Politics

Donald Trump loves the Village People, but the feeling is apparently NOT mutual ... and now the band's lead singer is demanding Trump stop hiring impersonators to perform the band's iconic songs at Mar-a-Lago.

The wife of Victor Willis -- lead singer of the Village People -- fired off a legal warning to Trump, telling him to stop confusing people into believing they endorse him for president, which they claim Trump's doing with his entertainment choices.

The cease and desist letter, sent Monday and obtained by TMZ, comes on the heels of viral videos showing Trump dancing to a Village People tribute band at his Florida resort.

Willis says ever since the video of Trump dancing to "Macho Man" went viral on social media, the Village People have been flooded with questions from fans wondering if they endorse Trump.

The band says it's not them in the video, but rather a bunch of impersonators dressed like them ... and they say they never gave Trump permission to use the group's image and likeness at Mar-a-Lago.

According to the letter, Willis has "tolerated" Trump's use of Village People music in the past, but it sounds like the Mar-a-Lago concert is crossing a line ... so Willis is now demanding Trump stop using the band's images and music going forward, and threatening a lawsuit if Trump and his campaign don't comply.

We reached out to Trump's legal team ... so far no word back.

President Biden's heart might be in the right place, but his mouth is often somewhere else -- which was seen again Saturday ... this while addressing Howard University graduates.

POTUS was tapped as the key commencement speaker during the college's graduation ceremony this weekend, and there's one remark he made during his speech that's getting a little side-eye ... both due to his delivery and perhaps even his not-so-veiled intention.

Joe was talking about white supremacy, which he says is the most dangerous terroristic threat to America ... and encouraged everyone to stand up against it. Nothing wrong there in and of itself; however ... what he said afterward got some double takes, especially online.

You can tell he went off script a bit when he added ... "And I'm not just saying that because I'm at a Black HBCU. I say (it) wherever I go." There were some chuckles in the crowd.

Of course, HBCU stands for Historically Black College and University ... so there's no need for an extra descriptor to emphasize that it's a Black institution -- it's already in the acronym. On its face, this just a typical and innocent Biden gaffe ... not the end of the world, really.

The bigger issue, it would seem, is the fact that he felt the need to specifically mention he wasn't just saying this because he was at an HBCU, with a predominantly Black student body and faculty. Of course, you could argue that's (probably) exactly why he's mentioning it in this setting ... and that this whole thing comes across as pandering and kinda empty.

BTW, this isn't the first time Biden's put his foot in his mouth when it comes to talking to or about Black people -- there've been several instances over the past few years where he's made some eyebrow-raising remarks... which have all gotten backlash to varying degrees.

The one that comes to mind for many is when he said during a 'Breakfast Club' interview that any Black person who had trouble deciding between him or Donald Trump in the 2020 election ... wasn't Black. Charlamagne tha God pushed back on that and said it had nothing to do with Trump, arguing JB wasn't guaranteed a vote just because he wasn't Trump.

Brittney Griner made her long-awaited return to the basketball court Friday night after her 10-month detainment in Russia last year, but it didn't have the ending her fans were hoping for.

The Phoenix Mercury center still scored 10 points and pulled down 3 rebounds as the Mercury fell to the LA Sparks by a score of 90 to 71 in the WNBA preseason game.

Griner only played for 17 minutes, but she made the most of it, and her teammates were psyched to see her back on the court, hugging and high-fiving while also giving each other chest bumps.

The crowd was ecstatic to see Brittney ... they erupted in applause when her name was first announced inside the Footprint Center in Phoenix.

After the game, Griner told reporters that she was "grateful" to have the opportunity to play again and would not take a single day for granted.

She also said she had a different experience hearing the national anthem before the game got underway.

“Hearing the national anthem, it definitely hit different," she said, adding, "It’s like when you go for the Olympics."

Griner was critical of her on-court performance, explaining, “Not where I want it to be, but on the right track. We’re making the right moves."

But, given what's Griner's been through, it must have felt in some way like a victory.

The Navy veteran who claims Rep. George Santos cheated him out of cash intended for his dying dog's cancer treatment is happy to see Santos facing criminal charges ... he says George had it coming and karma's a bitch.

Richard Osthoff tells TMZ ... Santos deserves to spend time behind bars and he hopes the judge throws the book at him.

The vet says he's not the only one glad the feds busted Santos, running off a list of groups he claims have been wronged by George. While he's surprised at the timeline, Richard says he's glad Santos finally has to face the music ... and he believes more charges could be coming.

