Politix

12:26 PM PT -- Authorities have identified the man who set himself on fire as Maxwell Azzarello -- and they say he arrived in New York at some point over the past week. They say he walked into the park, threw pamphlets onto the ground and then doused himself in some kind of substance.

He then lit himself on fire, and is now at a burn unit in critical condition. Fire officials say his family was unaware he was even in New York -- apparently, the guy came from Florida.

A man set himself on fire in front of the courthouse where former President Donald Trump's hush money criminal trial is currently underway ... and the footage is shocking.

Siggy Flicker's stepson has been arrested -- now facing charges for his alleged role in the Jan. 6 Capitol riot after authorities say his stepmom posted pics of him in the building.

Tyler Campanella -- the former 'Real Housewives' star's stepson -- was taken into custody in New York City Wednesday and booked on five misdemeanor charges, according to NBC News.

The feds claim Campanella's stepmom posted pictures of him from inside the Capitol Building alongside the caption, "I love patriots so much. Stay safe Tyler. We love you.”

Donald Trump's first criminal trial is getting underway, and on the first day of court proceedings -- he was reportedly dozing off ... now, a new nickname is among us.

The ex-Prez showed up in court Monday in NYC, where his hush-money case kicked off -- the first of his three criminal trials -- and where Donald had to sit through a day full of lawyers talking about the ins and outs of how this thing is gonna go.

Of course, they have to start with jury selection ... and as the attorneys were going back and forth, NYT reporter Maggie Haberman went on CNN to claim Trump appeared to be sleeping.

Rob Schneider is calling BS on the notion he bombed in front of a bunch of Republican lawmakers -- calling the report a hit piece ... and even labeling it as "woke" propaganda.

Politico put out a story this week touching on an event Rob headlined late last year for a bunch of prominent figures in the GOP here in L.A. -- where a ton of senators and other high-level Republicans were in attendance ... who apparently hated his set.

The report says Rob was supposed to do a 30-minute show -- but organizers cut him off 10 minutes in because his jokes were too raunchy and off-color ... with one senator, Cindy Hyde-Smith, reportedly walking out and calling his material "gross and vulgar."

Iran has launched an attack on Israel, the White House says in a statement ... and, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says the country's prepared.

In a statement from the National Security Council spokesperson, the White House explains Iran's begun an airborne assault on Israel and President Biden's receiving regular updates.

The statement says the attack's expected to play out over several hours, and it reaffirms the Biden administration's support for Israel's security.

Everyone seems to be reacting to the O.J. Simpson death news -- and the White House was no exception ... but their response to his passing is raising eyebrows, at least to some.

Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre addressed O.J.'s passing Thursday during a press briefing -- but only when she was asked by a reporter ... at which point KJP directly acknowledged it by saying the administration was thinking of the family ... his brood, specifically.

She says, "Our thoughts are with his family during this difficult time. Obviously with his family and loved ones. And I say this, I know that they have asked for some privacy -- and so we're going to respect that."

Pasen a ver esta reunión de ricos y famosos en la Casa Blanca... Lauren Sanchez y Jeff Bezos habrán dicho esto lo tenemos bajo control cuando llegaron a la cena del miércoles.

La prometida del mandamás de Amazon lució un vestido rojo de estilo corsé, con un escote pronunciado, cuando llegó a 1600 de Pennsylvania Avenue para el evento de más de 200 invitados.

Echa un vistazo a esta lista de asistentes (solo parcial). Tenemos a Robert De Niro y Tiffany Chen, Bill y Hillary Clinton, Kamala Harris y Doug Emhoff, el CEO de Apple Tim Cook, el CEO de JP Morgan Chase Jamie Dimon y la secretaria del Tesoro Janet Yellen, Kristi Yamaguchi y Antony Blinken.

Turning heads at a gathering of the rich and powerful at the White House --- Lauren Sanchez and Jeff Bezos basically said, we got this ... as they arrived for Wednesday night's glitzy state dinner.

The Amazon honcho's fiancée was decked out in a fiery red, corset-style gown -- with a plunging neckline, of course -- as they arrived at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue for the 200-plus guest event.

Check out this partial list of attendees ... Robert De Niro and Tiffany Chen, Bill and Hillary Clinton, Kamala Harris and Doug Emhoff, Apple CEO Tim Cook, JP Morgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon and Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, Kristi Yamaguchi and Antony Blinken.

Donald Trump está tratando de cortejar a los votantes de Atlanta con unos buenos pollos y helado, y fue a uno de los lugares más famosos para hacerlo, ordenando una tonelada de comida chatarra para todos.

