One famed filmmaker and playwright spoke to Fox News about his transformation from a "brain-dead liberal" to his journey into constitutional conservatism.Film director and playwright David Mamet, known for writing the stage play "Glengarry Glen Ross" and its film adaptation, opened up about his political values during a Thursday interview on the "Brian Kilmeade Show."BIDEN FUNDRAISER CALLS TRUMP A 'F---ING GENIUS' AS DEMOCRATS WONDER IF THEIR BRAND IS BROKENMamet discussed how he got "kicked out of the left" about 25 years ago and what led him to discover his right-leaning values. He noted his past comments referring to himself as a "brain-dead liberal" and urging for political civility in an article he wrote, resulting in many of his leftist peers losing contact with him."I didn't know any Republicans, so I didn't understand what conservatism was," he said. "Then I got kicked out of the left, and I started researching what the constitutional conservatism was about, and I got very, very interested and very excited about it here I am now."BILLY JOEL OPENS UP ABOUT AFFAIR THAT LED TO TWO SUICIDE ATTEMPTSMamet noted that he became disillusioned with the Democratic Party and its values, explaining how he thought that the party did not best represent American workers and had become the "party of the elites.""I discovered my conservative beliefs because I discovered everything I thought and believed about the Democratic Party was false," he said.Amid a tumultuous period in American politics, Mamet expressed optimism about the future following President Donald Trump's election victory in November 2024."America is self-correcting again, as we saw in the election," Mamet said. "And the red states are thriving."Referring to his vast theater experience, Mamet also touched upon the media and entertainments focus on "social consciousness."TRUMP'S PARDON OF CHRISLEYS PRAISED BY JOE GIUDICE AS 'THE ONLY WAY' AFTER 'HARSH' PRISON SENTENCES"Black people are people too, gay people are people too, but the problem with that is, everybody knows that," he said. "So we don't want to come to a theater or a movie to get lectured to, right? Our wives will do that so in order to keep their place, the idea of a meritocracy crumbled in the media, so the awards and safety, or the illusion was awarded to those who could scream the loudest."CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APPMamet released his book "The Disenlightenment: Politics, Horror, and Entertainment" on June 3, which details his musings about politics and culture.

For decades, "Globalize the Intifada" chants have rung throughout Europe and the Middle East, a blatant and unmistakable call for violence and terrorism against Israelis and Jews. But over the past two years, those chants have only intensified and multiplied, now making their way west to our United States. What started with campus protests has now turned to vigilante violence.This week in Boulder, Colorado, a man yelling "free Palestine"threw Molotov cocktails at peaceful protestors hosting an event to bring home the Israeli hostages, setting them ablaze. Two young staff members of the Israeli Embassy weremurdered outside the Jewish museum, after which the shooter said, "I did it for Palestine, I did it for Gaza." Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiros home wasset on fire with his family inside because of "what [Shapiro] wants to do to the Palestinian people," given that hes Jewish.These are not isolated incidents. They are all organized and linked to one group: Hamas. The same terrorist ideology behind these attacks was on display on college campuses over the past two years in the form of violent anti-Israel and anti-Semitic encampments. Lets be clear, these are not the protests of the 1960s. Contrary to what the media may have reported, these were not student-driven "protests" at all. New lawsuits, filed by my organization, expose how the violent takeover of Columbia Universitys Hamilton Hall and the weeks-long encampments at UCLA were part of an organized, choreographed effort by career professionals to carry out Hamas plans of violence, terror, and the eradication of Jews and Israelis.ANTISEMITIC VIOLENCE ERUPTS IN AMERICA AS SOME INVOKE INTIFADA AND TARGET JEWSAt UCLA, a rabbi, a doctor, and a law studentsued National Students for Justice in Palestine and other anti-Zionist groups over encampments that were manned with a sword and "human phalanxes." Designated teams of security personnel surrounded the area armed with wooden planks, makeshift shields, pepper spray and tasers. Members of the groups involved in the lawsuit coordinated via social media and Google Docs ways in which to plan, fund, execute, and reinforce the encampment. And just a few days after the first encampment was dispersed by police, more than 40 protestors were found with metal pipes, bolt cutters, chains and padlocks, and manuals for "occupying" campus buildings.At Columbia University, a highly coordinated mob used violent, masked tactics reminiscent of the Ku Klux Klan to storm the campus Hamilton Hall. Armed with rope, zip ties, and crow bars, the masked invaders smashed their way through the doors and windows, and when they came across two people in their way janitors, neither of whom were Jewish they terrorized them, battered them, and mocked them. These two janitorssued the group behind the occupation, the Peoples Forum, for the assault, during which the assailants berated the janitors as "Jew lovers" for their employment.These arent doe-eyed kids with signs calling for a more loving and peaceful world. These protestors are part of an expansive terrorist network taking advantage of those same doe-eyed students, using them to stoke violence and create chaos. This is an attempt to legitimize the terrorization of an entire group of people. This is the use of guerrilla warfare tactics against students and faculty in an environment that is supposed to be safe.What we are dealing with now is a highly organized, generously-funded, professionally managed campaign that has all the attributes of a military engagement from detailed planning to careful mapping to precise logistical elements.This new realization requires a shift in strategy in how we fight back against these attacks. Up until now, most cases against universities were based on a single strategy: to hold taxpayer-funded colleges accountable for the hate that they allowed to become pervasive at their institutions. The goal of this strategy is two-fold. First, colleges should not be permitted to use taxpayer money to fund discrimination, especially when that discrimination prevents students from attending classes. Second, colleges should be incentivized to deal appropriately with the problems on their own campuses, so that neither the government nor lawyers have to handle them one-by-one. These previous cases that held universities accountable for their deliberate indifference to anti-Semitism have worked when they have forced these schools to admit to and confront the rampant anti-Semitism on their campuses.CLICK HERE FOR MORE FOX NEWS OPINIONI developed this strategy during my time as the Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights at the United States Department of Education twenty years ago. It underlies the ongoing congressional investigations and enforcement activities by the Office for Civil Rights, and its similar to the strategy used by the Trump Task Force on Anti-Semitism to root out anti-Semitic harassment in schools.But a lot can change in twenty years, and this is no longer enough.To address this current reality, it is necessary to adopt new strategies to deal with it. We must hold perpetrators accountable for their criminal actions on campus, including both criminal prosecution and civil litigation. But that alone wont be enough. We must also disrupt the perpetrators support and resources that are helping them to carry out these calculated, coordinated campaigns. In other words, we were previously addressing the symptoms of anti-Semitism by holding universities accountable. Now, were also getting to the root of the problem by addressing those who fund, support, plan, and enable the anti-Semitic activity. Like theMuslim Brotherhood, which the Colorado attacker supported; the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), whopraised the October 7th attacks; and Students for Justice in Palestine, who continuallypromote violence on campus and incite "the student intifada."Our protests have changed, just as our reality has. We must be ready to change with it.Kenneth L. Marcus' organization is representing the Columbia janitors and members of the UCLA Jewish community in both lawsuits.

