"Stick with the science and never veer from that, even when the science turns out to be an inconvenient truth for somebody." 

Dr. Anthony Fauci, then director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, delivered those words to Georgetown students in 2017 as the touchstone of medical ethics.

On Wednesday, before the Senate Homeland Security Committee, Fauci replaced that line by repeatedly saying, "On the advice of counsel, I respectfully decline to answer based upon my rights under the Fifth Amendment to the Constitution."

FAUCI PLEADS FIFTH WITH 'ZERO LEGAL JUSTIFICATION' AS CRITICS ERUPT AND DEMAND CONTEMPT CHARGES

The optics could not have been worse, but what you saw depended largely on how you viewed the hearing. For critics, Fauci sounded like Crazy Joe Gallo without the sunglasses. 

For supporters, Fauci is still a hero who refused to fall into a trap laid for him. Democratic senators such as Sen. Maggie Hassan, D-N.H., actually praised Fauci for refusing to answer questions before Congress.

There is no question that it is Fauci's right to invoke his privilege against self-incrimination, and many advised him to do so. The privilege can be invoked for strategic reasons separate from any criminal culpability. After all, he was given a last-minute pardon by President Joe Biden, and any false statements he made before the committee could be used to bring criminal charges against him.

However, Fauci is unlike many who have invoked the privilege. Unlike many past witnesses who have invoked it, Fauci has testified for days in countless prior hearings. He also has appeared in countless interviews on these issues. He had reason to fear this hearing after his diary revealed startling contradictions between his private observations and his public statements.

The question many will ask is why Fauci could not just "stick with the science" and resolve these contradictions. The fact is that he would have had difficulty dealing with his own "inconvenient truths."

FAUCI PRIVATELY TOOK CREDIT FOR COVID-19 LOCKDOWNS DESPITE PUBLIC DENIAL, NEWLY EXPOSED DIARY ENTRIES REVEAL

Fauci's opening statement expressed obvious anger over the release of his "unredacted diary."

The new evidence shows that Fauci connected the Wuhan lab to the emerging crisis before most people had ever heard of the lab. It also shows him repeatedly referencing the lab's gain-of-function work and discounting the "wet market" as the true origin of the virus, viewing it instead as an "amplifier."

Some of the most embarrassing areas for Fauci concerned his entries acknowledging that he pushed to close schools despite public denials that he ever recommended such closures. His entries take credit for convincing figures such as then-New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio, the staff of California Gov. Gavin Newsom and others to close schools.

FAUCI'S DIARY SHOWS HE FED QUESTIONS TO JOURNALISTS, BUILT FRIENDSHIPS WITH MEDIA FIGURES

In an Oct. 16, 2022, ABC interview, Fauci repeated that denial, saying, "They always come back and say, 'Fauci was responsible for shutting schools down.' I had nothing to do [with it]!"

The media has also taken the Fifth on these subjects, declining to publish many of these contradictions. Media outlets have the same reason as Fauci. There is no spin that would reconcile their own prior coverage and gushing reviews of Fauci. The diary entries also show disturbing references to private meetings with media figures.

Fauci's diary refers to CNN anchor Jake Tapper 41 times. In some entries, Fauci suggested that the host was concerned about crafting an interview to better serve Fauci.

"Jake wanted to make sure the interview did not cause me any problems," the diary says.

Fauci also related how he met socially with Tapper in July 2020: "Had dinner at Jake Tapper and Jen Tapper’s home in DC. Terrific couple. Friendship building." Notably, on Oct. 14, 2020, CNN published a report warning about the dangers of "small household gatherings."

The diary revealed an obsession with his publicity and access to celebrities. It is replete with Fauci’s gushing accounts of himself, such as, "It is not hyoperbole [sic] to say that today I am the most famous and talked about person in the country and one of the most recognizable peson [sic] in the world."

The fact is that diaries tend to be self-obsessed, and no one would want their unvarnished private thoughts made public. Rather, my gripe with these passages is one I have previously raised in criticism of Fauci. During this period, dissenting scientists were barred from social media, removed from positions and vilified for expressing views despite now being vindicated on subjects ranging from the lab origin of the virus to the efficacy of masks, the 6-foot rule, natural immunity and school closures.

As these courageous scientists were being abused by academic and media figures who still hold their positions, Fauci said not a word in their defense despite privately acknowledging that they could be right.

