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Gabbard ends task force that aimed to reform intelligence gathering after less than a year
Are they actually going to vote on something real?

Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard announced she was ending the work of a task force that sought to reform the U.S. intelligence community, including rooting out what she described as the politicization of intelligence gathering, after less than a year since its creation.
Gabbard established the group in April, when it was also tasked with probing ways to reduce spending on intelligence and whether reports on high-profile topics such as COVID-19 should be declassified.
In a statement on Wednesday, Gabbard said the task force's work was always intended to be temporary after she was tapped to oversee coordination of the 18 U.S. intelligence agencies.
"In less than one year, we’ve brought a historic level of transparency to the intelligence community," Gabbard said in her statement. "My commitment to transparency, truth, and eliminating politicization and weaponization within the intelligence community remains central to all that we do."
TULSI GABBARD DENIES WRONGDOING OVER DELAYED WHISTLE-BLOWER COMPLAINT REFERRAL TO CONGRESS MEMBERS: 'BASELESS'
The number of officers assigned to the task force, as well as their identities, are classified, according to Gabbard's office.
The officers will now return to other intelligence agencies to continue the work the group started, her office added.
The group sparked criticism against Gabbard after its creation, with Democrats and some intelligence insiders raising questions about whether it would be used to undermine intelligence agencies and bring them under tighter control of President Donald Trump.
Sen. Mark Warner, D-VA, vice chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee, said last year that the group appeared to be a "pass for a witch hunt" designed to target intelligence officers deemed disloyal to Trump.
TRUMP CLAIMS DNI TULSI GABBARD WAS AT GEORGIA ELECTION HUB SEARCH BECAUSE AG PAM BONDI WANTED HER THERE
"This seems to be just a pass for a witch hunt and that's going to further undermine our national security," Warner told Reuters at the time.
Gabbard has implemented significant changes to the country's intelligence gathering in the last year, including by using agencies to back up Trump's claims about alleged interference in the 2016 and 2020 elections.
In August, she revealed plans to cut her office's workforce and slash more than $700 million from its annual budget. She also fired two top intelligence officials in May after concluding that they opposed Trump.
Since Gabbard took over as director, the federal government has revoked the security clearances of dozens of former and current …

Newslinks for Thursday 12th February 2026
How is this acceptable?

Reeves calls for close ties with EU

“Rachel Reeves has said that she is “up for” taking Britain closer to the EU. The Chancellor described current negotiations over youth mobility, food standards and energy policy as “first base” and said closer relations with the bloc represented the “biggest prize” for the British economy. Speaking at an event in London organised by the Bruegel think tank, Ms Reeves said Labour was willing to cede more powers to Brussels to secure a better economic deal. The comments are a significant shift in tone from the Chancellor, who just weeks ago told an audience in Davos that Britain could not go “back in time” in its relationship with the EU.” – Daily Telegraph

Chancellor warned NHS faces massive £20bn black hole that could spark fresh tax misery for millions – The Sun

Appointments 1) Starmer was aware Lord Doyle backed paedophile, No 10 admits

“Sir Keir Starmer nominated a former adviser for a peerage despite being told that he provided a paedophile councillor with “support” because he “believed in his innocence”. Lord Doyle, a former director of communications in Downing Street, told Number 10 he had been “supportive” of Sean Morton after he was charged with possessing and distributing indecent images of children. The disclosure will raise further questions about the prime minister’s judgment in the wake of the scandal over the former British ambassador to the US Lord Mandelson’s links to Jeffrey Epstein, the paedophile financier. Starmer stood by his decision to ennoble Doyle for more than six weeks after he had been made aware that his communications chief had campaigned for Morton as an independent councillor despite him being charged with sex offences.” – The Times

Vetting process for Mandelson needed more awkward questions, expert says – The Guardian

Streeting’s links to lobbyist prompt calls for tighter rules – The Times

Friends and foes of Wes Streeting put down their weapons, for now – The Times

New shame for spineless Starmer – Leader, Daily Mail

Starmer KC started ranting and turned into Sid Vicious – Quentin Letts, Daily Mail

>Today: Columnist John Oxley: Are we in a new phase for all Prime Ministers? The era of ‘two year Keir’

>Yesterday: Video: PMQS: Badenoch accuses PM of sacking a string of allies to save himself

Appointments 2) Calls for a woman deputy PM, to change culture

“Female Labour MPs have demanded that Keir Starmer appoint a senior woman as his de facto deputy to oversee a “complete culture change” in Downing Street after a series of scandals that they say have exposed a No 10 “boys’ club”. Harriet Harman, one of the party’s most senior figures, urged Starmer to revive the role of first secretary of state on Wednesday, a post occupied by Peter Mandelson under Gordon Brown.” – The …

Italy’s Meloni amps up illegal immigration enforcement in Italy with ‘naval blockade’
This affects the entire country.