As we reported ... the FBI arrested Santos Wednesday for a variety of alleged misdeeds, including lying. He was charged with 13 counts of wire fraud, money laundering, theft of public funds and making false statements to the House of Representatives.

For his part, Santos insists he's innocent, calling the indictment against him a "witch hunt" and refusing to resign.

Osthoff, you might recall, claims Santos created a GoFundMe campaign to pay for a lifesaving surgery for his cancer-stricken dog Sapphire ... only to see Santos make off with thousands of dollars in donations, leaving Sapphire for dead.

Barack and Michelle Obama are in L.A. for a very special occasion -- one that has nothing to do with show biz or political fundraising ... they're here to watch their daughter Sasha get her diploma.

The former POTUS and FLOTUS were dressed to the nines Friday as they pulled up to the University of Southern California to watch their youngest walk the stage to receive her undergraduate degree.

Sasha transferred in 2022 from the University of Michigan to USC, where she studied Psychology.

And, Barack and Michelle are looking like all the other proud parents -- strolling around campus with huge smiles on their faces -- except, of course, they've got Secret Service agents in tow.

Sasha's older sister Malia Obama was on hand, too.

As you know, Malia graduated from Harvard back in 2021, and she's since taken on a big job in TV. You'll recall, writer/actor/rapper Donald Glover hired her as a writer for his Amazon series "Swarm," and he has only had great things to say about her.

Donald Trump's piling on CNN in the wake of his town hall by posting a doctored clip of Anderson Cooper saying Trump owned CNN during the event ... but with far more colorful language.

Trump is clearly relishing the fact CNN is getting tons of blowback from the left for giving him a platform -- and he spiked the football with this fake video of Anderson reacting to the end of the town hall. As the crowd roars for Trump, you see Anderson say "That was President Donald J. Trump ripping us a new ass****."

Put politics aside, for just a moment, and the clip is pretty hilarious. However, it's also a stark reminder of just how petty and self-congratulatory Trump can be.

Trump didn't produce the spoof -- it was uploaded by YouTube user, "Borg Clone" -- but the ex-prez clearly endorses the message ... which is that Trump's getting the last laugh on the network that hosted him.

As we reported ... Anderson Cooper, the real one, addressed the backlash against CNN by saying viewers shouldn't wall themselves off from Trump, or any politician, just because they hate their policies or personality.

Anderson Cooper's bashing former President Donald Trump for "disturbing" behavior and remarks during CNN's town hall -- but he's also responding to the waves of people dragging the network for giving Trump a platform.

He addressed the outrage Thursday night as tempers continue flaring over Wednesday's town hall by calling out Trump's "lie after lie after lie," and inappropriate name-calling toward moderator, Kaitlan Collins, amongst other shocking moments.

Cooper acknowledged the anger toward CNN, saying people have every right to never tune in to the network again -- but then defended CNN by pointing out a cold, hard truth: Whether you like it or not, DT is the Republican frontrunner for president, and shutting out someone because you don't share their beliefs just isn't a healthy reality.

As you know, many called for CNN to boot Trump from their network ahead of Wednesday night's town hall -- especially after he was found liable this week in his battery and defamation trial with E. Jean Carroll.

As for why CNN viewers, or Trump haters, shouldn't look away -- Anderson says the roaring applause during some of Trump's bombastic comments should strike fear in people, as he says it was a sampling of roughly half the nation.

Kirby Smart is clearing the air on why Georgia won't visit the White House to celebrate its second consecutive national championship ... saying there's "nothing political about it."

The Bulldogs head coach addressed the decision to forego the tradition at the Regions Celebrity Pro-Am golf tourney in Birmingham, AL on Wednesday ... saying the time frame simply doesn't work for the program because it's hosting a football camp from June 6-8.

"Tough deal timeline-wise, it didn't work," Kirby said. "Number one time for recruiting for football coaches. When you've got 600, 700 kids coming to your campus, you can't take 200 people to the White House and have no one on campus."

He added, "The time just didn't work out. Nothing political about it, but I've been before. It's very educational. It's a great experience."

Smart said the White House usually extends the invite to 1600 Pennsylvania Ave right after the national championship game winner is crowned ... but that didn't happen this time, as POTUS was hoping to have Georgia visit on June 12.

Charlize Theron is sending a crystal clear message to anyone bashing drag queens for being themselves ... saying she'll "f*** up" whoever accuses them of being a danger to kids.

The actress joined dozens of celebs in the recent "Drag Isn't Dangerous" telethon, and while she offered up plenty of kind words of support to drag queens, she followed those up with a threatening message.

She highlighted several dangers in America -- especially gun violence -- as real reasons to panic ... and by contrast, says watching a drag queen lip sync for their life should only bring people some serious serotonin.