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Yet Fauci remained silent as his allies in the media savaged those who voiced the view that the virus was man-made and escaped from the lab.

In 2021, New York Times science and health reporter Apoorva Mandavilli was still calling on reporters not to mention the "racist" lab theory. Federal agencies found the lab theory to be the most credible despite Fauci's public claim that a natural origin was the most likely explanation.

Fauci stayed silent while relishing his celebrity status. Indeed, his diary shows no concern for these scientists as he breathlessly recounts his bobbleheads and cover shoots.

Once again, Fauci has every right to invoke his constitutional rights, but the public has every right to demand answers to these questions related to the deaths of approximately 1.2 million to 1.25 million Americans. That may result in a grant of immunity to compel him to answer them.

If there is any solace to Fauci, he will clearly be able to maintain that he is "the most famous and talked about person in the country."

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DETROIT — As high-tax, progressive-led cities continue to bleed residents nationwide, locals and policy experts in Detroit are offering contrasting visions for the Motor City’s future, with some eyeing radical free market reforms to attract those fleeing the East and West coasts.

High state and local taxes, lingering crime concerns and an astronomical cost of living continue to drive taxpayer flight out of blue strongholds like New York, Chicago, Boston and Los Angeles. 

According to a study by the National Taxpayers Union Foundation (NTUF), taxpayers are consistently abandoning high-tax environments for fiscally friendly states. 

While Texas and Florida remain primary destinations, Sunbelt states like North Carolina, South Carolina and Tennessee are seeing record population gains.

BLUE-STATE TAX BURDEN FUELS AMERICANS FLEEING TO REPUBLICAN-LED SOUTHERN STATES

For many moving away from major metros, the decision comes down to basic math.

"Cost of living is probably a huge reason for it. Those cities are some of the most expensive in the country," Ferndale resident Andy Femminineo told Fox News Digital Monday.

Femminineo, who grew up in the Detroit suburbs and works downtown, noted that even high-earning tech workers are being priced out of coastal hubs.

"A lot of those people are showing up here in Detroit," he said. "The cost of living [on the coasts] is outstripping the tech talent they have there, which is ridiculous. I mean, it's humongous talent and income there, and you still can't afford to live."

Floyd Brantley, a born-and-raised Detroiter, sees the population shifts as part of a historical cycle for major urban centers.

"I think it's a nationwide trend, and what a lot of people don't realize is that cities are cyclical anyway," Brantley said. "This isn't the first upward swing that Detroit has been on. We've been up and down a few times. New York's been up and down a few times, Chicago … LA is losing a lot of people going to Texas."

DETROIT DEVELOPER CITES 'SUBSTANTIAL TAXES' AS REASON BIG BLUE CITIES LIKE NYC ARE IN TROUBLE

Former Detroit Planning Director Antoine Bryant echoed those sentiments, noting that the South and Midwest offer economic relief that coastal markets simply cannot match.

"The South in general has been growing tremendously," Bryant told Fox News Digital. "South Carolina has won, there's been tremendous growth in Texas as well and you're seeing that along the coast because the income disparity isn't as vast as it is on the East and West coasts."

Bryant, who has lived in Detroit since 2021, expects the city to expand over the coming decade. "Many demographers and planners I talk to say there's real opportunity here in the Midwest," he added.

Other locals highlighted the permanent impact of remote work on traditional urban centers.

"People aren't working in the office buildings anymore, so they don't need to be centralized in major cities," said Allen Park resident Ashli Genaw, pointing to how flexible work policies allowed workers to leave New York and California.

While local residents remain hopeful about Detroit’s organic momentum, conservative policy thinkers argue that bolder action is required to capture fleeing taxpayers.

Rodney Lockwood, a board member at the Mackinac Center for Public Policy, believes major cities reliant on heavy tax bases are headed for trouble unless they embrace aggressive free-market alternatives.

"Right now, socialists are on the march, and perhaps [New York State Assemblymember] Zohran Mamdani is the best example of that. They're winning races, and their answer is always more taxes and more free stuff," Lockwood told Fox News Digital. "We have to look at both sides: what is not working, and then what will work."

