After more than a month of political stalemate, the Senate Democrats are finally flinching, and a deal to reopen the Department of Homeland Security seems within reach – even if the path looks like a compromise designed to please no one. 

Key Senate Republicans left the White House late Monday in a noticeably upbeat mood, telling colleagues that there is now a realistic framework to get DHS running again, even as President Donald Trump continues to demand that the SAVE America Act be “welded in” to any funding package. 

According to a report from Punchbowl News, the outlines of the emerging agreement would fund nearly all of DHS while carving out ICE’s migrant removal operations, then use a separate reconciliation bill to backfill ICE and press ahead with the two key provisions of the SAVE America Act (proof of citizenship to register to vote and a photo ID to cast a ballot in federal election) that Trump has made very clear is his top legislative priority.

“This framework is similar to the outlines of an agreement that Senate Majority Leader John Thune discussed with Trump on Sunday – a strategy that the president rejected. Trump has insisted on tying the SAVE America Act to DHS funding, complicating matters even further. Thune said this was ‘not realistic,” explains Punchbowl. “It’s too early to say whether this DHS framework will satisfy Senate Democrats. There are several key details that still need to be ironed out. But many Democrats pointed to what they see as a sense of urgency to get something done, especially as nightmarish TSA security lines cause chaos for millions of air travellers.”

Republican leaders, including Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.), are openly talking about a two‑step reconciliation strategy: first, fund the rest of ICE using budget‑reconciliation so Democrats do not have to vote “yes,” and second, attach pieces of the SAVE America Act to a broader reconciliation package that could also include a $200 billion defense‑spending push and random pet priorities from the GOP base. Kennedy has framed reconciliation as the only way to get policies through amid Democratic obstruction, but he acknowledges there is a question as to whether the votes are there.

“It’ll take a little longer,” Kennedy said. “But we could do it. If you want to throw in the SAVE Act, I’m fine with that. I don’t know how feasible that is in terms of the whip count.”

Sen. James Lankford (R-Okla.) noted that the reconciliation process itself takes “about a month,” meaning even if leadership wanted to rush a deal, the machinery of the Senate would impose a natural delay.

Behind the closed‑door negotiations is another quiet calculation: the Senate parliamentarian. Republicans know that using reconciliation to pass the SAVE America Act’s citizenship‑verification and voter‑ID provisions is no sure thing, and many privately doubt the parliamentarian will bless such a move. 

That raises the possibility of a vote to overrule Elizabeth MacDonough, a nuclear‑option maneuver that would infuriate Democrats and probably trigger a fresh round of partisan recriminations. Thune has previously cast doubt on that idea, suggesting he would rather avoid the backlash than force the vote. However, there is precedent, since Democrats used reconciliation to pass Obamacare back in 2010.

Both sides also know that the DHS shutdown cannot go on indefinitely, and both want to emerge from this standoff claiming victory. But, with Democrats appearing eager to do something, it’s clearly progress.

Authored by Debra Heine via American Greatness,

Newly released CIA documents reveal that the Biden regime identified “motherhood,” and “homemaking”  as indicators of so-called “white racially and ethnically motivated violent extremism” (REMVE).

The Trump administration recently retracted an October 2021 intelligence assessment, titled “Women Advancing White Racially and Ethnically Motivated Violent Extremist Radicalization and Recruitment” that branded average women as domestic terrorists.

America First Legal (AFL), a conservative nonprofit law firm, shared the now-retracted assessment on X, saying it reveals “top-to-bottom bias at Biden’s CIA.”

The Biden CIA invented the term “white REMVEs” to describe people they claimed “incite, facilitate or conduct violence because they believe their perception of an idealized white European ethnic identity is under attack from people who embody and support multiculturalism and globalism.”

“White REMVE-sympathetic” actors are defined in the documents as those who “may not openly advocate violence” but instead amplify “narratives” about “perceived threats” from multiculturalism and globalization.

“Narratives” deemed by the Biden regime as threats included pro-life activism and promoting traditional motherhood and homemaking as “women’s most important responsibility.”

“An agency with critical intelligence responsibilities was spending its resources targeting women promoting motherhood,” AFL noted.

