President Trump’s handpicked warrior, Ric Grenell, just delivered a brutal smackdown to one of the New York Times’ most notorious left-wing propagandists.

As The Gateway Pundit has reported, Grenell was installed at the helm of the Kennedy Center to drain the swamp after years of Biden-era corruption and left-wing rot.

He uncovered $26 million in phantom “fake revenue,” exposed the center’s catastrophic financial collapse with zero cash reserves and massive debt, and stood up to woke Hollywood elites and artists who boycotted performances in a temper tantrum against Trump’s vision. It was a year of real results and real pushback, exactly what the radical left despises.

President Trump announced Friday that Grenell will step down from the role, while Matt Floca, the center’s vice president of facilities operations, is set to take over as chief operating officer and executive director.

Amid speculation that Grenell had been fired, President Trump flatly rejected the claims, calling them false and politically motivated. According to the President, not only was Grenell never fired, but he remains a valued figure within the administration.

“There was a story he got fired; he didn’t get fired,” Trump clarified. “He was here for a short period of time, for a year, figuring it out with Matt and everybody else. And Matt now is going to take over.”

Now that Trump is transitioning the center (including major renovations and a new leader), the failing New York Times sent their resident hack, Elizabeth Williamson.

Grenell publicly blasted Elizabeth Williamson on X, accusing her of pushing a partisan narrative and attempting to manipulate his responses for a pre-written hit piece.

He wrote:

“Elizabeth Williamson isn’t a journalist. She is a left wing hack who lies about Republicans. All the time.

I’m not falling for her agenda-drive tactics. I’m exposing her.

Here is the text exchange I just had with her proving she lies.

@NYTLiz should be fired.

Can you imagine putting in writing that you will just say I declined the comment because you don’t like my comment?

The New York Times should launch an investigation into her previous work.”

The screenshots Grenell shared are pure gold and damning.

Williamson initially reached out requesting comment after Trump announced Grenell’s replacement by Matt Floca ahead of the center’s two-year renovation:

“Hi Ric, it’s Elizabeth Williamson from the New York Times. I’m writing about your being replaced at the helm of the Kennedy Center. I know the president said he’s looking for your next venture, but any ideas what you’ll do next? Any general comment on what has proven a turbulent year for you in the administration? Thanks.”

Grenell hit her with the truth bomb on the record:

“Here’s my on the record comment. ‘You are such a left wing hack who is not interested in the truth, but interested in attacking Republicans and manipulating the news for your own far left agenda. Anyone looking at your body of work realizes that you’ve just got an agenda that includes anything against conservatives.’”

She fired back, claiming she “watched it live” and threatening to write that Grenell “declined to answer” if he didn’t play along with her narrative:

“I watched it live. It would be great if you would answer the questions I sent. Or we’ll write you declined to answer them. Your choice. Thanks.”

Grenell clapped back instantly:

“I didn’t decline to answer them. Lol. You just don’t get to approve the answers.”

She doubled down, repeating her loaded questions. Grenell’s final reply exposed the entire corrupt game:

“It’s quite shocking to see that you would say that I declined to answer simply because you didn’t like my answer. Do you think your Editor would approve of that? Do you think the public would approve of that?”

Elizabeth Williamson isn’t a journalist. She is a left wing hack who lies about Republicans. All the time.

I’m not falling for her agenda-drive tactics. I’m exposing her.

Here is the text exchange I just had with her proving she lies. @NYTLiz should be fired.

Can you imagine… pic.twitter.com/OCQntJ4aLZ

— Richard Grenell (@RichardGrenell) March 16, 2026

In her published article, Williamson wrote:

Mr. Grenell did not respond to a question on whether he will remain in government. In his remaining administration role, special missions envoy, including to Venezuela and North Korea, administration officials say he has repeatedly clashed over Venezuela policy with Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who won out over Mr. Grenell in his quest to be America’s top diplomat.

Mr. Grenell also did not respond to questions about his future and his turbulent year. Instead, he sent a text message criticizing The New York Times’s coverage of Republicans and conservatives.

Gateway Pundit has previously reported on multiple instances where conservative figures claimed their statements were mischaracterized, omitted, or buried entirely when they didn’t align with the outlet’s narrative.

The post Ric Grenell EVISCERATES New York Times Left-Wing Hack in Explosive Text Exchange: “You Are Such a Left Wing Hack… Interested in Attacking Republicans” appeared first on The Gateway Pundit.

For a fading host of a fading Hollywood awards ceremony, first lady Melania Trump was too easy a target to ignore.