DAVID MARCUS: IN BOOMING DETROIT, VOTERS SKEPTICAL OF SOCIALISM SNAKE OIL

Lockwood’s proposal? Convert Detroit’s iconic Belle Isle Park into an independent, free-enterprise "Freedom City" designed to compete directly with high-tax blue hubs.

Developed in the late 19th century, Belle Isle is a 982-acre island park on the Detroit River making it larger than New York City's Central Park. Under Lockwood’s vision, private investors would purchase the island from the city to build a mixed-use housing, entertainment and commercial district structured as a special economic zone. The plan aims to accommodate 50,000 residents across 20,000 households without relying on public tax dollars.

"Detroit is stuck. Its population is not increasing fast enough, and it faces a potential fiscal cliff as federal COVID-relief money runs out," Lockwood argued.

However, the idea of privatizing Detroit’s prized public park met sharp resistance from several locals in the downtown area.

"Horrible idea," said Tanya Clark, a native Detroiter. "We need more public spaces throughout the city, not fewer. Other places might want that, but it's not a Detroit thing."

Others were more open to the ambitious concept.

"I think that’d be amazing," said Alonte Banks, a student living in downtown Detroit. "I’m pretty sure I’d move down there."

What was billed as a battle of wits between Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., and Dr. Anthony Fauci, with the lawmaker determined to uncover the former COVID-19 explainer-in-chief’s motivations during the pandemic, became a one-sided affair in the Senate.

Paul has for years sought to uncover Fauci’s alleged role in funding "risky" research in China that Republicans say sparked the pandemic in 2020. He has argued that Fauci should be thrown in prison, and that the former chief medical advisor to the president’s pardon from former President Joe Biden wouldn’t hold up.

But the highly anticipated back and forth, which was further stoked by Paul dumping over 1,000 pages of Fauci’s diary online before the hearing, didn’t go exactly as planned.

The hearing kicked off with an impassioned opening statement from Paul, who accused Fauci and the National Institutes of Health (NIH) of funding gain-of-function research for years, misleading Congress and destroying records, which he contended created a fracture in public trust over the nation’s COVID-19 response.

"That loss of trust may be your most damaging legacy," Paul said. "Trust can't be ordered. It has to be earned. No scientist is above scrutiny. No government official beyond accountability, and no public servant preferred version of history."

RAND PAUL SEEKS CONTEMPT CHARGES AFTER FAUCI INVOKES FIFTH AMENDMENT MORE THAN 100 TIMES

But Fauci, under guidance from his lawyers, opted against answering any questions from Paul or others on the committee.

He argued that Paul's "obvious obsession" with pushing for his prosecution, levying allegations against him, and dumping his unredacted diary was designed to "get me to say something, anything, that could vindicate his repeated public pledges that I end up, in his words, quote, behind bars, unquote."

"Although it pains me to do so because of the respect I have for the legislative branch of government, and my decades-long record of cooperating with Congress under the advice of my attorneys, I will invoke my right under the Fifth Amendment of the Constitution to refrain from answering your questions," Fauci said.

It wasn’t long after Fauci invoked the Fifth Amendment that tensions flared in the hearing.

After being repeatedly asked questions, and repeatedly turning to his constitutional shield, Paul declared that as chair of the committee, he was denying Fauci’s right to invoke the Fifth Amendment.

"It's against the law to obstruct an investigation of Congress," Paul said. "There will be repercussions to your refusal to testify today."

WATCH: RAND PAUL SAYS THERE'S ONE THING AMERICANS HAVE NEVER HEARD FROM FAUCI

Then Fauci’s lawyer, David Schertler, spoke up to remind Paul it was Fauci’s constitutional right to turn to the Fifth Amendment.

Paul reminded Schertler that neither he, nor the "half dozen" lawyers with Fauci were recognized by the committee. That prompted Sen. Gary Peters, D-Mich., the top Democrat on the panel, to push for Schertler to speak.

But Paul was not having it.

"This is the way Anthony Fauci wants to be remembered — for a lawyer not listening to the rules," Paul said. "That's the way you want to be remembered, and that's what you're going to do. You are not recognized, sir. Security, please remove him from the room."

The hearing chugged along at roughly the same pace — lawmakers would ask Fauci a question, then he would invoke the Fifth Amendment.

But that didn’t stop some on the panel from getting frustrated at his lack of forthrightness.