The assessment reveals how the Biden regime used the full force of the federal government to target traditional-minded, law-abiding Americans.

An internal memo from January 29, 2021, just 8 days after Joe Biden was sworn in, features  a “Choose Your Own Adventure” game for fellow travelers to make “real-life decisions” based on “radicalization” scenarios with various fictitious characters.

For example, one of these characters is “Ann,” who is described as a “middle-aged pro-life advocate” one would associate as “a suburban mom” who does laundry and drives a minivan.

Ann is seen as a threat because she became “increasingly devout” and “increasingly more fervent about her pro-life stance” after the death of her mother. After she is overheard asking a question about the bible’s stance on “violence in defense of life,” an intervention is recommended.  The memo encourages her  “preacher”  to schedule counseling for Ann, talk to her husband and query other members of her “church group” about her behavior.

The Biden regime went on to crack down hard on elderly pro-life protesters who demonstrated in front of a late term abortion clinic, sending them to jail for 11 years for alleged FACE Act violations. President Trump paroled all the pro-lifers (23 people) who were jailed during the Biden years in one of his first acts upon taking office. “This is a great honor to sign this,” Trump said on January 23, 2025.

The Biden Justice Department also maliciously prosecuted Mark Houck, a Catholic pro-life father of seven, who got into a scuffle with a violent pro-abortion activist who had threatened his son in October 2021. A Pennsylvania jury acquitted Houck in January 2023.

None of the pro-lifers targeted by the Biden regime had criminal records or any history of violence.

“Courtney,” a divorced mom in her mid-30s, is described in the memo as a “budding conspiracy theorist” because she believed the government was involved in child abuse and child-trafficking.

[Note: Her “fictitious” concerns were well-founded. CBP and HHS data show over 500,000 unaccompanied minors were trafficked across the southern border and tens of thousands placed with unvetted sponsors during the Biden years. A 2024 DHS Inspector General report found 291,000 of these children were missing or unaccounted for.]

“Bystanders” were encouraged to “monitor” Courtney’s social media posts, “check in with her ex-husband,” and send her a private message about how things were going.

“The Department of Homeland Security’s transformation into a domestic intelligence organization and a Stasi-like Deep State internal security apparatus is alarming,” commented Reed D. Rubinstein, America First Legal Senior Counselor and Director of Investigations.

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS), according to the documents, had also planned a “Family First” photoshoot to “show every day people doing every day tasks …  to emphasize that domestic terrorism can happen to anyone, but that anyone can also help prevent it.”

The Biden administration’s concern with how alleged “disinformation” was linked to the so-called “white REMVE” “domestic terrorism threat,” led to a vast, government-wide censorship program that pressured social media companies and coordinated with foreign governments to silence unapproved views on a host of topics, including abortion, the 2020 election, the origin of COVID-19, and the COVID shots.

“President Trump has rightfully retracted this Biden-era CIA intelligence assessment,” AFL stated on X. “U.S. intelligence agencies exist to protect Americans — not target them.”

Authored by Debra Heine via American Greatness,

Two Republicans currently lead in the California governor’s race according to recent polls, making a Democrat lockout in the November general election a distinct possibility.

Photo: Huntington Beach, CA – April 22: Conservative commentator and Silicon Valley entrepreneur Steve Hilton, greets supporters as he announces his campaign for California governor at the Pier Plaza in Huntington Beach Tuesday, April 22, 2025. (Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)

California’s top-two primary system allows the two highest vote-getters to advance, regardless of party, and Republicans Steve Hilton and Sheriff Chad Bianco have emerged as the top contenders in the race. Unless one of the Democrat candidates break out, the two Republicans could face each other in the final runoff in November.

Hilton, 56, is a conservative commentator who formerly served as a political advisor in Great Britain. Bianco, 58, is a “law and order” sheriff and coroner of Riverside County.

Polls have consistently showed the two Republicans leading the pack.

The most recent Berkeley IGS Poll, conducted March 9–15, 2026,  showed Hilton leading with 17 percent support among likely voters, followed closely by  Bianco at 16 percent. Among Democrats, the deeply unpopular and controversial Rep. Eric Swalwell and former Rep. Katie Porter were tied at 13 percent, with left-wing billionaire Tom Steyer lagging at 10 percent.

