You don't need a paintbrush to make a masterpiece. via Nameless.tv

House Speaker Mike Johnson was swiftly fact-checked by ABC's Jonathan Karl after he tried to blame Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi—and what he referred to as the "Pelosi precedent"—for his refusal to swear in Democratic Representative-elect Adelita Grijalva weeks after her election.
Johnson previously dismissed threats of legal action for not swearing in Grijalva, overwhelmingly elected by her constituents several weeks ago, saying the outrage "was a publicity stunt by a Democrat Attorney General in Arizona who sees a national moment and wants to call me out."
Democrats were expected to make another attempt to have her officially sworn in during the brief pro forma session, though Republicans blocked it as they had in previous tries. Critics noted that delaying Grijalva’s swearing-in effectively prevented Democrats from forcing a vote to release the Epstein files, a move Republicans had been obstructing for weeks.
When Karl asked Johnson when Grijalva would be sworn in, Johnson responded by blaming Democrats for the shutdown:
“As soon as we get back to legislative session, when Chuck Schumer allows us to turn the lights back on."
Then Johnson pivoted to blaming Pelosi directly:
“Because this is the way the institution works…I’m following the Pelosi precedent, by the way. When my dear friend from Louisiana, Julia Letlow, was elected to fill the seat of her deceased husband because of COVID, Nancy Pelosi took 25 days to swear her in.”
Johnson stuttered when Karl pushed back with the following:
"Are you saying that Nancy Pelosi refused to swear her in earlier? ... Because my understanding is, that was the date that actually the representative-elect, Letlow, at the time, requested."
When Johnson insisted he had "some examples," Karl said:
"No, no, but wait a minute, you mentioned “the Pelosi precedent.” But Pelosi didn’t delay that. She — she gave the date that —"
And Johnson, when Karl asked, "What about the Johnson precedent?" responded;
"I’m happy to answer. I’m happy to answer. Pelosi precedent: Pat Ryan, Joe Sempolinski. They were elected during an August recess. So, 21 days later, when the House returned to regular legislative session, they were administered the oath. That’s what we’re doing."
"We’re not in session right now. Representative Grijalva was elected after the House was out of session. As soon as we return to legislative session, as soon as the Democrats decide to turn the lights back on so we can all get back here, I will administer the oath of —
Karl said Johnson "could swear her in tomorrow" but Johnson insisted otherwise:
"No, not tomorrow. No, we — we couldn’t. We wouldn’t. There was an exception for two Floridians earlier in this Congress. But the reason was, they were duly elected. They had a date set. They flew in all their friends and family and the House went out of session unexpectedly."
Johnson later insisted "we don't have a date set" to swear in Grijalva because "she was elected after we went out of session."
You can hear what he said in the video below.
Johnson was criticized following the exchange.
Recently, flanked by members of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus, Grijalva remarked that re-entering the Capitol had reminded her she was “essentially a tourist.” Without the official congressional pin that grants lawmakers full access, she said, she couldn’t use special entrances or move freely through the building.
Back home in Arizona, the delay has left her unable to reopen her district office or even update its voicemail, which still features a message recorded by her late father, former Representative Raúl Grijalva, who represented the district for 12 terms. The holdup has also prevented her from beginning formal casework on behalf of constituents, one of the core duties of her position.
Since Diane Keaton's passing, celebrities far and wide have shared tributes about the late star, from how gloriously talented she was to what an incredible friend she had been.
But one celebrity friendship that doesn't get enough attention is the one Diane Keaton shared with Sarah Paulson, who is still openly grieving the loss of her great friend.
Paulson was even photographed outside of Keaton's home after the news broke.
While at the premiere for Hulu's All's Fair, Paulson appeared in a lovely Bottega Veneta runway skirt with red, silver, and black layers reminiscent of feathers, topped with a white oversized shirt with slouchy shoulders and sleeves, and a silver, shell-shaped necklace. It was a very flattering outfit for her and something Diane Keaton likely would have worn and praised.
Paulson was asked repeatedly about how she was processing the loss of Keaton and what she thought this meant for the film industry as a whole.
When asked about Diane Keaton, an Access Hollywood interviewer focused on her legacy.
"When you think about her legacy, and even the way you showed up here tonight kind of is reminiscent in some ways of images I've seen of her, when you think about her legacy, what comes to mind for you?"
When asked by Access Hollywood, Paulson shared:
"She was a very dear friend of mine, so it's not something I'm able to talk about yet. I'm not able to talk about it."
