Right Wing Granny

News behind the news. This picture is me (white spot) standing on the bridge connecting European and North American tectonic plates. It is located in the Reykjanes area of Iceland. By-the-way, this is a color picture.

Right Wing Granny

Monthly Archives: July 2026

Heads, I Win; Tails, You Lose

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Heads, I win; tails, you lose is the game the Democrats are currently playing with the voters in the State of Maine.

On July 9th, Yahoo News posted a CBS News article that reported:

Democrats are facing a rapidly closing window to replace Maine Senate candidate Graham Platner, who dropped out of the race Wednesday following a sexual assault allegation.

…The party will now have less than three weeks to pick a new candidate to go up against Collins. The exact process is not clear, but state Democratic officials have promised “transparency” — and say Platner himself will not be involved.

…State law does not delineate how the party should choose a replacement. The Maine Democratic Party announced Wednesday it would hold a nominating convention to select a nominee. It said it would announce the timeline, details on the process, how to participate and requirements for candidates “soon.”

Graham Platner was elected by a large majority in the Democrat primary in Maine (which used ranked choice voting). The Democrats ran a test and gambled to see how much Democrat voters would put up with and still support a candidate. The Nazi tattoo did not drive the voters away–voters were aware of it before the primary. The initial charges of sexual misconduct did not cause Platner to withdraw. It was only the charge of rape by a Democrat that has caused him to suspend his campaign.

So what did we learn? The ‘me, too’ movement and the statement ‘believe all women’ only apply when the charges are against a Republican or made by a Democrat supporter. If a political party puts up a questionable candidate who wins a primary, but is forced to withdraw, they can choose the replacement candidate–not the voters. In Maine, the candidate will be determined by the people selected to attend the nominating convention. The people attending that convention may or may not be representative of the voters in Maine. When President Biden withdrew from the 2024 presidential race, were the voters represented in the choice of his replacement? There seems to be a pattern here.

A Very Strategic Strike

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On July 9th, The Times of Israel reported:

Overnight US strikes on Iran hit the Aq Taqeh Khan railway bridge in northern Iran’s Golestan province, Fars news agency says, a trade link to Tehran’s strategic partners China and Russia.

Fars says the route that goes on to pass through Turkmenistan and Kazakhstan has been an important land link to China that gained further relevance during this year’s blockade of Iran’s Gulf ports by the US.

It adds that the route has also been used by Russia for cargo shipments to Iran since late 2025.

A friend on X posted:

This wasn’t just a random target; it was the bypass valve for the “North-South” transport corridor, which Tehran has been desperately relying on to move goods while its maritime ports remain under U.S. blockade. By vaporizing this rail link, Washington has signaled that it’s not just squeezing Iran’s navy in the Strait of Hormuz—it’s systematically strangling the regime’s entire land-based logistical network. ​

This strike is a masterclass in American strategic dominance. For months, the regime in Tehran has tried to use land routes through Turkmenistan and Kazakhstan to circumvent the U.S. naval pressure, hoping to keep its economy on life support despite the blockade.

Fars News Agency is Iran says that the bridge will be repaired quickly. If it is repaired quickly, we will have to bomb it again–it is Iran’s route around the blockade.

Everyone Eventually Runs Out Of Patience

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On Wednesday, Zero Hedge posted an update on what is happening in Iran and the Strait of Hormuz.

The article reports:

  • US strikes on Iran announced, as ‘heavy costs’ for earlier targeting of multiple commercial vessels
  • Oil rises as Treasury revokes June 21 Iran oil waiver
  • Hormuz Threat Level Raised To “Severe” 
  • Three maritime incidents reported on Hormuz in last 24 hours 
  • Another unidentified vessel hit by a Drone
  • IRGC forces hit a Saudi Tanker 
  • IRGC forces hit a Qatari LNG tanker

These are the actions of a cornered animal fighting for its life.

The article concludes with a summary of the impact of the current situation:

Diplomatic Developments

• Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi warned on Tuesday that negotiations on a final deal will not commence if threats continue, referencing a memorandum of understanding with the US

• Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian will travel to Iraq on Tuesday to attend funeral processions for former Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, scheduled for Wednesday in Najaf and Karbala

Market Impact

• European natural gas prices surged as much as 6% on Tuesday, the most in a month, following the attacks on ships in the Strait of Hormuz

• Oil prices climbed on Tuesday, with Brent trading near $73 a barrel, as the attacks highlighted continued risks to vessels in the critical waterway

• Gold fell for a second day on Tuesday, dropping as much as 1.2% to below $4,120 an ounce, as the Hormuz attacks rekindled inflation concerns

• France lowered its 2026 GDP growth forecast to 0.7% from 0.9%, citing the Middle East conflict as a factor holding back output

Oil Trade Developments

• India’s state-run refiners are in talks with traders marketing Iranian crude and preparing to buy barrels if the US extends waivers beyond August or eases restrictions

• Two supertankers hauling Saudi crude are heading to the US for the first time since February, following the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz

• Russia’s Urals crude price averaged $41.66 a barrel at western ports in early July, falling to pre-Iran war levels and less than half the level during the height of oil market turmoil in April

There are a lot of moving parts here.

