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By Elena Salvoni

Published: 12:12 EDT, 20 September 2023 | Updated: 12:21 EDT, 20 September 2023

Orlando Sonza would likely be the youngest Republican in Congress if elected, and that isn’t slowing down the 32-year-old father of four from jumping into a contentious battle for a swing district in suburban Cincinnati. 

Sonza, the son of Filipino immigrants, told DailyMail.com that minority families like his own are tired of political extremism on both sides. He’s one of the diverse candidates with an impressive resume the House Republicans campaign arm is boosting early on this cycle. 

‘I think what you’re seeing now again, are Americans – in large part minority Americans – don’t ascribe to the polarization of politics,’ he said. 

‘I think it’s the principles behind conservatism,’ Sonza said of the recent trend among historically Democratic Asian Americans who have been voting for Republicans in recent elections. 

‘I think the conservative movement – the principle being portrayed by the other side – it’s equal outcomes versus equal opportunity, the role of big government in our daily lives, which then impacts individual liberty and the ability to change your life’s story through your own hard work and dedication. 

And Sonza knows something about that. 

The candidate met his wife Jessica while attending West Point, and in between settling in Cincinatti and having four kids, he’s served four years in the Army, gone back to school for accounting and worked on taxes for Ernst and Young, then earned a law degree and begun a career as a prosecutor in Hamilton County. 

‘My opponent is someone that appears to be more interested in attention grabbing headlines, like posing shirtless on the front page of The Cincinnati Enquirer to show off his personal tattoos than serious leadership that seeks to really solve the complex problems impacting our nation, and I intend to fully drive that contrasting message.’ 

Sonza is running against Democrat Greg Landsman, who unseated a GOP incumbent in the last election.

The Biden administration’s botched withdrawal from Afghanistan exactly two years ago is a strong motivating factor behind his reason for running. 

When Kabul fell to the Taliban, Sonza said it triggered ‘heartache’ for him and his wife, both Army veterans. 

The ‘rushed’ U.S. withdrawal sent a message to the 2,400 Americans who lost their lives that their sacrifice had been in vain, the candidate said. 

The two decade-long war had gone on for most his life. But to properly withdraw would have taken more time, time President Biden claimed he didn’t have – saying he was bound by a treaty former President Trump had signed with the Taliban. 

‘The message that we sent to those brave men and women who were prepared to die and some did for in defense of our nation, is that we’ve abandoned you. Your effort was in vain,’ he said. 

‘It showcases a weakness of leadership,’ said Sonza. ‘It required more time. For the sake of the servicemen and women who sacrificed over the last two decades.’ 

The exact markers of Sonza’s 1st congressional district are yet unknown – the state’s high court is still looking at the redistricting map. But he’s sure to face a fierce political fight: in 2022, incumbent Greg Landsman had wrestled the swing district back from a Republican. 

Sonza refused to say who he would vote for in the 2024 GOP presidential primary but promised to vote Republican ‘whoever the nominee is.’ 

When it came to the now-four Trump indictments and the Biden family’s business deals, Sonza said he believes the Justice Department has been ‘weaponized’ against Trump. 

He’s perfectly on board with a potential Biden impeachment inquiry, despite the political implications such partisan efforts could have in moderate districts. 

In a referendum Democrats touted as a win, last week Ohioans voted 57 to 43 percent against Issue 1 – a proposition that would have raised the vote needed to amend the state’s constitution from a simple majority to 60 percent. 

The vote came ahead of a November referendum that would enshrine abortion rights in the state’s constitution – after the overturning of Roe v. Wade triggered a six-week abortion ban that has since been held up in lower courts. 

The amendment stipulates that abortion may only be restricted after viability – around 22 to 24 weeks – and only if it does not interfere with the life and health of the mother. Republicans claim that stipulation would allow abortions ‘until birth.’ 

Sonza insisted Issue 1’s failure should not be looked at as a bellwether of what’s to come. 

‘Ohioans spoke very clearly: they are content with the process of amending the constitution – the 50 percent plus one threshold. 

