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‘New sheriff in town’: State finance leader rallies around key Trump victory saving ‘taxpayer dollars’
President Donald Trump’s executive order ending diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) programs in the federal government has returned financial power to the people, OJ Oleka, CEO of the State Financial Officers Foundation, told Fox News Digital.
Oleka said there’s a «new sheriff in town» and that Trump is «making good» on his promise to eliminate DEI by shifting financial policies «away from the left and back to the center,» empowering state financial officers and building trust with the American people.
«We know that when companies focus on business, their business does better. If their business does better, shareholders make more money, their employees have a better quality of life within their business and their consumers get a better product,» Oleka told Fox News Digital at the State Financial Officers Foundation conference in Orlando, Florida.
Oleka said focusing on financial returns and merit-based incentives over DEI or environmental, social and governance (ESG) policies creates «more money for shareholders, better culture in the office for employees and better products for consumers and customers,» exactly what state financial officers have been asking for.
WHITE HOUSE VOWS TO IMPLEMENT ‘SYSTEM OF MERIT’ IN US, DISMANTLE DEI ‘STRANGULATION’
Fox News Digital spoke to State Financial Officers Foundation CEO OJ Oleka in Orlando, Fla. (Getty/Fox Digital)
«The American people want every individual to succeed,» Oleka said. «They want people to succeed on their merit, on their ability, on their skill. It’s very important to us as Americans. But what they don’t want is for people to get preferences just because of some political ideology.»
He said there are misconceptions about DEI «because people hear diversity, equity and inclusion, and they think, ‘Well, those are good things. I support diversity. I want people to be included, and people should have the resources that they need.’
«To be very clear, when we’re talking about DEI, we’re saying that DEI is trying to provide racial or gender preferences for people based on past grievances. It effectively has nothing to do with merit or looking at somebody’s skill for a job or for an opportunity.»
MAJOR UNIVERSITY MEDICAL CENTER ACCUSED OF HIDING DEI PROGRAMS, INFLUENTIAL SENATOR CALLS THEM OUT
Equal opportunity is giving people access to create their own opportunities, to try to be as successful as they can be with their skills, ability and merit, according to Oleka.
Oleka explained that DEI is subjective because it prefers «folks based on what you think is important, based on your own politics.»
«It’s bad to say, from a company’s perspective, ‘Let’s just hire people based on race, based on gender,’ as opposed to skill and ability,» Oleka said.
«It’s bad because it can harm the performance of what that company actually does with their business responsibilities. That matters to our financial officers because they invest in a lot of these companies. It’s their job as fiduciary leaders to make sure that the pensions that they invest, the public funds that they invest by virtue of their positions, are actually done so by companies and with funds where the returns are going to be high.
OJ Oleka, CEO of the State Financial Officers Foundation, spoke with Fox News Digital at the State Financial Officers Foundation conference in Orlando, Florida. (Fox News Digital)
«We can’t guarantee that the returns are going to be as high as they can be if the companies aren’t even focusing on their specific mandate, on their responsibility. Instead, they’re focusing on their politics and trying to force an ideology or social agenda through their businesses. That’s not what business is for.»
Oleka said his experience as someone with a Ph.D. in higher education who is also the son of Nigerian immigrants informs his rejection of political ideology or agendas in government-funded programs, including in public education, because these policies don’t improve students’ learning experience or academic performance.
«That doesn’t actually contribute to kids’ learning,» Oleka said. «It doesn’t contribute to human flourishing. There really is no reason why people’s taxpayer dollars should be spent on that.»
President Donald Trump speaks during an event on energy production in the East Room of the White House April 8, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)
Oleka told Fox News Digital the Orlando conference was critical to reminding state financial officers across the country they are not alone in pushing back against DEI and ESG policies that were promoted by former President Joe Biden’s administration.
«It goes back to what I think most Americans believe. Their state government is closer to them than the federal government,» he said. «As a result, state leaders should have more power, as it relates to their finances, than the federal government, and what a state leader should do with that power is give it back to the people.»