For instance, according to Artificial Intelligence (AI):

To understand the price of oil needed to sustain the Russian economy today, consider the following factors:

    1. Budget Breakeven: The Russian government requires oil prices to be around $40-$50 per barrel to balance its budget.
    2. Economic Stability: Prices above $60 per barrel are generally needed for economic stability and growth.
    3. Inflation Control: Higher oil prices help manage inflation and support the ruble’s value.
    4. Social Spending: Sustaining social programs and pensions often requires oil prices to exceed $70 per barrel.
    5. Global Market Influence: Fluctuations in global oil demand and geopolitical tensions can impact the necessary price for sustainability.
    6. Long-term Investments: To fund future projects and infrastructure, prices above $80 per barrel are preferable.

Russia is an ally of Iran. Russia needs high energy prices to sustain its economy. Did Russia play a role in encouraging the attacks in the Strait of Hormuz?

It’s Time To Stop Being Patient

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On Tuesday, Yahoo News posted a Reuters post about recent attacks on shipping in the Strait of Hormuz. I don’t think Iran is behaving very well, and I think it’s time for Iran to be held accountable for its bad behavior.

The article reports:

Three tankers were hit in the Strait of Hormuz on Tuesday, including an LNG carrier at risk of explosion, as huge crowds mourned Iran’s slain Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei in the holy city of Qom.

Qatar blamed Iran for the attack on a huge Qatari liquefied natural gas tanker, the Al Rekayyat, which reported being struck overnight by a drone that caused a ‌fire in its engine room.

The crew were safe and being evacuated, but maritime security sources told Reuters the fire could put the ship at risk of explosion.

A Saudi-flagged crude oil tanker, believed to be the ‌supertanker Wedyan, was also damaged off Oman, maritime security sources said. The cause was not immediately clear.

The article concludes:

In a CNN interview, Netanyahu said it was too early ‌to say how negotiations with Tehran will play out, but hinted at a continuing divergence ​with the White House over whether diplomacy can ultimately neutralize Iran’s ​nuclear program.

“The President believes that he can stop Iran’s nuclear program,” Netanyahu told CNN, adding that he has his doubts.

Nevertheless, Trump should be “given the chance” to achieve that goal, Netanyahu added, insisting the two governments were aligned on Iran strategy. “On the big things we see eye to eye, and occasionally we don’t, but we’re true allies,” he said.

Oil prices, which have returned to around the prewar level since last month’s interim deal, rose ​more than 2% on Tuesday following the incidents in the waterway.

In launching the war ‌four months ago, Trump said his aims were to destroy Iran’s nuclear and missile programmes, end its ability to threaten its neighbours and create conditions for Iranians to topple their leaders.

None of those goals ​has been met, although Washington says a permanent deal will halt what it says is an Iranian programme that could make a nuclear bomb, which Iran says it never sought.

At some point you have to stop negotiating with the neighborhood bully and simply punch him in the face!

UPDATE: I think President Trump has run out of patience.

Ignoring The Perspective Of The Founding Fathers

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On Sunday, Jonathan Turley posted an article about the Founding Fathers and how they would have responded to the idea of a wealth tax.

The article states:

Below is my column in the Wall Street Journal on the bizarre claim of Gov. Gavin Newsom and others that the Framers would have supported wealth taxes, including the proposed Billionaire’s Tax. It is a claim that seeks to mask the economically unwise with the historically unfounded. The Framers sought to protect property from legislative redistributive impulses. James Madison wrote that the bicameral system, and particularly the Senate, “ought to be so constituted as to protect the minority of the opulent against the majority.” That does not sound like an ally of Bernie Sanders and Ro Khanna.

…Was James Madison the Zohran Mamdani of his time? Gavin Newsom appears to think so. In joining the growing number of Democratic leaders supporting a wealth tax, the California governor claimed that the U.S. Constitution and our Founders were all about wealth distribution: “The system America’s founders built,” he said, “was designed to prevent the concentration of power in a few hands, but we have allowed that concentration to happen anyway, slowly, in plain sight, over decades.”

The only problem with this argument is that it is utterly and demonstrably false. The Madisonian democracy is designed to avoid the concentration of political power, not the concentration of wealth.

The article notes:

The Constitution not only protects property, but was later amended to allow for income taxes rather than wealth taxes. Far from supporting a wealth tax, the constitutional system referenced by Mr. Newsom makes a federal wealth tax unconstitutional.

The article concludes:

Nevertheless, wealth taxes make for great politics. What is concerning is that, in addition to a wealth tax, Democratic leaders like Ms. Warren are pledging to pack the Supreme Court if they retake power. A packed court with an insistent liberal majority would let the Democrats push through measures that would otherwise be declared unconstitutional, including a wealth tax.

Congress could then gradually lower the level of wealth needed to trigger the tax, opening up the homes and estates of citizens as an untapped reservoir of money for the taking.

“You’re next” could then apply not just to office holders but to property owners in a push to redistribute wealth.