‘I believe that in these next within these next 90 days, Ohioans are going to be truly receptive to understanding what this November amendment means: that is the most extreme constitutional amendment that we will see in Ohio.’ 

He went on: ‘As a father of four kids believe that our country should be a place where there’s no abortion. From that personal conviction, I also understand the reality out there that a majority of Americans support having abortion legal to some degree.’ 

The candidate said he understands most Americans support abortion rights up until 14 weeks, but support drops off quickly in the third trimester. 

‘It comes down to is just educating voters of exactly what they’re voting for. And so I don’t see issue on failing as a harbinger of things to come for November,’ he added. 

Footage has captured the moment debris was pulled from the water after an army helicopter crashed with the search continuing for four missing aircrew onboard. 

The MRH-90 Taipan crashed into the ocean off Lindeman Island, near Hamilton Island in north Queensland, at about 10.30pm on Friday.

The wreckage of the Taipan was discovered south of Hamilton Island, near Dent Island, but no survivors have been found.

The crew were participating in Exercise Talisman Sabre – joint military training between Australia, the US and 11 other ally countries. 

The son of a distinguished NSW Police officer is among the four people who remain missing. 

Specialist divers are joining other rescue personnel on Sunday as the desperate search for the four missing air crew on board continues.

Parts of the fuselage were among the dozens of pieces of debris that were pulled from the water and loaded onto a barge before they were transported back to land. 

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said the crash was a ‘stark reminder’ there were no ‘easy or safe’ days for Australians serving their country. 

‘Today every Australian is thinking of the four families of the missing aircrew,’ he said.

‘On behalf of our nation, our thoughts and prayers are with the families, friends and colleagues of those who are missing.

‘Our thoughts are also with those that they serve alongside – friends, brothers and sisters in uniform who even now are aiding in the search effort. I’d also like to thank the support from other nations during this search effort’.

The crew are all reportedly from Sydney and based at the Holsworthy Barracks.

‘Sadly at this stage those personnel have yet to be found,’ Brigadier Damian Hill said.

‘It is the defence’s priority to look after those families, their members, their teammates and those that know them,’ said Mr Hill, who is the director of the Talisman Sabre exercise.

‘Our thoughts, and mine in particular, are with the missing servicemen, their teammates and their families, and especially the search and rescue teams.’

NSW premier Chris Minns added: ‘I can only imagine what they’re going through today. It’s just devastating.’ 

Two MRH-90 Taipans were flying in formation at about 11pm on Friday and when the crew of one realised something had gone wrong with the other, they immediately started a search operation.

The disaster happened during the Talisman Sabre military exercises, which includes more than 30,000 personnel, including from the US and several other countries.

The next of kin and the family of the four missing crew members were informed as soon as the search got underway.

Governor-General David Hurley said he had spent time with some of the army members on the exercise after the crash.

‘The impact of this terrible incident is being felt keenly. Each of the four missing ADF personnel made the decision to serve their nation – to serve us,’ he said.

‘We must never lose sight of, nor cease to be grateful for, the service and sacrifice of those in uniform … ‘Those that serve, their families and, especially, the loved ones of the four missing personnel are in our hearts.’

The Chief of Defence Angus Campbell spoke to reporters and offered his support to the families.

‘Defence exercises, which are so necessary for the readiness of our defence force, are serious. They carry risk,’ he said.

‘And as we desperately hope for better news during the course of this day, we are reminded about the gravity of the act which comes with wearing our nation’s uniform. This is indeed a terrible moment.’

The MRH-90 Taipan has a worrying history in Australia, with the crash on Friday far from being the helicopter’s first major incident.

Since the Howard Government bought the fleet of 47 helicopters in 2004 and 2006, they have been grounded several times and involved in multiple crashes. 

The most recent crash happened just four months ago during a night-time counter-terrorism training exercise on March 22.

The Taipan had ditched off the coast of Jervis Bay, on NSW’s Central Coast, at about 9pm after suffering engine failure – reportedly due to old software.

