Money talks — and it’s telling Fox News host Tomi Lahren the GOP has a problem in Texas.

Lahren on Saturday vented Texas Senate candidate Ken Paxton (R) is “flawed” while talking about the state’s race on The Big Weekend Show.

She shared her concern after co-host Johnny Joey Jones told her Democratic candidate James Talarico had raised more than three times as much dough as Paxton between April and June — with Talarico pulling in about $30 million and Paxton receiving $9 million during that time.

“Now I’m not saying fundraising is everything, but it is one of the metrics to show the energy behind a candidate,” Jones said. “Do you think this is more of kind of like a pro-Cornyn hangover, like get through the primary but then the Republicans will coalesce around Paxton? Or is it that he’s a flawed candidate or is it that Talarico is that energetic to Democrats?”

“I think that Democrats see Talarico as like, ‘if we can win Texas with Talarico, we can do anything!'” Lahren said. “So I think that there’s this delusional thirst for it, which I think is gonna end up being futile.”

She continued, “But I will say that, we do have a flawed candidate on the right, we just do.”

Lahren said lame duck Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX) has proven he can win elections in the past and could “probably do it again,” while Paxton — who was backed by President Donald Trump in the primary — has his work cut out for him this year.

“I think at the end of the day he’s going to pull out a victory,” Lahren said. “But I love that we can laugh at Talarico because he’s so easy to laugh at — I would just caution Republicans from laughing too hard. I would hate for us to look ridiculous.”

Watch above.

The post Tomi Lahren Calls Out GOP Senate Hopeful Ken Paxton on Fox News: ‘We Do Have a Flawed Candidate On the Right’ first appeared on Mediaite.

Jacquelyn Martin/AP Photo

FBI Director Kash Patel is being called out for stoking conspiracy theories about the death of Lindsey Graham.

In a post to X early Sunday, the FBI director paid homage to the late South Carolina Senator — who died suddenly at the age of 71.

“Senator Lindsey Graham was a devoted public servant, a fierce defender of our nation, and a true patriot who dedicated his life to the people of South Carolina and the United States,” Patel wrote. “Our prayers are with his family, loved ones, colleagues, and all those who knew him during this devastating time.”

But it was the last line of Patel’s post which raised eyebrows.

“The FBI is assisting local authorities and has made every necessary resource available,” Patel wrote.

The comment was immediately called out by critics.

“A genuinely reckless end of this tweet,” The Bulwark’s Sam Stein wrote.

Others called out the FBI director as well:

Some on the far-right have already spread conspiracy theories about Graham, who died from “a brief and sudden illness,” according to his office. Emergency personnel reportedly responded to a person at Graham’s home suffering from cardiac arrest.

But the official reports have done little to dampen speculation among the conspiracy theory crowd. Indeed, Laura Loomer — one of those who has been pushing the theories most vociferously — promptly shared Patel’s post.

“The @FBI is now investigating Senator Lindsey Graham’s sudden death and is ‘assisting local authorities and has made every necessary resource available,'” Loomer wrote. “It’s imperative that the FBI conducts their own toxicology report on Senator Graham. The DC crime lab is incompetent.”

——

The post ‘Reckless’: Kash Patel Called Out for Stoking Lindsey Graham Conspiracy Theories With Cryptic X Post first appeared on Mediaite.

Dave Portnoy went off on WNBA Commissioner Cathy Engelbert for apparently ditching a national radio interview at the last minute, with the Barstool Sports CEO calling it an “absolute coward move.”

Portnoy ripped Engelbert in a Saturday X post, one day after she allegedly blew off a scheduled interview with Dan Patrick’s show.

Engelbert claimed to Patrick that the league’s public relations staff told her not to do the sitdown — which prompted Portnoy to cry foul.

“This is one of my biggest pet peeves in the world. When people like Cathy Englebert say they can’t do something their agent or PR said so. THEY WORK FOR YOU,” Portnoy posted. “Absolute coward move. Anyway this is just yet another example of what [a] clown show the WNBA is. Worst run league in the world.”

Portnoy’s blistering X response included a clip of Patrick breaking down the canceled interview:

Engelbert had agreed to come on his program, Patrick said on the show — only to keep his crew waiting for two hours at a Lake Tahoe hotel.

The crew learned the interview would not happen as they waited to enter Engelbert’s hotel room to start the sitdown.

“We waited and we waited and we waited,” Patrick said. “And then we got word… that the commissioner said that the WNBA staff, the PR staff, said that she is now allowed to do this. They would prefer that she not do this.”

Patrick said he planned on asking “tough” but “fair” questions “about Caitlin Clark, the WNBA expansion, [and] a lot of different things.”

