Southwest
Superintendent orders Oklahoma schools to promote patriotism after student told to remove US flag from truck
Oklahoma State School Superintendent Ryan Walters told the Fox News Channel that his school district would be enacting new policies to allow students to show their patriotism after an Oklahoma high school student was forced to remove an American flag from his truck by school staff earlier this month.
Walters spoke on “Fox & Friends Weekend” on Saturday to declare that under new state school guidelines, no student will be punished for displaying the flag or showing their patriotism. Rather, they will be encouraged to love their country and better understand its founding.
“We’re not going to tolerate this anti-Americanism,” Walters told “Fox & Friends Weekend” co-host Pete Hegseth.
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Oklahoma State School Superintendent Ryan Walters told Fox News Channel about new school guidelines promoting patriotism. (AP Photo/Sue Ogrocki, File)
The public school superintendent’s appearance on the channel came several days after Edmond North High School senior Caleb Horst was reportedly instructed by school officials to remove the American flag from the pick-up truck he uses to drive to school.
As Horst told local outlet KOCO, school staff told him it was school protocol to keep flags off campus. Edmond Public Schools denied their stance on flag flying had anything to do with patriotism. They told KOCO the practice was about safety and to avoid becoming a distraction.
“It is the practice of Edmond Public Schools to not permit students to fly or bring flags of any kind on our school campuses. This practice has been in place for several years and is explained to our students at the start of the school year along with various other policies and procedures. This is designed to prevent disruptions and distractions during the school day. It is also done in an effort to provide a safe school environment as flying flags on vehicles creates safety issues in the parking lot as well as can cause damage to other vehicles,” Edmond Public School officials said in a statement previously provided to Fox News Digital.
The statement added, “To be clear, this is not about the American flag or patriotism. Edmond Public Schools proudly displays the American flag prominently and in the proper, respectful way outside each of our buildings and in our classrooms. Not only do we recite the Pledge of Allegiance every morning as we start our school day, but we also present the colors and play the national anthem at most of our athletic events. All of these things are done in the proper fashion according to flag etiquette.”
Horst said that he had been flying the flags from his vehicle for some time, and had been confident that the school would not try to step on his right to free speech in displaying them.
“I’ve never really had problems with it before, and it’s our First Amendment, so it’s kind of hard for them to infringe upon our rights,” he said.
Walters slammed the decision and signaled his department was working to change state school rules to address it.
“No school in Oklahoma should tell students they can’t wave an American flag. We’ve had Americans die for that flag, die for students to have the right to carry the flag, to wave the flag, to be proud of that American flag,” Walters said in a video posted to X. “My department right now is working on guidelines that we will be issuing to districts to ensure that no student is ever targeted for having an American flag and also that our schools will promote patriotism.”
Fox News Channel’s interview with Walters led off with some of the new guidelines the superintendent’s department has enacted to prevent such incidents, among them one that obligates schools to develop a clear policy that ensures flags can be flown and displayed, another that requires students in the state to recite the Pledge of Allegiance at least once a week, and another ensuring that schools file a report to show they are complying with these guidelines.
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Edmond North High School senior Caleb Horst said school officials told him he could not fly the US flag from his truck. (istock)
Walters told Hegseth that he wants his schools to stand against the anti-Americanism pushed by the “Biden administration, by the teachers’ unions, by the radical left.”
“We’re not tolerating it in our schools. We want patriots. We want our students flying the American flag,” he declared.
The superintendent added that his administration has “acted swiftly to say this will never happen again. Every school in the state will protect the students’ right to fly that flag. We will fly that flag, and we will promote patriotism in Oklahoma schools.”
Walters also said that the state’s schools are “redeveloping our social studies standards to get more of an understanding of the American founding.”
“We need more patriotism. We’ve seen our schools become leftist indoctrination mills pushing hatred for country. That’s not going to happen in Oklahoma,” he declared.
The superintendent issued a memo to state schools in June directing them to incorporate the Bible and Ten Commandments into their curricula for grades 5-10, primarily for historical context. At the time, Walters stated his directive aligns with educational standards approved in May 2019.
Fox News Digital’s Greg Wehner and Kristine Parks contributed to this report.
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A 23-year-old man from Long Beach is in custody following a deadly hit-and-run crash in Riverside County Saturday.
The crash happened around 8:09 a.m. near the intersection of Dinah Shore Drive and George Montgomery Way in the city of Rancho Mirage, according to the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department.
Deputies responded and found one of the involved drivers, 57-year-old Teresa Bowlin of Cathedral City, dead at the scene. The other driver, Tyler Conant of Long Beach, ran from the scene of the crash, according to the sheriff’s department.
“During the investigation, it was determined that Conant was under the influence of alcohol [at the time of the crash],” the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department said.
Conant was arrested and booked into the John Benoit Detention Center for murder and felony hit-and-run.
The investigation is ongoing. Anyone with information about the crash is asked to contact Deputy Bret Meservey at (760) 836-1600.
Long Beach will hold a pride festival this weekend after the one they originally had scheduled was canceled.