Australia’s Taipan fleet was grounded following the incident but was brought back into operation a little over a month later.

A Defence spokesperson at the time confirmed the helicopters would resume normal flying but with unspecified ‘risk mitigations’.

‘Defence has lifted the operational pause on MRH-90 Taipan flying operations,’ they told the ABC in April.

‘The MRH-90 Taipan fleet returned to normal operations on 6 April 2023, with risk mitigations in place (that) will have minimal impact on planned flying operations.’ 

Several industry insiders have blamed the ADF for not knowing how to maintain or operate the European-designed Taipans, rather than the helicopters themselves.

Chief of Army Lieutenant-General Simon Stuart last year told Senate the Taipans cost an astonishing $48,000 every flying hour. 

The first sign of trouble with the Taipans emerged just four years after Australia completed its fleet.

In 2010 a Taipan’s engine failed mid-flight near the Adelaide RAAF Edinburgh air base.

Incredibly, the crew was able to land the helicopter back at the base with just one engine but the incident resulted in the entire Taipan fleet being grounded. 

In 2014 the Australian National Audit Office revealed in a damning report the Taipan’s design and support system was ‘immature’ and had caused ‘significant issues’ to the ADF fleet.

It also slammed the high operational cost of the helicopters. 

The Taipan fleet was grounded again in 2019 after encountering rotor blade issues and a third time in 2020 after crews encountered problems with sliding cabin doors.  

That year half the fleet was shuttered.

In 2021 the Morrison Government began Australia’s move away from the Taipan fleet by agreeing to buy US-made Black Hawks.

The move was part of the AUKUS pact between Australia, the UK and the US announced that year.

The deal will see the three governments working more closely together on a range of defence matters, including production and procurement. 

The Albanese Government followed through on the deal following the 2022 election and agreed to pay $2.8billion for 40 Black Hawks. 

The Black Hawks, whose use in the US Military has been long standing, are manufactured by a branch of US weapons giant Lockheed Martin.

The purchase will bring an early end to the Taipan program which, prior to the 2022 Black Hawk deal, was due to end in 2037.

It is unclear whether the 47-strong Taipan fleet will again be grounded following Friday’s crash.

Saturday’s retrieval operation has been focussed in the middle of the Whitsundays passage between North and South Molle Islands, the Courier Mail reports.

Helicopters were seen carrying large pieces of debris from the site.

Navy fast boats and other vessels, including a boat with a large crane, are also involved in the search.

It’s understood the debris is being held on the warship, Brisbane.  

Defence Minister Richard Marles addressed reporters on Saturday morning and confirmed families had been notified of the incident.

‘We meet with a heavy heart,’ Mr Marles said.

‘Our hopes and our thoughts are with air crew and their families, with thoughts of the search and rescue crews as they go about their work right now.

‘These are early days and much more information is to be provided about this incident.

‘Defence exercises, which are so necessary for the readiness of our defence force, they carry risk.

‘As we hope for better news during the course of this day, we are aware of the gravity of the act that comes with wearing the uniform.’

This year’s Exercise Talisman Sabre is the 10th in the bilateral training activity between Australia and the US.

It was the largest ever, with more than 30,000 military personnel participating from 13 nations including Fiji, Indonesia, Japan, Republic of Korea, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, Tonga, France, United Kingdom, Canada and Germany.

The 14-day exercise, running until August 4, tests large scale logistics, multi-domain firepower demonstrations, land combat, amphibious landings and air operations. 

Exercise Talisman Sabre has been paused in light of the accident.

The chief of the Wagner mercenary group has lambasted Russia’s military leaders after Ukrainian armed forces managed to retake settlements on the outskirts of Bakhmut. 

Yevgeny Prigozhin said it was a ‘disgrace’ that Kyiv‘s troops were able to push back Russian lines and seize Berkhivka, a town in the northern suburbs of the embattled city.