The league has come under scrutiny after a recent incident in which Clark was struck in the throat during a game, prompting outrage.

Patrick flashed images of Engelbert nonchalantly swinging a golf club — she was at Lake Tahoe for a celebrity-packed golf tournament — as he talked about her ducking the interview.

Portnoy has slammed the WNBA for failing to include Clark in a promo for a game she was playing in.

“Caitlan Clark is the face of your league, and she’s not on the [promo] from the WNBA account,” a baffled Portnoy said in May.

“That is so intentional by whoever did that on the WNBA whose running their account,” he continued. “You have to fire them. You’re openly saying ‘We hate Caitlin Clark, we hate our fans, we don’t want you.’”

He made a similar comment last month, saying no league has been “marketed worse or been dumber than the WNBA.” 

The post Portnoy Slams WNBA Commissioner for ‘Absolute Coward Move’ first appeared on Mediaite.

(Photo by Lenin Nolly/NurPhoto)

Rep. Ro Khanna (D-CA) was detained during a visit to the West Bank and shared video of the dramatic moment he was detained by Israeli forces.

“Israeli settlers, brandishing American made M4s, detained me & other Americans on my trip to Palestine,” Khanna wrote on X Saturday. “When the IDF arrived, they sided with the settlers & continued our detention. They made a huge mistake. You will be hearing more soon.”

Khanna shared a clip, apparently taken from his vehicle, of Israeli soldiers blocking the road.

The congressman, a vocal critic of Israel’s government, said he was detained by Israeli settlers, and later Israeli military, during a three-day trip this week while he touring the demolished-Palestinian Bedouin village of Khirbet Zanuta.

Khanna told The New York Times Israeli settlers with guns blocked his vehicle and others from leaving via the road to the village. The men were reportedly “swearing at them in Hebrew and Arabic and kicking the tires of their minibus.” A Times photographer was in another vehicle and witnessed the incident.

Two Israeli military vehicles later arrived and Khanna assumed they were there to help him leave, but they “smoked cigarettes, chatted with the men and after the settlers left, moved a car to block the road.”

“I felt powerless in that situation, which is not an easy thing, as I have a lot of privilege in life,” he said. “Imagine how people feel every day, Palestinians under the occupation, if they could make an American congressperson feel powerless for 90 minutes.”

Khanna, who is considering a 2028 presidential run, gave a warning to Israel after the detainment, telling them that such incidents are not the best way to build “good will” with the United States.

“Free advice to the Israelis: It’s not a good idea to detain long-shot presidential candidates,” he said. “Not how you’re going to build good will with the next American president, whoever that is.”

The post Gun-Toting Israeli Forces Detain Ro Khanna in Dramatic Video first appeared on Mediaite.

John King, CNN’s chief national correspondent, joined anchor Dana Bash on Friday to discuss the latest dynamics on the ground in Maine following Graham Platner’s vow to drop out as the Democrat’s U.S. Senate candidate.

“Let’s talk about Maine, even though you’re in Michigan. You have been spending a lot of time — first of all, you were in Maine last month — and then since then you have been staying in touch, I know, with the voters, particularly the female voters who were already kind of on the fence about Platner. What are you hearing from them now that Platner has imploded?” Bash asked King.

“First and foremost, they wish he would shut up. Forgive my language, but they wish he would just shut up. They didn’t like his exit video where he portrayed himself as the victim. They think he’s the problem, and they think the people around him — again, the Bernie Sanders supporters, the consultants, and the unions that recruited Graham Platner — are still trying to play an active role in that race,” King replied, adding:

And that might be important to some of the progressives who supported Platner, but it is annoying to those who did not, or to those who supported Platner reluctantly and now want to move on from the whole episode — not just him, but them, if you will, all the people around him. So as this plays out, now we have to go through this two-week process to pick a successor, and it has a lot of Maine Democrats nervous. As you noted, this was the number one opportunity for Democrats — a Republican-held Senate seat coming into the cycle. It was opportunity number one: get Maine, take Maine from Republican Susan Collins.

Now Democrats are worried this fractured family will cost them the race again. To go back in time: you know, Kamala Harris won Maine by nine points. So you say, “Oh, we can win by six points.” I’m sorry — we say we can’t win this state? Why can’t Democrats win the state? Go back further: Joe Biden won it by nine. So Maine is there for the taking for the Democrats. But you know this as well as I do — I just want to remind people, Susan Collins was also on the ballot in 2020, when Joe Biden won the state by nine points, and she was re-elected.