That strategy may well unfold in coming years, but it will be the realization of a Mamdanian, not a Madisonian, system.

One of the unintended consequences of a wealth tax is that it interferes with the desire to become wealthy. Why acquire wealth of the government is going to take it from you? As stated in the article, a wealth tax will eventually apply to the non-wealthy and wipe out the middle class. The middle class is the backbone of a free republic.

Forgetting The Lessons Of Recent History

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On Monday, Hot Air posted an article about an idea put forth by Senator Chris Murphy (D-CT). Senator Murphy wants to raise the federal minimum wage to $25 over twelve years. Artificially raising the minimum wage is not a new idea–it has been tried multiple times and failed each time.

The article quotes the Competitive Enterprise Institute website:

Last week, Sen. Chris Murphy (D-CT) introduced the Senate version of the Living Wage for All Act, which raises the federal minimum wage from $7.25 to $25 per hour — a 245 percent increase — over 12 years. It begins by increasing the minimum wage 66 percent to $12 an hour and then establishes separate schedules for large and smaller employers, with the former being required to raise hourly pay to $25 in only 5 years.

The article also quotes The Washington Post:

Who’s “we”? Businesses have to cover the cost of higher wages somehow — hiking prices, shrinking hours, laying off workers or hiring fewer are all on the table. A higher minimum wage also increases the incentive for automation.

Some states already know the effects of raising the minimum wage beyond what the market can bear. California set a $20 wage for fast-food employees in 2024. That eliminated 18,000 jobs within a year, according to an analysis in the National Bureau of Economic Research.

The article quotes a UC Santa Cruz paper:

On Wednesday, University of California – Santa Cruz released a real world appraisal of how the $20 mandate has affected owners and employees of fast food franchises. Stephen Owen, an economics lecturer, and a team of undergraduate helpers visited and studied more than 100 outlets in Santa Cruz and the Central Valley and came away with data that seem to validate industry predictions of the effects…

“Employees have been impacted with fewer job opportunities, reduced employee hours, elimination of overtime, and new eligibility challenges for healthcare and other benefits. Automation, such as order kiosks, mobile apps, Artificial Intelligence drive-through ordering systems, as well as other innovative assembly technologies, are being tested and implemented with the goal to reduce labor requirements.”

When wages are artificially increased, prices go up, and inflation increases. Senator Murphy needs to study economics!

Quietly Leaving New York City As The Socialist Take Over

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On Tuesday, The Dallas Express posted an article about the Texas Stock Exchange (TXSE).

The article reports:

The Texas Stock Exchange (TXSE) began production, quoting, and trading operations on Monday, kicking off a phased rollout as a new national securities exchange based in Dallas.

The launch marks a significant milestone for the Dallas-headquartered startup, which aims to challenge the longstanding dominance of the New York Stock Exchange and NASDAQ. TXSE started with limited test symbols for approved members, with broader symbol availability planned throughout July.

The exchange will operate under the market center identifier “F.”

Trading hours include a pre-market session from 8:00 a.m. to 9:30 a.m., regular market hours from 9:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m., and a post-market session from 4:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m.

TXSE officials described the start of trading as a key step in proving the exchange’s viability. “With the start of full production trading, any last notions that TXSE is theoretical are instantly swept away,” a TXSE official stated.

Let’s look at some of the possible reasons that the Texas Stock Exchange might be opening. The Texas Constitution and Texas statutes prohibit levying a state personal income tax. Texas does not have a traditional corporate income tax–it imposes a franchise tax on businesses. That franchise tax rate is generally 1 percent for most businesses. The general corporate tax rate in New York City is 8.85 percent. Corporations with gross receipts over $1 million are subject to the General Corporation Tax.

The article concludes:

Gabriela von zur Muehlen, senior vice president and chief policy officer at the Texas Association of Business, added, “A homegrown national exchange means more jobs, more investment, and more growth opportunities for businesses and communities across the Lone Star State.”

The launch follows extensive preparation, including federal approvals and industry testing. TXSE is entirely electronic but headquartered in Dallas. Corporate listings are anticipated later in 2026.

Market participants were advised to complete connectivity and testing ahead of the launch. Additional rollout details are available on the TXSE website.

The development aligns with Dallas’ continued growth as a financial center, attracting major institutions and elevating the region’s profile in national markets.

Businesses are in business to make money. They will gravitate to places where it is the least expensive to do business.

The Extra Cost Of Illegal Immigration

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On Sunday (updated Monday), Just the News posted an article about a paper written by the Federal Reserve Bank in Dallas about the impact of illegal immigration on employment and housing costs.

The article reports:

A new Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas working paper estimates the record surge in illegal immigration during the Biden administration boosted employment while causing 30% of home price increases and 20% of rent increases.

The paper combined immigration court records with government administrative data to create the first ever calculation of how a wave of 7 million illegal immigrants from 2021 through 2024 affected local labor and housing markets.

