Good evening, and welcome to Raw America. I’m British Chris.
We’ve got a lot to talk about today. Protesters defaced the yacht owned by the billionaire who is turning CBS into a far-right propaganda mill and who is trying to do the same thing to CNN. John Roberts is attempting to silence liberal Supreme Court justices. A jury just ruled against Silicon Valley billionaires. And a Republican congressman had nothing to say to a caller who accused the president of preying on children. Let’s get into it.
If you’re new here, Raw America is Raw Story and Really American’s people-powered response to MAGA billionaires buying up media outlets and censoring the news. When the people who own the news are the same people whose names keep showing up in the news, that’s not a free press anymore. The best way to fight back against that is to support independent media outlets like Raw America. We’re funded not by a billionaire with an agenda, but by real people. If you haven’t yet, become a paying subscriber. It matters more than you know.
Today, Raw America founder John Byrne conducted a live interview with former Trump administration DHS chief of staff Miles Taylor, who called for ICE to be abolished. Raw America managing editor Carl Gibson also interviewed SiriusXM host and MS NOW contributor Dean Obeidallah this afternoon. You can watch that interview below:
John Roberts Cracks Down on Liberal SCOTUS Justices
It was a chaotic week at the Supreme Court, and not in a way that inspires a lot of confidence in the institution.
Conservative justices complained publicly that the liberal wing was dominating oral arguments. Chief Justice John Roberts actually had to step in and enforce a seniority-based speaking protocol that dates back to the COVID pandemic, cutting off Justice Sonia Sotomayor mid-sentence to remind her it was Justice Samuel Alito’s turn.
The Hill called the proceedings flat-out “chaos.”
This week’s arguments covered two significant issues. One was whether mail-in ballots received after Election Day should be counted. The other was whether asylum seekers can be turned away at the southern border.
The Supreme Court’s term lasts through June, and the 6-3 conservative supermajority may end up gutting section 2 of the Voting Rights Act just in time for the midterm elections, which could make it a lot harder for people of color to cast ballots.
Protesters Deface CBS Billionaire’s Superyacht
A protest group called Led By Donkeys made headlines this week after they plastered a massive banner on the side of Larry Ellison’s $160 million superyacht, moored on the French Riviera. The new name? “The Trump Propagandist.”
And honestly, it’s hard to argue with the branding.
Ellison is the world’s sixth richest man and a major Trump supporter. Trump handed the Ellison family control of TikTok in the U.S. Almost immediately after that happened, the platform started suppressing certain content unflattering to the far right.
Last year, the Ellisons bought Paramount, which gave them control of CBS News. The network now has a decidedly pro-Trump slant. And now the Ellisons are on the verge of taking over Warner Bros., which means they’ll soon control CNN as well.
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has already said he can’t wait for that takeover to happen. Trump himself listed the CNN acquisition as one of his personal “wins.” David Ellison, Larry’s son, who now runs Paramount Skydance, reportedly promised Trump “sweeping changes” at CNN if the Warner Bros. deal goes through. And Larry Ellison himself allegedly spoke directly to senior White House officials about getting specific CNN hosts fired.
The protesters on that yacht said it plainly: the billionaires are buying up the news to protect their friends in power. Then they sail off into the sunset. This is why Raw America was founded: To give Americans the news they deserve free of billionaire influence. If that matters to you, become a paying subscriber by clicking the link below.
Jury Finds Tech Billionaires Liable for Harming Teens
This one’s a big deal, and it shows that even the richest and most powerful people aren’t immune from accountability.
A Los Angeles jury ruled this week that Meta and YouTube are liable for deliberately designing addictive products that caused serious harm to a young user identified in court only by her initials, KGM.
The jury found both companies negligent and determined they failed to warn users about the dangers of their platforms. The award came in at $3 million in compensatory damages, with Meta — the parent company of Facebook, WhatsApp and Instagram — responsible for 70 percent and YouTube the rest. Punitive damages were also awarded and deliberations on the amount were just getting underway.
Here’s KGM’s story. She became addicted to YouTube at age six and Instagram at age nine. By age 10, she was depressed and self-harming. By 13, she’d been diagnosed with body dysmorphic disorder and social phobia.
Her lawyer put it bluntly during closing arguments: “How do you make a child never put down the phone? That’s called the engineering of addiction.”
