Steve Neavling

The FBI is worried that Americans are becoming radicalized by al-Qaeda-linked militant groups while fighting in the Syrian civil war, the Associated Press reports.

Some estimates place the number of Americans involved in the conflict at a couple dozen.

Feds have already arrested at least three Americans this year for planning to fight the Syrian leadership with a radical Islamic organization, Jabhat al-Nusrah, the AP reported.

Some are concerned about a flashback to the 1980s when an Afghanistan conflict attracted foreign fighters.

Steve Neavling

Democrats in California are in a vulnerable position.

Democratic  State Sen. Ron Calderon is accused of taking cash bribes in exchange for promoting bills. But when his Democratic colleagues in the California Senate removed him from committees in the past month, Calderon has publicly lashed out at his own party, the Associated Press reports.

Calderon has not been charged and said his office was raided by the FBI in June because he wouldn’t take down two fellow Democrats.

“He’s made a threat that ‘politicians live in glass houses,’ and he’s trying to throw his colleagues under the bus. Who knows what lies ahead?” said Rob Stutzman, a Republican political consultant in Sacramento. “What does he know about other members that at a minimum could serve as an embarrassment to them?”

Steve Neavling

Dan Bongino’s book about his time as a high-level Secret Service agent under President Obama is taking off and has reached the New York Times bestseller list.

“Life Inside the Bubble: Why a Top-Ranked Secret Service Agent Walked Away From It All” tells the story of Washington insiders shielding the president from the fallout of poor policy choices.

The book climbed to No. 13 on the coveted bestseller list.

Bongino is running for Congress in Maryland’s Sixth District.

Steve Neavling

Socialite Jill Kelley, who has shunned the limelight since the scandal that cost David Petraeus his job as head of the CIA, is reportedly back in the public eye, News Track India reports.

Kelley and her husband were spotted handing out holiday meals during a charity event on Thanksgiving.

Kelley’s complaints about receiving harassing emails led to Petraeus’ resignation.

Kelley file suit against the government, saying her privacy was violated.

Steve Neavling

A mannequin with a cat on its head. Nine fedoras. A collection of porcelain cats.

All belonged to convicted mobster James “Whitey” Bulger, who was sentenced to life in prison last month.

The items are among a number of his possessions that are being auctioned off, The Las Vegas Guardian Express reports.

The proceeds will go to his victims.

“The reality is there are lots of people who would be willing to pay money for some or all of the contents of that apartment, and that money is going to victims and victims’ families. So we want to do what we can to get as much money as we can for them,” First Assistant US Attorney Jack Pirozzolo said.

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