 (Carlin Stiehl / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)

A full 16 percent of likely voters were undecided or backing other candidates.

Poll director Mark DiCamillo said that voters are “largely unenthusiastic,” and pointed out that nearly all the Democrat candidates have higher unfavorable than favorable ratings. Porter and Steyer had the highest unfavorable ratings at 37 percent.

California hasn’t elected a Republican to a statewide office since Arnold Schwarzenegger left the governors’ office in 2008. However, voter dissatisfaction with current leadership, high costs of living, and a desire for outsiders in politics are reportedly contributing to the competitive landscape.

With 16 percent of voters still undecided and the possibility of some Democrats dropping out, the race remains fluid ahead of the June primary.

Nevertheless, political commentator Mark Halperin recently opined that the California Democrats are “flailing.”

“The Democrats are in real danger of not getting a candidate in the final two,” Halperin noted on his video platform Two-Way, last week. He added that Democrat strategists have admitted to him privately that their “field is not great.”

“There’s no one people are excited about, no one that people see as breaking away from the pack,” he said. “They’re all weak and they’re all susceptible to opposition research.”

Halperin predicted that the Dem candidates will eventually “start hitting each other,” and it will be “very brutal.”

Circle Internet Group, the issuer of the USDC stablecoin, plunged the most on record as investors reacted to potential stablecoin regulation changes that could make the firm’s cryptocurrency less attractive to large holders, as it would be stripped of interest payments. Concerns that a competitor is readying a move into the US market also hurt Circle’s share price.

The stock declined as much as 22%, its steepest intraday drop ever, and leading losses across crypto-linked equities. Coinbase fell as much as 11%, while MARA Holdings, Bullish, Galaxy Digital Holdings and Robinhood Markets also moved lower.

Bitcoin also dropped as much as 2.8% to $68,906.31, breaking below $70,000 after rising above it yesterday. 

Circle’s decline comes as investors grappled with the implications on the economics of stablecoins of proposed US legislation. Draft language of the so-called Clarity Act could prevent exchanges like Coinbase from offering rewards on holdings of stablecoins such as USDC, Circle’s US dollar-pegged token.

While the Clarity Act seeks to establish a comprehensive regulatory regime for cryptocurrencies and other forms of tokens, the proposed legislation has faced delays largely due to disagreements between the crypto industry and the banking sector over whether stablecoins can offer rewards similar to interest rates on bank accounts.

The proposed changes to the Clarity Act circulating in Washington could reduce incentives for holders to maintain balances in tokens rather than bank deposits, said analysts.

“We believe it is almost entirely related to the Clarity Act language out today,” John Todaro, an analyst at Needham & Co. said. His firm expects that if the draft language is adopted, it would curtail Coinbase’s program offering certain customers 3.5% rewards on their USDC balances.

Meanwhile, competition among stablecoin issuers is drawing renewed attention. On Tuesday, Tether said it has entered into a formal agreement with a big four accounting firm to complete its first full audit, creating speculation that the El Salvador-based firm could be preparing to move into the US, said Gus Gala, senior equity research analyst at Monness, Crespi.

“That’s what’s hitting the stock more so today,” he said.

Circle shares surged as much as 750% above its initial public offering price last year in anticipation of the US Genius Act stablecoin legislation that passed in July. But the euphoria has since faded as crypto prices have plummeted, competition has increased and the Clarity Act has stalled in Washington. Circle’s shares are now down more than 60% from their peak.

Via Freightwaves.com,

The freight market is no stranger to disruptive forces – tariffs, recessions, weather, economic fluctuations, and capacity crunches have all reshaped freight demand over the years.

But a new contender is emerging from an unexpected corner: the widespread adoption of GLP-1 medications (think Ozempic, Wegovy, Mounjaro, and similar GLP-1 receptor agonists).

These drugs, originally developed for diabetes management and now massively popular for weight loss, suppress appetite and reduce overall caloric intake. Early estimates suggest that even at current penetration levels — roughly 12% of U.S. adults — the downstream effect on food and beverage demand could be substantial.