A Walmart employee claimed a customer called the police after he the customer accidentally overcharged himself for avocados at the self-checkout kiosk, then accused the store of "robbing" him.The unusual incident was documented on a Reddit page dedicated to all things Walmart.User "Lore-Archivist" wrote about the confrontation, prompting others to share their own odd self-checkout interactions.WOMAN GOES VIRAL ON REDDIT FOR CALLING OUT HUSBAND'S LAST-MINUTE PARTY DEMANDSAs "Lore-Archivist" told the story, a man "came up with a bunch of stuff" and claimed an item on the shelf that was priced at $9.99 was showing up on the register at $19.99.The Reddit writer said a Walmart team leader was able to get it fixed for the man.However, it happened again with item after item that couldn't be changed, "Lore-Archivist" said."Then he had avocados," the man wrote."I guess he accidentally hit 999 avocados instead of the 9 he intended. His total jumped up to over $1300."That's when the customer "freak[ed] out" and started yelling before stating that he was "calling the cops" because Walmart was "robbing" him, the Reddit writer said.REDDIT USER GETS MAN BANNED FOR COOKING 'BURNED MEAT' IN MICROWAVEThe customer called 911 and the police showed up, as the thread documented."This dude creates a whole circus, then shows everyone the self-checkout screen" again claiming that Walmart "is robbing him."Walmart employees worked to try to appease the customer, "but he still [wouldn't] shut up," the man wrote.The customer was warned that he needed to leave or would be arrested for trespassing but the man refused to go unless Walmart compensated him "for pain and suffering and distress."REDDIT USER CALLS OUT 'DRUNK' COLLEAGUE WHO TRIES TO BLAME OTHERS FOR HER ISSUESEventually, "his own cops [that] he called put him in handcuffs and [took] him outside," "Lore-Archivist" wrote.Fox News Digital reached out to Walmart for comment.Several Redditors revealed how they've handled similar situations at their jobs."My go-to response was always, 'Would you like to use our phone to do that?' Never had anyone actually take me up on that after," one person wrote.CLICK HERE TO SIGN UP FOR OUR LIFESTYLE NEWSLETTER"Never had anyone actually follow through on calling the cops."Another user wrote, "I had a customer who was causing a disturbance and making it very hard to work. The [person] kept threatening to call the cops. I dialed the number and handed them the phone. It's amazing how quickly they left."A different Walmart employee said shoppers at the self-checkout often "complain about having to 'do our job' or say we just get paid to stand there."User "nikoab94" wrote that "on busy days I'm running in circles fixing device errors, price corrections, ID checks, filling low bags, etc.""All that and having to go behind customers like I'm their mom cleaning up messes they leave at the registers," the user continued. "Bags thrown everywhere, abandoned items, smears of God only knows what all over the register/screen, putting back empty carts and baskets people leave behind. It bothers me they act like we don't do anything."For more Lifestyle articles, visitfoxnews.com/lifestyleAnother user and former Walmart employee claimed to have "picked a fight with a lady" who walked into the self-checkout area and started yelling, "[I don't know] what to do, you need to do this for me."The user claimed to have confronted the woman and told her, "You don't treat people like that," leading to a back and forth between the woman, her husband and the ex-Walmart employee."I'm not one for confrontation, but after working retail for so many years, I can find my backbone quickly if someone is [going to] demean people working a job just because they think they hold all this power of being able to call corporate and get someone fired," the Redditor wrote.The writer said it was "sickening" in terms of "the amount of 'I'm gonna call corporate' scenarios that play out over the pettiest nonsense.""Makes me wish I went to Walmart more often just to be able to tell people off on behalf of the workers there," the user added. "I know I would've appreciated a customer like me when I was stuck at Walmart."Fox News Digital reached out to "Lore-Archivist" for additional comment about the story described in the thread.