Late-night comedian Jimmy Kimmel used the Oscars stage Sunday at Los Angeles’ Dolby Theatre to take a cheap shot at President Donald Trump’s wife while demonstrating how little truth actually matters to the modern left.

And while he got a forced laugh from his audience, the social media blowback was far louder.

Jimmy Kimmel presenting at the Oscars: “There are some countries whose leaders don’t support free speech. I’m not at liberty to say which. Let’s just leave it at North Korea and CBS.” pic.twitter.com/6k92W4bN5W

— LateNighter (@latenightercom) March 16, 2026

“There are some countries whose leaders don’t support free speech. I’m not at liberty to say which,” Kimmel said on the nationally televised program, while introducing the award for documentary short film, according to The Hill.

“Let’s just leave it at North Korea and CBS.”

It was an apparent reference to the coming cancellation of “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert” — a nightly festival of Trump hatred that’s due to leave the air in May.

“Fortunately for all of us, there is an international community of filmmakers dedicated to telling the truth, oftentimes at great risk, to make films that teach us that call out injustice, that inspire us to take action.

“And there are also documentaries where you walk around the White House trying on shoes.”

The reference, of course, was to the documentary “Melania,” which Hollywood hated, and millions of Americans loved.

Kimmel then made the point again while introducing the documentary feature film category, according to The Hill.

Jimmy Kimmel takes swipe at Donald Trump at the #Oscars: “Oh man, is he going to be mad that his wife wasn’t nominated for this” pic.twitter.com/h3WUfWAFy7

— Deadline (@DEADLINE) March 16, 2026

“Oh, man, is he going to be mad his wife wasn’t nominated for this,” Kimmel said.

The problem with Kimmel’s jokes — aside from being predictable and not even close to funny — is that they’re based on lies.

CBS didn’t cancel Colbert for political reasons. It cancelled his show because it’s a money loser.

And Trump being upset that “Melania” wasn’t nominated for an Oscar? The documentary came out in January. It wasn’t even eligible for an awards ceremony that honored work released last year.

(The libs at Newsweek spent basically a whole article explaining “Why Melania Trump’s Documentary Wasn’t Nominated for an Oscar,” when it all could have been boiled down to one paragraph: “In Melania’s case, while the film did receive a theatrical release in late January 2026, that timing placed it outside the eligibility window for the 98th Oscars, which honors films released during the 2025 calendar year. So, it’s possible that Melania’s film could be eligible for an Oscar in 2026.”)

Kimmel and his writers had to know both of those things. An audience full of show business professionals — however shallow and stupid they might be personally — had to know it, too. But they all joined in the cheap shots at a president the Beautiful People love to hate.

And many, many social media users called them out. Here’s a sampling:

It looked much deeper, on paper, in the writters room

— pzapalla (@peteszapalla) March 16, 2026

He’s so oppressed by how not funny he is.

— natasha (@mcshev) March 16, 2026

Insinuating US doesn’t support free speech while bad mouthing and saying exactly what he wants without punishment isn’t that free speech, moron

— RHOKY (@RHOKY52) March 16, 2026

Kimmel’s fixated on Trump. How unusual.

— JulesLM (@Jlmartin1234) March 16, 2026

And celebrities wonder why award show ratings continue to decline.

— tonebro916 (@tonebro916) March 16, 2026

Sunday night’s show marked one of the last times the Oscars are going to be on national television.

As conservative commentator Jeffrey Blehar noted at National Review, the once-must-watch awards ceremony is going to be shown only on the web starting in 2029, an indication of how few Americans actually care what Hollywood is celebrating about itself.

As Sunday night’s Kimmel “jokes” showed, it’s clearly not about celebrating the truth.

This article appeared originally on The Western Journal.

The post Watch: Jimmy Kimmel Takes a Cheap Shot at ‘Melania’ from the Oscars Stage – The Backlash Is Brutal appeared first on The Gateway Pundit.

China and Iran maintain a security relationship that, while stopping short of a formal defense alliance, has expanded from conventional weapons sales into dual-use technology transfers, joint military exercises, and satellite navigation access. The U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission, in its March 2026 fact sheet on the China-Iran relationship, assessed that Beijing has avoided formal defense commitments to Tehran while continuing to provide support that benefits Iran’s military capabilities.

China was a major conventional weapons supplier to Iran during the 1980s but largely ceased direct transfers in 2015 following UN Security Council Resolution 2231, which increased international scrutiny of such transactions. Security cooperation since then has shifted toward dual-use technology transfers relevant to Iran’s missile and drone programs. Chinese components, including sensors, voltage converters, and semiconductors, have been identified in Iranian drones used both by Iran’s regional proxies and by Russia in Ukraine.