Recent analyses, drawing from academic studies out of Purdue, Cornell, and others (including 2025 updates), point to an approximate 3% drop in total caloric food demand due to appetite suppression. That may sound modest, but in the context of America’s food supply chain, the numbers scale quickly.

U.S. trucks move more than 2 billion tons of food and beverages annually. At an average payload of around 20 tons per truckload, that’s roughly 100 million+ truckloads per year dedicated to food and bev freight.

Apply a 3% reduction across that volume, and you’re looking at approximately 3 million fewer truckloads annually.

To put that in perspective: the proposed Union Pacific–Norfolk Southern merger — one of the most significant potential rail consolidations in recent memory — is projected by some analysts to divert around 2 million truckloads off the road over time through improved intermodal efficiency and rail capture.

In other words, GLP-1 adoption, at its current (and still growing) level, could already eclipse that rail merger’s expected impact on truckload volumes — and we’re only in the early innings of penetration.

The categories hit hardest align with classic “snack-and-beverage” freight lanes:

Processed snacks and beverages: user spending down 7-11% among adopters

Alcohol: significant volume reductions

Refined grains and similar carb-heavy products

Fresh produce and proteins appear more resilient, with some evidence of slight upticks in mix as consumers prioritize nutrient-dense foods even while eating less overall. Beer, as one slice of the broader beverage decline, fits squarely in the crosshairs.

This isn’t just theoretical. Real-world freight signals are beginning to whisper the trend: softer reefer and dry van demand in certain consumer packaged goods (CPG) segments, anecdotal reports from brokers of lighter loads in snack-heavy lanes, and early category-specific volume softness that doesn’t fully align with broader economic headwinds.

Of course, counterbalancing forces exist. Construction of new pharmaceutical manufacturing facilities (for GLP-1 production itself) is generating significant truckloads today. Food conglomerates may reformulate products to better appeal to GLP-1 users, potentially offsetting some losses. And broader demographic trends — including slower population growth — exert their own downward pressure on total consumption.

But the core math is hard to ignore: a structural reduction in caloric intake at scale translates directly into fewer pallets, fewer loads, and ultimately fewer miles for truckers hauling America’s food supply.

For carriers, brokers, and shippers, this represents both risk and opportunity. The biggest losers may be those heavily exposed to discretionary, high-calorie categories. Winners could include haulers of fresh/perishable goods, health-focused CPG, and — ironically — the specialized logistics supporting the pharmaceutical boom.

The freight market has always been shaped by macroeconomic forces, policy shifts, and technology. Now add public health trends to the list. GLP-1s aren’t just rewriting waistlines, they’re changing freight demand.

*  *  * SPEAKING OF LOADS

Authored by Micah Zimmerman via BitcoinMagazine.com,

Galaxy Digital’s latest report says the risk that quantum computing could compromise Bitcoin is real, but so is the work underway to protect the network.

The firm’s research frames the issue as a long-term engineering and governance challenge rather than an imminent crisis, with developers already building tools that could reshape how the network secures trillions in value.

At the center of the concern is a simple premise. Bitcoin relies on cryptographic signatures to prove ownership of coins. Those signatures, based on elliptic curve cryptography, are considered secure against classical computers. 

How Quantum Computing could break Bitcoin

A sufficiently advanced quantum machine could break that assumption, allowing an attacker to derive a private key from a public one and spend funds without authorization.

The scenario has a name within the industry: “Q-day,” the moment a cryptographically relevant quantum computer becomes viable.

The timeline remains uncertain. Estimates range from years to decades, and no consensus exists among experts. The report stresses that uncertainty itself is the problem. Bitcoin’s decentralized structure means upgrades take time, often measured in years, not months.

Still, the risk is uneven. Most Bitcoin is not exposed today. 

Wallets only reveal their public keys when funds are spent, meaning coins sitting untouched behind hashed addresses remain shielded. 

Vulnerability emerges in two main cases: coins whose public keys are already visible onchain, and coins in transit during a transaction.

Which Bitcoin is actually at risk

Galaxy cites estimates suggesting that millions of bitcoin could fall into the first category, including funds tied to early network activity and long-dormant wallets. 

