“On the morning of July 10, 2025, North Carolina resident James Gates suddenly became violently ill, he said. He said he was struck with abdominal pain, uncontrollable shaking and weakness and wasn’t able to leave his couch for nearly three days. But it wasn’t until a couple of months later that Gates suspected he had been poisoned, according to a lawsuit against ChatGPT maker OpenAI he filed in San Francisco County Superior Court on Oct. 14, which said that in September of last year he found a handwritten note referencing chemicals and dosage instructions, allegedly written by his estranged wife. The top of the note read ‘clear all convos’ and ‘log out of chat GPT’, Gates’ complaint alleged. The Charlotte District Attorney’s Office charged Cheryl Gates with attempted murder …. However, prosecutors dismissed all criminal charges in April due to insufficient evidence, Cheryl Gates said in a statement via her attorney Jennifer Tosi to SFGATE.” (11/06/26)
“President Donald Trump said Friday that Stephen Miller was replacing Susie Wiles as White House chief of staff, installing as his closest adviser a loyal, combative bulldog for his ‘America First’ [sic] agenda as the president prepares to stare down a newly empowered Democratic Congress next year. Miller, long a member of Trump’s tight inner circle, is a key architect of the administration’s hard-line immigration policies. He is one of Trump’s longest-serving aides, joining his long-shot 2016 presidential campaign as a speechwriter. He most recently has served as White House deputy chief of staff for policy and oversees a broad portfolio, though he is best known for his role in Trump’s immigration policy.” (11/06/26)
Today is NOT a “Firehose Friday” at the freedom movement’s daily newspaper — we’ve got full 60-item email/social media editions for you. But we also have EXTRA content (another 20+ news stories, opinion pieces, and audio/video links) for you here at the web edition.
Yesterday was a “zero-dollar day” in our annual fundraiser. Our total remains at $1,151.50.
Our goal is $5,503. Once we’ve raised the first half ($2,751.50), supporter GL has pledged to “match funds” for the other half. We’re $1,600 short of — only 41% of the way to — the goal.
This weekend, help us out with a “great leap forward” to the $1,500 mark. If we raise $348.50 between now and Monday, we’ll be at $1,500 (and 54% of the way home). So …
“Paraguay’s President has tried to resign over the collapse of a digital bank that left millions of depositors unable to reach their money. Lawmakers have refused to let him go. Santiago Peña announced his resignation yesterday in a video posted on social media. He said he was acting for the sake of the country’s stability, social peace and its democratic institutions, and apologised to Paraguayans for any failings on his part. Minutes later the Chamber of Deputies voted 78-0 to impeach him, sending the case to the Senate. It shelved a parallel motion against Vice President Pedro Alliana, who is next in line. A joint session of Congress called to accept the resignation then collapsed. … A president who steps down normally becomes a senator for life with immunity from prosecution, a status that removal from office would strip away.” (11/06/26)
“Gov. Gavin Newsom commuted all California death sentences on Thursday, declaring that ‘state-sanctioned killing is incompatible with’ values in America’s most populous state. In an open letter to constituents, Newsom said taking this step is ‘among the most difficult of my career.’ ‘I take this action because I firmly believe that state-sanctioned killing is incompatible with California’s values,’ he said. California has not put a prisoner to death since Jan. 17, 2006 when Clarence Ray Allen was put to death via lethal injection.” (11/05/26)
“Republican US Rep. Thomas Massie of Kentucky said Wednesday that Pentagon Secretary Pete Hegseth, the most prominent cheerleader and architect of the Trump administration’s illegal war on Iran, will face an impeachment vote in the House of Representatives – unless he submits his resignation first. ‘There is one contingency in which I won’t reintroduce the articles of impeachment: Hegseth resigns,’ Massie, who unveiled eight impeachment articles against the Pentagon secretary in September, wrote following Democrats’ rout of the GOP in Tuesday’s midterm elections. Massie is expected to force a vote on the articles (which accuse Hegseth of extrajudicial killings, waging wars without congressional authorization, and kidnapping a sovereign foreign leader) as soon as next week.” (11/05/26)
“A Nigerian court disqualified a leading presidential candidate Thursday, complicating the electoral process two months before the election. A Federal High Court judge in Abuja, the country’s capital, ruled that the leadership of the African Democratic Congress, one of the three major parties contesting the January 2027 election, was illegally constituted and therefore voided the candidacy of Atiku Abubakar. Earlier in the year, a court ordered the party deregistered for failing to meet constitutional requirements, but an appeals court overturned the ruling. The party and government critics say the case was orchestrated by the ruling party.” (11/05/26)
“United States First Lady Melania Trump has urged Russia and Ukraine to build on a recent localised ceasefire and seek a more ‘enduring’ peace, as she hosted officials from both countries at the White House. Melania Trump spoke on Thursday at an event that the White House said is believed to be ‘the first time in American history that a First Lady has personally brought representatives of two nations at war to the White House for diplomacy’. Those attending included Kirill Dmitriev, a special envoy of Russian President Vladimir Putin; Yana Lantratova, Russia’s human rights commissioner; David Arakhamia, leader of the Servant of the People party in Ukraine’s parliament; and Dmytro Lubinets, Ukraine’s parliamentary human rights commissioner.” (11/05/26)
“The Joint List alliance of Arab-led parties says it will back Israeli opposition leader Gadi Eisenkot to form a new government after last week’s election. ‘The Joint List announced today, Thursday, that it will inform the President of the State, Isaac Herzog, this evening of its decision to recommend that Gadi Eisenkot be tasked with forming the government,’ the alliance said in a statement. Arab-led parties won a record 19 seats in Israel’s 120-seat parliament in last week’s general election, a result that could give them significant influence over the formation of the next government. Once the Joint List’s 11 lawmakers formally submit their recommendation, Eisenkot is expected to have the backing of 67 lawmakers, exceeding the 61-seat majority threshold in the Knesset.” (11/05/26)
“Nithya Raman will be the next mayor of Los Angeles, making her the first challenger to defeat an incumbent L.A. mayor in more than two decades. Mayor Karen Bass called Raman Thursday to concede the race, after the latest tally from Tuesday’s election showed Raman with 52% of the vote compared to 48% for Bass, with 76% of the expected votes counted. … Raman and Bass were locked in a tight and contentious race up until election day, with final polling in the race showing the second-term council member and the incumbent mayor each with support from 40% of Angelenos while 19% of the electorate remained undecided. But a blue wave across the country that toppled Republicans in the U.S. Senate and the House of Representatives buoyed Raman’s campaign against Bass from the left.” (11/05/26)