For much of the last century, golf has never been that far from the White House. That certainly remains true these days, as Donald Trump is an active golfer, playing regularly on weekends at Mar-a-Lago. People are noticing. As Seth Meyers joked recently, "According to new analysis by the Washington Post, President Trump has spent one-third of his days in office at his golf courses. And I think we might be better off if we could somehow get that up to three-thirds."For Trump, golf is not just about relaxation, its part of his mindset. When questioned about the appearance of accepting a $400 million Qatari plane as a gift, Trump cited the golfer Sam Snead in response. According to Trump, Sneads motto was, "When they give you a putt, you say, Thank you very much. You pick up your ball, and you walk to the next hole." Trump also likes to get business done on the golf course. In a recent interview with the Atlantic, Witkoff described how he learned from Senator Lindsey Graham how Trump uses his golf days. According to Graham, "You have breakfast, and it goes as long as Trump wants it to go. Then you play golf, and then you have lunch." During these sessions, "you talk about all these things." Witkoff absorbed Grahams teachings and used his golf and meals time with Trump and Graham to explore possible administration roles, with Witkoff concluding, "I think Im the guy, maybe Mideast envoy."Trumps mixing golf and work differs from some of his predecessors, who thought it was important to have separation between their official duties and their time on the links. William Howard Taft loved the game, but his predecessor Teddy Roosevelt warned Taft against being photographed in his golf duds, as it might cause Americans to think he was not taking his work seriously. As Roosevelt, who was himself partial to tennis, warned, "I never let friends advertise my tennis, and never let a photograph of me in tennis costume appear."TRUMP WINS GOLF CHAMPIONSHIP A DAY AFTER ORDERING STRIKES ON IRAN-BACKED HOUTHIS IN YEMENTafts successor Woodrow Wilson played golf 1,200 times as president. He even played in the snow, using red-painted balls for easy ball spotting. Unlike Trump, though, Wilson did not like talking business while golfing, so he usually played with his personal physician, Cary Grayson, who had recommended that Wilson take up the game. Although Wilson tried to avoid work on the links, sometimes pressing matters interceded. After the 1916 election, Wilson learned on the golf course that he had won California and would secure a second term as president.In contrast to Roosevelts concerns, Wilson received praise for his regular playing. In July of 1917, Cleveland Moffett wrote in McClures, "And how inspiring today is the example of Woodrow Wilson, who regards regular physical exercise as a sacred duty, not to be interfered with nor neglected. Rain or shine, whatever the pressure of events, the President of the United States takes his exercise."The thin-skinned Warren Harding was less fortunate. He did not like that comedian Will Rogers used to make fun of Harding for a host of things, including golf. Once, when Harding learned that Rogers planned to mock Hardings golf game at a show Harding planned to attend, Harding refused to go.BRYSON DECHAMBEAU HITS GOLF BALLS ON WHITE HOUSE SOUTH LAWN DURING VISIT WITH TRUMPDwight Eisenhower was also subjected to many jokes about his golfing. One of the best ones was the bumper sticker that read, "BEN HOGAN FOR PRESIDENT. IF WE'RE GOING TO HAVE A GOLFER, LET'S HAVE A GOOD ONE." Another joke that made the rounds was that Eisenhower "invented the 36-hole work week." It was not far off: Ike played about 800 rounds as president, which averaged out to about two 18-hole rounds a week.Ike was unperturbed by the criticism. He had putting greens installed at both the White House and at Camp David. He also had a regular foursome known as "The Gang," or "The Augusta Gang," including Coca-Cola Chairman Robert Woodruff, Frankfort Distilleries President Elles Slater, and W. Alton (Pete) Jones, president of Cities Service Company, now known as CITGO. But Ike didnt want to do business when he was golfing. In fact, he praised The Gang in his memoir as "men, who, already successful, made no attempt to profit by our association."When Eisenhowers Vice President Richard Nixon became president, he occasionally played with celebrities, including Jackie Gleason, Jimmy Stewart, Bob Hope, and Fred MacMurray. He even played with Snead, who accused Nixon of throwing a ball out of the rough and onto the fairway. Still, Nixons general awkwardness inspired this joke about National Security Adviser Henry Kissinger seeing the president in athletic clothes and asking how it went: "I shot a 128 today," Nixon said. "Your golf game is getting better," Kissinger replied, only to hear back, "I was bowling, Henry."While funny, the joke was unfair. Nixon was a solid golfer who once broke 80 while in retirement. Still, Nixon looked down on those who played too much. Once, when asked about Vice President Spiro Agnew, Nixon was dismissive, saying, "By any criteria he falls short. Energy? He doesnt work hard; he likes to play golf."Like Nixon, Ronald Reagan enjoyed the game and often played with celebrities, including Walter Annenberg and Warren Buffett. But Reagan largely stopped playing golf after an October 1983 weekend that showed the difficulties of playing golf and being president. Reagan was on a golf visit to Augusta with Secretary of State George Shultz, New Jersey Senator Nicholas Brady, and Treasury Secretary Donald Regan. On Saturday morning, he had been awakened to hear developments regarding the recent communist coup in Grenada. Reagan and his team planned an invasion to liberate Grenada, but went ahead with their game so as not to signal that anything was afoot. At that game, National Security Adviser Bud McFarlane kept interrupting to give updates on the unfolding situation. To make matters worse, the game was also interrupted by an armed man who crashed through the gates and took hostages at the clubhouse, demanding to speak to the president. Reagan called the clubhouse via radio phone but ultimately did not speak to the man, who was eventually arrested.That night, Reagan was awakened again, with worse news. Hezbollah terrorists bombed the Marine headquarters in Beirut, killing 241 U.S. personnel. Reagan returned to Washington without playing his scheduled Sunday game. As a result of the disastrous weekend, he decided to curtail his golf, saying, "Playing golf is not worth the chance that someone could get killed."George H.W. Bush also had to navigate the question of how to manage golf and