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni’s coalition government approved legislation that would increase the country’s efforts to curb illegal immigration. Among the approved activities in the bill is a proposal to implement “naval blockades” for boats, ships, and vessels carrying illegal immigrants to Italian shores. 

The new migration legislation would also enhance border control surveillance operations and strengthen cooperative efforts with European Union agencies, the Associated Press reported. 

Oggi il Governo ha approvato un provvedimento molto significativo per rafforzare il contrasto all’immigrazione illegale di massa e ai trafficanti di esseri umani. Ascoltate.
— Giorgia Meloni (@GiorgiaMeloni) February 11, 2026

The bill heads for debate in Italy’s Chamber of Deputies and Senate. If the bicameral legislature approves the legislation, it will become law. Incidentally, the new legislation introduced by Meloni’s government comes a day after European Union reforms on migration and asylum, the Associated Press reported. 

A key component of the EU’s new immigration policies is to ease laws governing asylum refusals across the continent. It also permits European nations to deport migrants from a country deemed “safe,” or to apply for asylum in a country not in the EU, according to the Associated Press. 

“We are delivering another key building block for a functioning, credible asylum system,” said Lena Düpont, a legislator from Germany’s European People’s Party, regarding the EU’s new migration policies. “By enabling manifestly unfounded asylum applications to be rejected more quickly and efficiently in the future, we are speeding up asylum procedures, relieving the burden on member state systems, and helping people avoid being stuck in legal limbo for years.”

If approved, the new law would allow Italy’s government to deploy ships to patrol Italy’s coastline for migrants seeking to enter the country illegally on vessels considered to be a serious threat “to public order or national security.” Italy would be allowed to prohibit migrant ships from entering Italian waters for up to 30 days, the Associated Press reported. The overall “blockade” would be allowed to be extended for a maximum period of six months. 

NATO RESHUFFLES TOP LEADERSHIP SPOTS BUT US RETAINS TOP MILITARY POST

“It would also be possible to stop the ships from entering Italian waters in the case of a drastic influx in migrants that could jeopardize the …

Italy’s Meloni amps up illegal immigration enforcement in Italy with proposed ‘naval blockade’
Who's accountable for the results?

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni’s coalition government approved legislation that would increase the country’s efforts to curb illegal immigration. Among the approved activities in the bill is a proposal to implement “naval blockades” for boats, ships, and vessels carrying illegal immigrants to Italian shores. 

The new migration legislation would also enhance border control surveillance operations and strengthen cooperative efforts with European Union agencies, the Associated Press reported. 

Oggi il Governo ha approvato un provvedimento molto significativo per rafforzare il contrasto all’immigrazione illegale di massa e ai trafficanti di esseri umani. Ascoltate.
— Giorgia Meloni (@GiorgiaMeloni) February 11, 2026

The bill heads for debate in Italy’s Chamber of Deputies and Senate. If the bicameral legislature approves the legislation, it will become law. Incidentally, the new legislation introduced by Meloni’s government comes a day after European Union reforms on migration and asylum, the Associated Press reported. 

A key component of the EU’s new immigration policies is to ease laws governing asylum refusals across the continent. It also permits European nations to deport migrants from a country deemed “safe,” or to apply for asylum in a country not in the EU, according to the Associated Press. 

“We are delivering another key building block for a functioning, credible asylum system,” said Lena Düpont, a legislator from Germany’s European People’s Party, regarding the EU’s new migration policies. “By enabling manifestly unfounded asylum applications to be rejected more quickly and efficiently in the future, we are speeding up asylum procedures, relieving the burden on member state systems, and helping people avoid being stuck in legal limbo for years.”

If approved, the new law would allow Italy’s government to deploy ships to patrol Italy’s coastline for migrants seeking to enter the country illegally on vessels considered to be a serious threat “to public order or national security.” Italy would be allowed to prohibit migrant ships from entering Italian waters for up to 30 days, the Associated Press reported. The overall “blockade” would be allowed to be extended for a maximum period of six months. 

NATO RESHUFFLES TOP LEADERSHIP SPOTS BUT US RETAINS TOP MILITARY POST

“It would also be possible to stop the ships from entering Italian waters in the case of a drastic influx in migrants that could jeopardize the …

Another peer, another paedophile
Unelected doesn't mean harmless.

‘Nandy criticises Starmer’s appointment of peer linked to paedophile’ is not, at first glance, a surprising headline in this morning’s Daily Telegraph. The Mandelson story isn’t going to go away anytime soon, after all.

