Explains

Donald Trump's online post threatening U.S. lawmakers for what he calls sedition set off serious alarms Thursday ... but House of Representatives Speaker Mike Johnson didn't seem overly concerned about the whole situation.

FYI ... six senators and representatives released a video Tuesday encouraging active duty service members to refuse unlawful orders from their superiors.

President Trump was livid about the video, posting on his Truth Social site to describe the elected politicians "seditious" and called for them to be arrested. He reposted someone else's comment calling for the lawmakers to be executed by hanging. He later posted "SEDITIOUS BEHAVIOR, punishable by DEATH!"

Johnson told reporters Thursday his colleagues shouldn't have encouraged troops to refuse unlawful orders, according to CNN. He called the video "wildly inappropriate."

Johnson admitted he wouldn't have used the same language as Trump did. He said he didn't think the actions of the senators and representatives earned them the death penalty.

It's no secret Dolly Parton's proud of her work with Dollywood ... but she wasn't able to attend a ceremony honoring the park's achievements earlier this week.

The country music legend was supposed to show up at an event Monday where her theme park in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee, was inducted into the the International Association of Amusement Parks and Attractions Hall of Fame ... but she ended up not making it, reports WCNC-TV.

Dolly addressed her absence Wednesday in a video on Dollywood's official Instagram account, apologizing for not being able to attend.

She said she'd been dealing with unspecified "health challenges" throughout the fall, and her doctors told her to "take it easy" -- which meant skipping the ceremony.

Dolly said she's still feeling great about her park being inducted into the Hall of Fame and thanked the park's team for their hard work.

Dolly's been open about dealing with issues related to her health over the past few months, although she's never specified what she's had to work through.

A Florida Congresswoman's been charged with stealing millions of dollars in federal disaster funds -- and using the cash to foot the bill for her last congressional campaign.

According to a DOJ press release, Representative Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick and her brother, Edwin Cherfilus, worked on a FEMA-funded COVID-19 vaccination staffing contract through their family healthcare company in 2021.

The DOJ says the company received an overpayment of $5 million in FEMA funds and Cherfilus-McCormick and her brother allegedly laundered the cash ... which was used for candidate contributions to her 2021 campaign. She won a special campaign to replace late Representative Alcee Hastings in 2022 with 72 percent of the vote.

The Justice Department said Cherfilus-McCormick and another defendant allegedly funneled cash to various friends and family members who, in turn, donated the money to her campaign. The Congresswoman and her 2021 tax preparer were also charged with conspiring to file a false federal tax return.

U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi described the use of disaster relief funds for personal gain as a "particularly selfish, cynical crime."

Cherfilus-McCormick's legal team released a statement saying they'll keep fighting to restore the Representative's "good name."

President Donald Trump's incendiary post threatening politicians with execution by hanging isn't sitting well with House Democrats ... some of whom have reported the Truth Social post to U.S. Capitol Police.

ICYMI ... two U.S. Senators and four Representatives who formerly served in the military or intelligence services released a video Tuesday encouraging active duty service members to refuse illegal orders from the military chain of command.

The video really struck a nerve with Trump, who described the content as "SEDITIOUS BEHAVIOR AT THE HIGHEST LEVEL" on Truth Social and reposted a user's comment reading ... "HANG THEM GEORGE WASHINGTON WOULD!!" He also posted so-called seditious behavior is "punishable by DEATH!"

Gary "Mani" Mounfield, who established himself as one of alternative rock's premier bassists through his work with The Stone Roses, has died.

The performer's death was announced by his brother Greg in a Facebook post Thursday ... the bassist's sibling wrote he was sharing the post "with the heaviest of hearts." Mounfield's cause of death wasn't revealed in the post.

Mounfield was mourned on X by The Stone Roses frontman Ian Brown and Liam Gallagher of Oasis, who called the bass player his "hero."

Mounfield joined The Stone Roses in 1987 and played on the band's only two albums, "The Stone Roses" and "Second Coming." The band broke up in 1996, reunited in 2011, and remained together until 2017.

Mounfield joined Primal Scream following The Stone Roses' initial breakup, staying with the band until 2011.

Mounfield also collaborated with numerous other artists over the course of his career ... he was a member of the supergroup Freebass, which included The Smiths' bassist Andy Rourke and Joy Division's Peter Hook.