presidential business. Bush had high standards for golf and wanted to play with people who could keep up both in skill and with what he called "speed golf," completing entire rounds in two hours. Bushs biggest golfing challenge as president came after Iraqs invasion of Kuwait in August of 1990. He quickly tired of the media shouting Iraq-related questions at him while he played. When reporters peppered him with questions on the first tee at a game that August, he uncharacteristically snapped, saying, "I talk to them every morning at 5:30 and Im not going to take any more comments up here, though." He later denied getting testy, saying, "Ive never been mad at you. I just dont like taking questions on serious matters on my vacation."PRESIDENT TRUMP'S GOLF COURSES: WHERE THEY ARE, HOW YOU CAN PLAYUnlike Bush, Bill Clinton saw the golf course as a good place to conduct business. While still in Arkansas, he would try to raise campaign funds from golfing companions. As president, he played regularly with Democratic fixer and corporate board staple Vernon Jordan. Jordan would invite prominent business executives like GEs Jack Welch, Warren Buffett, and Microsofts Bill Gates despite the fact that Clintons Justice Department was investigating Gates company. In the game with Gates, Clinton took a mulligan at the outset, something for which he became well known.Clintons successor, George W. Bush, had seen the challenge of managing golf and the presidency firsthand. He was playing with his father on the day that the elder Bush said he would no longer take serious questions on the golf course. Bush supported his dad in his typically humorous way, telling one chatty reporter, "Could you wait until we finish hitting at least? My game is really bad. But when youre talking in the back swing, it gets even worse."After W. became president, he got some pushback from the press for his golf habit. In August of 2002, Bush was about to tee off in an early morning game when he was asked by a reporter about a horrific terrorist bus bombing in Israel. Bush responded, "We must stop the terror. I call upon all nations to do everything they can to stop these terrorist killers. Thank you. Now, watch this drive." The video of this unfortunate clip was shown many times on television and was featured in Michael Moores anti-Bush documentary, Fahrenheit 9/11. According to presidential golf expert Don Van Natta, "that will go down in presidential golf histories, maybe one of the worst moments of all time."Bush stopped playing golf in 2003, during the second Iraq war. In 2008, he revealed his reasons for doing so in an interview with Mike Allen, then of POLITICO: "I don't want some mom whose son may have recently died to see the commander-in-chief playing golf. I feel I owe it to the families to be as, you know, to be in solidarity as best as I can with them. And I think, you know, playing golf during a war just sends the wrong signal."Barack Obama played golf more than 300 times as president, and he, like Trump, liked to do business on the course. Like Clinton, he played with Vernon Jordan in high-profile foursomes, which included Clinton, Tiger Woods, basketball star Ray Allen, former Dallas Mayor Ron Kirk and New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg. He also played with some top CEOs, including former UBS CEO and Obama fundraiser Robert Wolf, Comcast CEO Brian Roberts, and Obama donor and Silver Lake Co-CEO Glen Hutchins. He also tried to bond with Republican Speaker of the House John Boehner on the links. According to Boehners memoir, they kept their conversations to golf while on the course, but engaged in debt ceiling discussions in the clubhouse, agreeing to proceed with behind-the-scenes negotiations.PGA TOURS ADAM SCOTT SHARES MESSAGE TO TRUMP AFTER WHITE HOUSE MEETINGPlaying with Boehner helped push forward budget talks, but it also raised some hackles on Obamas side of the aisle. Cultural critic Elayne Rapping said of the once "cool" Obama, "Now hes playing golf with John Boehner, which is about the most uncool thing there is." Senate Democrats seemed annoyed as well. When one of them asked his Democratic colleagues if any of them had ever played golf with the president, not one raised his hand. In another Obama game with a Republican lawmaker, Georgia Senator Saxby Chambliss scored a hole-in-one, prompting him to quip, "I told him since I made the hole-in-one, he ought to give us everything we want on entitlement reform."CLICK HERE FOR MORE FOX NEWS OPINIONObama and Trump both played a lot of golf, but Trump likes to talk about the game more than any of his predecessors. In one meeting with CEOs, Trump goaded GEs Jeffrey Immelt into telling the story of a game in which the president hit a hole in one. According to Immelt, Trump had said, "You realize, of course that Im the richest golfer in the world." Trump then corrected Immelt slightly: "I actually said I was the best golfer of all the rich people, to be exact, and then I got a hole in one."In his first term, Trump had a golf simulator installed in the White House that would allow him to play the worlds most famous golf courses virtually. When Joe Biden, a solid golfer in his younger years, moved into the White House in 2021, he did not think much of Trumps golf set up, saying, "What a f***ing a**hole." Even though Biden did not play that much while in the White House, he maintained that he could have beaten Trump on the links, and needled his rival for being less than honest about his golf score, saying in 2024, "And where's Trump been? Riding around in his golf cart, filling out his scorecard before he hits the ball?" The rivalry was so heated that claims of who had the superior game actually came up in their one and only debate in June of 2024. Biden claimed that "I got my handicap, when I was vice president, down to six," but Trump was dubious, saying, "Ive seen your swing. I know your swing."Golf even played a role in the tight election of 2020. Multiple reports suggested that Trump neglected his debate prep in favor of more playing time. Trump was also told by his son-in-law Jared Kushner that he had lost Pennsylvania while gearing up to tee off at the seventh hole in a November, 2020 game. Even though this news doomed his reelection prospects, Trump chose to enjoy the rest of his game, finishing the last 12 holes before heading home.It's a safe bet to expect that Trump will keep doing business on the links throughout the rest of his term. Yet while the frequency of his playing is in line with a number of his predecessors, his obsession with golf and his bringing of the game into the way he approaches his presidency surpasses them all.