These coins, often associated with early adopters and even the pseudonymous creator Satoshi Nakamoto, present a unique challenge. If quantum capabilities arrive before protective measures are deployed, such holdings could become prime targets.

The implications extend beyond individual losses. A sudden unlocking of dormant supply could ripple through markets, placing pressure on price and, by extension, on mining incentives that underpin Bitcoin’s security. The report frames this as a systemic risk, not just a technical flaw.

Yet the tone of the research is measured.

Rather than signaling alarm, it points to a growing body of work aimed at preparing the network.

Among the most prominent proposals is a new transaction structure known as Pay-to-Merkle-Root, outlined in Bitcoin Improvement Proposal 360. 

The design removes a key exposure point by eliminating always-visible public keys, reducing the attack surface for long-term threats.

Other ideas take a broader approach. One proposal, known as “Hourglass,” attempts to manage the fallout from vulnerable coins by limiting how quickly they can be spent in a worst-case scenario. The goal is not to prevent access, but to slow it, giving markets time to absorb potential shocks.

There is also movement toward new forms of cryptography. Hash-based signature schemes, such as SPHINCS+, have emerged as candidates for a post-quantum future. These systems rely on mathematical assumptions different from those used today and are viewed by some researchers as a more conservative foundation. 

Post-Quantum cryptography brings tradeoffs

The tradeoff is efficiency. Larger signatures could increase transaction sizes and strain network resources.

In parallel, developers are exploring contingency plans. One proposal introduces a commit-and-reveal process that could protect transactions even if a quantum breakthrough occurs before new cryptography is deployed. Another line of research looks at zero-knowledge proofs to allow users to verify ownership of funds without exposing sensitive data.

Taken together, these efforts suggest a layered defense. No single fix solves the problem. Instead, the strategy resembles a toolkit, with protections aimed at different stages of exposure and different levels of urgency.

The harder question may not be technical. Bitcoin has no central authority to mandate changes. Every upgrade requires coordination among developers, miners, exchanges, and users. Past changes, including major upgrades like SegWit and Taproot, took years to activate and often sparked intense debate.

Quantum preparedness could prove even more complex. Some proposals touch on sensitive issues, including whether coins that fail to migrate to safer formats should lose spendability. Such ideas raise philosophical questions about property rights and the social contract embedded in the network.

Even so, the report points to a key difference from past conflicts. Quantum risk is external. It does not divide the community along economic lines or competing visions for Bitcoin’s future. Instead, it presents a shared threat. 

Every participant, from long-term holders to infrastructure providers, has an incentive to maintain the network’s security.

In the end, the report suggests that the outcome will hinge less on whether quantum computers arrive and more on whether a decentralized network can coordinate in time. 

The answer, as with much of Bitcoin’s history, will emerge through slow consensus rather than sudden change.

Amid reports of increasing traffic through the Strait of Hormuz, Alireza Tangsiri, a commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Navy, said on X that the containership Selen was turned back by the IRGC Navy for “failing to comply with legal protocols and lacking permission to transit the Strait of Hormuz.” Needless to say, that is an upgrade from firing missiles at it.

کشتی کانتینربر SELEN به دلیل عدم رعایت پروتکل‌های قانونی و نداشتن مجوز عبور از #تنگه_هرمز، توسط نیروی دریایی سپاه به عقب بازگردانده شد.
عبور هرگونه شناور از این آبراهه مستلزم هماهنگی کامل با حاکمیت دریایی ایران است و این مهم جز به پشتوانه مردم شریف ایران به دست نمی‌آمد. pic.twitter.com/g6ei29Y90Q

— علیرضا تنگسیری (@alirezatangsiri) March 24, 2026

Tangsiri said passage through the waterway requires full coordination with Iran’s maritime authorities. His comments echo what he said a week ago when he told local media that has not yet closed the Strait of Hormuz and the vital waterway is “only being controlled.”

Tangsiri, who almost certainly is toward the top of the Pentagon’s most wanted list, warned a week ago after the Israeli attack on the South Pars gas field that “oil facilities associated with America are now on par with American bases and will come under fire with full force” and “warned citizens and workers to stay away from these facilities.”