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By empowering state financial officers to focus on financial returns and fiduciary duty instead of ideology and politics, Oleka said more Americans are incentivized financially.
«It’s important that we have that same kind of leadership in the White House at the state level, making good on their promise to bring a Golden Age to America and to each state,» he said.
Politics,DEI,Woke Culture,US Finance,Donald Trump
El mundo celebra hoy el 81° aniversario del nacimiento de Bob Marley, quien llegó al mundo el 6 de febrero de 1945 en Nine Mile, Jamaica. Marley se transformó en un ícono universal gracias a su música y su mensaje de unidad y resistencia. Su legado permanece intacto y aún inspira tanto a sus seguidores históricos como a nuevas generaciones.
A lo largo de su vida, impulsó el reggae desde Jamaica hacia el mundo. El artista popularizó canciones que hoy resultan emblemáticas y que traspasaron las fronteras culturales. Su música no solo entretuvo, sino que también denunció problemas sociales y políticos.
Según precisó Britannica, el músico desarrolló un estilo propio. Fusionó ritmos tradicionales y letras comprometidas. De acuerdo al sitio oficial bobmarley.com, su legado no se limita a la música: también promovió valores de paz y justicia. La popularidad de temas como “No Woman, No Cry” y “Redemption Song” refleja su trascendencia.
El nacimiento de Bob Marley marcó un antes y un después para la música jamaiquina. Su ascenso coincidió con el auge del reggae como género internacional. El artista expandió la presencia de esta música, que encontró eco en distintas partes del mundo.
Marley mantuvo una postura coherente a lo largo de su carrera. La defensa de la igualdad social y la libertad personal se convirtió en el eje de sus composiciones. Según Britannica, el músico sostuvo este mensaje incluso ante la adversidad, lo que fortaleció su figura como referente.
El álbum “Exodus”, lanzado en 1977, consolidó su imagen internacional. De acuerdo a bobmarley.com, este trabajo fue elegido como uno de los más importantes del siglo XX. La crítica señala que Exodus contiene algunos de los temas más reconocidos y celebrados de la carrera del músico.
El músico falleció el 11 de mayo de 1981 en Miami, Estados Unidos a los 36 años. Su muerte no detuvo el crecimiento de su influencia. Cada aniversario de su nacimiento representa una oportunidad para que fanáticos y músicos de todo el mundo recuerden su aporte.
La familia Marley y organizaciones culturales suelen organizar tributos y eventos conmemorativos. Estos actos refuerzan la relevancia del artista y mantienen viva su memoria. El mensaje de Marley se transmite por medio de festivales, exposiciones y publicaciones.
Cabe destacar que la vigencia de Bob Marley se refleja en la actualidad del reggae. Numerosos artistas reconocen su influencia en sus obras, lo que demuestra la continuidad de su aporte. Las plataformas digitales permiten que nuevas generaciones accedan a su repertorio.
Asimismo, la figura de Marley se asocia a mensajes de unidad, resistencia y esperanza. Su música y su ejemplo aún inspiran a millones de personas en distintos contextos. El aniversario número 81 de su nacimiento confirma la permanencia de su legado.
Ocho décadas después de su nacimiento, Bob Marley representa la esencia del reggae y la defensa de la justicia social. Su obra y su mensaje continúan inspirando a quienes buscan un mundo más justo y solidario. Al mismo tiempo, la conmemoración de su natalicio mantiene vigente la memoria de un artista universal.
Su influencia atraviesa géneros musicales y fronteras geográficas. Las letras de sus canciones abordan la paz, la libertad y la dignidad humana. La crítica y los especialistas coinciden en que su propuesta artística sigue siendo relevante.
El impacto de Bob Marley no finaliza en su música: su vida y obra forman parte de la historia contemporánea. Así, el aniversario de su nacimiento invita a reflexionar sobre el valor de su legado. La vigencia de sus ideas y su música confirma que el mensaje de Marley permanece actual.