Rebekah "Bekah" Charleston had an eerie feeling when she walked inside the Moonlite Bunny Ranch, a legal brothel in western Nevada."While the TV show Cathouse mightve made it look glamorous on the side when you drive out, its a double-wide trailer in the middle of nowhere. Its a literal compound youre entering into," the former sex trafficking victim told Fox News Digital."It was strange. No one was allowed to have a car there," she said. "Nobody ever left their workplace. We were forced to sleep in the same rooms where we were serving customers all day long. Wed get to change the sheets, but then we would sleep in those same rooms. Thats not a job like any other."'GIRLS GONE WILD' EXPLOITED UNDERAGE GIRLS, CREW MEMBERS TOLD 'DON'T TAKE NO FOR AN ANSWER'The North Texas woman is now speaking out on A&Es docuseries, "Secrets of the Bunny Ranch."The six-part special explores the rise of "Americas No. 1 sex destination" and its charismatic owner, Dennis Hof, a self-proclaimed pimp who died in 2018 at age 72. It features never-before-seen footage, personal photos and never-before-heard interviews with ex-employees.Fox News Digital reached out to Moonlite Bunny Ranch for comment."Speaking out in a docuseries like this is kind of terrifying and overwhelming," Charleston admitted. "But I think its important that were holding people accountable now."Growing up, Charleston was a troubled teen who ran away from home at age 16. Living on the streets, she was forced into prostitution by a boyfriend. By age 17, she became involved with a trafficker. Charleston said she was in her early 20s when she was sent to the Bunny Ranch as "a form of punishment.""I was in Las Vegas working for [my trafficker] at all the casinos and escort services," she recalled. "I started getting arrested too much. The police started recognizing me as they often do in Las Vegas. So, he made me go to the brothels."FOLLOW THE FOX TRUE CRIME TEAM ON XThere was one rule Charlestons trafficker ordered her to follow: Stay away from Hof."My trafficker warned me that all [Hof] would try to do is get girls high and drunk and then have services with him for free," she claimed. "And my trafficker wasnt about to let me do that."According to the docuseries, the women were required to read "The Bunny Bible," which also guided them on client negotiations."We would line up like cattle every Thursday to get a pap smear," said Charleston. "We just go one right after the other in a room in the back. A doctor would be on the premises doing a pap smear. I also had to get my blood tested once a month to make sure that I didnt have HIV or AIDS."The Bunny Ranch was the setting for HBOs reality TV series, "Cathouse," which premiered in 2005. While the series depicted the workers as earning loads of cash, it was far from the truth, Charleston said. That sentiment was echoed by several ex-workers in the docuseries."I started at the Love Ranch," Charleston said of Hofs other legal brothel in Nevada. "You had to earn your spot because the Bunny Ranch was [Hofs] prized brothel. I wound up earning a lot of money, enough money to be moved over to the Bunny Ranch."SIGN UP TO GET THE TRUE CRIME NEWSLETTER"The house takes 50% of your money off the top, no matter what," she added. "The harsh reality is that youre automatically getting half of whatever it is that youre charging customers and having to do all the sexual services for. And then youre charged with room and board, food and supplies."Everybody has their hands on your 50%. ... I know some people who have worked there who have bragged about making a million dollars in a year. Well, thats automatically $500,000. And then out of that, there are 12 months of room and board, 12 months of supplies and other things. It winds up being a lot less than advertised."While some of the ex-employees alleged in the docuseries that they'd experienced violence at the hands of customers, Charleston said she didnt face similar encounters."Ive heard a lot of other stories people that have died there, people that have nearly died there," she said. "There are a lot more details coming out about that in the series. But, thankfully, I didnt face violence at the hands of sex buyers."Charleston said she was eventually pulled out of the Bunny Ranch when her trafficker realized she wasnt earning enough for him. She also described struggling to deposit enough money in the bank.Leaving felt "liberating," she said.GET REAL-TIME UPDATES DIRECTLY ON THE TRUE CRIME HUB"Its such a dark and dingy place," she reflected. "Girls just sat around and got high all day. The reality is, youre sitting around all day waiting for the bell to ring. You have no idea whos going to come through the door or if theyre going to pick you. You can imagine someone working at the brothel who maybe hasnt had a date all week, but they still have to pay for their room and board every single day."They still have to pay for their food. You wind up being indebted to the brothel. You end up taking a call or a date as we would call it, that you dont even want to do. But you have to because now youre in the red, and you have to pay for your fees.""Its such an odd reality when you are living in an establishment that does nothing but just sells sex all the time," she said. "It was depressing, it was gross and I was really happy when I finally got to leave."But Charlestons troubles didnt end there. In 2006, she was arrested for tax evasion and served 13 months in federal prison. She was pardoned in 2020 by President Donald Trump."I had been prepared for that from day one," she said. "My trafficker had drilled in and beaten into us that the only word we were allowed to say was lawyer. Unfortunately, I kept my mouth shut, and I took the charge for my trafficker, even though it was never my income. That was none of my money. But myself and the other victims, we took the charge because we were terrified of our trafficker."WATCH: ILLEGAL MASSAGE PARLORS ACROSS US TARGETED IN MAJOR HUMAN TRAFFICKING BUST"In some ways, [being in prison] was a little bit of a vacation," she said. "It was the first time I didnt have people touching my body. I got to eat three meals a day. I would sometimes get to sleep eight hours a night. In some ways, it was a reprieve from the lifestyle that I had been lured and manipulated into."When Charleston was released, she was determined to turn her life around. In 2013, she launched Bekah Speaks Out, which provides training and consulting services to law enforcement and community leaders. She earned degrees in criminal justice and criminology and filed a federal lawsuit against the state of Nevada over the legalized prostitution industry.Charleston also worked with senators to advocate for the Trafficking Survivors Relief Act, which "aims to provide victims the opportunity to vacate or expunge federal convictions resulting from their victimization."The White House took notice. Officials said Charleston is a victim of sex trafficking who was forced into prostitution, and she now volunteers to help victims. Her pardon by President Trump was also supported by a law enforcement agent who arrested her."I was shocked to get the pardon," said Charleston. "I feel really blessed. [But] those things still show up on my record. I still have to explain to people, Hey, I do have a piece of paper that President Trump signed and says he forgives me."Im still fighting for full relief, which is the Trafficking Survivors Relief Act," she said. "Its up in Congress right now. Weve been trying to get this bill passed since 2016. If it were to go through, they would go back and redact the records, and it would be as if it never happened. That, to me, would be true justice. I [wouldnt] have to explain myself any longer."Charleston hopes speaking out encourages others to come forward.CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP"It makes me sad to know how many girls, many young women, were sucked in, thinking, Im going to live this glamorous lifestyle. Im going to have fun and have sex all day and make money," she said. "Youre a prisoner stuck on the property, its not always going to be fun and you dont really make that much money.. Im excited about what I get to do today and help other people."

