarie McNicholl that he began feeling ill after returning from a trip to Paris, with his breathing deteriorating to the point that he required hospitalization and was placed on a ventilator.
Ryan said his condition turned critical, prompting a priest to be called to his bedside to perform last rites.
But by Tuesday, his condition had improved enough for doctors to remove him from the ventilator. He is now breathing independently and able to speak.
RUDY GIULIANI HOSPITALIZED IN CRITICAL BUT STABLE CONDITION: 'HE’S FIGHTING'
Ryan said she expects Giuliani to make a full recovery.
"He’s a fighter — the way he was yesterday in such a critical condition, he did have a priest come anoint him," Ryan said. "And all the prayers from around — it’s like a miracle. This guy’s got 9 lives, today he’s doing much better."
Giuliani has faced a number of health challenges in recent years but has remained active in public life.
Earlier this week, Goodman noted Giuliani's health history following the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, when he was exposed to debris while responding at Ground Zero, later leading to a diagnosis of restrictive airway disease.
He had also been seriously injured in a car crash in New Hampshire in August of last year, leaving him with a fractured thoracic vertebra, multiple lacerations and other injuries.
President Donald Trump said after learning of Giuliani's hospitalization on Sunday that he was the "Best Mayor" in New York City’s history.
"Our fabulous Rudy Giuliani, a True Warrior, and the Best Mayor in the History of New York City, BY FAR, has been hospitalized, and is in critical condition," Trump said, in part.
Fox News' Greg Wehner contributed to this report.
DHS urges Wisconsin ‘sanctuary' county to keep illegal immigrant accused in elderly sexual assaults jailed
The Department of Homeland Security is urging "sanctuary politicians in Wisconsin" not to release a Nicaraguan national who was arrested after being accused of sexually assaulting an elderly victim, according to a statement Wednesday.
Julio Cesar Morales-Jarquin, 31, is in local police custody after being charged with two counts of second-degree sexual assault of an elderly victim, DHS said.
He was arrested last month after a residential care facility in Fitchburg, Wisconsin, reported to police that an employee may have assaulted vulnerable residents, according to local outlet WKOW.
Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) issued a detainer request on April 27 asking that Morales-Jarquin remain in custody.
ICE ARRESTS ALLEGED CHILD SEX OFFENDER RELEASED UNDER CONNECTICUT SANCTUARY LAWS
DHS on Wednesday called on Dane County officials not to release Morales-Jarquin, accusing the county of being a "sanctuary jurisdiction" that refuses to honor ICE detainers.
The agency said the county has previously given ICE as little as 30 minutes to take custody of individuals in its jail.
DHS BLASTS MINNESOTA BOARD FOR UNANIMOUSLY PARDONING ILLEGAL IMMIGRANT CONVICTED OF 3 ASSAULTS
According to DHS, Morales-Jarquin entered the United States in 2023 under the Biden administration’s humanitarian parole program for Nicaragua. Although the program was later ended, DHS said he remained in the country unlawfully.
"This illegal alien is charged with two counts of sexual assault of an elderly victim at an assisted living facility," Acting Assistant Secretary Lauren Bis said in the DHS statement. "This dirtbag was released into the country by the Biden Administration. DHS is calling on sanctuary politicians in Dane County, Wisconsin to NOT release this criminal from jail back onto the streets to commit more crimes."
"We need Wisconsin sanctuary politicians to cooperate with us to remove criminals from our country," she added.
Fox News Digital has reached out to the Dane County Executive's Office for comment.
MLB television ratings surge 44% through early part of the season ahead of potential lockout
Major League Baseball is booming. And they better not mess it up.
Several years ago, MLB and Commissioner Rob Manfred enacted changes meant to speed up the game through better pace of play, keeping the same amount of action in baseball while decreasing the time each game took to finish.
The pitch clock immediately shortened game times, and more importantly, made them feel faster. Physically larger bases were introduced to encourage more stolen base attempts, which worked immediately. In 2022, the last season before the larger bases, there were 3,297 stolen base attempts leaguewide. In 2023, there were a whopping 4,369. Nearly 1,100 more attempts in just one year.