“From early 2021 to early 2024, the U.S. experienced an unprecedented boom in unauthorized immigration, followed by a rapid slowdown beginning in mid-2024. We provide the first systematic empirical assessment of the labor- and housing-market effects of this episode,” the working paper said.

“The total weighted-mean increases in house prices and rents over this period were 22.4% and 22.6%, respectively. Putting these together, for the average MSA, UIWF can explain approximately 30% of the total increase in house prices and 20% of the total increase in rents,” it added.

You can read the full paper here. 

Their conclusions make sense–it’s an illustration of the law of supply and demand. As more people come into the country, the demand for housing increases faster than the supply, and the cost of housing increases.

Working To Bring Down The Cost Of Energy For Americans

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On Sunday, The Independent Journal Review (IJR) posted an article about the changes the Trump administration is making to the offshore wind projects started by President Biden.

The article reports:

The Trump administration’s systematic dismantling of Joe Biden’s offshore wind dreams continued on Monday.

The Department of Interior (DOI) announced an agreement with Duke Energy in which the company agrees to cancel its plans for a huge wind project offshore North Carolina — adjacent to the Carolina Long Bay area — in exchange for a payment of $129 million.

Despite claims from critics that the payment amounts to the administration bribing Duke to cancel its project, the truth is that the funds represent a partial reimbursement of the company’s lease costs consistent with federal statutes and regulations. The good news for North Carolina is the way Duke plans to reinvest the funds.

“This settlement allows Duke Energy to refocus $129 million in ways that directly benefit our customers and communities in the Carolinas,” said Kodwo Ghartey-Tagoe, executive vice president and chief executive officer of Duke Energy Carolinas. “Under the agreement, Duke Energy will reinvest nearly $129 million in additional generating capacity, which may include advancing new nuclear and natural gas generation, and grid enhancements to strengthen reliability, support continued growth in the Carolinas and keep costs as low as possible.”

So, rather than saddling ratepayers with higher bills which invariably result from subsidy deals between state governments and offshore wind farms, Duke plans to target its funds to new, 24/7 baseload capacity. Those hardest hit will be the craven public officials who had hoped to signal their green virtues related to the wind fiasco.

The article notes:

The settlement with Duke Energy is the latest in a series of similar deals between the Interior Department and offshore developers. Since early 2026, the DOI has executed multiple similar deals to unwind early-stage offshore wind leases, redirecting capital toward reliable energy sources as part of the Energy Dominance agenda. These deals provide partial reimbursements for lease payments while encouraging companies to invest in natural gas, nuclear, oil, LNG, or geothermal projects.

Green energy has never been about the environment. In 2010 I posted an article about the Chicago Climate Exchange (CCX) running out of money after the Democrats in Congress could not pass their cap and trade legislation. A number of high-profile Democrats were the ones who lost money when the CCX folded.

Fixing A Mistake

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I am not a soccer fan, but I have watched some of the World Cup and marveled at the athletic ability of the players. Soccer seems to have the attention of the world, and it has been fun to watch the European fans and their adventures in America.

On Sunday, Breitbart posted an article about the reversal of a red flag card that was given to a member of the United States soccer team.

The article reports:

In a shocking reversal with mammoth implications for the U.S. Men’s National Team’s (USMNT) chances of advancing to the quarterfinals of the 2026 World Cup, FIFA has rescinded the red card given this week to star U.S. striker Folarin Balogun, making him eligible to play against Monday night in the U.S. men’s Round of 16 game against Belgium.

Balogun, who plays his club ball for Arsenal in the English Premier League, scored the game-winning goal for the USMNT against Bosnia and Herzegovina, but was shown a red card later in the match on a highly controversial play in which he inadvertently stepped on the ankle of a Bosnia and Herzegovina player.

The referee, Brazilian Rafael Claus, conducted a VAR review of the play, which did not even draw a yellow card during live action. While the announcers debated whether the play was even serious enough to review at all, Claus emerged from the VAR viewing area after a lengthy review and shocked the thousands in attendance and better than 30 million watching from home, by showing Balogun a straight red card.

Under FIFA rules, a player shown a red card is not only disqualified from the remainder of the current match but is also ineligible for the next game.

The article includes a video of the play involved. It appears to be simply a collision between two intense players trying to get the ball. Balogun is an important player for the United States team, and I am glad that the officials reviewed the film and changed their minds.

How A Rent Freeze Impacts The Availability Of Apartments

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On Sunday, The Gateway Pundit posted an article about the impact the decision of the Rent Guidelines Board (RGB) in New York City to set the annual rent adjustment for rent-stabilized apartments at 0% for both one-year and two-year lease renewals commencing October 1, 2026, through September 30, 2027.

The article reports:

Six of the nine board members were appointed by Mamdani before the vote. Owner representative Christina Smyth resigned hours before the final vote, calling the process predetermined. The lone dissent came from Arpit Gupta, a holdover appointee from former Mayor Eric Adams.

So what will be the impact?

The article explains:

A rent freeze does not simply cap future increases. It widens the gap between what a rent-stabilized unit can legally charge and what it could command on the open market.

