Attorney General Pam Bondi and Interior Secretary Doug Burgum toured Alcatraz Island in California on Thursday to advance a proposal to reopen the former federal prison.

Bondi and Burgum left the island after discussing the facilities with park police and directing staff to collaborate on planning to rehabilitate and reopen the facility without making public remarks. But in an exclusive Fox News interview Burgum posted on social media, he said “Alcatraz is the brand known around the world for being effective at housing people that are in incarceration.”

“This is something that we’re here to take a look at,” Burgum continued. “It’s a federal property, its original use was a prison, and so part of this would be to test the feasibility about returning it back to its original use.”

Attorney General Pam Bondi, center left, arrives at Fort Baker after visiting Alcatraz Island, Thursday, July 17, 2025, in Sausalito, Calif. (AP Photo/Godofredo A. Vásquez)

In May, President Trump proposed converting Alcatraz — now one of San Francisco’s most visited tourist attractions — back into a high-security federal prison for violent offenders. Alcatraz island is currently part of a national park under the jurisdiction of the Department of the Interior. If reopened as a prison, the facility itself would be operated by the Bureau of Prisons, which is under the Department of Justice.

The tour drew immediate condemnation from Democratic Rep. Nancy Pelosi, the former House speaker who represents San Francisco, who revealed it in a news release Wednesday afternoon.

“With stiff competition, the planned announcement to reopen Alcatraz as a federal penitentiary is the Trump Administration’s stupidest initiative yet,” Pelosi said in a statement.

Burgum also posted on social media about the trip that he: “Spent the day on Alcatraz Island… to start the work to renovate and reopen the site to house the most dangerous criminals and illegals.”

Bondi posted on social media as well: “A great morning at Alcatraz… Under President Trump, we are Making America Safe Again.”

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But reopening the island would be a major undertaking. It remains unclear how the federal government would reclaim the island, which has operated as a park and museum since the early 1970s. The National Park Service currently maintains the site, which draws more than a million visitors each year. Removing the island’s national park status would require a vote of Congress.

Even if the plan passes the numerous bureaucratic hurdles and regulations before it, construction on the rocky island could be prohibitively expensive.

Pelosi framed the visit as a “diversionary tactic” to draw attention away from his recently passed tax and domestic policy bill that would expand tax cuts while also adding more than $3 trillion to the national debt.

There’s another story that the Trump administration may also be trying to get away from: this week, Bondi has faced scrutiny over her handling of the Jeffrey Epstein case. Frustration has mounted amongst Trump supporters as well as critics over the administration’s failure to release documents tied to the investigation of Epstein, who was charged with sex trafficking and later found dead in his jail cell in 2019.

Earlier this month, Trump wrote on his social media site Truth Social that he had seen renderings of a new site.

“We’re going to look into renovating and rebuilding the famous ALCATRAZ Prison sitting high on the Bay, surrounded by sharks. What a symbol it is, and will be!”

In a statement posted to social media Thursday morning, San Francisco Mayor Daniel Lurie said that there was no “realistic plan for Alcatraz to host anyone other than visitors.”

“If the federal government has billions of dollars to spend in San Francisco, we could use that funding to keep our streets safe and clean and help our economy recover,” he continued.

Democratic Rep. Kevin Mullin, whose district includes California’s San Mateo County, said Trump’s “administration cares more about sensational headlines than fiscal responsibility.”

“Not only is this proposal infeasible and illegal, it would be extremely costly and irresponsible considering he just tacked on another $4 trillion to our nation’s debt,” Mullin said, adding that “the only person that needs to be locked up in Alcatraz is Trump.”

Local officials and historians have questioned the practical and symbolic implications of converting the island back into a penitentiary. Alcatraz housed some of America’s most notorious criminals during its 29 years of operation, including Al Capone.

“It’s nowhere near a functioning island by any means,” said San Francisco historian John Martini previously told The Mercury News.

The main prison has been deteriorating for years, save for some seismic upgrades that made it safe for visitors. Back in 1962, the Bureau of Prisons weighed making upgrades to the prison, but it would have cost $5 million — or $52 million today.