President Donald Trumps restrictions on travel from 10 African countries are being praised by analysts for improving U.S. security internationally and domestically.The president said on X the travel ban was being introduced after a terror attack against a pro-Israel group advocating for Hamas to release Israeli hostages in Boulder, Colorado, last weekend, allegedly by an Egyptian man who had overstayed his visa.In a White House fact sheet, Trump said, "We will restore the travel ban, some people call it the Trump travel ban, and keep the radical Islamic terrorists out of our country."SUSPECT IN BOULDER TERROR ATTACK DETERMINED TO BE EGYPTIAN MAN IN US ILLEGALLY: FBIThis point was backed by the State Departments principal deputy spokesperson, Tommy Pigott. In a briefing Thursday, Pigott said,"This is a national security imperative".But observers believe there is an external, international reason."Most, if not all, of the African countries were added to this list either because of extreme instability and thus terrorist havens or because relations between them and the U.S. is either extremely poor or non-existent,"Bill Roggio, senior fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies and editor of FDD's Long War Journal, told Fox News Digital."For instance, the U.S. has been historically hard on Eritrea for its human rights abuses and also alleged support for terrorism. While in Chad, its military regime kicked the U.S. military out of its territory last year, further hurting the U.S. military posture in Africa."TRUMP BANS TRAVEL TO US FROM SEVERAL COUNTRIES TO BLOCK DANGEROUS FOREIGN ACTORSSome of the restricted African countries listed below pose significant potential security concerns for the U.S.The worlds two principal Islamist terror groups, ISIS and al Qaeda, represented here by Al-Shabaab, both operate openly in Somalia. The White House described it this week as"a terrorist safe haven."A briefing note accompanying the travel ban declared, "A persistent terrorist threat emanates from Somalia's territory.Somalia also remains a destination for individuals attempting to join terrorist groups that threaten the national security of the United States."The U.S. Africa Command mounted five air attacks against operators from both groups in just the 12 days up to June 2.Fighting and subsequent piles of bodies in the streets have been reported in the past month in Tripoli, the Libyan capital. The U.N.s Support Mission in Libya recently posted on X that the situation could "spiral out of control.""The historical terrorist presence within Libya's territory amplifies the risks posed by the entry into the United States of its nationals," the White House note states, addingU.S. border officials cant properly vet Libyans because "there is no competent or cooperative central authority for issuing passports or civil documents in Libya."The U.S. has already imposed sanctions against the leaders of both parties involved in a two-year civil war that has reportedly killed 150,000 and displaced 12 million. The U.S. claims up to 28% of Sudanese overstay their visas.The criminal records of Eritreans are not available for inspection by U.S. officials. With an overstay rate of up to 55%, the White House also reportedthat "Eritrea has historically refused to accept back its removable nationals." CRITICS HAVE MELTDOWN AND ACCUSE TRUMP OF IMPOSING RENEWED 'MUSLIM BAN' THROUGH 'DISGUSTING' TRAVEL ORDERThe West African country is causing concern in Washington as it deepens relations with Russia. Chad President Idriss Deby went to Moscow last year for talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin, and Kremlin Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov was then warmly welcomed in Chads capital, NDjamena, for a reciprocal visit. Russias shadowy Wagner private mercenary group's importance in the country is being questioned after three of its members were arrested in September and sent back to Moscow.Banning nationals this week, the U.S. said Chad has had a visa overstay rate of up to 55%. In Chad, President Deby responded by saying,"I have instructed the government to act in accordance with the principles of reciprocity and suspend the issuance of visas to U.S. citizens."People from this West African country have reportedly overstayed their F, M and J visas by up to 70%.Depending on the visa category, up to 35% of citizens in the U.S. are reported to have overstayed their visas.Overstaying is the main issue for the other African countries whose nationals are partially restricted and now have only limited entry into the U.S.Has an overstay rate of up to 35%, and, the White House says, "has historically failed to accept back its removable nationals."Togo suffers from poor governance, nepotism and widespread corruption, which reportedly goes all the way to the presidents office. Over 50% of the population lives below whats regarded as the international poverty line. Togos nationals have an overstay rate of up to 35% in the U.S.Burundi vies with South Sudan for the dubious title of poorest country in the world. Yet soaring inflation has caused a devastating rise in food prices. A former rebel group has led the country for two decades in an climate of political unrest and alleged repression. Burundis citizens have an overstay rate of up to 17% in the U.S.

This year's NBA Finals are a battle between two small-market franchises, but the governor of Indiana is fully embracing the national limelight shining on his state.The Pacers are in their first NBA Finals since 2000, going up against the Oklahoma City Thunder. The Pacers won three ABA titles in the early 1970s, while the Thunder organization has not won a title since 1979, when they were the Seattle SuperSonics.The Pacers are up 1-0 in the series after yet another incredible comeback. Gov. Mike Braun said he watched the game again shortly after it wrapped up, and then once more the morning after. Now, he's starting to think they are a "team of destiny" that embodies the blue-collar attitude of his state.CLICK HERE FOR MORE SPORTS COVERAGE ON FOXNEWS.COMBraun was a basketball player in high school, and even played against Indiana legend Larry Bird."Basketball to Hoosiers, it's 49 other states, and then there's Indiana. It means a lot, because the Pacers have been always competitive, but never been quite in that position to win it," Braun said in a recent interview with Fox News Digital. "And this isn't one with authority other than they now have become a team of destiny, it seems almost. But coming back from 15 points (in Game 1), it's underdog status."I've always loved it when I was in sports and even as a politician, and there's something about it. When it works out, it's even sweeter. So that spotlight's going on Indiana, the same spotlight on Oklahoma, two states that are not in the national limelight. Of course, we are now, and I'm savoring every minute of it It's been a fun time to be governor of Indiana, let's put it that way."Braun said the Finals are a chance for Indiana to tell its own story, and shows why people are flocking there to live."I remember when I lived out in Boston for two years going to business school, they must have not taken geography back in high school. They had a couple of people who asked, Where exactly is Indiana?" Braun recalled.WNBA SHOULD INVESTIGATE BRITTNEY GRINER VIDEO AFTER PROBING FALSE CLAIMS ABOUT FEVER FANS, GOVERNOR SAYSBraun has lived the American dream. After playing against Larry Bird in high school, he became an entrepreneur before going into politics. Today, while he runs Indiana, three of his four children run his business, and his wife has owned the same home accessory gift store for 47 years.And while he is watching his Pacers vie for their first NBA championship, he can't but think of a movie about Indiana basketball and the next generation."Well, I think that that would go back to if you watched the movie Hoosiers, that would tell you every reason for (why Indiana is the basketball state). We've got so much history of that, and the proof is in the pudding."That proof is Braun's outfits while he campaigned and debated just rolled-up long-sleeve shirts. Oh, and Bobby Knight joining him on the campaign trail."Where I grew up, right on Highway 231, you didn't really pay much attention driving by it every day," Braun said, "but on that same basketball goal that I played on is a grade-schooler or high schooler still out there on the driveway."Follow Fox News Digitalssports coverage on X,and subscribe tothe Fox News Sports Huddle newsletter.