As that gap grows, a landlord’s financial incentive shifts away from continuing to rent the unit and toward selling it to an owner-occupant, converting it to a condominium, combining units, or leaving it vacant rather than re-renting it at below-market rates. Each of these outcomes effectively removes the apartment from the rental market, even though the building itself remains.

A tenant paying far below market rent has little financial incentive to leave, so a unit can stop circulating in the rental market while remaining continuously occupied. This “lock-in” effect is among the most consistently documented findings in rent control research.

Stanford economist Rebecca Diamond, with Tim McQuade and Franklin Qian, studied San Francisco’s 1994 rent control expansion using a natural experiment involving near-identical buildings split by a construction-date cutoff. They found that landlords reduced the rental housing supply by 15%, chiefly by selling units to owner-occupants and redeveloping buildings. The same study found that rent control increased renters’ likelihood of staying at the same address by nearly 20%, reduced citywide renter mobility by 20%, and drove a 5.1% citywide rent increase as the lost supply pushed up market rents. A companion paper found the supply reduction was greater among corporate landlords, which have greater access to capital and can more easily exit the rental market.

The free market is always the best way to provide any product to consumers. Landlords do not own buildings just to own buildings–their aim is to make a profit. When the free market determines the cost of something, eventually the cost settles to a point where both the consumer and the seller are rewarded.

I Thought Planned Parenthood Was Defunded

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On Thursday, The Daily Wire posted an article about a provision in the Big Beautiful Bill that many Americans were unaware of.

The article reports:

Last summer, Congress included a one-year “defund” provision in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act. The law blocked Medicaid payments to certain abortion organizations for “the 1-year period beginning on the date of the enactment” of the law, July 4, 2025. Simply put,  Planned Parenthood and similar organizations were cut off from federal Medicaid reimbursement for one year. That year is coming to an end.

Some Republican lawmakers apparently think this is a difficult political question. It is not.

The whispered argument in Washington, D.C., is familiar: It is the summer of an election year. Do we really want ads saying, “Congressman X defunded Planned Parenthood”? Won’t Democrats accuse Republicans of taking away women’s health care? Won’t Planned Parenthood spend millions telling voters Republicans are extremists?

Of course they will. That is the point. The attack ads are coming either way.

Why were we funding Planned Parenthood to begin with? Might it have something to do with the donations their Political Action Committees make to Congressional candidates?

The article concludes:

For pro-life voters, defunding Planned Parenthood is not the ceiling. It is the floor. It is the least a Republican Congress can do. Many of these voters have accepted that change is hard and comes slowly. They have accepted imperfect bills, narrow margins, Senate rules, court fights, and half measures dressed up as strategy. But asking them to accept nearly a billion taxpayer dollars flowing back to the abortion industry, after Republicans had already stopped it for a year, is a different thing.

Republicans should not fund their opposition.

The ads are coming. The accusations are coming. The headlines are coming. Let’s at least reap the reward while bearing the cost.

Defund Planned Parenthood and defend that defunding without flinching. Better to be attacked for taking the hill than mocked by your own voters for abandoning it.

It’s time Republicans started acting like Republicans.

This Is How The Story Always Goes

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On Friday, Zero Hedge posted an article about a recent statement by Representative Ro Khanna (D-CA).

The article reports:

Rep. Ro Khanna (D-CA) – fresh off endorsing California’s November ballot measure to seize 5% of billionaire wealth – published a Substack essay Wednesday titled, no really, “Why I Support a Billionaire Wealth Tax.”

He makes it roughly a dozen paragraphs before explaining that it isn’t one.

“The tax should not stop at billionaires, it must reach centimillionaires,” Khanna writes, before spelling out exactly what that means: every fortune of $50 million and up, hit with a 2% federal levy on wealth above that line – every year, forever, on top of everything else you already pay. The vehicle is Elizabeth Warren’s Ultra-Millionaire Tax Act, which Khanna notes he has cosponsored every single year it’s been introduced.

And before anyone reaches for the estate planner: Khanna wants the levy to pierce irrevocable trusts, with the tax billed to the grantor who set them up – because parking a fortune in a trust, in his telling, shouldn’t take it off the government’s books.

Former Microsoft executive Steven Sinofsky summed up the reveal in eight words: “Just like that, no longer a billionaires tax.”

The article provides some insight into the recent history of wealth taxes:

The measure headed to California voters in November is a one-time 5% tax on the state’s roughly 250 billionaires. Newsom, opposing it, countered on June 26 with a national “billionaires’ tax” – which, in its original form, applied to anyone worth $100 million or more, language that was quietly scrubbed after multiple outlets quoted it as we reported. Six days later, Khanna planted the flag at $50 million.

None of this is exactly new, of course. The Warren bill has carried the $50 million line since she rolled it out in 2019, and Biden’s 2022 “Billionaire Minimum Income Tax” kicked in at $100 million households. The branding always says billionaire, but the fine print ios a slippery slope.