Long Beach city officials said the celebration was nixed after the nonprofit that organizes it, Long Beach Pride, failed to submit the required information for an event permit.
It was supposed to start on Friday and last through Sunday.
“Despite continued collaboration and multiple deadline notices, the City did not receive the required documentation needed to complete safety reviews, inspect critical event infrastructure, such as the stage, electrical systems and tent, and emergency exiting plans to ensure compliance with public safety standards,” the city of Long Beach said in a statement. “With event programming scheduled to begin on May 15 at 5 p.m. with Teen Pride and essential information still outstanding, there is no longer sufficient time to safely permit the festival this year.”
Officials noted that they were working to see if a “shortened event” could be held this weekend, and indeed, an agreement was reached to stage a one-day gathering on Sunday.
Billed as “Canceled? Never Heard of Her!” and emceed by comedian and drag queen Jewels, it will still bring the city’s LGBTQ community together after Sunday morning’s Long Beach Pride Parade, which was not canceled.
“Long Beach Pride weekend is a culmination of celebrations put on by our community, including our many vibrant restaurants, bars and businesses, and that will never change,” Long Beach Mayor Rex Richardson said in a press release issued late Saturday night. “Along with the Pride Parade, we are proud to join the party with this new event that reaffirms what this City has always stood for: that every person belongs here.”
“The festival may have been canceled, but Long Beach drag artists don’t cancel joy,” added Jewels Long Beach.
The one-day “Canceled? Never Heard of Her!” festival will take place at Bixby Park from noon to 7 p.m. Sunday. A free event, it will include music by several performers and a drag show.
More information can be found here.
Los Angeles, Ca
L.A. Jewish institution among targets of foiled terrorist attack, U.S. officials say
A Jewish institution in Los Angeles was among the locations targeted in a recently foiled terrorism plot, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York Jay Clayton announced this week.
The thwarted terrorist attacks were the result of the recent arrest of Mohammad Baqer Saad Dawood Al-Saadi, an Iraqi national and senior member of Kata’ib Hizballah, U.S. officials said.
“Mohammad Baqer Saad Dawood Al-Saadi, a commander for the terrorist organization, Kata’ib Hizballah, faces serious charges for his role in numerous attacks against U.S. interests across the globe, including his efforts to kill on U.S. soil,” Clayton said. “As alleged, for years, Al-Saadi committed himself to furthering the terrorist goals of Kata’ib Hizballah and the IRGC, two terrorist organizations dedicated to harming the United States and its allies.”
Al-Saadi recently attempted to carry out attacks in the U.S., officials said, including attacks at Jewish cultural places of interest in New York, Los Angeles and Scottsdale, Ariz.
“Al-Saadi attempted to disrupt American society through intimidation and violence,” a press release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office reads. “… Those who engage in or support terrorism against Americans and on U.S. soil should take note: the whole of the federal government is committed to dismantling terrorist organizations and bringing their members to justice.”
In a three-month period, Al-Saadi allegedly directed 18 terrorist attacks throughout Europe, including bombings, arson, and assaults targeting American citizens and points of interest. Prior to his arrest, national security officials say he was planning similar attacks on U.S. soil. Assistant Attorney General for National Security John A. Eisenberg said that Al-Saadi “presented a serious threat to our national security.”
The European attacks included the bombing of the Bank of New York Mellon, an American bank, in Amsterdam on March 15. On April 29, two Jewish men, one of whom was a dual U.S.-British citizen, were stabbed and seriously injured in London.
In 2020, Al-Saadi took to social media, calling for others to attack and kill Americans in retribution for the deaths of Iranian military officer Qasem Soleimani and Iraqi military commander Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis, U.S. officials said. In more recent months, Al-Saadi allegedly used social media to encourage the killing of Americans and Jews to further the terrorist goals of Kata’ib Hizballah and the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.
“In or about February 2026, for example, AL-SAADI posted on one of his social media accounts a message in Arabic, which read in part, ‘Do not abandon the blood of your Imam of the time, oh Shiites of Iraq. Kill everyone who supports America and Israel. Do not leave any of them remaining. Civil and military targets, as well as voices of discord, kill them everywhere.’” U.S. officials said.
NYPD Commissioner Jessica S. Tisch confirmed that one of the U.S. targets was a Manhattan synagogue. On April 3, Al-Saadi allegedly spoke to an undercover law enforcement officer whom Al-Saadi believed could carry out attacks in the U.S. That same day, Al-Saadi allegedly texted the undercover officers photographs and maps showing the exact location of a prominent Jewish synagogue in New York City.
Officials have not said what specific locations in L.A. and Arizona were targeted by the terrorist group.
Al-Saadi now faces numerous charges for these crimes in U.S. court. If convicted, he could be sentenced to life in prison.
The case is under investigation by the FBI’s New York Joint Terrorism Task Force, which is comprised of investigators and analysts from the FBI, the NYPD, the FBI Washington Field Office, Counterterrorism Division, and more than 50 other federal, state, and local agencies. Investigators also received help from the Department of Justice’s National Security Division, Counterterrorism Section, the Office of International Affairs of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, and U.S. Customs and Border Protection.
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