That’s what Democrats worry about. She has proven, in a difficult climate — 2020 was a blue year, it was a Democratic year — that she can eke out a win. Democrats up there know that she’s competitive, know that she can do this. They’re worried, just like they’re worried here, that if you have a — now you have another fractured Democratic fight to pick your nominee — that some people on the losing side decide to stay home in November. So Maine, Maine: number one, wants to get a candidate; number two, the people who had reservations about Platner before just wish he would be quiet and go away now.

“All right, well, we’ll see if that happens. John, thank you so much, appreciate it,” Bash concluded.

Watch above via CNN.

The post CNN’s John King Reports Maine Voters Wish Graham Platner Would Just ‘Shut Up’ And Go Away first appeared on Mediaite.

We may earn a commission from links on this page. Deal pricing and availability subject to change after time of publication.

As Lifehacker's deals writer, I'm always looking for the best bargains on TVs, speakers, laptops, and other tech. Now that it's Friday, I've gathered together this week's sales highlights, all of which I've vetted using my favorite price-tracking tools to make sure they are actually good deals.

This week, you can find bargains on many premium headphones, like the AirPods Max 2. There are also deals on the GoPro Max 2, the Hisense CanvasTV, and more.

TCL 98 Inch Class QM7K Series

$1,897.99 at Amazon

$2,999.99 Save $1,102.00

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Get Deal

$1,897.99 at Amazon

$2,999.99 Save $1,102.00

Bose QuietComfort Ultra Bluetooth Earbuds (White)

$179.00 at Amazon

$299.00 Save $120.00

Get Deal

Get Deal

$179.00 at Amazon

$299.00 Save $120.00

Bose 2nd Gen QuietComfort Ultra Wireless Noise Cancelling Headphones (Black)

$369.00 at Amazon

$449.00 Save $80.00

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$369.00 at Amazon

$449.00 Save $80.00

Active Noise Cancellation, Adaptive Audio, Personalized Spatial Audio, Live Translation, Bluetooth Headphones for iPhone – Midnight

Apple AirPods Max 2 Headphones

$497.00 at Amazon

$549.00 Save $52.00

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$497.00 at Amazon

$549.00 Save $52.00

Wireless Over-Ear Noise Cancelling Headphones with Smart Transmitter, Hi-Res Audio (3.5mm or USB-C), Spatial 360 Sound with Head Tracking & 70Hrs of Playback (Mocha)

JBL Tour One M3 Smart Tx

$249.95 at Amazon

$449.95 Save $200.00

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$249.95 at Amazon

$449.95 Save $200.00

Anker SOLIX S2000 Portable Power Station

$599.99 at Amazon

$1,199.00 Save $599.01

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$599.99 at Amazon

$1,199.00 Save $599.01

Hisense 75" Hi-QLED S7 Canvas TV Series 4K UHD

$1,397.99 at Amazon

$2,499.99 Save $1,102.00

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$1,397.99 at Amazon

$2,499.99 Save $1,102.00

GoPro MAX2 360 Waterproof Touch Screen Action Camera

$299.00 at Amazon

$499.99 Save $200.99

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$299.00 at Amazon

$499.99 Save $200.99

Sony Bravia Theater Bar 6 (HT-B600)

$448.00 at Amazon

$699.99 Save $251.99

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$448.00 at Amazon

$699.99 Save $251.99

Samsung 27" Odyssey G5 (G51F) Gaming Monitor

$149.99 at Amazon

$249.99 Save $100.00

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$149.99 at Amazon

$249.99 Save $100.00

SEE 7 MORE

This massive TCL Mini-LED TV is over $1,000 off

The QM7K is last year's mid-tier QD-Mini LED smart TV, and it offers great value for your money. Right now, the TCL 98QM7K is currently selling for $1,897.99, down from its regular $2,999.99 price and the lowest price recorded so far, according to price trackers. Its highlights include a bright panel, making it great for sunlit rooms. It has deep blacks and almost no light bloom, giving it that premium picture quality.

The Bose QuietComfort Ultra earbuds are 40% off

The fantastic first-generation Bose QuietComfort Ultra earbuds are going for $179 (originally $299) on Amazon, the lowest price they've ever reached. Though they're an older model, the first-gen Bose QuietComfort Ultra Bluetooth earbuds are still excellent earbuds in 2026. They received an "outstanding" review from PCMag, not just for their best-in-class ANC, but for their great audio quality in general, Spatial audio support, and diverse codec Bluetooth support with AAC and AptX, which makes them great for Android and Apple users alike.

The Bose QuietComfort Ultra Gen 2 headphones are $80 off

If you prefer headphones over earbuds and want the latest Bose has to offer, the QuietComfort Ultra Gen 2 headphones are $369 (originally $449), reaching a new low price. These headphones have excellent ANC, are comfortable for long listening sessions, offer good battery life, and have lossless audio via USB-C, which is very much appreciated for those looking to get away from compressed audio.