Then there’s inflation… The bill’s $50 million threshold is a flat statutory number that hasn’t moved since 2019 – meaning inflation has already quietly cut the real threshold by more than a fifth. The creep shows up in the sponsors’ own math: when the bill debuted, backers said it touched the top 0.05% of American households; the 2026 reintroduction, per the same Saez-Zucman analysis the sponsors tout, now reaches 260,000 households – the top 0.15%. Same words, triple the coverage, five years. Asset inflation does the broadening automatically. Congress just has to sit still.

When the Income Tax began in 1913, it was only supposed to apply to the top 1 or 2 percent of the wealthiest Americans. We see how that worked out.

Where Some Of Our Tax Money Has Gone

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On Saturday, Townhall posted an article about a recent federal court case in Central Islip, New York.

The article reports:

Two people were indicted earlier this week in federal court in Central Islip on charges of committing healthcare fraud and conspiracy to defraud the U.S. 

Saad Aziz, 52, of New York, and Zabed Chowdhury, aka “Jared,” 49, of Lake Ronkonkoma, New York, were charged with conspiracy to commit healthcare fraud, health care fraud, conspiracy to defraud the United States and pay healthcare kickbacks, paying health care kickbacks, and money laundering conspiracy.  

The defendants allegedly offered and paid healthcare kickbacks and submitted fraudulent claims to Medicaid for ambulette services to medical appointments that were not performed, or the costs were artificially inflated.  

The defendants were previously charged by complaint and will be arraigned at a later date.

The article notes:

The defendants also systematically inflated their Medicaid reimbursements.  Although numerous addiction treatment centers on Long Island were available to beneficiaries, the defendants directed beneficiaries to request transportation to addiction treatment centers in New York City and to provide false pickup or drop-off addresses so they could bill Medicaid for longer, more expensive trips.  Through this scheme, the defendants submitted more than $18 million in claims for rides exceeding 75 miles and, overall, fraudulently billed Medicaid more than $35 million.

…If convicted of the charges, the defendants each face up to 20 years in prison, and restitution and forfeiture of at least $35 million, including several real properties and 15 bank accounts.

The article concludes:

The government’s case is being handled by the Criminal Section of the Office’s Long Island Division.  Assistant United States Attorney Adam R. Toporovsky is in charge of the prosecution, with assistance from Paralegal Specialist Janelle Robinson.  Assistant United States Attorney Madeline O’Connor of the Office’s Asset Forfeiture Section is handling forfeiture matters.

On April 7, 2026, the Department of Justice announced the creation of the National Fraud Enforcement Division (Fraud Division). The Fraud Division is focused on investigating and prosecuting those who commit fraud against the American people.

How much taxpayer money could be saved by better oversight of benefit spending?

Freddie Goes To The White House

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I have thoroughly enjoyed reading the posts of the Europeans visiting America for the World Cup Soccer matches. Their impressions of America and their comments about what they saw on the news about America vs. what America actually is like were very interesting. One of the people who posted his journey on X was a German named Freddie. Unfortunately, Freddie de-activated his X account. He posted at Instagram to explain why:

“Hey everyone, just wanted to let you know why I deactivated my account,” he wrote. “1. This was the plan all along even before we started the World Cup trip. 2. Too many people seem to have a problem with us having a genuinely good time here in the country, and this is ruining the fun a bit for us because we really just wanted to document our road-trip and never expected that people would have a problem with it.”

But the story has a happy ending!

On Thursday, Townhall reported:

Even though Leftist trolls forced Freddy, the German World Cup tourist, to delete his X account, our favorite football fan is still enjoying his time in America. This is a great way to show him the best of America, despite the social media trouble.

Special Presidential Envoy Nick Adams shared the news and a statement on X.

Here’s what the statement says:

I arranged a visit to the White House for Freddy, the viral FIFA World Cup tourist from Germany, to cap off what has been an epic FIFA World Cup visit to the United States.

Despite the hateful and angry radical Left’s vicious attempts to doxx Freddy, launch personal attacks, and intimidate him into submission, ultimately forcing him to delete his social media accounts to protect his peace and safety, the West Wing visit will still take place.

Freddy’s only ‘crime’ was loving America and documenting his travels in a completely non-partisan way. This is what they do. They try to scare and silence anyone who doesn’t conform.

As the Special Presidential Envoy for Tourism, I am proud that Freddy enjoyed his trip here. I refused to let the radical Left turn something positive for our country into another victory for their politics of hate.

In the true spirit of 250, I lifted Freddy up and made sure their mob tactics would not win. The visit will go ahead as planned.

America remains open for business and open to visitors who simply want to experience the greatest country on Earth. We will never let the mob dictate who gets to enjoy it.

This is the spirit of America!

Rules For Radicals

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Saul Alinsky wrote RULES FOR RADICALS in 1971. It serves as a guide book for community organizers and people organizing protests. The book is generally associated with left-wing political activity. Two of the rules for radicals are”

  • “Make the enemy live up to its own book of rules.”
  • “Ridicule is man’s most potent weapon. There is no defense. It is almost impossible to counterattack ridicule. Also it infuriates the opposition, who then react to your advantage.”

It is remotely possible that some on the political right have decided to follow some of the suggestions in the book.