Prigozhin’s Wagner group just last month managed to wrest Bakhmut out of Ukrainian hands after months of brutal fighting reminiscent of World War I trench warfare, with tens of thousands killed on both sides.

The mercenary figurehead hit out at Russia’s defence minister Sergei Shoigu and army chief Valery Gerasimov, taunting them and urging them to go to the frontlines and see the failures for themselves.

‘Now part of the settlement of [Berkhivka] has already been lost, the troops are slowly falling back. What a disgrace! 

‘Shoigu, Gerasimov, I urge you to come to the front, raise your pistols at your men to make them go forward. Come on, you can! 

‘And if you can’t, then you will die as heroes.’ 

Prigozhin’s latest tirade comes as his mercenaries captured a lieutenant colonel from Vladimir Putin‘s regular forces in the latest example of bitter infighting in Russian ranks. 

The captured colonel was seen hanging his head in a humiliating video posted by the Wagner group in which he confessed his ‘guilt’ and admitted to being drunk on duty after allegedly shooting at a Wagner vehicle.

This follows claims by the mercenaries that the regular Russian army targeted their ranks with mines, as a clip showed their sappers clearing the explosive devices from a road.

Wagner mercenaries have been fighting for Putin in Ukraine and are credited with seizing the embattled city of Bakhmut from Ukrainian armed forces after months of bloody warfare.

But their success has seemingly angered regular Russian army commanders.

Wagner chief Prigozhin has launched several verbal tirades at Putin’s military leaders. He has accused them of ordering their troops to retreat from their positions and leaving Wagner fighters unprotected on the frontlines.

The captured soldier identified himself as Roman Venevitin, commander of Russia’s 72nd Brigade.

Venevitin, who appeared to have a broken or wounded nose, confessed that he ‘opened fire on a Wagner PMC [private military company] vehicle while intoxicated from alcohol’.

He did so due to ‘personal animosity’, he claimed. 

The shooting damaged a Ural supply truck but did not wound any Wagner soldiers, according to the private army.

Venevitin also confessed to leading a group of ten to 12 Russian army soldiers who ‘disarmed’ a Wagner rapid response group.

‘Does personal animosity have any place at all in war?’ an angry Wagner commander asked Venevitin.

‘No,’ the captured colonel replied sheepishly.

Wagner has a reputation for battering its own ‘traitors’ to death with a sledgehammer – but there is no suggestion the Russian colonel will face the same treatment.

A summary execution of a high-ranking Russian commander by Wagner forces would cause unprecedented chaos in Moscow’s ranks. 

The capture of Venevitin came hours after Wagner mercenaries were forced to clear a road of mines which they claim had been laid by the regular army corps.

Prigozhin said hundreds of mines had been laid by the regular army to snare Wagner forces when they pulled out of Bakhmut after securing a rare victory for Putin in the war.

‘We discovered about a dozen places where various explosive devices were placed, ranging from hundreds of anti-tank mines to tons of [charges] from Zmey Gorynych self-propelled missiles,’ Prigozhin said.

‘Those who planted these charges were representatives of the ministry of defence… These [explosive] charges did not need to be stacked in order to hold back the enemy since it is in the rear area.

‘It can be assumed that they wanted to meet the advancing units of the Wagner PMC [Private Military Company] with these charges, even though we do not walk in columns.’

It highlights the rift inside the Kremlin forces fighting Ukraine, and some analysts see civil war as a possibility in Russia if Putin loses the war.

Despite huge losses, and a ban on recruiting prisoners from Russia’s penal colonies, Prigozhin is still thought to have up to 60,000 men at his disposal.

Wagner is one of several private armies in Russia. Chechen warlord leader Ramzan Kadyrov controls a heavily armed group of his own, and Russian energy giant Gazprom has set up its own private military company. 

Army chic! Crown Princess Mary of Denmark dons her military uniform as she participates in Home Guard parade in Copenhagen

By Lydia Hawken For Mailonline

Published: 18:11 EDT, 4 May 2023 | Updated: 06:30 EDT, 5 May 2023