Mounfield is survived by his twin sons, Gene and George. His wife Imelda died in 2023.

Mounfield was 63 years old.

Jay Leno's really taken his "in sickness and in health" wedding vow to heart, serving as his wife Mavis' caretaker throughout her battle with dementia.

The former late-night TV talk show host opened up about his spouse's health issues in an interview with Today Thursday, and he was honest about how brutal dementia can be -- specifically citing a three-year period when Mavis woke up every day thinking someone had called to tell her her mother had died.

Jay -- who tied the knot with Mavis in 1980 -- admitted the period was "really tricky" and spoke about other areas of their lives that became restricted by her disease ... including their ability to travel, which they've replaced with watching travel videos on YouTube.

Still, Jay said Mavis -- whose dementia diagnosis was publicly revealed last year -- still recognizes him and hasn't forgotten him, and he said his wife is "extremely comfortable" under his care.

Jay said Mavis is reliant on him for help, which isn't a big deal for him ... he said he enjoys being her caretaker.

The comedian said they've developed a routine ... he picks her up and carries her to their bedroom every night, which Mavis really gets a kick out of.

A Florida man has been arrested in the murder of a missing British woman who police now say traveled to the U.S. with the intent to pay the man to kill her.

Sonia Exelby's body was found in a shallow grave in Marion County, Florida last month … and now police have arrested a Florida man on kidnapping and murder charges.

According to a Florida Department of Law Enforcement arrest affidavit obtained by TMZ, Exelby arrived at Florida's Gainesville Regional Airport on October 10, where she was picked up by Dwain Hall, police believe.

Exelby met Hall on a fetish site before her trip to the United States. Police believe Exelby was suicidal, and planned to travel to the United States to meet people willing to kill her in a violent manner.

A pair of influencers formerly in a relationship died just hours apart in the Philippines this week.

Gina Lima was found unresponsive in her condo Monday ... she was brought to a hospital in Quezon City by her ex-boyfriend, Ivan Cezar Ronquillo, where she was pronounced dead on arrival, according to the Manila Standard.

"Tablets and marijuana" were later found in the room where she was discovered by Ronquillo.

The 23-year-old actress and social media star sustained what were described as nonfatal external injuries. Lima's cause of death officially remains undetermined, and toxicology tests were in progress.

Gracie Hunt's got some strong opinions about the direction the NFL's heading in ... and the league's plans for its 2026 Super Bowl halftime show.

The daughter of Kansas City Chiefs owner Clark Hunt appeared on "The Will Cain Show" Tuesday and gave her stamp of approval to the upcoming "alternate" halftime show, which is being organized by Turning Point USA.

FYI ... Bad Bunny was selected as the 2026 Super Bowl halftime show's headliner in September, which provoked outrage in the conservative political world.

Gracie said she was "most definitely" looking forward to the conservative activist group's upcoming show ... and she singled out TPUSA CEO Erika Kirk for praise for "creating a halftime show for America."

Gracie described the youth of America as particularly "impressionable" and said they needed "someone to look up to."

Gracie said her grandfather Lamar Hunt -- who gave the Super Bowl its name -- believed the league shouldn't "rely on cheap appeal" to promote games or big events.

Tom Steyer wants to be the next Governor of California.

The billionaire businessman announced his intention to run in the Golden State's gubernatorial race, which will be decided next year, in a video posted on his X account Wednesday.

Steyer says he'll be focusing primarily on cost-of-living issues, and says politicians in Sacramento are "afraid" of changing the current system.

Karoline Leavitt's tackled some tough questions in her time as the White House Press Secretary ... but she says the age gap between her and her husband was the subject of an awkward conversation with her parents.

Leavitt made the admission about her personal life in a recent episode of the "Pod Force One" podcast ... she said telling her parents she was dating a man who is nearly their own age was "challenging" at first.

Leavitt's husband, Nicholas Riccio, is 60 and Karoline is 28 -- that's a 32-year age gap. They got married in January this year ... they welcomed a baby boy, Niko, in July last year.

Leavitt's parents were suspicious about the gap ... although she said they eventually got over it once they started spending time with Riccio.

She said her folks eventually found it "quite easy" to hang out with him.

It's no secret President Donald Trump's comments are often abrasive ... and one of his newest jabs was just defended by a supporter in Congress.

