California man allegedly planned to drive to White House, kill Joe Biden and Anthony Fauci

DES MOINES, Iowa — An armed California man was arrested recently in Iowa while allegedly on his way to the White House.

Police say the man, identified as 25-year-old Kuachua Brillion Xiong, had an assault rifle and ammunition in his possession, as well as a "hit list" that named President Joe Biden; Dr. Anthony Fauci, the president's chief medical advisor; Mark Zuckerberg, the CEO of Meta, formerly known as Facebook; and former presidents Bill Clinton and Barack Obama.

Xiong was pulled over on Dec. 21 after police observed him driving aggressively, according to a criminal complaint. Police suspected he could be planning criminal activity due to the man’s behavior. During the traffic stop he “began talking about his disapproval for government due to the sex abuse of children, some of which that has occurred by President Biden," he said.

Xiong was taken to the Cass County Sheriff’s Office for further questioning.

During an interview, Xiong allegedly told authorities he'd worked at a grocery store in Merced, California, until two months ago – and that his employment was a “cover until called upon by God to combat evil demons in the White House,” according to the criminal complaint.

Police say Xiong said he allegedly began gathering equipment to carry out the deed, including an assault rifle with magazines, ammunition, body armor, medical supplies, dark clothing, a grappling hook, food and cash, according to the complaint.

Xiong allegedly told to police that he left his home in Sacramento on Dec. 18 to drive straight to the White House to kill people in power, and added that he would not have stopped if he had not been pulled over by the authorities, the complaint details.

Police say he allegedly compiled his “hit list” of “evil” people to kill via videos on TikTok. Xiong allegedly stated he would kill Biden unless the president promised to comply with his demands, the complaint added.

“When concluding the interview, (Xiong) stated that nothing would stop him from carrying out his plan of gaining access to the White House and killing the persons on his ‘hit list.’

Xiong allegedly said that if released from custody, he would immediately resume traveling to the White House in Washington, D.C. and ‘do whatever it takes’ to complete his plan,” Secret Service Special Agent Justin Larson wrote in the complaint. “(The man) stated that he has no intention of returning to California to see his family because he plans on dying while fighting evil demons at the White House.”

The defendant's attorneys filed a notice Thursday that he intends to rely on an insanity defense at trial.

The QAnon conspiracy theory holds the false belief that high-level government figures, Democrats and celebrities are secretly engaged in child sex trafficking.

Xiong has been charged with one count of threats to a former president, according to the criminal complaint, although it's possible additional charges could be added by a grand jury in a later indictment. Iowa court records show the man also was cited for speeding.

Reporter William Morris contributed to this report.

Science Says You Should Drink This Much Coffee in 2022

I know those two thoughts don't necessarily go together, so let me explain. We start with the fact that I'm all for self-improvement, but I'm not the biggest fan of New Year's Resolution.

Tying progress to the start of the year seems like a lot of unnecessary pressure. Also, for a lot of people (myself included), the 10 days or so before January 1 (the last few days of pre-Christmas planning and shopping, through a 7 or 10 day vacation period) are likely to be some of the least-self-improving days of the year.

So, if you're going to tie a resolution to the calendar like this, I think it makes sense to give yourself a chance to score a fast, easy, meaningful win.

I'd advise something that you can accomplish quickly, track easily, and that will provide both immediate and long-term advantages.

All of which leads us to coffee, and drinking more of it.

Why? Because study after study seems to suggest it has significant long-term health benefits. Among a few of the highlights:

A 2018 study of 500,000 British adults over a full decade showed that coffee drinkers were 10 percent to 15 percent less likely to die from any cause than non-drinkers, possibly according to the study authors, because, "coffee contains more than 1,000 chemical compounds including antioxidants, which help protect cells from damage."

In 2017, researchers funded by the American Heart Association and the University of Colorado School of Medicine found that every additional cup of coffee people drink each day drops their risk of heart failure or stroke by 8 percent.

A smaller study from Stanford University suggested that people who drink caffeinated coffee (but not decaf, sorry) live longer, perhaps because the caffeine counteracts naturally occurring inflammation, which is in turn associated with 90 percent of all noncommunicable diseases of aging, according to the study's author.

Another big study, from the Harvard School of Public Health, which 200,000 doctors and nurses over 30 years, found a correlation between increased coffee consumption and lower risk of death from heart disease, stroke, diabetes, neurological disease, even suicide.

Finally, drinking "even more coffee" provides an incremental benefit over drinking "more coffee," up to a surprisingly high count, according to a 10-year study of almost 20,000 people over 10 years. ("Our findings suggest that drinking four cups of coffee each day can be part of a healthy diet in healthy people", said one of the study's authors.)

Truly we could go on and on, but let's be sure to add one of the newest studies, which also suggests a short-term benefit many coffee drinkers might be familiar with: better moods.

A study of 5,000 European adults suggested that drinking a cup of coffee (containing about 75 milligrams of caffeine) every four hours can result in feeling better moods during the day.

In our enthusiasm, we should add a caveat: Stop at five cups. Once you get past that, according to a study of nearly 350,000 coffee-drinkers from the University of South Australia, you might start to increase the risk of heart disease.