Sen. Bernie Moreno, R-Ohio, noted that Schertler was a well-known lawyer who previously represented former Sen. Bob Menendez, who was sentenced for accepting gold bars and bribes in exchange for using his influence to benefit the Egyptian government.

WATCH: RAND PAUL SAYS FAUCI LOBBIED FOR $1M PRIZE WHILE LEADING COVID RESPONSE

"And there's an article here in the Washington Free Beacon that talks about why you would hire a guy like David Schertler. And the comment is, if you're in deep s---, that's who you call," Moreno said. "Do you feel like you're in deep s---?"

Fauci again declined to answer, which prompted a frustrated Moreno to tell him that his influence over policy during the pandemic in 2020 and the effect that it had on Americans pushed him to run for the Senate.

"Here I am sitting in front of you six years later saying, ‘Who the f— do you think you were for doing that? It is a total disgrace what you did to this country,’" Moreno said.

As the hearing wound down, Paul revisited his threat to hold Fauci accountable for declining to answer questions.

Paul announced that he would seek contempt charges against Fauci after he invoked his Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination and teed up a vote in committee for next week.

"We're going to have a vote next week on contempt," Paul said. "I think there's another legal question that the courts may have to decide upon, and that is whether or not a presidential pardon offers you complete immunity."

Fauci never answered a question from any lawmaker on either side of the aisle, sticking to the advice from his lawyers to invoke the Fifth Amendment to protect himself from self-incrimination.

Before the hearing started, Paul and his staff were confident that Fauci wouldn't try to invoke the Fifth Amendment.

So confident, a source familiar with the matter told Fox News Digital, that several questions were prepared ahead of time, and members of the committee were told to come prepared.

In all, Fauci wound up uttering the same phrase 111 times: "On the advice of counsel, I respectfully decline to answer based upon my rights under the Fifth Amendment to the Constitution."

Willie Nelson urged Americans to think again when it comes to building the future.

Nelson, 93, encouraged followers to "fight against data centers invading our land" in a social media plea shared Tuesday.

The country music legend reflected on being able to see "stars at night" in his Texas hometown, but that light pollution and "water thieving" were imminent in a looming industrial climate.

KACEY MUSGRAVES ABRUPTLY CANCELS CONCERT DATES FROM 'MIDDLE OF NOWHERE' TOUR

"I grew up in Abbott, and I still have a home there with farmed land where I can still see stars at night," Nelson told his followers.

"And now our community, like many others, needs to fight against data centers invading our land.

SINGER ZACH TOP SLAMS MODERN COUNTRY MUSIC, SAYS IT LACKS 'SOUL'

"The last thing we need is a loud, water thieving, light polluting, data center anywhere near our town (or any others for that matter)."

The "On the Road Again" singer noted how "the strength of rural America has never come from big industrial footprints."

"It comes from generations of people, open spaces, local businesses, and a connection to the land," Nelson wrote. "All of America deserves thoughtful stewardship that doesn’t steal farmland (where our essential shared-food is grown) and small family farmers’ livelihoods, and not data centers that only destroy the environment around them.

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"Whoever controls food and water, controls the masses. Let’s not allow our own demise or give up control over necessary resources in the U.S. and especially in Abbott."

Nelson's a longtime environmental advocate and has raised more than $90 million through his Farm Aid nonprofit, which he co-founded with John Mellencamp and Neil Young more than four decades ago.

The charity was first formed in 1985 to raise awareness about the loss of family farms and to raise funds to keep farm families on the land.

On Tuesday, Gov. Greg Abbott called for a ban on data center developments in rural Texas.

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"We must prohibit them from building AI data centers in rural Texas neighborhoods," he said on a campaign stop in Bullard, according to The Texas Tribune.

"I made clear already: Any AI data center even thinking about coming here — they got to bring their own money, bring their own power, reuse their own water and do it in a way that reduces the cost of electricity for residents across our state.

"We must eliminate the tax break they are getting. They must be responsible for funding their own projects here in Texas. We will get that done."

FIRST ON FOX: Americans could soon cash in on exposing fraud as President Donald Trump's Treasury Department prepares to launch a program paying whistleblowers, Fox News Digital has learned.

The Treasury Department has created an online tip line that incentivize Americans to bring allegations of fraud directly to the administration in an effort to increase transparency and crack down on abuse of taxpayer dollars. The website encourages people to "blow the whistle on fraud, money laundering and sanctions/tax violations."