The best Apple headphones are $50 off

The new AirPods Max 2 have their first decent discount, currently $497.99 (originally $549.99), their lowest price yet. The biggest upgrades to the AirPods Max 2 include the new "dynamic range" amplifier and Apple's H2 chip (no longer the H1). But there are many other upgrades that are also worth noting.

My favorite travel headphones are $200 off

The JBL Tour One M3 headphones are my favorite traveling headphones, but Lifehacker writer Stephen Johnson said he liked them so much they turned him into an audio snob. They're on sale for $299.95 (originally $449.95), the lowest price Amazon has ever offered.

An Anker portable power station for 50% off

Amazon has the Anker Solix S2000 portable power station for $599.99 right now, down from its $1,199 list price, the lowest it has gone so far. This is a 2kWh battery meant for refrigerators, routers, lights, fans, laptops, CPAP machines, etc—almost anything you have around your house that you'd want to power during an outage. Anker says it can keep a refrigerator running for up to 35 hours, though your real runtime will depend on many factors.

The Hisense CanvasTV for 44% off

TV sets like Samsung's The Frame are made to look like a piece of art and display an image of your choosing when not in use. The Frame is a pricey option, but other brands have their own offerings—including Hisense and its CanvasTV, which I've been using and loving for the past six months. You can currently get the massive 75-inch Hisense CanvasTV for $1,397.99 (down from $2,499.99). This is the lowest price ever.

The GoPro Max2 for $200 off

The GoPro Max2 action camera is a 360-degree camera designed for creators who want to capture more than what a single-lens camera, like the GoPro Hero series, can handle. Right now, it is down from $499 to $299 on Amazon, the $200 discount marking its lowest price ever. 

The Sony Bravia Theater Bar for over $250 off

Sony's Bravia Theater Bar 6 is now down to $448 from its usual $699.99 price, matching its lowest price yet. It sits near the entry point of Sony's current home theater lineup, but unlike many basic soundbars, it includes a wireless subwoofer in the box and supports Dolby Atmos through a 3.1.2-channel setup. This is a great option for a simple and affordable setup from a trusted brand.

A Samsung gaming monitor for just $150

Samsung’s 27-inch Odyssey G5 (G51F) gaming monitor has dropped to $149.99 on Amazon, which is the lowest price it has reached so far. It’s a flat panel (unlike Samsung’s many curved gaming displays), with a matte coating that helps minimize glare in brighter rooms, and comes with a stand that supports height, tilt, and pivot adjustments. The G51F’s combination of 180Hz refresh rate, 1ms response time, and AMD FreeSync support makes fast-paced games look smoother and feel more responsive than they do on standard 60Hz displays, especially in shooters, racing games, and competitive multiplayer titles.

AP Photo/Evan Vucci

An MS NOW spokesperson told Mediaite the network “stands by its reporting,” after White House communications director Steven Cheung savaged journalist Carol Leonnig over her story on President Donald Trump’s new Qatari-gifted airplane.

Leonnig posted to X on Wednesday, “Trump had to switch to his old AF1 when flying from Turkey to UK — because the gifted jet he insists is great didn’t have the defensive capabilities needed for safe travel amid Iran hostilities.”

Leonnig included a link to her story that reported, “President Donald Trump swapped out his new Qatari-gifted Air Force One for his flight from the NATO summit to the United Kingdom over concerns that the gifted aircraft lacks the secure communications systems and military defenses needed to safely manage a rapidly escalating conflict with Iran, according to two former national security officials familiar with the matter.”

The article included a statement from Cheung: “The new Air Force One is a state-of-the-art aircraft that has been fitted with high-level security protocols that ensure the safety of the President and his staff. As the President has said recently, there are many enemies of America who have their sights on him, and we use every tool at our disposal— including distraction and misdirection— to address those threats.”

Cheung jumped on the report Thursday, writing, “Carol Leonnig is a liar and this article is complete Fake News. She has no idea what she is talking about. She says the White House declined to comment. Not true. We gave comment to the New York Times and many other outlets.”

“Carol is not a real journalist. A complete fraud,” Cheung added.

It was unclear what Cheung’s beef was with the MS NOW story, since both it and The New York Times story Cheung cited included the same facts, as well as his statement.

Leonnig wrote that “Neither the Secret Service, nor Boeing responded to requests for comment.” She did not say, “the White House declined to comment,” as Cheung accused the outlet.

The post MS NOW Tells Mediaite It ‘Stands By Its Reporting’ After Trump WH Launches Savage Attack on Journo Over Air Force One Report first appeared on Mediaite.