While the reason why the Selen was turned back is unclear, it probably is because the captain refused to pay the toll Iran has started charging on some commercial vessels passing through the Strait of Hormuz, in yet another sign of Tehran’s control over the world’s most important maritime energy channel.

Payments of as much as $2 million per voyage are being sought on an adhoc basis, effectively creating an informal toll on the waterway, according to Bloomberg. Some vessels have made the payment, though the mechanism wasn’t immediately clear – including the currency used – and it doesn’t appear to be systematic. 

The fact that increasingly more ships are crossing the strait confirms our previous report (see “Chinese Containership Is First To Pay Iran For “Safe Passage” Through Strait As Iraqi Tanker Crosses With Signal Off” and “Iran Ready To Let Japanese Ships Use Hormuz As Chinese, Indian Tankers Already Allowed Passage“) indicates that Iran’s hardline stance on blockading any/all non-Chinese ships crossing the strait is fraying. 

Stil, the payments show Iran’s influence over Hormuz, through which normally about a fifth of the world’s oil and gas, and vast amounts of food, metals and other materials are shipped every day. With the war in the Middle East now in its fourth week, it also highlights the desperate need for some consumers to ensure continued energy flows.

Hormuz traffic sends mixed signals

Iran appears to be pursuing a calibrated strategy in the Strait of Hormuz, using selective vessel passage as strategic signalling rather than imposing full disruption. According to #MarineTraffic data, some activity may be resuming, with nine… pic.twitter.com/fKjlPhdHYx

— MarineTraffic (@MarineTraffic) March 24, 2026

Bloomberg sources said the payments have been handled quietly. The lack of transparency and uncertainty over who might be targeted next is adding a fresh layer of friction to the shipping lane. Only a trickle of vessels have crossed the waterway since the war, many of them Iranian-linked. Some of the few others appear to have taken similar routes close to Iran’s coastline.

According to Lloyds List,. “at least two vessels transiting through the strait are understood to have paid in exchange for safe passage, with one fee reported to have been around $2 million.” As some quickly calculated, this actually is not that much if it means removing the Hormuz energy bottleneck: “$2 million on a VLCC carrying 2 million barrels = $1/barrel premium. Quite a bargain in this market. Expect more to follow suit.”

LloydsList: “At least two vessels transiting through the strait are understood to have paid in exchange for safe passage, with one fee reported to have been around $2m.”

$2 million on a VLCC carrying 2 million barrels = $1/barrel premium. Quite a bargain in this market.

Expect…

— Rosemary Kelanic (@RKelanic) March 23, 2026

Yesterday we reported that India, which got four vessels carrying liquefied petroleum gas to exit the Persian Gulf through Hormuz, said Tuesday that international laws guarantee the right of freedom for navigation through the strait and no one can levy any fee for use of the channel even though the four ships almost certainly paid the fee. Prime Minister Narendra Modi said that he discussed the Iran war on a call with President Donald Trump, including the conflict’s impact on the maritime corridor.

“Ensuring that the Strait of Hormuz remains open, secure and accessible is essential for the whole world,” Modi wrote in a social media post.

While Iran is demanding the transit fee on a case-by-case basis, the Islamic Republic has floated the idea of formalizing the charges as part of a broader postwar settlement, one person said. Last week, an Iranian lawmaker said that parliament was advancing a proposal to require nations to pay Iran for using the Strait of Hormuz as a secure shipping route.

For Arab producers in the Gulf, even an informal toll is unacceptable, people familiar said, as it raises the issues of sovereignty, precedent and the potential weaponization of a vital trade route for their energy exports. Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates depend on the route to ship their oil to global markets, but are now relying on alternative pipelines bypassing Hormuz to get crude to their customers. 

*  *  *

The supplement industry news website Stack3d reports that Costco has expanded its Kirkland Signature brand into energy drinks, a move likely to catch the attention of anyone who consumes these amped-up drinks throughout the day, given the sub-$1-per-can price point. Energy drink stocks are trading lower mid-session on Tuesday, though it is unclear whether this is due to Kirkland’s entry into the space.

“Kirkland Signature Sparkling Energy Drink is now showing up in Costco warehouses in a variety pack of 24 cans, with eight cans each of three different flavors: Tropical, Peach, and Orange,” Stack3d wrote in a note on Monday afternoon.