Coco Gauff became the first American in a decade to lift the trophy after the womens singles final at Roland-Garros and she was asked what it means to represent the United States.After defeating world No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka in three sets to win the French Open, Gauff was asked what its like traveling the world as an American."It means a lot. Obviously theres a lot going on in our country right now," Gauff responded, via The Tennis Letter. "Just to be a representation of that and a representation of people that look like me in America, who maybe dont feel as supported during this time period. Being that reflection of hope and light for those people."CLICK HERE FOR MORE SPORTS COVERAGE ON FOXNEWS.COMGauff continued by bringing up this past years presidential election, and the response by the country after President Donald Trump was elected for his second term. She referred to it as a "down period" in the States."I remember after the election and everything, it felt like a down period a little bit. My mom told me during Riyadh, try to win the tournament just to give people something to smile for. Thats what I was thinking about today," Gauff said.Despite the "down period" comment, Gauff said she is "definitely patriotic."BARACK AND MICHELLE OBAMA AMONG THOSE SHOWERING COCO GAUFF WITH PRAISE AFTER FRENCH OPEN WIN"Some people may feel some type of way about being patriotic and things like that, but Im definitely patriotic. Im proud to be American. Im proud to represent Americans that look like me and people who kind of support the things that I support," Gauff added.The 21-year-old dropped to the clay and covered her face at Roland-Garros following a thrilling match against Sabalenka. Gauff lost the first set in a tiebreak, but fought back to win the second set, 6-2, and came away with her second Grand Slam after a third-set 6-4 finish.The last American to win the French Open? Serena Williams lifted the trophy in 2015."The crowd really helped me today," Gauff said after the match, as celebrities like Spike Lee, Dustin Hoffman and many more were noticeably cheering her on throughout the match. "You guys were cheering for me so hard, and I dont know what I did to deserve so much love from the French crowd. But I appreciate you guys."Gauff was also showered with praise by American celebrities, including Barack and Michelle Obama, Matthew McConaughey and more.Follow Fox News Digitalssports coverage on X, and subscribe tothe Fox News Sports Huddle newsletter.

NATO navies are putting on a display of maritime might in the Baltic Sea this month, as thousands of personnel from 17 countries aboard 50 vessels take part in war games led by the U.S. Navy's 6th Fleet.Of the nine countries that share a Baltic Sea coastline, only Russia is not a NATO member, and June's BALTOPS exercise aims to ensure those other countries can work together to defend the area, at a time when Moscow is turning up the heat."This years BALTOPS is more than just an exercise," said U.S. Vice Admiral J.T. Anderson in a press release this week. "Its a visible demonstration of our Alliances resolve, adaptability and maritime strength."Over the last year there's been growing disquiet about Russia's malign influence in the Baltic Sea region, with several incidents of severed undersea cables. Suspicion has fallen on Russia's fleet of so-called "ghost" or "shadow" ships: hundreds of aging vessels, mostly oil tankers flying under foreign flags that are used to circumvent Western sanctions or trade in military hardware.ESTONIAN SPY CHIEF DISCUSSES COUNTERING THREATS FROM RUSSIAThere are also well-founded concerns that some of these ships are used for covert intelligence gathering, communication intercepts or to sabotage undersea infrastructure like internet cables or gas and electricity pipelines. Three crew members from a Cook Islands-registered vessel, believed to be part of Russias ghost fleet, are currently facing charges in Finland over damage to an undersea cable that prosecutors say happened when the ship dragged its anchor for 60 miles along the floor of the Baltic Sea. "There's a growing importance of the shadow fleet to Russia's wartime economy, and a growing awareness that NATO needs to stop it," Tony Lawrence, a naval expert and researcher at the International Centre for Defence and Security in Estonia, told Fox News Digital.But after a number of NATO navies adopted a tougher stance against the ghost ships through stop-and-search tactics, the Russians announced they would use their own navy to escort the fleet through the Baltic Sea."The Russian military presence in the region has always been visible, this is not a new feature. However, what is new is that Russia is protecting its shadow fleet tankers in the narrow pass of the Gulf of Finland," Finnish Defense Minister Antti Hkknen said in a recent television interview with Finland's YLE TV.NATO governments are keeping a close eye on the latest Baltic Sea developments and preparing for any possible increase in tensions. Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen spoke at a meeting of NATO's Nordic and Baltic members this week, and described the Russian threat as real and serious. "We see a more aggressive Russian approach in the Baltic Sea region," she told reporters.The Baltic Sea has relatively narrow waterways, where international maritime boundaries extend 12 miles from the coast, and Exclusive Economic Zones (EEZs) incorporate valuable fishing grounds or offshore wind farms. Add to this some of the busiest ferry routes in the world, commercial shipping traffic, military warships and civilian craft, and it raises the possibility that a more robust Russian naval posture in the area could increase the possibility of conflict."This is the risk of having more warships floating around the Baltic Sea, there is a potential for miscalculations that could escalate, and risk-reduction mechanisms that used to exist don't work any more because the [NATO and Russian] navies aren't talking to each other anymore," Lawrence told Fox News Digital.BALTIC SEA NATIONS VOICE CONCERN AS RUSSIA CONSIDERS REVISING MARITIME BORDERDoes the Russian navy even have the capacity to escort every single ghost fleet ship in the Baltic? That seems unlikely, according to some."It's an escalation, of course, of Russian misbehavior in the Baltic Sea. But in practical terms I'm not sure it's going to make that much difference," Lawrence said."Russia's Baltic Sea fleet has always been the junior cousin of the Russian navy, and it's never been particularly well-equipped or enlarged, but it's still the biggest national navy operating in the Baltic, and they have ships that are attuned to the Baltic Sea, which is shallow, and its salinity is such that you need special kinds of sensors. And they know how to hide ships in the archipelagos of Sweden or Finland, so in that regard, they have a certain amount of specialist capability," Lawrence explained.The Baltic Sea war games this month with the U.S. Navy's Arleigh Burke-class guided missile destroyer USS Paul Ignatius and the Blue Ridge-class command and control ship USS Mount Whitney taking part serve to remind the Russians of the power of NATO's combined naval assets in the region.And some of the smaller navies will be reassured by the presence of the American warships.A few weeks ago, Estonia's navy brought one suspected shadow fleet ship into its territorial waters for an inspection, and it complied. But when the Estonians tried the same tactic for a second time, the ship refused to stop and wouldn't come into port."That makes things more difficult for other nations because the shadow fleet is learning that it can just ignore what NATO navies do and there's little that NATO can do in that situation, especially if there are Russian ships escorting the shadow fleet," said Lawrence."But I don't think NATO nations are going to back down. They will still follow and challenge these shadow fleet ships, or even look at other legislation, like requiring proof of insurance, to stop them from transiting the Baltic Sea."