Charlize is a big advocate for the LGBTQ+ community, in general, but it's also personal. Her 11-year-old adopted daughter, Jackson, was born male before identifying as female ... which Charlize has fully supported.

For those unaware, "Drag Isn't Dangerous" is fighting back against numerous bills in various state legislatures that focus on banning drag -- like the one passed in Tennessee, shutting down drag shows statewide. Fourteen other states have also introduced similar anti-drag bills.

The org already crushed its original $250K goal on its GoFundMe and is well past $580K as of Thursday morning ... and all proceeds go to nonprofits focused on LGBTQ+ activism.

It appears the Cincinnati mayor is taking Travis Kelce's advice by knowing his role and shutting his mouth ... 'cause Aftab Pureval just helped the Bengals announce their Week 17 matchup with the K.C. Chiefs -- and poked fun at his misfired trash talk in the process.

The team just dropped the funny clip on Wednesday ... showing newly-acquired offensive tackle Orlando Brown helping him record the promo inside his office.

"The Bengals play the Chiefs Week 17 ... and I've got nothing else to add," Pureval said in the clip.

When the mayor asked Brown how he did, the lineman jokes it "was better than the last time."

Remember, Pureval put his foot in his mouth days before last season's AFC Championship Game ... calling on Joe Burrow to take a paternity test to determine if he's Patrick Mahomes' dad, as he was 3-0 in head-to-head matchups at the time.

But, as we all know, the Chiefs ended up coming away with the 23-20 win ... and Kelce made sure to call out the Cincy mayor right after the game by channeling his inner Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson.

"Know your role and shut your mouth, you jabroni!!" Kelce said after the game.

Elon Musk is making a push to land a Don Lemon show on Twitter, just as Tucker Carlson's started his own show on the platform -- and Elon's goal seems to be balancing right and left.

Elon made his pitch to Don Wednesday morning with a tweet inviting him to do a show on the bird app. He included a dig at CNN's ratings, saying, "Maybe worth a try. Audience is much bigger."

The move comes after Tucker's Tuesday video tweet, announcing he'd be launching a "new version" of his TV show on Twitter -- a move that was quickly welcomed by the platform's owner.

Elon boasted, "On this platform, unlike the one-way street of broadcast, people are able to interact, critique and refute whatever [Tucker] or anyone may say."

He also made it clear he's not involved in Tucker's show or programming -- "We have not signed a deal of any kind whatsoever. Tucker is subject to the same rules & rewards of all content creators."

Of course, Don and Tucker were fired from CNN and Fox News, respectively, on the same day last month. On the heels of Carlson's announcement, Elon said he wanted more content creators, "particularly from the left" to follow suit.

He clearly thinks Don should be one of them.

George Santos has just been arrested for a variety of alleged misdeeds, including lying.

Santos has been charged with 13 counts of wire fraud, money laundering, theft of public funds and making false statements to the House of Representatives.

Santos was taken into custody by the FBI and is expected to be arraigned later today.

U.S. Attorney Breon Peace said when the indictment was unsealed, he "seeks to hold Santos accountable for various alleged fraudulent schemes and brazen misrepresentations," adding, "He used political contributions to line his pockets, unlawfully applied for unemployment benefits that should have gone to New Yorkers who had lost their jobs due to the pandemic, and lied to the House of Representatives."

Santos has been caught in a web of lies since his election victory last November. Some of his Republican colleagues wanted him expelled, but the leadership was radio silent on the issue.

According to the indictment, 2 of his supporters each transferred $25,000 to an account that was supposed to go to his campaign but was then transferred to a personal account. Santos allegedly used the funds to buy designer clothes and withdraw cash for personal debts.

It'll be interesting how Speaker Kevin McCarthy deals with Santos now.

Donald Trump ripped into his perceived enemies Tuesday night after a jury found him liable for sexual abuse and defamation in the E. Jean Carroll civil trial.

The 45th President posted a series of videos to his Truth Social platform, condemning Carroll, the judge and jury in the case and New York City where the trial was held.

As you probably know, Trump was ordered to pay Carroll $5 million in damages for abusing her in a Bergdorf Goodman dressing room in the '90s and then defaming her years later by calling her a liar.

In the footage, Trump first directed his ire toward Judge Lewis A. Kaplan, labeling him a "Trump-hating, Clinton-appointed judge, who went out of his way to make sure that the result was as negative as it could possibly be."

The 2024 Republican presidential frontrunner also said the jury was from an "anti-Trump area," meaning NYC, a place where he could never get a fair trial. BTW ... the verdict was unanimous and quick.