In the days before U.S. and Israeli strikes began in late February 2026, anonymously sourced reports indicated China had sold attack drones to Iran and was close to finalizing a deal for supersonic anti-ship cruise missiles, though no delivery date had been agreed upon. If confirmed, this would represent a shift toward providing Iran with offensive kinetic capabilities beyond dual-use components.

Reports also indicate that China allowed Iranian state-owned vessels to load sodium perchlorate, a key precursor used in solid rocket fuel for ballistic missiles, at China’s Gaolan Port. During the week of March 2, 2026, two Iranian ships departed the port carrying the chemical. A similar incident occurred in January 2025, when two Iranian vessels loaded approximately 1,000 tons of sodium perchlorate at Chinese ports.

In 2021, China granted Iran full military access to its BeiDou satellite navigation system. Whether Iran’s military is currently using BeiDou to guide drone and missile attacks has not been definitively established from open-source evidence, though Al Jazeera cited experts who believe this to be the case.

Direct bilateral military engagement between the Chinese People’s Liberation Army and Iran has been limited, with the last bilateral meeting recorded in 2022. Cooperation has instead occurred through trilateral and multilateral formats, including an annual joint naval exercise with Russia that began in 2019. Iran hosted a Shanghai Cooperation Organization military exercise that included China in December 2025. In January 2026, Iran was set to participate in a China-led naval exercise with BRICS nations near South Africa but withdrew after South Africa requested its removal.

China’s response to the U.S. and Israeli strikes has been confined to diplomatic statements. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs declared the strikes violations of international law, condemned the killing of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, and called for an immediate ceasefire and resumption of dialogue. Foreign Minister Wang Yi, in a call with his Iranian counterpart, reaffirmed Chinese support for Iran’s sovereignty while expressing confidence that Iran would take into account the concerns of its neighbors. China has not explicitly endorsed Iran’s attacks on Gulf states but condemned what it called indiscriminate attacks on civilians and non-military targets.

On the energy side, China relies on seaborne imports for over 63 percent of its oil needs, with half of those imports flowing through the Strait of Hormuz. Iran accounts for roughly 22 percent of China’s combined oil imports from Iran, Russia, and Venezuela. In the period leading up to U.S. military action, the volume of Iranian and Venezuelan oil aboard tankers anchored in China’s coastal waters increased, with approximately 40 million barrels held in floating storage as a buffer against a prolonged Strait closure.

On March 12, 2026, Chinese authorities halted exports of refined oil products that had not yet cleared customs, signaling concern about supply disruptions. As of March 10, some ships transiting the Strait were reportedly claiming Chinese crews in an effort to deter Iranian attacks, while Iran’s oil exports had not decreased, with most transiting vessels belonging to the shadow fleet.

The U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission, estimates that China holds strategic reserves estimated to sustain its core needs for two to four years under aggressive rationing combined with increased use of overland pipelines, if seaborne imports were cut off entirely.

China is the primary enabler of Iran’s missile, drone, and nuclear-adjacent programs. Without Chinese components, Chinese rocket fuel precursors, Chinese satellite navigation, and Chinese sanctions-evasion networks, Iran’s ability to threaten its neighbors, attack commercial shipping, and hold the Strait of Hormuz hostage would be substantially degraded.

Severing that relationship would do more to defang Iran than any single military strike. As long as China continues to purchase Iranian oil, transfer dual-use technology, and provide diplomatic cover at the UN, Iran retains the resources and capability to reconstitute its programs and resume its regional aggression.

The post China-Iran Military Ties: Weapons, Satellites, and the Strait of Hormuz appeared first on The Gateway Pundit.

An earthquake struck off the coast of Cuba in the early hours of Tuesday morning.

Reuters reported the European ​Mediterranean Seismological Centre measured the earthquake at a 6.0 magnitude.

However, the United States Geological Survey USGS measured the earthquake as having a lower magnitude of 5.8.

Magnitude 6 earthquake strikes Cuba, EMSC says https://t.co/PR76hTRZhu https://t.co/PR76hTRZhu

— Reuters World (@ReutersWorld) March 17, 2026

Per Business Standard:

A 5.8-magnitude earthquake struck off the coast of Cuba early on Tuesday (17 March), the United States Geological Survey (USGS) said.

There were no immediate reports of damage.

The quake hit at a depth of 11.6 kilometres about 49 kilometres south-southwest of the port of Maisi at 12:28am (0428 GMT), according to the USGS.