El ex-Prez fue a un Chick-fil-A en Atlanta el miércoles y se detuvo a conversar con algunos trabajadores detrás del mostrador y hacer bromas y fotos para la prensa del lugar.

En términos de comida, Trump compró suficientes batidos y pollos para alimentar a más de 2 de docenas de personas y se aseguró de hacerles saber que estaba cubriendo la cuenta.

Donald Trump's trying to woo voters in Atlanta with poultry and ice cream -- and he went to one of the most famous chicken joints to do it ... ordering a crap ton of grub for everyone.

The ex-Prez went to a Chick-fil-A in the ATL Wednesday, where his campaign rages on ... and where he popped into the restaurant to chop it up with some of the workers behind the counter ... cracking jokes with them and schmoozing as photogs and press stood around.

In terms of food, DT bought enough milkshakes and chickens to feed upwards of a couple dozen people -- and he made sure to let 'em know he was covering the tab.

Marjorie Taylor Greene's looking to the heavens for an omen ... and, it seems she's finding them in every natural phenomenon.

The Georgia congresswomen tweeted out a warning to her fellow Americans Friday after an earthquake rocked the Northeast -- specifically New Jersey and New York. And let's not forget what happened in Taiwan ... of course, a solar eclipse is happening Monday too.

In her tweet, MTG says God's sending signals to the United States demanding repentance ... and claiming both the earthquake and next week's solar eclipse are signs from above.

Colorado Rep. Lauren Boebert reportedly got herself into hot water at a pre-Christmas Republican event in NYC, getting so drunk that she became unruly to the point where she was ordered to stop taking selfies with former President Donald Trump.

Boebert's embarrassing episode took place at the New York Young Republican Club's annual gala on December 9, 2023, according to CNN, citing attendees who witnessed the incident.

Waitstaff first told Boebert they wouldn't serve her any more alcohol after they noticed she was intoxicated inside Cipriani Wall Street, CNN said. A source told the network one waiter was spotted walking up to Boebert and informing her she had been "overserved."

Alex Jones is living it up in Hawaii, chillin' by the pool and downing drinks ... even though his massive debt to the families of Sandy Hook victims remains unpaid.

Eyewitnesses on the island of Kaui tell TMZ ... the controversial podcaster was at a ritzy resort earlier this week with his wife Erika, and they didn't appear to have any other family or friends hanging with them.

Jones was dressed pretty relaxed for his tropical vacay ... sticking to t-shirts and shorts while he hung around the hotel pool and bar area.

Louisiana Governor Jeff Landry is still fuming over college basketball teams being MIA for the national anthem ... doubling down on his belief athletes should either attend the pregame ceremony -- or don't play at all.

Landry called for drastic change after LSU remained in the locker room prior to Monday's Elite Eight matchup against Iowa ... saying college boards should implement new policies that would yank players' scholarships if they are not present for the "Star-Spangled Banner."

Despite LSU coach Kim Mulkey and the entire Tigers athletic department claiming it was standard pregame procedure and it wasn't an act of protest, Landry appeared on Fox News on Wednesday to further explain his stance.

Landry -- an LSU fan -- claimed he supports the players and Mulkey and wasn't calling them out specifically ... but he thinks college athletics has a real "problem" on its hands.

Landry wants universities in Louisiana to put guidelines in place to ensure teams respect the anthem as a sign of unity ... and made it clear he wants players to stand.

"That's what the universities should put in place," Landry said. "They should [stand]. Everybody should respect the flag. If you don't like it, well guess what -- you don't have to play the sport."

Donald Trump can keep his cherished properties instead of having them seized by New York's Attorney General -- at least for now – after he posted a whopping $175 million bond!

As you know ... the former prez was saddled with a $454 million bond in his civil fraud case brought by AG Letitia James, but he appealed and got the amount slashed to $175 mil.

On Tuesday, DT took to his Truth Social platform to gloat right after paying the lesser, but still staggering bond amount. He also blasted James and the case judge, calling them corrupt and the whole situation election interference. No shocker there.

Five aid workers from Chef José Andrés' World Central Kitchen were killed in Gaza during an alleged Israeli airstrike Monday ... this according to multiple reports.

The celebrity chef's humanitarian staffers -- who worked for his nonprofit, World Central Kitchen, which is stationed in Gaza rendering food and aid to Palestinians -- died after their vehicle was struck in the war-torn region.

World Central Kitchen did not identify the workers who were lost in the airstrike, but did claim the staffers died "while working to support our humanitarian food delivery efforts in Gaza." WCK also alleged their workers were taken out during an Israeli Defense Forces attack.