Trump then said he would appeal the jury's decision because he doesn't know Carroll from a hole in the wall. He went on to say the trial was a "scam" and "political witch hunt" (No surprise there). He also said the verdict was a "disgrace to our country."

And he wasn't done yet. Trump described Carroll as a liar whose case was financed by Democratic operatives, but it wasn't clear who he was referring to. He also mentioned fighting back against “this stuff,” implying a rigged justice system, so the country doesn't fall into an abyss.

As for why the jury ruled against him ... jurors heard him via taped deposition say for a million years male celebs have groped women, adding "unfortunately or fortunately."

Of course, Trump's legal woes might only just be starting. Last month, he was criminally indicted in the Stormy Daniels hush money case in Manhattan.

He also faces possible criminal charges in two federal cases involving the January 6th riots and for allegedly pilfering classified government documents.

The University of Georgia football team is bucking tradition ... electing not to go to the White House after winning its second consecutive national championship in January.

The Bulldogs -- who defeated TCU in dominant fashion -- announced the decision Tuesday ... saying they received an invitation from Joe Biden and Co. last week, asking the football team to celebrate their CFB title at 1600 Pennsylvania Ave on June 12.

However, the program said the date -- almost a week before summer starts -- is "not feasible" because of the demands placed on their student-athletes during that time.

Nevertheless, the Bulldogs said they appreciate the invite and look forward to taking the White House up on the offer if the program continues rattling off titles.

FYI, the last college football team to visit the W.H. was the 2019 LSU Tigers. Alabama didn't go in 2020 because of COVID-19 protocols.

This is the second time the Bulldogs are skipping out on getting some time with the POTUS -- in 2021, Georgia elected not to visit due to the pandemic.

Meanwhile, LSU star Angel Reese and the Tigers, who defeated Iowa to win the program's first NCAA title, announced Monday they will visit the White House on May 26.

Remember, Reese initially took issue with First Lady Jill Biden after FLOTUS said Iowa should attend the White House alongside LSU ... calling the suggestion a "joke."

E. Jean Carroll just released a statement, saying, "I filed this lawsuit against Donald Trump to clear my name and to get my life back. Today, the world finally knows the truth. This victory is not just for me but for every woman who has suffered because she was not believed."

Donald Trump was found liable in his battery and defamation trial involving E. Jean Carroll.

The jury of 6 men and 3 women reached the verdict Tuesday after deliberating for a mere 3 hours. They found the former president liable for defaming Carroll and sexually abusing her ... but not liable for rape. As a result, Carroll was awarded $5 million in damages.

As you know ... Carroll sued Trump for battery and defamation, claiming Trump raped her back in 1996 in a Manhattan department store dressing room. She said she was attacked by Trump after they ran into each other at the store and shopped together.

Trump maintained Carroll's allegation was just a "hoax" and claimed he wouldn't have raped her because she wasn't his type.

As we reported ... Carroll's attorney grilled Trump about his general treatment of women when he sat for a deposition as part of the suit.

In the depo, recorded on video last October, Trump clarifies his hot mic comments during his 2005 interview with Billy Bush, where he infamously said ... "And when you're a star, they let you do it. You can do anything, grab them by the p****. You can do anything."

Carroll's attorney asked Trump if that's indeed what he said, and without blinking he responded, "Well, historically, that's true with stars. If you look over the last million years, I guess that's been largely true."

Trump then shockingly adds ... "Unfortunately or fortunately."

While Trump never appeared in court during the trial, he ripped Carroll as a "whack job" and a "nut job" in his deposition.

It will be interesting to see if Trump references the verdict tomorrow during his CNN town hall.

The suspect in the deadly shooting rampage at a Texas mall didn't keep his hateful beliefs a secret ... tattooing the Nazi swastika on his body and spreading sick messages on a Russian social media platform.

Mauricio Garcia, the gunman accused of gunning down 8 people and wounding others Saturday at an outdoor mall, had a large swastika tattooed on his chest ... plus a "SS" tattoo on his arm.

Garcia's alleged social media profile is reportedly chock full of hateful rants targeting women and minorities ... plus posts praising Adolf Hitler and neo-Nazis.

In one of the alleged social media posts, Garcia shows off a bulletproof vest with Punisher patches and one patch embroidered with "RWDS" ... which is short for "Right Wing Death Squad."

As we reported, the deadly shooting went down Saturday at the Allen Premium Outlets in Allen, Texas -- where video appears to show the gunman pulling up in a car, hopping out and firing into a crowd of shoppers.