“The reason it is not a prison now is because of the daunting challenges from six decades ago,” Martini said. “The idea that we’re going to forget all that and pick up where we left off during the JFK administration — let’s just say there will be a lot of challenges.”

“Bring in the clowns” is a great motto for a circus but a bad one for a political party. I know because I was there when the Republican Party and conservative journalists started inviting in the Trumpy clowns in 2009 at the conservative Washington Times. We all know the result is they took over the Republican Party.

Now that the MAGA wing of the Republican Party is tearing itself apart over Attorney General Pam Bondi’s decision not to release the Epstein sex trafficking files, Democrats are jumping into the debate with both feet, hoping to divide Republicans and put themselves on the right side of the conspiracy theorists who think there are earthshaking revelations hidden in the FBI archives.

So far:

— The Democratic National Committee launched a bot to spread the word. Democratic Sen. Jon Ossoff launched an attack from the campaign trail calling the Trump administration decision a “broken promise.”

— Rep. Ro Khanna, a California Democrat, posted, “Why are the Epstein files still hidden? Who are the rich & powerful being protected? On Tuesday, I’m introducing an amendment to force a vote demanding the FULL Epstein files be released to the public.”

— Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, a New York Democrat, wrote “Wow, who would have thought that electing a rapist would have complicated the release of the Epstein Files?”

The Democrats are fueling the fires of conspiracy in an attempt to undermine the Trump administration’s decision to tell the apparent truth about the Epstein files. Now that the Trump administration is angering its wackiest fringe. Democrats are welcoming the red-nosed fools with open arms.

It is the same dangerous move that conservatives and Republicans made when they embraced Donald Trump’s false allegations that Barack Obama was born in Kenya and thus ineligible to be president.

At The Washington Times, where I was a senior editor in the opinion section, I watched as my news colleagues covered every factual development that raised any question about the issue, no matter how preposterous, quoting the most extreme Republican conspiracy theorists with a straight face. In the opinion section, we used any excuse to mention Kenya and Obama in the same sentence no matter how ridiculous while telling ourselves that by staying just barely on the side of factual accuracy, we were just having fun with the issue to torture our political opponents.

In the copy I was responsible for, mostly outside commentary, I never did it, but I didn’t make an issue of it when others played along. I probably wouldn’t have won a fight over it, but I didn’t try. I regret my role, no matter how minor, in fueling Trump’s early rise to Republican dominance. I didn’t invite the clowns, but I didn’t try to push them out either.

If Democrats keep going down this road, lending their credibility and amplification to wacko conspiracy theorists on the right, they’ll regret building the forces who are destroying our political culture.

This won’t be the last opportunity for Democrats and their progressive media allies to score political points by doing the wrong thing when hard realities force the Trump administration to abandon its endorsement of fringe thinking.

Trump and his administration have made common cause with the purveyors of a number of dubious conspiracy theories, including that Ukraine invited the war with Russia, that the 2020 election was stolen and that vaccines cause disease. As the Trump administration unfolds, reality is going to force Trump to begin to reckon with the facts, and in some cases he might choose to tell the truth, as Bondi did on Epstein.

It is already happening with Ukraine, as Trump is allowing more American weapons to get to Ukraine’s defenders. It might not be too long before Russia’s behavior forces Trump to abandon his embrace of Russia’s Vladimir Putin altogether.

Just this past weekend, Trump tried to use the administration’s investigation of the 2020 election as a shield against its Epstein detractors, saying that uncovering 2020 wrongdoing was a much bigger deal than sex trafficking. Since there was no such corruption, the Trump Justice Department is going to have a hard time coming up with indictments to make their case. Eventually, the true believers will notice.

Health and Human Services Secretary Robert Kennedy Jr. is going to have to make his case that vaccines are a health threat and take action to end their use. Reality is likely to intervene, forcing the Trump administration to back off that stance.