And those who report explicit details of legitimate fraudulent transactions could see a pay day for their information.

"Whistleblowers play a critical role in protecting the integrity of our financial system," Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told Fox News Digital.

THE WAR ON FRAUD IS HERE, AND VICE PRESIDENT VANCE IS LEADING IT FROM THE FRONT

"Today, Treasury launched a new webpage that brings our whistleblower programs together in one place, making it easier to find information and navigate the reporting process," he continued.

Awards for whistleblowers could range between 10% and 30% of the total amount in penalties recovered from successful enforcement operations carried out by the Departments of Treasury and Justice.

The rollout marks the latest step in the Trump administration's broader campaign to root out fraud across federal programs after officials argued billions in taxpayer dollars have been lost to waste, abuse and organized criminal schemes.

The program works alongside the Task Force to Eliminate Fraud — a federal initiative led by Vice President JD Vance that President Donald Trump established by executive order earlier this year. It also mirrors a similar program that was used to root out illicit money movements in Minnesota in the midst of the Feeding Our Futures fraud scandal.

The new website consolidates Treasury's existing whistleblower programs into a single public portal, allowing for fraud report submissions to go through one website that routes tips to the department's various enforcement bureaus.

FEDERAL GOVERNMENT’S LANDLORD JOINS VANCE FRAUD CRACKDOWN AS WHITE HOUSE WIDENS HUNT: 'CRITICAL FORCE'

It also serves as a hub for Treasury's broader anti-fraud campaign, with initiatives ranging from Internal Revenue Service (IRS) fraud investigations and sanctions enforcement to financial institution alerts, whistleblower protections and the White House Task Force to Eliminate Fraud, led by Vance.

"Fighting fraud is a core national security and taxpayer protection mission for Treasury," a Treasury spokesperson told Fox News Digital. "Secretary Bessent has directed the Department to modernize its tools, strengthen partnerships with financial institutions and law enforcement, and aggressively pursue those who steal from the American people. Treasury is committed to preventing fraud before it occurs, disrupting criminal networks that exploit government programs, and holding bad actors accountable."

Both the new whistleblower program and anti-fraud task force were created in response to the massive fraud scandal in Minnesota that triggered investigations that later exposed taxpayer dollar abuse statewide.

The exposed fraud included allegations that the state’s Somali community was exploiting social services to send millions of dollars to those unqualified to receive financial assistance, including al Qaeda-linked terror groups.

"President Trump has been clear that Americans have a right to know that their tax dollars are not being diverted to fund acts of global terror or to fund luxury cars for fraudsters," a statement from Bessent featured on the new website reads. "At Treasury, we follow the money."

JACOB FREY PRAISES SOMALI COMMUNITY AS MINNESOTA FACES RENEWED SCRUTINY OVER FRAUD INVESTIGATIONS

"We did it with the mafia, we have done it with all the cartels, and we’re doing it with the Somali fraudsters," he went on in the public statement. "We are going to offer whistleblower payments to anyone who wants to tell us the who, what, when, where and how this fraud and money laundering occurred."

The portal provides direct reporting links to Treasury bureaus including the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network, the IRS and the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, allowing tips to be routed to the agency best equipped to investigate them.

Treasury has not yet specified how whistleblower payments will be calculated or which cases would qualify for financial rewards.

A transgender influencer fired back at President Donald Trump after his joke comparing the biological male to CNN's Kaitlan Collins during Friday night's White House Correspondents' Association (WHCA) Dinner went viral.

"Maybe being publicly mocked and criticized by this administration is actually like the greatest compliment of all," said Dylan Mulvaney in a TikTok post on Sunday. "Because it puts me in the company of some of the most brilliant, empathetic people in our world today."

Mulvaney, once a social media star and one of the most recognizable transgender people in the United States, has maintained a low profile over the past few years since an advertising debacle featuring the influencer tanked the stock of a major beer company.

TRUMP SPARES NO ONE AT WHCA DINNER, TAKING AIM AT DEMS, PRESS AND HIS OWN CABINET

But Mulvaney was thrust back into the spotlight after Trump's WHCA Dinner joke comparing the transgender influencer to Collins, a longtime media foe of the 45th and 47th president.