And then you realise Mandie has nothing to do with it. There is another peer, and another paedophile.

I don’t know if British politics has ever had reason to exhibit this particular rule before, so maybe I’m wrong, but I posit that the number of second-degree political connexions to different paedophiles a prime minister can survive is fewer than two. It was almost certainly fewer than one, but definitely fewer than two.

Sir Keir Starmer is, politically speaking, a dead man. He may perhaps keep twitching long enough to fulfill his highest ambitions for office and give away the Chagos Islands, but that’s about it. And notwithstanding my warning from Monday, it is hard to see his downfall as unjust.

This government’s back was long broken; having stated that its top priority is ‘growth’, it has once again underperformed the OBR’s underwhelming forecasts; the best Rachel Reeves’ can manage, instead of scrapping the Employment Rights Bill or the Renters’ Rights Act or any other economically self-harming bit of her own agenda, is to bleat about closer relations with Europe. Naturally, she has taken this as an excuse to limit her ‘deregulatory drive’, whatever that was supposed to have been, even as Germany’s Olaf Scholz calls for a “regulatory clean slate”.

Again, it’s not necessarily that today’s politicians are an order of magnitude worse than their predecessors. It is simply that the forward momentum imparted to the British economy in earlier, better days, and which allowed several cohorts of the inadequate generation to convince themselves they had done a passable job of running it, has run out. When Starmer complains about pulling the levers and nothing happening, the lever in question are “taking the path of least resistance”, and the promised result “everything working out for now”.

If anything, the problem with the whole ‘Two Degrees of Humbert Humbert’ situation the Government now finds itself in is that it is so compelling an explanation for the downfall of a prime minister that Labour will convince itself that the rest of it didn’t matter. It wasn’t the anaemic growth, the soaring taxes, the many and manifest failures in office. It was Mandelson, and Doyle, and the unfortunate decision of a man with apparently no political instincts at all to elevate them to high office.

That comforting fairy story is not true, however weird it is to have to use the phrase “It wasn’t just the paedophiles” to put anyone’s problems in context. A new Labour leader would find that out soon enough, when the gulf between public expectations, …

Trump administration took ‘enforcement action’ against Chinese-owned company based in Wisconsin
Ask who never gets charged.

EXCLUSIVE — U.S. Customs and Border Protection issued an enforcement action against a Wisconsin-based manufacturing company last year, which persons familiar with the matter say could foreshadow criminal charges against the company or its employees for tariff evasion.

The company, called Milwaukee Tool, is headquartered in Milwaukee but is a subsidiary of Hong Kong-based Techtronic Industries, which acquired it in 2005 for more than $600 million. TTI has similarly acquired a number of other previously American-owned hardware manufacturers, including Dirt Devil, Imperial Blades, Hoover, and Oreck.

HISPANIC CONSERVATIVES ACCUSE HOUSE GOP HOPEFUL OF DEFRAUDING DONORS AND ACTIVISTS

Customs and Border Protection launched a federal investigation into Milwaukee Tool last year after the Trade Alliance to Promote Prosperity filed a complaint alleging that the company was transshipping products manufactured in China to the United States through Taiwan and Vietnam, the coalition told the Washington Examiner.

The investigation resulted in an unnamed enforcement action, according to CBP.

“U.S. Customs and Border Protection conducted a thorough investigation of the allegation that merchandise was imported into the United States in violation of the customs and trade laws of the United States. The investigation is now closed and resulted in an enforcement action,” CBP wrote to TAPP in an exchange reviewed by the Washington Examiner. “CBP takes all trade violation allegations seriously and is committed to protecting United States industries and businesses from unfair trade practices.”

The Washington Examiner has reached out to Milwaukee Tool for comment.

The Trade Alliance to Promote Prosperity’s allegations stemmed specifically from a case study published by Tariff Integrity and TAPP that found that 91% of Milwaukee Tool shipments were not subject to Section 301 tariffs, which specifically target Chinese exports of technologies, intellectual properties, and industrial goods to the United States, despite the company’s expansive manufacturing footprint in China.

Seven percent of Milwaukee Tools’ exports to the U.S. also came from Taiwan, despite having no manufacturing presence there. Furthermore, Milwaukee Tools’ Vietnamese export volume to the U.S. was almost twice that of its Chinese export volume, despite China being the company’s largest manufacturing footprint.

In its statement to the Washington Examiner, CBP noted that “the Trade Secrets Act, the Privacy …

6 years after political comeback, Biden faces cold shoulder from fellow Democrats
Who benefits from this decision?