Democrats should cheer Trump administration steps to move closer to reality and tell Americans the truth, not embrace the clowns to score political points. Given how conservatives and Republicans have acted in the past, I don’t have high hopes that the left will do any better.

David Mastio writes for The Kansas City Star. A former deputy editorial page editor for the liberal USA TODAY and the conservative Washington Times, he has worked in opinion journalism as a commentary editor, editorial writer and columnist for 30 years. He was also a speechwriter for the George W. Bush administration.

BUENOS AIRES, Argentina — A ban on away fans in Argentina’s local leagues — a restriction that failed to end stadium violence — will gradually be lifted under a plan announced Thursday by the country’s soccer federation.

The 12-year ban will be lifted in a test run when Lanús hosts Rosario Central in the second matchday of the top-flight Clausura tournament, Argentine Football Association president Claudio Tapia said at a press conference.

“It’s a day that marks a before and after in our league,” Tapia said. “It’s the kind of soccer (with visitors) we all grew accustomed to since we were kids. We have to get back to that path. Clubs that are in a position to host visiting fans can do so.”

The federation banned visiting fans in the first-division tournament in 2013 after two incidents: the death of a Lanús fan when police tried to break up a clash with Estudiantes supporters; and the death of two Boca Juniors fans in a shootout between rival factions.

The ban was imposed first in the province of Buenos Aires, and the rest of the districts followed. While the measure sought to end stadium violence, it fell short, as more deaths subsequently occurred for disputes among the so-called “barrabravas.”

The AFA announced that 6,500 fans of Rosario Central, a team from that city located 300 kilometers north of Buenos Aires, will be able to occupy the Lanús away section under a strict security protocol, which includes designated tickets so that fans attending are properly identified.

“The idea isn’t to go back to what we had before because the visitors were kicked out for a reason,” Buenos Aires security minister Javier Alonso said. “We have to eradicate the culture of violence. It’s sad to see 10-year-olds singing about drugs or that someone needs to be killed. It has to be a family celebration, with flags and drums.”

For the time being, the measure will apply only to the province of Buenos Aires, although Tapia said that other provinces are willing to join the initiative.

The plan has raised questions. Sectors of the opposition to the Buenos Aires government warned that police officers cannot be assigned to guard visiting fans to the detriment of citizens concerned about a growing wave of insecurity.

The restriction on visiting fans only applied to professional league matches and other divisions in Argentina. They are allowed in international tournaments such as the Copa Libertadores and the Copa Sudamericana.

“This is what football fans and society want. Many matches have been organized with two sets of fans, and that’s why we decided to announce the start of the return of visiting fans,” Tapia said.

Jordan Addison pleaded no contest to a lesser charge on Thursday stemming from his July 2024 arrest in Los Angeles on suspicion of driving under the influence. The news comes less than a week before the Vikings open training camp at TCO Performance Center.

The charge is officially wet reckless driving upon a highway, according to Los Angeles County Superior Court, which means Addison acknowledges that the reckless driving involved alcohol or drugs.

As a result, Addison will be placed on probation for 12 months, will have to pay a $390 fine, and will be ordered to complete a pair of online courses.

“While Mr. Addison’s case would have made for a great trial, I admire him for taking responsibility,” Addison’s attorney Jacqueline Sparagna said in a statement. “Now he can put this incident behind him and solely focus on his promising career.”

The arrest occurred on July 12, 2024 when Addison was found asleep behind the wheel of a Rolls Royce, with his vehicle blocking traffic near Los Angeles International Airport. He was formally charged with a pair of misdemeanors — driving under the influence of alcohol and driving with blood-alcohol content of 0.08 percent or higher — less than a month later. He pleaded not guilty to those charges and they have since been dismissed.

Next, Addison will wait to see if he will be punished by the NFL for his actions. He could be suspended for three games without pay for his first offense relating to the use of alcohol in accordance with the NFL’s policy and program on substances of abuse.

In a statement posted on social media, Addison’s agent Tim Younger noted that his client understands the ramifications of his decision of pleading no contest, adding that the Vikings have been apprised throughout the legal proceedings.

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