On Tuesday, Breitbart reported:

Sen. Bernie Moreno (R-OH) shared that he would reintroduce former Sen. Harry Reid’s (D-NV) “exact bill” that would not only eliminate birthright citizenship for the children of illegal migrants, but also clarify who can receive birthright citizenship.

In a post on X, Moreno responded to another post from Fox News’s Bill Melugin, who shared that in 1993, Reid had introduced the Immigration Stabilization Act of 1993. Moreno stated that they would “see how today’s DC Democrats will vote when offered the ideas of the Democrat party that used to love” the U.S.

“I will reintroduce this exact bill when I return to DC,” Moreno said. “Let’s see how today’s DC Democrats will vote when offered the ideas of the Democrat party that used to love this country and the American people!”

It’s interesting that the Democrats controlled both houses of Congress in 1993 and Bill Clinton was President. According to Congress.gov, on 08/16/1993, the bill was referred to Subcommittee on Immigration and Refugee Affairs. It died in committee. I wonder why the bill did not pass.

It will be interesting to see how the Democrats in the current Congress react to the re-introduction of this bill.

Your Gas Stove May Be Safe (But Not Totally In New York State)

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On Wednesday, Yahoo News reported:

(The Center Square) — New York could be moving ahead with a first-in-the-nation ban on natural gas hookups in new buildings after a federal appeals court rejected a challenge from industry groups.

The ruling issued Tuesday by the U.S. Court of Appeals Second Circuit rejected a lawsuit by natural gas industry groups challenging a provision of New York’s All-Electric Buildings Act, which would ban gas hookups in new buildings under seven stories, among other restrictions.

A coalition of construction and trade groups sued to block the 2023 law, saying it conflicts with federal law under the 1975 Energy Policy and Conservation Act and would drive up costs for businesses and energy consumers.

But the appeals court upheld lower court rulings that had determined federal law “does not preempt ” the state’s regulations on natural gas hook ups, and on Tuesday dismissed the industry lawsuit.

It’s gets interesting when the Federal Government steps in.

On Thursday, Legal Insurrection reported:

U.S. Secretary of Energy Chris Wright announced his department wants to eliminate the stupid appliance mandates.

“U.S. Secretary of Energy Chris Wright today announced the Department of Energy (DOE) has issued a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking to permanently end home appliance and equipment mandates that raise costs and disrupt consumer choice,” according to a press release. “The proposal will update the Department’s Process Rule used to establish energy conservation standards for household appliances and equipment, including air conditioning units, gas stoves, washing and drying machines, water heaters, refrigerators, and other products Americans rely on every day.”

FOX News was the first to report the move.

“In America, you should be able to choose a dryer that dries clothes on the first try rather than one that takes multiple cycles—unfortunately, past administrations thought otherwise,” Secretary Wright said. “For too long, the American people paid the price for mandates that restricted consumer choice and drove up costs. President Trump promised to end this nonsense and that is exactly what we are doing.”

I am so tired of low-pressure shower heads. I take longer to do the dishes, even rinsing them, due to my new kitchen faucet. Don’t even get me started on toilets, especially when you’re sick.

So while New York State is limiting gas stoves, the U.S. Secretary of Energy is working toward appliance freedom for Americans. And we wonder why people are leaving New York! I would love to go back to having a dishwasher that finishes in an hour.

Cruising Along

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The Trump economy is cruising along. According to an article posted at Just the News on Thursday,  the unemployment rate for June was 4.2%, and the economy added 57K jobs. The workforce participation rate dropped slightly from 6.18 to 6.15 percent.

The article reports:

Economists predicted the June unemployment rate would be 4.3% and that the economy would add 115K jobs, according to CNBC.

So we are slightly better on unemployment, but we need to add more jobs. I suspect that if crude oil prices remain at $70 per barrel or lower and inflation decreases (which it will as oil prices fall), we will see more jobs created and less unemployment. Right now the situation is very fluid, and I think a lot of employers are simply waiting for things to settle out.

 

 

I Don’t Think I Would Go Swimming With This Guy

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On Monday, Science Alert posted an article about some recent calculations as to the size of the Megalodon shark. I don’t think it would have been a good idea to go swimming with this guy!

The article reports:

In 1978, a wonder emerged from the crumbling earth of the Gram Clay Pits in Denmark.

Paleontologists were stunned when they unearthed about 20 vertebrae from a single megalodon, including one that, at 23 centimeters (9 inches) across, was larger than any megalodon vertebra ever found, before or since.

That vertebra became the foundation for maximum size estimates of the giant shark (Otodus megalodon), suggesting a huge monster that terrorized Neogene seas.

Then, disaster struck.

In 1989, while being moved from one storage facility to another, the specimen was severely damaged and was thought lost.

It turned up again after vertebrate paleontologist and curator Bent Erik Kramer Lindow of the Natural History Museum of Denmark noticed a box of jumbled remnants and realized that he was looking at some of the missing fossils.

The article notes:

Although it lived for only around 20 million years, from around 23 million to around 3.6 million years ago, megalodon is one of the most beloved predators of the ancient world.