FYI ... POTUS responded to reporter Catherine Lucey's question on Air Force One Friday -- "If there's nothing incriminating in the [Jeffrey Epstein] files, sir, why not act?" -- by pointing his finger at her and telling her "Quiet. Quiet, piggy."

47's remark has been widely criticized ... but predictably, he's still got support from some Republicans, including Florida Representative Maria Elvira Salazar, who defended his comment on Tuesday's episode of "The Lead," according to The Hill.

Salazar told host Jake Tapper ... "President Trump is a very picturesque and difficult and different type of politician. But I always say that I look at his policies and not at his personality."

Girlalala built up a considerable online following throughout her career as an influencer ... which all came to a sudden end in late 2025.

The social media star, who'd carved out a space for herself within the transgender community of South Florida, was shot to death.

We're going to take a look at how Girlalala made a name for herself as an influencer and check out the circumstances surrounding her death.

Jamal Khashoggi became a widely known name in 2018 when he died during a visit to a Saudi consulate in Turkey.

The circumstances of the journalist's death became the subject of controversy, and the reported method of his body's disposal caused an even larger public outcry.

We're going to take a look into Jamal's background and see how his murder was referenced years after it took place -- apparently to the annoyance of a few higher-ups in the government.

Jeffrey Epstein's younger and only brother Mark never reached the level of notoriety as Jeffrey in his life ... but he still ended up going through some interesting times -- and his opinions about Jeffrey's death have brought him plenty of attention.

We're going to take a look into the background of the late financier and convicted sex offender's brother and see what he's had to say about the implications of Jeffrey's activities on the state of American politics.

Mark, 71, was raised with Jeffrey in Sea Gate, Brooklyn. He got his start in the art world when he attended Cooper Union, a private university, according to the Daily Beast.

He was named the chairman of the Cooper Union Board of Trustees in 2009. He held the position until 2015, when he stepped down following a controversy when the school started charging tuition at the formerly free institution.

Mark reportedly tried his hand at various ventures, including starting a modeling agency and running a silk-screening business.

He apparently entered the real estate world later in his career, and his real estate company, Ossa Properties, at one time managed about 500 renter-occupied apartments in New York City.

Mark and Jeffrey's relationship came under scrutiny in July 2019, when Mark offered up his Florida condo after his brother was arrested on sex trafficking charges, according to Business Insider.

Jeffrey killed himself in jail the following month. He had set up a will just two days prior to his death and detailed an estate worth more than $577 million -- all of which ended up going to a trust excluding his brother.

If there were no will, Mark would have been the recipient of all of his late sibling's wealth.

Mark's been vocal about his belief that Jeffrey didn't commit suicide in his jail cell, and he's alleged the Department of Justice engaged in a cover-up of what he calls his brother's murder.

Mark says his brother's death has ruffled feathers in Washington, claiming in an interview with NewsNation in November 2025 that the Epstein Files have been edited to protect members of the Republican Party from scrutiny. He alleged the House of Representatives would only be interested in releasing the files after a thorough "scrubbing" of the files.

Mark alleged his late brother "definitely had dirt" on President Donald Trump, whose connection to Jeffrey has been widely scrutinized for more than a decade.

Dick Van Dyke's less than a month away from becoming a centenarian ... and he says one of the secrets to his longevity is his wife, Arlene Silver!

The actor spoke about his spouse's role in his long, long life in an excerpt from his new book "100 Rules for Living to 100" -- released on Tuesday -- and he credited Arlene with making him feel "somewhere between two-thirds and three-quarters my age," reports Fox News.

FYI ... Van Dyke and Silver met in 2006 when she was working as a makeup artist at the SAG Awards.

The actor was previously married to his first wife, Margie Willett, from 1948 to 1984, and he was in a long-term relationship with Michelle Triola, which lasted until her death in 2009.

Van Dyke eventually began dating Silver, who worked as his makeup artist, and they ended up tying the knot in 2012.

Although there's a 48-year age gap between the two -- Silver's only 54 years old -- Van Dyke never really took the difference into consideration, and he apparently told her she'd keep him "feeling young forever" during a discussion recorded for his book.

Plus, the actor said his wife was the one who kept him from becoming curmudgeonly in his old age ... and if it hasn't happened by now, it'll probably never happen!