"I thought Kaitlan Collins had really made it big with a major new sponsorship, but then I informed her that it wasn't her on the Bud Light can, it was Dylan Mulvaney," he said, referencing the beer brand's failed marketing campaign.

In 2023, Bud Light partnered with Mulvaney for a March Madness promotion. On Instagram, Mulvaney posted a video featuring a Bud Light can with their face on it, sparking intense backlash, a prolonged boycott and a more than $27 billion loss in market cap for Anheuser-Busch.

"To the president, thank you for reminding me that I am more powerful than I even knew," Mulvaney said in the Sunday video. "And to quote my favorite recording artist, Shea Diamond, ‘I am America.’"

JOURNALISTS DEMAND WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENTS' ASSOCIATION 'SPEAK TRUTH TO POWER' IN NEW DINNER WITH TRUMP

Trump took his time roasting Collins in his hour-and-four-minute remarks at the WHCA Dinner on Friday.

Besides comparing her to a biological male who transitioned to female in a TikTok series where they would chronicle every day of 'becoming a girl,' Trump also took a swipe at her apparently steely demeanor.

"I want to personally congratulate CNN's Kaitlan Collins on receiving her award. It was all about me. It's a fake. She shouldn't get the award. It was a fake, but I didn't mind. I said, 'Kaitlan, congratulations.' But it was fake. There's no question about it," Trump said.

Collins received the WHCA Award for Excellence in Presidential News Coverage Under Deadline Pressure for broadcast due to her reporting on the contentious Oval Office meeting between Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Trump in February 2025.

"But she's a young, attractive woman," Trump went on, adding, "She never smiles. I said, 'Kaitlan, do you ever smile? Smile. You have a nice position. You're at CNN — fake news. You should be a happy person. So smile, Kaitlan. Just smile.'"

Collins appeared to respond to Trump's jokes at her expense in an Instagram post over the weekend featuring a quote from Eleanor Roosevelt.

"No one can make you feel inferior without your consent," the quote said.

CNN's public relations team also posted a statement on X after Trump's remarks about one of their biggest stars.

"We stand by our journalists and the integrity and fair mindedness with which the CNN team reports the news," the statement, attributed to Chairman and CEO Mark Thompson, said.

"Honest, accurate journalism may sometimes irritate politicians, but our right to report and present that reporting to the public without government interference is fully protected by the U.S. Constitution. CNN will continue to exercise this right."

It's official: Tommy Paul and influencer Paige Lorenze have tied the knot. The tennis power couple married earlier this month on Long Island.

It's also official that despite giving up her last name and the handle associated with it, her rebranding doesn't mean she's going anywhere.

The switch to Paige Paul might have mistakenly been taken as a sign that she was headed for the quiet life of a tennis WAG and that her influencing days were behind her. They're not.

She's not even letting what should be a fun time for a couple of newlyweds keep her trading her bikini for armor in order to take on an injustice on behalf of influencers everywhere.

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Paige came across an unthinkable sign at a local Nantucket store called Four Winds Craft Guild. The sign , which is hanging from the ceiling, reads "No Influencers."

This business has been around since 1948 and somehow isn't aware of all the good influencers are responsible for in the world. Mrs. Paul decided to remedy that.

She let the business have it in its comment section, reports Page Six, "If you call yourself a feminist but proudly put up a 'No Influencers' sign, it's worth asking who you are attempting to delegitimize, and why…"

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That's a red-hot start, but there was more where that came from.

"Mocking women when they become powerful in a new industry isn't new. It's just a strange message coming from a store that celebrates a craft with such a rich history of women shaping the island and its economy," Paige continued.

"For those who don't know, the creator economy is overwhelmingly driven by women. Brands have shifted billions of dollars into creator marketing because it consistently delivers something traditional advertising can’t…. trust, community, and measurable sales."

That part felt personal. She's part of something bigger than herself and doesn't have a choice, but to provide some educational material.

"One woman with a loyal audience can successfully launch a business at a scale that would have once required corporate backing and massive advertising budgets. That’s a win. This sign isn't."

There you have it. Paige Paul isn't turning her back on influencers.

She's still here and willing to trade brilliant bikini marketing for the battlefield when necessary to fight back against injustice wherever it is found, even in a Nantucket store selling baskets and crafts.