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Banning extreme infield shifts meant fewer traditional hits, especially for left-handed hitters, were taken away by infielders playing out of position. And for 2026, the automated balls and strikes system was added to eliminate egregiously missed calls. That’s been a rousing success as well.
And despite the offseason hand-wringing, baseball’s in a better spot than it’s been in decades. Attendance is up. World Series ratings in 2025 were massive. The World Baseball Classic has become must-see TV. Momentum is stronger than it's been in decades. On Wednesday, that was confirmed by the latest viewership data coming from national broadcasts.
MLB Communications posted on X that, through the early part of the season, television ratings for "national exclusive" games have exploded. "Viewership for national exclusive MLB games through the first weekend of May is 2.28 million, a +44% increase over last year and the best start in 9 years," the post says.
That’s an incredible increase and comes just a few months after many fans and media members heavily criticized the Los Angeles Dodgers for "ruining" baseball by signing free agents. It’s one thing for outsiders to have those concerns, but reports were rampant that opposing teams and their owners would use the Dodgers’ spending to push for a salary cap.
Labor negotiations between the league and the MLB Players Association are expected to start soon, and a lockout in December when the Collective Bargaining Agreement expires seems like a near-certainty. And if there’s one line in the sand for the players, it’s a salary cap. The cap would, in their view, limit their potential earnings while doing little for competitive balance. A position supported by the current standings, where teams like the Boston Red Sox, Philadelphia Phillies and New York Mets have struggled through the first quarter of the season.
If the cap does become the owners’ top priority, and players won’t agree to it, the sport could be thrown into an extended lockout. An extended lockout leading to canceled games would be a disaster for baseball, and risk jeopardizing the league’s impressive growth.
Baseball is finally heading in the right direction, and hopefully these numbers are enough to make those in charge realize it. And be terrified of squandering it and hurting themselves much more than limiting player salaries would help them.
Draymond Green refuses to let Charles Barkley bury the Warriors, delivers cutting Rockets jab on air
Wednesday night on "Inside the NBA" was less of a pregame show and more of a roast session as Draymond Green joined the desk.
The Golden State forward started going at it with Charles Barkley as the Mound Round of Rebound poked fun at the sinking ship that is the Warriors dynasty.
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The tension started when Sir Charles decided to eulogize the Dubs while looking Green dead in the eye.
"It's over for the Warriors. No disrespect. It ends for every old team," Barkley said.
"You had your run; you get old; you let Klay go. You and Steph are on the backside of your careers; it just passed you by."
WARRIORS' STEPH CURRY GETS CANDID ABOUT EVENTUAL NBA RETIREMENT
Barkley kept his foot on the gas.
While he gave the Warriors credit for "one of the greatest runs ever," he made it clear that Father Time remains undefeated in the paint.
"Sports ... listen, sports are for young people," Barkley added. "You hope to have a great long career, but sports ... nobody wins when they’re 37, 38."
In predictable fashion, Draymond was unable to stomach the banter.
He waited for the opening and went for the jugular, referencing Barkley’s infamous sunset years in Texas.
"Yeah, I mean, I think the goal is just to not look like you in the Houston Rockets uniform," Green fired back.
The jab was a direct hit on Barkley’s ring-chasing era in Houston, where the Hall of Famer was famously a shell of his MVP self.
Green then shifted into a rare moment of veteran self-awareness and admitted the Warriors are in a transitional phase, but insisted the pedigree matters more than the box score.
"I think understanding what is success at this point is key for us," Green explained. "Knowing and understanding that it may not be realistic to win a championship, but can we continue to build to that so that once we leave this organization, it’s still in a great space?"
Despite Draymond's talk about maintaining a winning pedigree, this year was a harsh wake-up call for the Golden State faithful.
The Warriors' season went out with a whimper as they finished 10th in the West and were bounced immediately in the play-in tournament.
Barkley might think the light is fading, but Draymond is clearly going to keep swinging on his way out.
Send us your thoughts: alejandro.avila@outkick.com / Follow along on X: @alejandroaveela