The jury deliberated for nine days and came back 10 to 2 in favor of the plaintiff on every single question they were asked.
Both Meta and YouTube say they’ll appeal. Meta called KGM’s problems the result of a difficult home life, not their platform. YouTube claimed it’s a “streaming service,” not social media. The jury didn’t buy it.
GOP Rep Doesn’t Defend Trump from Pedophile Accusations
And finally, a moment of pure, unfiltered American television.
Texas Republican Congressman Pete Sessions went on C-SPAN this week to take calls from Americans. A caller from Maryland, who identified himself as Jack, did not come to have a polite conversation.
Jack told Sessions, on live television, that his party had handed the presidency to, and there’s no delicate way to put this, an insane, pedophilic serial killer.
Sessions was then asked to respond.
And here’s the thing. He didn’t dispute it. He nodded while Jack was speaking. And then he offered a meandering statement about tolerating differing opinions and working in a bipartisan fashion on the Oversight Committee.
Sessions has been in Congress for 28 years. He’s perhaps best known for championing a bill that would officially recognize magic as a national treasure, which has been sitting in committee for a decade, and for his enthusiastic habit of trading stocks while in office.
He did not address the substance of Jack’s call.
Why Raw America Was Founded
In addition to Raw America’s exclusive interviews with Miles Taylor and Dean Obeidallah, we’ll be talking to former January 6 police officer Michael Fanone tomorrow at 4 PM ET. On Friday we’ll be conducting a live segment with one of the groups organizing this weekend’s No Kings protests at 2 PM ET.
On top of that, Raw America has a reporter on the ground in Washington, D.C., providing live coverage of the votes happening right now in Congress. None of that happens without paying subscribers. Investigative journalism, original interviews, and boots-on-the-ground reporting cost real money. The corporate media has billionaires behind it. Independent media has you. Subscribe to Raw America today. It matters more than ever.
I’m British Chris, with Raw America. Thanks for watching. We’ll see you next time.
STORIES YOU MAY HAVE MISSED:
Iranian Official Says There Are No Talks with the U.S. Despite Trump’s Claims. Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf said Wednesday that Iran is currently not in negotiations with the U.S. despite Trump claiming Iranian leadership was “desperate” to make a deal. Ghalibaf asserted that “fake news” was being sowed by the Trump administration to “manipulate the financial and oil markets and escape the quagmire in which the US and Israel are trapped.”
Mike Johnson Insists U.S. Not at War Despite Trump Deploying Troops. During his weekly press conference, House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) downplayed the recent deployment of thousands of troops from the U.S. Army’s 82nd Airborne Division to the Middle East. Johnson insisted that the deployment didn’t constitute “ground troops” but was instead a “build up of troops.” He added: “We don't have boots on the ground. I don't think that's the intention, but I think Iran should watch that build up, and they need to take note of that.” Johnson’s remarks come asa new Associated Press-NORC poll finds that 59 percent of Americans think the war in Iran has gone too far.
Trump Administration ‘Nervous for Wins’ Amid War and DHS Shutdown. Officials within the Trump White House are reportedly eager to find a way to claim victory over a multitude of issues plaguing the administration ahead of this fall’s midterm elections. Republicans also lost a spate of special elections, including a Florida state house race in which a Democrat won the Palm Beach County district that represents Mar-a-Lago. Trump aide Michael Caputo said the Trump administration is “nervous for wins,” but maintains that the White House is “exactly where we need to be.”
Trump’s ‘Big Beautiful Bill Act’ Disproportionately Harming Red States. State legislatures in Republican-dominated states are scrambling to fill budget gaps created by President Donald Trump’s “One Big Beautiful Bill Act,” which was signed into law last summer. Politico reported this week that the legislation’s cuts to federal support for state Medicaid programs and Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) funding are costing Republican states around $450 million per year.
Trump’s DOJ to Pay Michael Flynn $1.2 Million Settlement. The Department of Justice announced that it will be paying Gen. Michael Flynn (Ret.) a $1.2 million settlement in exchange for him ending his wrongful prosecution lawsuit. Flynn — who served as Trump’s first National Security Advisor for less than a month — pleaded guilty to charges of lying to FBI agents as part of former DOJ special counsel Robert Mueller’s probe into Russian interference in the 2016 election. Flynn was fired after having unsanctioned conversations with then-Russian ambassador Sergey Kislyak during the 2016-2017 transition period.