INTERNACIONAL
Mayor Bass facing blowback over explosive report that she altered wildfire report to downplay city’s role
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Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass is under fire this week after a Los Angeles Times report claiming she successfully altered in her favor a critical after-action report on the devastating southern California wildfires that killed 31 people.
While Bass has repeatedly denied that she interfered with the report, the Los Angeles Times reports, citing two sources, that Bass was concerned that the city could be exposed to legal liability for its lack of preparedness and removed or softened language implicating the city.
One of the key changes, according to the Los Angeles Times, was altering details about failures to fully staff and deploy resources leading up to the fire, an issue that has drawn intense scrutiny over the past year.
The report cites a «Bass confidant» who said «the mayor didn’t tell the truth when she said she had nothing to do with changing the report.»
SPENCER PRATT ENTERS LA MAYOR RACE, ACCUSES CURRENT LEADERSHIP OF ‘CRIMINAL NEGLIGENCE’ OVER FIRE RESPONSE
Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass speaks alongside immigrant community leaders outside a Home Depot in Los Angeles, California, on Sept. 8. (Mario Tama/Getty Images)
Bass, who has also drawn criticism for flying to Africa for an event days before the fire broke out despite hazardous conditions in the forecast and warnings about fire risks, has denied the accuracy of the reporting.
Still, widespread outrage has resulted both on social media and from politicians.
«There’s no moving forward until we get the answers and the people that are responsible are fired, and that includes the fire chiefs, the fire battalion chiefs, that includes the mayor, it includes anybody that had anything to do with this,» reality TV star Spencer Pratt, running for mayor of Los Angeles, told Fox Los Angeles while standing next to the burnt remains of his Palisades home that was destroyed in the fire.
Businessman Rick Caruso, who unsuccessfully ran for mayor against Bass and is said to be mulling another run, called the report an «outrage» and said that Bass «actively covered up a report meant to examine the most significant disaster in Los Angeles history.»
TRUMP BYPASSES CALIFORNIA’S ‘NIGHTMARE’ BUREAUCRACY TO UNLOCK $3.2B FOR WILDFIRE SURVIVORS
Flames from the Palisades Fire burn a building on Sunset Boulevard amid a powerful windstorm on Jan. 8, 2025, in the Pacific Palisades neighborhood of Los Angeles, California. (Apu Gomes/Getty Images)
More than a year after a series of the most expensive and devastating wildfires tore through the Palisades and Altadena neighborhoods of Los Angeles, survivors are still stuck in limbo as red tape, rising costs and stalled aid slow recovery. California’s strict rebuilding regulations, combined with the scale of the devastation, help explain why rebuilding has barely begun.
Additionally, questions remain about the city’s response to the fire as local leaders face criticism for empty fire hydrants, an empty reservoir, slow response times, inadequate brush clearance and maintenance, and a botched PR response in the days following the fire.
The Eaton and Palisades fires, in addition to taking the lives of 31 residents, scorched a combined 37,728 acres, an area larger than California’s Disneyland, Knott’s Berry Farm and Universal Studios combined, destroying more than 16,200 buildings in their path.
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Protesters hold up signs at the «They let us burn» protest in Pacific Palisades on Jan. 7, 2026. (Nora Moriarty)
«Mayor Bass has been unequivocal for months — she reviewed an early draft of the report and only asked the LAFD to make sure it was accurate on issues like weather and budget,» the mayor’s office said in a statement to Fox News Digital.
«She and her staff made no changes to the drafts. The Mayor has been clear about her concerns regarding pre-deployment and the LAFD’s response to the fire, which is why there is new leadership at LAFD and why she called for an independent review of the Lachman Fire mop-up. There is absolutely no reason why she would request those details be altered or erased when she herself has been critical of the response to the fire — full stop. She has said this for months. This is muckraking journalism at its lowest form. It is dangerous and irresponsible for Los Angeles Times reporters to rely on third hand unsourced information to make unsubstantiated character attacks to advance a narrative that is false.»
Fox News Digital’s Amanda Macias contributed to this report.
los angeles,la fires,california
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Mayor Bass facing blowback over explosive report that she altered wildfire report to downplay city’s role
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