When Terrorists Are Watching, Democrats Are Grandstanding
National security isn’t a stage prop — but Democrats treat it like one.
Good Morning, it’s Friday, October 3rd, 2025.
Washington is in shutdown theater mode, and Democrats are loving the cameras. They’re blocking a GOP plan to reopen the government while pretending they’re the guardians of democracy. But here’s the problem: the world doesn’t stop spinning because Chuck Schumer wants a soundbite.
Border agents are still on the line — unpaid. TSA officers are still manning checkpoints — unpaid. Cyber teams are still hunting China’s hackers — unpaid. Over 90% of DHS staff are classified as essential, meaning they can’t walk away. But they can get worn down, burn out, or bail — and that’s exactly what our enemies are betting on.
Meanwhile, Democrats are betting voters will blame Trump. But Americans aren’t blind. They see the party of “border security doesn’t matter” once again treating national defense like a bargaining chip. And while Democrats perform for the cameras, the cartels, terrorists, and cyber-thieves are watching closely — and licking their chops.
Most people won’t read this report.
And they’ll stay unaware, unprepared, and easy to profile. But if you’d rather know the playbook — and how to move smarter because of it — you’re one click away.
Democrats Bet National Security on Shutdown Stunt
When the paycheck stops, America’s enemies don’t.
Democrats are stonewalling a GOP plan to reopen the government, even as 90% of DHS is still forced to work without pay. Border Patrol, TSA, cyber-defense — all left hanging while Washington plays chicken.
Why It Matters:
Republicans warn Democrats are gambling with national security just to flex in a budget fight.
Essential staff are working without pay — a morale landmine for agencies tasked with stopping terrorists, traffickers, and hackers.
The left wants to frame it as “Republican dysfunction,” but it’s Senate Democrats who slammed the brakes.
The Real Story:
Shutdowns aren’t just about monuments closing. They’re about leverage. Democrats know Trump’s White House will keep DHS lights on, but at what cost? TSA officers, border patrol agents, and cyber analysts show up — without pay. That’s fuel for burnout, resignations, and a weakened homeland at the exact moment Iran, China, and cartels are testing the fences.
Rep. Andrew Garbarino didn’t mince words: “Amid heightened threats from America’s adversaries, a lapse in government funding will dangerously undermine DHS’s core mission to protect the American people.” He’s right. One “sick day” wave through the unpaid TSA, and you’ve got chaos at airports. One border station stretched thin, and cartels slip drugs across. One cyber team down, a few engineers, and Beijing’s hackers have a field day.
This isn’t theory — the Trump administration’s contingency docs show more than 90% of DHS staff are “essential” and working regardless. But unpaid labor is unsustainable. The GOP is betting voters see through Democrats’ theater: national security isn’t a bargaining chip.
What They Don’t Want You To See:
Democrats are framing the standoff as Trump “holding the line,” but the reality is that Senate Democrats chose a shutdown over border security funding.
Bottom Line:
The left thinks a shutdown makes Trump look bad. But the longer Democrats hold out, the clearer it becomes: they’re willing to gamble America’s safety to win a headline. And that’s a bet no sane voter wants them making.
ICE Keeps Nabbing Predators Despite Shutdown Drama
Shutdown or not, ICE isn’t pressing pause. DHS says agents will keep arresting and deporting “the worst of the worst” — killers, child rapists, gang members, even smugglers — while Democrats posture in D.C.
Tricia McLaughlin (DHS) said operations continue “despite a lapse in funding,” aided by Trump’s One Big Beautiful Bill — hiring, training, deployments still rolling. Meanwhile, the same politicians who smeared ICE as “Gestapo” now have those officers working under financial strain. The mission hasn’t changed.
Receipts: ICE just grabbed Gerzain Gomez (Mexican national, prior 2nd-degree murder conviction, Los Angeles sanctuary turf). Agents also arrested Mauricio Ibarra-Cruz (Mexican national, sexual assault of a child, Lubbock County, TX) and Joshua Alexander Cortez-Ramirez (Mexican national, convictions for child cruelty, sexual battery, and assaulting a minor, Tehama, CA). Add Yujian Zheng (China, convicted of alien smuggling/conspiracy, Northern Mariana Islands) and Mario Torres-Herrera (Guatemala, assault with a dangerous weapon, Massachusetts).
The twist: The left’s “abolish ICE” crowd gets their shutdown photo-op — and ICE still takes child predators off the street. That’s not optics; that’s outcomes.
Bottom Line: Even with paychecks in limbo, ICE is doing the job politicians won’t: removing violent offenders. Voters will remember who protected families — and who protected narratives.
Gallup: Media Trust Crashes to Historic Rock-Bottom
For the first time in 50 years of Gallup polling, fewer than 3 in 10 Americans trust the media. Just 28% believe newspapers, TV, or radio report “fully, accurately, and fairly.” The rest? A split between “not much” trust (36%) and “none at all” (34%).
Republicans drove the collapse, with trust plummeting to 8% — the first time in single digits. Democrats cling to a slim majority (51%), while independents sit at a dismal 27%. Even seniors, usually the media’s most loyal audience, report record lows.
Tim Graham of NewsBusters nailed it: bias against Trump and conservatives isn’t just obvious, it’s baked in. When the press calls Trump “Hitler” but melts down if someone calls a Democrat “socialist,” voters notice. Gallup’s Megan Brenan admitted the industry’s credibility crisis is now “fractured along partisan and generational lines.”
The kicker: the media’s credibility is falling faster than Congress’s. That’s like losing a footrace to quicksand.
Bottom Line: The media isn’t just distrusted — it’s irrelevant. Americans don’t believe the referees anymore, which means the left can’t count on their favorite weapon: a compliant press.
See what they’re not showing you.
That’s not a cost. It’s the cheapest way to stay ten steps ahead — with weekly intelligence, lifetime archives, and a signal that doesn’t flinch.
Trump Trolls Shutdown as Chance to Gut Dem Agencies
President Trump joked the shutdown is “the perfect time” to trim bloated Democrat-run bureaucracies — hinting at cuts to climate offices, DEI programs, and woke grant mills. The left calls it reckless; Trump calls it housekeeping. Read More »
Karoline Leavitt: Dems Will Pay for Shutdown Stunt
Trump campaign spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt warned Democrats are playing with fire: “They’re risking paychecks, security, and credibility.” She says voters see through the stunt — and the “very real consequences” will hit Democrats first. Read More »
NY Socialist PAC Flush With Out-of-State Cash
78% of Assemblyman Zohran Mamdani’s PAC donations came from outside New York — including donors with shady backgrounds. Turns out the socialists’ grassroots image is bankrolled by outsiders, not neighbors. Read More »
Together with The Ledger
Democrats didn’t just stall Trump’s budget. They left America exposed.
90% of DHS staff are still on the job — unpaid. Border Patrol, TSA, cyber-defense. The very people blocking cartels, hackers, and terrorists.
That’s not a headline stunt. That’s sabotage by neglect.
This Sunday’s Ledger has the contingency docs, the warnings, and the decoded risks.
Zero fluff. All receipts.
Thanks for reading today’s briefing. Our mission is to cut through the noise and show what’s really at stake — because this isn’t about a budget line, it’s about whether America’s leaders still take security seriously. If you think this fight is just another “shutdown squabble,” you’re already behind. The truth: Democrats are playing theater, and the cost could be measured in lives, not headlines.
~ Scott 🇺🇸
P.S. Dems stalled Trump’s budget — leaving 90% of DHS working unpaid while cartels, China & Iran probe our defenses.
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Not surprising New Yorkers don't financially support Mamdani. Financial Armageddon if he's elected.