The USGS put the alert level for shaking-related fatalities and economic losses at green, meaning “low likelihood for casualties and damage”. The towns of Imias and San Antonio del Sur may have experienced moderate shaking, the USGS added.

The earthquake came less than 24 hours after Cuba’s entire power grid faced a widespread outage.

The U.S. Embassy in Cuba reported, “At 1:54 p.m. local time, there was a disconnection of the national electrical grid resulting in a complete power outage across Cuba, which includes the Havana metropolitan area.”

In recent weeks, President Trump has revealed that Cuba is in the process of falling under communist rule.

On Monday afternoon, while speaking to the press inside the Oval Office, the 47th President went a bit further and shared, “I do believe I’ll be…having the honour of taking Cuba.”

WATCH:

TAKEOVER TALK: President Trump floated the idea that the United States could take Cuba “in some form,” saying the island nation is currently weakened after decades of rule by the Castro regime. pic.twitter.com/qzqjM6YqKJ

— Fox News (@FoxNews) March 16, 2026

This isn’t the first time Trump has shared his desire to “take” Cuba.

Last month, Trump suggested the U.S. do a “friendly” takeover of Cuba.

LOOK:

President Trump says the USA might take over Cuba, but it will be friendly.
pic.twitter.com/Wnh0gAWV2H

— DramaAlert (@DramaAlert) March 2, 2026

The post 6.0 Magnitude Earthquake Strikes Cuba Less Than 24 Hours After Country’s Power Grid Shut Off appeared first on The Gateway Pundit.

A top Iranian official is now in permanent silence just one week after arrogantly taunting President Trump on the streets of Tehran.

As The New York Post reported, Israel announced today that 67-year-old Ali Larijani, head of the Supreme National Security Council of Iran, was eliminated in an overnight strike.

Here is the official announcement from the IDF (originally written in Hebrew):

Tonight, March 17, 2026, the Air Force carried out a precise strike guided by Military Intelligence and incorporating unique operational capabilities in the heart of Tehran, eliminating Ali Larijani, Secretary of the Supreme National Security Council, who served as the de facto leader of the Iranian terror regime, while he was located near the capital city of Tehran.

For years, Larijani was considered one of the most senior and veteran figures at the top of the Iranian terror regime and was close to the regime’s leader, Ali Khamenei. Following the elimination of Khamenei, Larijani solidified his position as the de facto leader of the Iranian terror regime and led the fight against the State of Israel and the countries of the region.

As part of his role, Larijani led the political-security coordination of the Iranian terror regime and engaged in directing international activity. During the recent wave of protests against the regime in Iran, Larijani led enforcement and violent suppression actions and even personally oversaw the massacre carried out against the Iranian protesters.

Larijani’s elimination joins the eliminations of dozens of commanders and leaders of the Iranian terror regime that the IDF eliminated in Operation “Roar of the Lion,” and constitutes an additional blow to the Iranian leadership’s capabilities to manage and coordinate its activities against the State of Israel.

צה”ל חיסל את עלי לאריג’אני – מנהיג משטר הטרור האיראני בפועל

הלילה, ה-17 במרץ 2026, חיל האוויר תקף באופן מדויק בהכוונת אמ”ן ובשילוב יכולות מבצעיות ייחודיות בלב טהרן, וחיסל את עלי לאריג׳אני, מזכיר המועצה העליונה לביטחון לאומי ששימש כמנהיג משטר הטרור האיראני בפועל, בעת ששהה בסמוך… pic.twitter.com/Z88IEtHznS

— צבא ההגנה לישראל (@idfonline) March 17, 2026

The Post previously reported that the State Department’s Rewards for Justice program slapped a $10 million bounty on Larijani’s head on Friday.

The IDF also revealed that Gholamreza Soleimani, the commander of Iran’s Basij forces, was killed in a strike.

As The Post notes, the death of Larijani comes just days after he claimed during a street interview mocked Trump and said America was “running out of steam.”

He also declared America could never “eliminate the Iranian nation.”

“It’s clear they’re running out of steam,” Larijani snarked. “Trump’s problem is that he doesn’t understand that the Iranian nation is mature and determined.”

Larijani also seemingly threatened to kill Trump on social media after the President threatened to level Iran further.

This came after the Islamist dictatorship closed off the Strait of Hormuz to oil shipping.

“Iran does not fear your paper threats,” he wrote on social media. “Even those greater than you could not eliminate the Iranian nation.”

“Watch out for yourself — lest you be eliminated!”

The post FAFO: Loud-Mouthed Iranian Leader ELIMINATED in Overnight Strike After Taunting President Trump On the Streets of Tehran appeared first on The Gateway Pundit.