Good morning, Wake Up Right fam! In yesterday’s newsletter, I gave props to Atlantic editor-in-chief Jeffrey Goldberg for holding those infamous Signal texts for 10 days after the mission.

Then I realized: He wasn’t protecting national security—he was staging a media ambush. He timed the drop to land right before Trump’s national security team testified in the Senate, hijacking the headlines and the hearing.

Lesson learned: Left-wing sludge merchants don’t move unless it’s in their own interest.

• 🎂 Today is Nancy Pelosi's 84th birthday

• 📊 64% favor deporting illegal alien gang members

• 🧊 Trump plans to freeze $120M Planned Parenthood grants

• 💉 On this day in 1953, the polio vaccine was announced

^{Sources: Britannica, Rasmussen, WSJ, OnThisDay}

The Signal scandal that wasn’t

The Trump administration and Republican lawmakers have succeeded in rebuffing attempts by Democrats and the mainstream media to over-scandalize how a journalist was unintentionally included in a Signal chat with top national security officials as they discussed bombing Houthi rebels.

Back up: If you need a quick refresher on the story, we discussed it in yesterday’s newsletter.

The details: On Tuesday, the Trump administration dispelled several Democrat talking points on the Signal story and presented a unified message in the media:

• Why were they using Signal? CIA Director John Ratcliffe confirmed during a Senate hearing yesterday that the encrypted messaging app is approved for use by his agency and the practice was put in place under the Biden regime.

• No classified information: DNI Tulsi Gabbard confirmed in the same hearing that “there was no classified material that was shared” in the Signal chat.

The goal: Democrats want a scalp. They failed to stop any of President Trump’s cabinet picks from being confirmed in the Senate, so they see this as an opportunity to get a resignation out of Mike Waltz or other members of the group chat.

No scalps: President Trump all but confirmed yesterday that he has no plans to remove Mike Waltz from his position as National Security Advisor, telling NBC: “Michael Waltz has learned a lesson, and he’s a good man.” He added that the incident was the administration’s "only glitch in two months, and it turned out not to be a serious one."

So, how did the leftist journo get in the chat? According to comments Trump made to NBC, “It was one of Michael’s people on the phone. A staffer had his number on there.”

• In an interview with Fox News, Walt said: “I take full responsibility. I built the — I built the group. My job is to make sure everything’s coordinated.”

Real talk from G: By no means should we be taking victory laps. Democrats will certainly try to milk this to the last drop. But as long as Republicans stand firm, it will be eclipsed by whatever comes up next in the news cycle.

Shop the Wake Up Right store!

About a month ago, I was at a butcher in my neighborhood and saw a diagram of a cow, with all the cuts of meat labeled. And that gave me an idea for a t-shirt:

DOGE Butcher Shop — but instead of the cow, we use a pig. And the cuts of meat in the diagram represent all the waste, fraud, and abuse being butchered by the Trump admin.

Over the last few weeks, I worked with a really talented graphic designer who brought it to life. And on Friday I got a sample in the mail and I’m happy to say, it came out better than I’d hoped.

Also, my wife told me I had to mention that the t-shirt it’s printed on is Custom Colors. Apparently, they’re well-known for high-quality materials. I just chose them because they are printed in the U.S. and made with 100 U.S. cotton.

If you love this newsletter and want to rep the Wake Up Right fam, you can do so with the link below!

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Yes, Massachusetts is releasing illegal alien rapists

A review by CBS News discovered that Massachusetts has been releasing illegal aliens charged with violent crimes — including child rape — from courts and jails on low bail without allowing Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) the opportunity to intervene.

The details: The review of the ICE press releases conducted by CBS Boston found:

• An illegal from Guatemala charged with three counts of aggravated child rape was released on $7,500 bail.

• Another Guatemalan illegal was charged with aggrevated child rape and released on $7,500 bail.

• A Honduran illegal accused of attempted rape and armed robbery walked free on $0 bail.

• Two child rape suspects in Worcester County were released on $500 bail.

Making matters worse: ICE issued a detainer in the first three instances mentioned above but was ignored.

The law: Massachusetts, per a 2017 court ruling, prohibits holding individuals solely on ICE detainers. And when judges set bail, they cannot use immigration status as a factor.

Good news: This month, ICE and federal law enforcement apprehended 370 illegals in Massachusetts during an operation targeting organized crime, gangs, and other egregious offenders.

The last word goes to Border Czar Tom Homan, who last month took aim at Boston Police Commissioner Michael Cox for releasing violent illegals into the community, saying:

• "You're not a police commissioner. Take that badge off your chest. Put it in the desk drawer."

[Source: CBS]

👏 A federal appeals court has ruled with DOGE and the Trump admin and temporarily paused a lower Obama judge's attempt to stop the dismantling of USAID. Read more.

🇮🇳 India is open to a deal to avoid President Trump's reciprocal tariffs by reducing duties on $23 billion worth of U.S. imports currently taxed between 5% and 30%. Read more.

🥤 Coca-Cola has recalled more than 10,000 cans of soda after discovering potential plastic contamination. Read more.

🛑 An appeals court has allowed President Trump to stop approving new refugees for entry into the U.S., overturning a ruling by Biden-appointed Judge Jamal Whitehead that blocked Trump's policy. Read more.

❎ The Idaho House unanimously passed a bill to allow the death penalty for adults who sexually abuse children under 13. The bill is headed to the Governor for final consideration. Read more.

🕌 Gov. Greg Abbott announced investigations into a project to create a "Muslim city" in Texas, with some fearing that Sharia law may be applied within the settlement. Read more.

✒️ President Trump pardoned Hunter Biden’s former business partner Devon Archer after he cooperated with GOP lawmakers' investigation of the Biden family businesses. Read more.

📂 President Trump is ordering the FBI to declassify all files related to the 2016 Crossfire Hurricane investigation into links between his 2016 campaign and Russia. Read more.

💳️ President Trump signed an executive order to modernize the U.S. Treasury payment system to help reduce potential fraud and abuse. Read more.

🍬 Scientists warn that a single piece of gum can release thousands of pieces of microplastic into your saliva, which is likely to be swallowed. Read more.

🎥 Rep. Jasmine Crockett called wheelchair-bound Greg Abbott "Governor Hot Wheels." Watch. This woman is despicable.

🎥 Greg Abbott responds. Watch.

🎥 LOL: Man wears a bear costume to scare off a real black bear. Watch.

🎥 Virginia mom calls out school board for forcing "gender studies" on elementary school students. Watch.

🎥 I don’t care what your cause is... Screaming like a lunatic is never an effective form of protest. Just makes you look nuts. Watch.

🎥 Trump shuts down CNN's Kaitlan Collins. Watch.

🎥 Lib senator is BIG MAD that Tulsi Gabbard didn’t include “climate change” on her agency’s 2025 national security threat report. Watch.

🎥 A mysterious blue spiral spotted across Europe was caused by a SpaceX rocket. Watch.