"All I can say, and I've been saying tonight, which is important to me to communicate, is that, what you thought she was as a performer, she was even more spectacular as a human being."
Beginning to choke up and hold back tears, Paulson continued:
"I was the luckiest person in the world to have had her in my life in the way that I did."
You can watch Paulson's interaction with Access Hollywood here.
- YouTubeyoutu.be
Viewers were sad on behalf of Paulson, who is just as human as the rest of us and grieving her late friend.
We've all experienced the terrible pain of losing someone we care about and having to move on afterwards. Though it's easy to forget that celebrities go through some of the same experiences that we do, this is definitely one of them.
Love should be easy! We should be able to love who we love, and because love comes in so many different forms, we should be able to love a lot of different people.
But that doesn't necessarily mean we'll get to marry the people we love most, like our childhood best friend.
TikTokers Gaby and Christie frequently post on the platform, sharing their journey as a lesbian couple, and post supportive, educational videos for what they lovingly call "Baby Gay University" or "BGU."
While driving around the five-year-old boy she is a nanny for, Christie had the unique opportunity to have a conversation with him about who he loves and how he shows that love to other people, but the conversation started through an unexpected emotion: jealousy.
The five-year-old had said something funny, and Christie asked him to repeat it once she started recording.
"Why are you sad? You're sad because you wanna be gay?"
"Are you sad because I'm gay?"
The five-year-old confided:
"Well, I'm jealous."
When Christie noticed he was becoming increasingly frustrated, she comforted him.
"It's okay; you don't need to cry. You have so much time to figure out if you're gay or not. You're only five!"
"And if you decide when you're older that you still want to marry Wilson, or marry a boy, then you can do that."
The pair went on to explore what it meant to "be gay."
"Why do you feel like you can't be gay?"
The five-year-old responded:
"Well, I don't like pink or, like, Barbies or something."
Christie explained:
"Oh, that doesn't mean that. You don't have to like those things to be gay."
"There's all different kinds of people. There's boys that are gay who love trucks and cars and work in construction or business. And then there are those gay guys who like pink, but that's not all gay guys."
The five-year-old held on to the dream of marrying his best friend.
"I still want to marry Wilson."
"I just want to just connect to him."
"I don't want to have a wedding. That's embarrassing."
"I just wanna go to my house and just eat."
Christie validated what he wanted.
"I love that. I love a low-key wedding."
"There's no rules for any of it. You can be gay, and you can like cars, you can have a big wedding, you can have a small wedding, you can marry a boy, you can marry a girl, and you can do whatever you want to do."
You can watch the video here:
@christieandgaby Kids are so pure 🥹 #loveislove #foryou #lgbt #pride #wholesome
Some empathized with the five-year-old about his feelings of not being gay.
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Others really liked the 5-year-old's current plans for his wedding day.
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Some applauded the nanny for how she handled the situation and supported a healthy conversation.
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It's true that this 5-year-old may not be able to marry his best friend, Wilson, when he's older, but it's wonderful to know that he understands that his feelings are valid and they will continue to be valid, whether he finds out he's gay, straight, or somewhere else within the LGBTQ+ rainbow.
We all love who we love, and sometimes we show that love by getting married, and sometimes we show it through powerful friendship. Both are important and worth fighting for.
Every major city has a truly iconic building or landmark that tourists flock to so they can leave with a photo of themselves in front of it.
New York has the Empire State Building, London has Big Ben, and Paris has the Eiffel Tower.
Of course, some landmarks aren't exactly as architecturally glamorous, but still receive an inordinate amount of attention.
Perhaps none more unusual than Chicago's "rat hole."
No, the "rat hole" is not a playful name for a restaurant or museum, but is exactly what it sounds like.
The "rat hole" is simply the imprint of what looked like a rat that got caught in wet cement on a sidewalk in Chicago's Roscoe Village, supposedly first spotted roughly twenty to thirty years ago.
Though at first only notorious among neighborhood inhabitants, the "rat hole" reached a new level of notoriety when Chicago-based comedian Winslow Dumaine posted a viral photo of it on his X (formerly Twitter) account in January of 2024, receiving over 5 million views.
The imprint's subsequent popularity would also earn it the name "Splatatouille."
As a result, many curious fans made pilgrimages, some even going so far as to leave offerings to the immortalized rodent.