Former President Joe Biden will be feted by South Carolina Democrats later this month, to mark the sixth anniversary of his Palmetto State primary landslide, a comeback victory that rocketed Biden to the 2020 Democratic presidential nomination and later the White House.
But with many Democrats still smarting from their party's major 2024 election setbacks, fueled in part by a very unpopular Biden presidency and the then-president's dropping his re-election bid amid serious questions about his physical and mental abilities following a disastrous debate with now-President Donald Trump, the South Carolina celebration appears to be an outlier.
As they seek office in gubernatorial and congressional races in this year's elections, nine candidates who served in the Biden administration appear to be keeping their distance from the former president, according to a new report from Axios.
POTENTIAL 2028 CONTENDER SHAPIRO KNOCKS BIDEN'S RECORD OF ACCOMPLISHMENT
Biden ended his presidency with approval and favorable ratings well underwater, and the 13 months since he left office have not apparently healed the damage done to his standing among those in his own party.
"Biden remains a liability," a veteran Democratic strategist who asked to remain anonymous to speak more freely, told Fox News Digital. "Being associated with the Biden administration is doing some candidates no favors as they run this year."
HOUSE DEMOCRATS ON OFFENSE: EXPAND THE 2026 MAP
That's a switch from the 2018 elections, the previous midterm cycle where Trump was in office and the Democrats were out of power, when former President Barack Obama as well as then-former Vice President Biden were in demand on the campaign trail.
Among those not highlighting Biden this cycle is Deb Haaland, a former House member from New Mexico who served as Department of the Interior secretary in the Biden administration and is now running for governor in the blue-leaning state. The former president isn't mentioned in Haaland's campaign website.
Another example is Xavier Becerra, who served as secretary of Health and Human Services under Biden and is now running for California governor. The former president isn't mentioned in Becerra's campaign launch video.
IT'S EARLY IN 2026, BUT THE 2028 WHITE HOUSE RACE IS WELL UNDERWAY
But some Biden alumni running in solidly blue areas are mentioning their service during his administration. That includes Democratic congressional candidate Sanjyot Dunung, who is seeking office in Illinois 8th District. She mentions in her launch video that she served on Biden's foreign policy …

Salty, Oily Drinking Water Left Sores in Their Mouths. Oklahoma Refused to Find Out Why.
This is how power hides.

In the summer of 2022, months after Tammy Boarman and her husband, Chris, moved into their newly built “forever home” 30 miles from Oklahoma City, the plants in their yard began to turn yellow. The shrubs wilted, though Tammy watered them often. And the couple began to notice a salty taste in their drinking water.

The water came from a private well, drilled the year before, and they hoped that the bad taste would fade with time and with the help of a water softener.

But the problem grew worse. Their ice maker expelled large clumps of wet salt, which, when rubbed, dissolved into an oily, foul-smelling substance.

The couple knew that some oil and gas extraction took place nearby. Down dirt roads and behind stands of oak trees in their neighborhood, pump jacks nodded up and down, pulling up oil. This is a common sight in Oklahoma. Several studies estimate that about half the state’s residents live within a mile of oil and gas wells.

By the following summer, Tammy and Chris Boarman had been in touch with the state agency overseeing private water wells and began to fear these nearby oil operations had tainted their water, which they had largely stopped drinking after developing sores in their mouths. The couple submitted a complaint to the oil division of the Oklahoma Corporation Commission, which regulates the state’s oil and gas industry and is responsible for addressing related pollution.

When Tammy Boarman first contacted oil regulators, she was hopeful state officials would find the source of the pollution and clean it up. For the next two years, the state repeatedly tested the Boarmans’ water for contaminants and found salt concentrations that made the water undrinkable and, at one point, toxic metals at levels high enough to endanger human health — strong signs of oil field wastewater pollution, according to agency testing.

But regulators repeatedly delayed or failed to conduct other tests recommended by the agency’s own employees to locate the pollution source, according to internal agency documents obtained by The Frontier and ProPublica through public records requests.

Despite Boarman’s pleas to regulators to do more, the agency would ultimately dismiss its earlier findings pointing to oil and gas pollution and close the couple’s case, leaving basic questions about the origins of the problem unanswered.

“For the longest time, we were so naive to everything,” Boarman said. “We thought things were going to get better.”

Chunks of salt expelled from Tammy and Chris Boarman’s ice maker. Courtesy of Tammy Boarman

The Boarmans’ water corroded their faucet. Courtesy of Tammy Boarman

State Delayed Testing to Find Pollution Source

The Boarmans’ home, a white modern farmhouse, sits in the middle of an aging oil field, one of several that surround Oklahoma City and that helped make Oklahoma one of the country’s leaders in petroleum production in the 1940s.