Stack3d noted that each of these Kirkland cans includes “some taurine, glucuronolactone, and, of course, caffeine at 200mg, similar to Ghost and Celsius.”

A 24-pack of energy drinks retails for $16.99 at Costco. The math works out to about 70 cents per can, a massive savings that will really add up for the daily user who spends roughly $2 to $3, if not more, per can.

Based on current prices, Celsius 12-oz. singles are around $2.49 at Target, Alani Nu 12-oz. singles are about $2.57 at Walmart, and Red Bull 12-oz. cans are approximately $2.99 at Target.

At Walmart, Celsius 12-packs are listed at $17.98, and at Target, they are $18.59, which works out to roughly $1.50 to $1.55 per can. Red Bull Sugarfree 8.4-oz. 12-packs at Walmart are listed at $19.48, or about $1.62 per can. Costco is unmatched, offering its Kirkland energy drink at just 70 cents per can in bulk.

Google Search trends show that searches for Kirkland energy drink began to rise over the weekend. We suspect this trend is early in the cycle and will surge. 

Around noon in New York, Celsius shares are trading down about 6.5%, while Monster shares are down about 1%.

There is no confirmation yet as to whether the pressure on shares is due to the debut of Kirkland energy drinks.

Authored by Jonathan Turley via jonathanturley.org,

When singer Joseph E. Foreman took the stand recently in Ohio, his message, like his lyrics, was hardly subtle. Indeed, counsel may have been unsure whether to examine or to hoist him. The rapper, known as “Afroman,” appeared in a suit modeled after an American flag with matching flag-patterned sunglasses. He lashed out at the seven police officers who raided his home and then sued him for publicly mocking them. He insisted that he was the virtual embodiment of the First Amendment in all of its glory.

A jury agreed, at least insofar as finding him protected in his parody and public portrayal of the officers.

Almost three years ago, I wrote about the case and expressed deep skepticism about the legal viability of the case in light of free speech protections for filming and criticizing public officials.

Foreman, 51, became famous for a humorous rap song, “Because I Got High.” Later, he became even more famous after the released security camera footage of officers breaking down the door to his home and holding him and his family at bay with drawn weapons.  While the warrant was granted to look for evidence of kidnapping, marijuana, and drug paraphernalia, they found nothing.

Foreman then decided to go on the offensive with videos showing the raid and rap songs using his signature style to mock the officers (including one who seemed to stop in the midst of the raid to look at a fresh lemon pound cake on the counter. He told NPR, “I asked myself, as a powerless Black man in America, what can I do to the cops that kicked my door in, tried to kill me in front of my kids, stole my money, and disconnected my cameras? And the only thing I could come up with was make a funny rap song about them … use the money to pay for the damages they did and move on.”

In “Will You Help Me Repair My Door?” he taunted the officers: “Did you find what you were looking for?/Will you help me repair my gate and door/Would you like a slice of my lemon pound cake?/You can take as much as you want to take/There must be a big mistake.”

The humor highlighted what he viewed as an absurdly broad warrant: “The warrant said ‘Narcotics and kidnapping’/The warrant said “Narcotics and kidnapping”/Are you kidding? I make my money, rapping/Why does the warrant say ‘Narcotics?’ (Well, I know narcotics)/But why kidnapping?”

That was followed up by an even more popular video titled “Lemon Pound Cake”: “The Adams County Sheriff kicked down my door/Then I heard the glass break/They found no kidnapping victims/Just some lemon pound cake…Mama’s lemon pound cake/It tastes so nice/It made the sheriff wanna put down his gun/And cut him a slice (of what? Of what?).”

It became an instant hit.

Some of the images from Foreman’s security cameras were also used to sell commercial products, including promotional videos.  In an Instagram post, he wore a shirt with the surveillance images and thanked one of the officers for helping him get 5.4 million views on TikTok.

In a social media posting, he wrote, “Congratulations again you’re famous for all the wrong reasons.”

The six officers and one detective were obviously irate at the public abuse and ridicule that followed. In their complaint, they alleged that their families were traumatized and harmed.

The mockery continued during the trial.