Former President Barack Obama's White House physician said in a new interview that former President Joe Biden's doctor should have performed a cognitive test to evaluate his fitness to serve in office.Obama's doctor, Jeffrey Kuhlman, told The Washington Post that Biden White House physician Kevin OConnor should have performed a cognitive test during Biden's last year as president, given his age.OConnor, who Kuhlman first appointed as Biden's doctor in 2009 when he was vice president, declared in a 2024 report that the then-81-year-old president "continues to be fit for duty." The report did not mention any neurocognitive testing."Sometimes those closest to the tree miss the forest," Kuhlman told the Post."It shouldnt be just health, it should be fitness," Kuhlman said. "Fitness is: Do you have that robust mind, body, spirit that you can do this physically, mentally, emotionally demanding job?"TRUMP RESPONDS TO BIDEN DISMISSAL OF AUTOPEN PROBE, SAYS HE DIDN'T KNOW 'WHAT WAS GOING ON'Kuhlman, who departed the White House Medical Unit in 2013, described OConnor as "a good doctor" who appeared to do his best to "give trusted medical advice.""I didnt see that hes purposely hiding stuff, but I dont know that," Kuhlman told the Post. "Maybe the investigation will show it."President Donald Trump on Wednesday ordered Attorney General Pam Bondi to investigate whether Biden's aides "abused the power of Presidential signatures through the use of an autopen to conceal Bidens cognitive decline and assert Article II authority.""This conspiracy marks one of the most dangerous and concerning scandals in American history," the order says. "The American public was purposefully shielded from discovering who wielded the executive power, all while Bidens signature was deployed across thousands of documents to effect radical policy shifts." "Let me be clear: I made the decisions during my presidency," Biden said in a statement Wednesday night. "I made the decisions about the pardons, executive orders, legislation, and proclamations. Any suggestion that I didnt is ridiculous and false."Trumps order appeared to nod to the findings of special counsel Robert Hur, who investigated Bidens handling of classified documents while he was vice president.In a report released in February 2024, Hur concluded Biden "willfully retained and disclosed" sensitive materials but should not stand trial, describing the president as a "sympathetic, well-meaning, elderly man with a poor memory." Hur cited instances when Biden could not recall key dates and events, including when he served as vice president and when his son, Beau, passed away. The report was released at a time when Biden was still planning a second term run.Last week, House Oversight Committee Chairman Rep. James Comer, R-Ky., issued a subpoena for OConnor to appear for a deposition at the end of the month "as part of the investigation into the cover-up of President Joe Bidens cognitive decline and potentially unauthorized issuance of sweeping pardons and other executive actions."BIDEN'S PERSONAL DOCTOR SUMMONED AS REPUBLICANS DIG DEEPER INTO ALLEGED COGNITIVE DECLINE COVER-UPThe committee re-posted the Posts interview with Kuhlman to X, writing, "Even Obamas doctor admits the truth. This is precisely why Chairman @RepJamesComer subpoenaed Dr. Kevin OConnor, Bidens physician. This is a scandal of historical proportions, and we will investigate it thoroughly!"In a letter to OConnor, Comer said the transcribed interview would focus on the physicians February 2024 assessment that Biden was "a healthy, active, robust 81-year-old male, who remains fit to successfully execute the duties of the Presidency.""Among other subjects, the Committee expressed its interest in whether your financial relationship with the Biden family affected your assessment of former President Bidens physical and mental fitness to fulfill his duties as President," Comer wrote.Questions about Biden's cognitive state stretch extend solely past Republicans.CNN's Jake Tapper and Axios' Alex Thompson recently published a book titled "Original Sin," which details concerns and debates inside the White House and Democratic Party over Biden's mental state and age.In the book, Tapper and Thompson wrote, "Five people were running the country, and Joe Biden was at best a senior member of the board."Naomi Biden, the former president's granddaughter, dismissed the book as "political fairy smut for the permanent, professional chattering class."CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APPComer requested transcribed interviews with Biden's White House senior advisers Mike Donilon and Anita Dunn, former White House chief of staff Ron Klain, former deputy chief of staff Bruce Reed and Steve Ricchetti, a former counselor to the president. He also called for former senior White House aides Annie Tomasini, Anthony Bernal, Ashley Williams and Neera Tanden to appear before the committee and suggested subpoenas could be forthcoming if they did not schedule voluntary interviews.The Associated Press contributed to this report.