Today, the region is growing quickly, with a sought-after school system and affordable real estate. New subdivisions sprout on undeveloped land, and residents in more remote areas — such as where the Boarmans live — often rely on private water wells dug near newly built homes.

But …

Russia launches 219 drones and 24 ballistic missiles in overnight attack on Ukraine
Every delay has consequences.

Russia launched another strike on Ukraine as 219 drones and 24 ballistic missiles reportedly hit various cities throughout Ukraine on Wednesday night. Two people were killed, and ten people were injured in the strikes.

Wednesday’s strike against Ukraine comes a day after Russia launched a massive attack, deploying 470 drones in various cities and regions across the Eastern European country. A father and his three children under two years old were reportedly killed during this attack. 

Both strikes on Ukraine came a little over a week after peace negotiations between Ukraine and Russia, brokered by the United States, were held in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. Aside from a prisoner exchange, little, if any, progress was made in the talks. Both parties agreed to hold meetings again in the future. 

З ночі триває робота ремонтних бригад і рятувальників на місцях російських ударів. Загалом за ніч було 219 ударних дронів, значна частина з них – «шахеди», а також 25 ракет, з них 24 балістичні. Більшість вдалося знешкодити, але, на жаль, не все. Станом на зараз відомо, що двоє…
— Volodymyr Zelenskyy / Володимир Зеленський (@ZelenskyyUa) February 12, 2026

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said the targets of the strikes were parts of his country’s energy infrastructure. He criticized Russia for conducting drone strikes in civilian areas during a frigid winter in which “many houses remain without heat.”

“Since last night, repair crews and rescuers have been working at the sites of Russian strikes,” Zelensky posted on X. “In total, there were 219 strike drones during the night, a significant part of them were “Shaheeds”, as well as 25 missiles, 24 of them ballistic. Most of them were neutralized, but unfortunately not all. As of now, it is known that two people died as a result of this attack. My condolences to their families and loved ones. More than ten people were injured.”

“The main target of the strike is the energy sector in Kyiv, Odessa and Dnipro, generation and substations,” Zelensky said. “There is damage in the Kharkiv region, Donetsk, Kyiv and Kherson regions. In Kramatorsk, a drone hit the building of the State Emergency Service. The situation in the capital is difficult: many houses remain without heat.”

HOW MANY RUSSIANS AND UKRAINIANS HAVE DIED IN THE RUSSIA-UKRAINE WAR?

He also called on other countries to increase their efforts in aiding Ukraine’s air defense against Russia. He requested that weapons …

State Department to pull additional passports from parents who owe child support
This affects the entire country.

The Trump administration is preparing to expand passport revocations for parents who owe significant child support, limiting their ability to travel internationally until their arrears are addressed.
The State Department plans to increase enforcement of a 30-year-old federal law that allows the government to revoke U.S. passports for individuals with substantial unpaid child support, according to The Associated Press, which cited three U.S. officials familiar with the matter.
It is unclear how many people could ultimately be affected, though officials indicated the number could reach into the thousands. The State Department is expected to implement the changes in phases due to the potentially large number of passport holders who owe back child support, the officials said.
HUNTER BIDEN ACCUSED OF GHOSTING DAUGHTER WITH LUNDEN ROBERTS AND VIOLATING CHILD SUPPORT AGREEMENT
The first group to be targeted will be passport holders who owe more than $100,000 in past-due child support, the officials told the outlet. One official said fewer than 500 people meet that threshold. Those individuals could retain their passports if they enter into a payment plan with the Department of Health and Human Services after being notified of a pending revocation.
The official added that lowering the past-due threshold in the future would significantly increase the number of parents subject to enforcement.
It remains unclear when any further changes would take effect or how many people might have their passports revoked as a result.
STATE DEPARTMENT LISTS MAJOR SPORTING EVENTS IN ADDITION TO WORLD CUP, OLYMPICS EXEMPT FROM TRUMP'S VISA BAN
Passport revocations for unpaid child support exceeding $2,500 have been permitted under a 1996 law known as the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act. In recent years, however, the State Department typically acted only when an individual applied to renew a passport or sought other consular services.
Under the updated approach, the department would begin revoking passports based on data shared by the Department of Health and Human Services, according to the officials who spoke to The Associated Press.
The State Department said in a statement to The Associated Press that it "is reviewing options to enforce long-standing law to prevent those owing substantial amounts of child support from neglecting their legal and moral obligations to their children."
"It is simple: deadbeat parents need to pay their child support arrears," the statement added.
Since the Passport Denial Program began with the Personal Responsibility …