Foreman’s appearance in his flag suit captured his style and his strategy. He was there to make an unmistakable point and the flag outfit was part of the effort to attract maximal attention.

While controversial for some, his fashion choice followed other famous free speech advocates.  Hustler Magazine publisher Larry Flint in 1983 wore a flag diaper to court. (He was then charged with desecrating the flag– a charge later dropped by prosecutors).

Likewise, in 1968, activist Abbie Hoffman wore a shirt resembling an American flag to a House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC) hearing, protesting the Vietnam War. When he was arrested, he declared, “I regret that I have but one shirt to give for my country.” (His conviction was later overturned).

Foreman attacked Adams County Deputy Sheriff Lisa Phillips in an expletive-laden music clip posted on Instagram just hours after she gave tearful testimony in court: “Where was these tears when she was standing in my yard with a loaded AR-15 ready to Swiss cheese me?”

Foreman was equally unapologetic on the stand: “All of this is their fault, If they hadn’t wrongly raided my house, there would be no lawsuit, I would not know their names, they wouldn’t be on my home surveillance system and there would be no songs.”

Afroman is the hero we all need right now.

pic.twitter.com/R0SiiThw9w

— Quadcarl (@Quadcarl) March 18, 2026

Officer Lisa broke down in court when they played the diss track about her. The camera cut to Afroman, and he’s just vibing to his song.

America is not a real place. https://t.co/Fq9hc7lrkr pic.twitter.com/DNPL1NCaKT

— Mukhtar (@I_amMukhtar) March 19, 2026

My skepticism about the lawsuit stemmed from the obvious opinion and political content of his posting. Courts have also ruled that citizens may film officers in public despite repeated efforts to criminalize such filming.

The claims of defamation, misappropriation of names or likeness, and false light all ran into the same First Amendment protections.

Foreman is an artist expressing his criticism of the police in the raid on his home. Foreman had a right to object to the raid that he viewed as unjustified and even racially motivated.

This is the funniest thing I’ve seen on the internet.

Afroman had his house raided by Ohio Adam County deputies… who found absolutely nothing… broke his door, trashed his place, allegedly had $400 go missing… and then they refused to pay for the damages.

So, like any… pic.twitter.com/TxZaAo1X60

— Jesus Freakin Congress (@TheJFreakinC) March 20, 2026

Foreman clearly used his celebrity status to exact a measure of revenge. However, any liability for showing officers during a raid would have had a chilling effect on political speech, including when such speech is part of creative work.

Since the founding of the Republic, parody and songs have been used to criticize government officials and policies.

Foreman celebrated after the verdict, proclaiming, “It’s not only for artists. It’s for Americans. “We have freedom of speech. They … did me wrong and sued me because I was talking about it.”

Yes, Foreman is over-the-top in every respect. Yet, there was a method to the madness. Strip away the flag suit, the over-the-top lyrics, he had a point. Add the suit and the rap, he had an audience.

Jonathan Turley is a law professor and the best-selling author of “Rage and the Republic: The Unfinished Story of the American Revolution.”

* * *

With both foreign and domestic investors dumping gold (and anything else not nailed down) to fund oil, at its brand sparkling new price of $170 (in Asia), we were wondering how long before the lack of disposable cash hits US debt. We got the answer today at just after 1pm when we got the results of today’s $69 billion 2Year bond auction. In a nutshell, it was terrible.

The auction priced at a high yield of 3.936%, up from 3.455% last month and the highest since May 2025. It also tailed the When Issued by a whopping 1.8bps, the highest tail since March 2023.

The bid to cover was a piss poor 2.440, down sharply from 2.630 and the lowest since May 2024. 

The internals were also ugly, with Indirects taking 59.98%, an improvement from 55.91% in February, but it was the Direct bidders that unexpectedly tumbled from 42.3% to 16.50%, the lowest since March 2025. This left Dealers holding 24.12% of the auction, up sharply from 9.81% and the highest since October 2022. 

Overall, this was a very ugly auction, and the only thing that could have made it catastrophic was if Indirects had also refused to participate. For now they haven’t but at this rate it’s just a matter of time before Indirects go limit down and Dealers are forced to carry the entire auction.