"Based on our data, six [cups] was the tipping point where caffeine started to negatively affect cardiovascular risk," Hyppnen said.

Now, back to the New Year and the calendar. Because as new habits go, resolving to drink a bit more coffee probably isn't a heavy lift for a lot of people.

It's easy to add to your routine, doesn't cost a lot -- and doesn't require making a major lifestyle change. Plus, for a lot of people, it's actually quite enjoyable.

So, here's to 2022. Maybe you'll raise a glass of whatever your other favorite beverage might be to toast the new year, tonight.

But in the morning? Drink a bit more coffee. And start the new year with a resolution you can actually keep.

By Bill Murphy Jr.

Trucker Rogel Aguilera-Mederos' sentence reduced from 110 to 10 years after public outcry

Colorado Governor Jared Polis has commuted the sentence of truck driver Rogel Aguilera-Mederos to 10 years with eligibility for parole in five. The 26-year-old was originally given a 110 year sentence for a 2019 crash that killed four people, but had his sentence reduced after public outcry over Colorado's mandatory sentencing laws.

Polis announced the news Thursday along with two other commutations, fifteen individual pardons, and an executive order granting 1,351 pardons for those convicted of possessing two ounces or less of marijuana. In Aguilera-Mederos' commutation letter, Polis said he granted the commutation because the sentencing was disproportionate for a "tragic but unintentional act."

"The length of your 110-year sentence is simply not commensurate with your actions, nor with penalties handed down to others for similar crimes," Polis said in the letter. "There is an urgency to remedy this unjust sentence and restore confidence in the uniformity and fairness of our criminal justice system, and consequently I have chosen to commute your sentence now."

Aguilera-Mederos said the crash occurred after his brakes malfunctioned while he was driving on Colorado's Interstate 70. But prosecutors argued that the trucker missed a runaway truck ramp that could have prevented the crash. Dozens were injured, and four — Miguel Angel Lamas Arellano, 24; Doyle Harrison, 61; Stanley Politano, 69; and William Bailey, 67 — were killed, leading to Aguilera-Mederos' 27 charges.

Local police said no alcohol or drugs were involved in the crash, according to CBS Denver.

During sentencing, Aguilera-Mederos said that he regretted the crash and that he wished he had died instead of the other victims.

"My life is not a happy life," Aguilera-Mederos told CBS Denver. "It is a very sad life because four people died."

Because of minimum sentencing laws in Colorado, Aguilera-Mederos was sentenced to 110 years in prison for the charges, which included vehicular homicide. But his sentencing received national attention, with over three million people signing a petition asking for him to receive clemency.

"We believe justice has finally come to light for Rogel," Aguilera-Mederos' lawyer James Colgan said on Thursday. "Unfortunately, you know, there's people, there's victims in this case and we feel for those people and their families. But as it relates to Rogel and the justice system that, that he's had to deal with, we feel grateful."

Polis said that he hoped Aguilera-Mederos' case would bring more attention to mandatory minimum and sentencing laws and encouraged the man to seek "restorative justice opportunities" for the families and the community he impacted. He also noted that a family member of Aguilera-Mederos works in the governor's office, but said he wasn't involved and had no knowledge of the trucker's commutation.

"You have wondered why your life was spared when other lives were taken," Polis wrote to Aguilera-Mederos on Thursday. "You will struggle with this burden of this event for the rest of your life, but never forget that because of this event, countless others will struggle with the loss of their loved ones or injuries as well. And you will serve your just sentence."

Kim Kardashian West, who had advocated for his sentence to be commuted, celebrated the news of Aguilera-Mederos' commutation on Twitter.

"This case was a clear example of why mandatory minimums don't work and need to be abolished. I'm grateful to Governor Polis for his empathy and leadership on this case," Kardashian West tweeted. "While his new sentence is ten years, he will now have an opportunity to come home in five years and be with his son and wife."

Michael Roppolo contributed reporting.

First published on December 30, 2021 / 6:13 PM

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Gas prices up, Biden's responsible; gas prices down, total silence!

MIAMI, FL - The far-right conservative republicans in the United States are a very interesting characters because among other things, they can't hide their double-standard and, on top of that, they spice up the situation with a blatant ignorance of the topics they usually refer to.

Little by little, they've been showing their colors in the most olympic way. It's been a race of decades and they are persuaded to win it.

A few weeks ago, the gas prices went up in the United States, an economic situation that was covered in an ample way and foreseen months in advance because it was the natural economic result of the "wake up" situation after the pandemic. A total economic and private matter, with no responsibility whatsoever regarding the presidency. However, the far-right conservative republicans put in place, as always, a propaganda blaming president Biden for the increment of gas prices.

Funny enough, a few weeks later, as foreseen by the experts in the field, gas prices are going down as we speak.

Now, for some mysterious reason, the far-right conservative republicans are absolutely silenced on the matter and given their own analysis, it should be president Biden's responsibility as well, right? If so, why our friends from the fart-right don't speak up to, let's say, congratulate president Biden for the accomplishment of lower gas prices, at least with the same emphasis they used to condemn him because of the high gas prices.

Am I right or there is something really unfair with the far-right conservative republicans and their judgment?

Just sayin'!

Originally reported by Ricardo Martinez