Unfortunately, as many people chose to pay their visits at odd hours of the night, many Roscoe Village residents began to complain, and in April 2024, the "rat hole" was discovered filled with a plaster-like substance, resulting in the slab being removed from the sidewalk.
While the notorious imprint can no longer be found in Roscoe Village, a plaque where it once lay can now be found in its place, commemorating the Chicago neighborhood's claim to fame.
However, they may need to edit that plaque, as whether or not that hole was made by a rat has now become a matter of scientific debate.
NBC Chicago reported on the story:
- YouTubeyoutu.be
According to the report, scientists from the University of Tennessee analyzed the imprint in the cement and went on to determine that it was not made by a rat, but by a squirrel.
Indeed, a published paper in the journal Biology Letters by researchers from the University of Tennessee, New York Institute of Technology College of Osteopathic Medicine, and the University of Calgary determined that the imprint was most likely caused by either a squirrel or a muskrat.
Comparing the imprint to museum specimens of animals found in the Chicago area, the scientists determined that the arms and paws were too large for a rat, and most likely belonged to either an eastern gray squirrel, a fox squirrel, or a muskrat.
The eastern gray squirrel was deemed the most likely candidate, owing to their abundant presence in the Chicago area.
In addition, the researchers determined that the chances of a rat getting caught in wet cement were also unlikely, as rats are nocturnal, and cement is typically installed during the day and would likely be dry by night.
The lack of any paw prints leading up to the imprint also more or less ruled out a rat, but further emphasized the possibility of a squirrel, who likely made an ill-advised leap.
While the thin tail seen in the imprint was more reminiscent of that of a rat or mouse, the scientists also pointed out how the fur found on squirrel tails are often not firm enough to leave an imprint.
The paper concluded with the researchers suggesting a more appropriate name in accordance with their studies:
"We therefore propose that the specimen be rechristened the ‘Windy City Sidewalk Squirrel’ — a name more fitting of its likely origins and more aligned with the evidence at hand."
This newfound discovery resulted in a wide range of emotions from X-users, ranging from all-out devastation to complete and utter indifference:
Whether that notorious imprint was a rat or a squirrel, it's safe to say that everyone can agree with the NBC Chicago correspondents:
"Whatever it was, it had the worst day ever!"
President Donald Trump was criticized after he took to Truth Social to share a bizarre AI-generated video of himself dumping poop on crowds of demonstrators from a fighter jet after a reported 7 million Americans turned out for "No Kings" protests around the country.
The video depicts Trump wearing a crown and flying a fighter jet emblazoned with the words “King Trump.” Set to Kenny Loggins’ “Danger Zone,” the doctored clip shows him releasing a massive load of feces onto protesters gathered in New York City’s Times Square.
You can see the video below.
In another AI-generated video, Trump is depicted wearing a crown and royal robe, brandishing a sword as the words “hail to the king” play over the soundtrack. The clip shows several of his political adversaries including Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi — kneeling before him.
That particular video was shared by Vice President JD Vance Saturday in a post on Bluesky.
Trump escalated his mockery on Saturday with a post from the official White House account showing him and Vance wearing crowns, juxtaposed against an image of House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer in sombreros.
This last video references an AI-generated video Trump shared last month after meeting with Jeffries and Schumer in a failed attempt to prevent a government shutdown. That video features Jeffries in a sombrero and Schumer calling Democrats "woke pieces of sh*t."
The video, presented to the tune of the “Mexican Hat Dance,” was Trump's response to failed negotiations regarding Democrats' rejection of the Republicans’ proposed continuing resolution to keep the government open without considering an extension of the premium tax credit that helps subsidize health insurance for people earning between 100% and 400% of the federal poverty level.
Republicans have largely declined to negotiate since, and Democrats have stuck to their guns.
The videos are a blatant display of how little Trump cares—which is not at all—and how he mocks those who oppose his regime.
Additionally, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton commented sarcastically that Trump is "definitely not mad that 7 million Americans came out to protest him yesterday."
Meanwhile, the aforementioned Loggins issued a statement calling on his song "Danger Zone" to be removed from Trump's fighter jet-feces video.
Loggins criticized "an unauthorized use of my performance of ‘Danger Zone'" and stressed that "Nobody asked me for my permission, which I would have denied, and I request that my recording on this video is removed immediately.”
Loggins said he "can’t imagine why anybody would want their music used or associated with something created with the sole purpose of dividing us." He added that "We’re in this together, and it is my hope that we can embrace music as a way of celebrating and uniting each and every one of us.”