Part of the reason for that is its estimated size – up to 24.3 meters (80 feet), about two standard city buses.

But figuring out what megalodon looked like and how big it was is a game of educated guesses.

Because sharks have cartilaginous skeletons, they don’t leave many fossils behind; for megalodon, all that remains are mostly teeth, with occasional vertebrae, made of dense, calcified cartilage that can withstand fossilization.

Scientists can look at partial megalodon spinal columns – the most complete to date contained 141 vertebrae – and compare them with those of modern sharks to gauge how large the ancient predator may have been.

The article concludes:

This discovery offers insight into how these giant predators lived – especially at their most intimidating sizes, suggesting that the biggest megalodons may even have hunted large sharks.

Megalodon has long departed from our oceans and left many mysteries in its wake. But the answers to some of those mysteries may be awaiting discovery right under our noses.

“Museum collections are mightily important for science, and many of my past discoveries are based on museum specimens that were collected many years ago,” Shimada told ScienceAlert.

“So, I am quite certain that there are many other historically known and unknown specimens still waiting for scientists to discover something new and exciting.”

The research has been published in Palaeontologia Electronica.

Wow. I can’t even imagine a shark this size.

When The Sentence Doesn’t Fit The Crime

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On Wednesday, The Daily Caller posted an article about the sentencing of Loay Abdel Fattah Alnaji, who at the time of his crime worked as a professor at Moorpark College in California.

The article reports:

A California college professor who admitted to killing an elderly demonstrator with a megaphone will spend about a year in county jail, far less than the prison term prosecutors sought.

A judge sentenced Loay Abdel Fattah Alnaji, 53, to one year in Ventura County Jail plus two years of felony probation, the Ventura County District Attorney’s Office (VCDAO) announced June 30. He had pleaded guilty in May to felony involuntary manslaughter as well as felony battery causing serious bodily injury in the 2023 death of 69-year-old Paul Kessler. Alnaji further admitted that he personally caused great bodily harm and confessed to the two aggravating factors of his use of a weapon and the vulnerability of his victim, according to the DA’s office. Alnaji worked as a professor at Moorpark College at the time of the incident, KTLA5 reported.

The killing traces back to November 2023, when rival protesters gathered around a month after the outbreak of the Israel-Gaza war, the outlet reported. Kessler stood with the pro-Israel group while Alnaji was with the pro-Palestinian protesters. Prosecutors said a verbal dispute between Alnaji and Kessler turned physical and Alnaji brought the megaphone down on Kessler’s head. The 69-year-old dropped to the pavement and struck his head, and Alnaji did not flee, according to the DA’s office. He dialed 911 and talked to investigators. Kessler died from his injuries, and deputies arrested Alnaji days afterward, according to the VCDAO.

I suppose it is nice that Alnaji did not flee the scene; however, he hit a man over the head and the man died as a result of that blow. I don’t think a one-year sentence is appropriate. I wonder if the sentence would have been different if he had accidentally killed the man under other circumstances. I can’t help but believe that there is some serious politics involved in this sentence.

The article concludes:

District Attorney Erik Nasarenko responded to the sentence. “Mr. Kessler lost his life in a violent attack that took him from his family and his wife of 43 years,” he said. “Given the circumstances of this case and the death that resulted, we believe a state prison commitment was the appropriate and just sentence.”

Ventura County Superior Court Judge Derek Malan handed Alnaji the deal, The Forward reported. A trial had loomed just days away, with Alnaji facing up to four years behind bars. His lawyer, Ron Bamieh, told the Ventura County Star that Malan saw the case as “two old guys had a dispute and an accident happened.”

Jewish advocacy groups took aim at the sentencing. “It exposes major flaws in the criminal justice system that need to be addressed,” Gerard Filitti, senior counsel at the Lawfare Project, told the Jewish News Syndicate, saying prosecutors did not pursue a hate crime charge.

The outlet identified Kessler as Jewish. Moorpark College placed Alnaji on administrative leave after officials took him into custody and he subsequently bailed himself out, according to the Forward.

Virginia Voters Are Paying A Price For Their Votes

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When Virginia Governor Abigail Spanberger ran for Governor, she ran as a moderate. She has not governed as a moderate, and Virginia voters who supported her are being hit in the pocketbook.

On Tuesday, The Daily Signal reported:

As July begins, Virginians brace for higher gas taxes, hoping that the $68 price of a barrel of crude oil will start to bring the price at the pump back down. However, they will very soon be hit with a 7% increase in their electric bills.

Iran? No. Trump tariffs? No.

This is because, as Gov. Abigail Spanberger promised the lords of the Green Energy Cabal, Virginia has reentered the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative. This is the classic cap-and-trade scheme with a cool new, hip name.

Not a week passed after she announced the reentry into the initiative before Dominion filed with the State Corporation Commission for rate increases to cover the fees they will have to pay to the overseeing body for the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative.

You have to pay for credits if you use more than your allotment of carbon credits to generate your electricity. You buy them from members who don’t, and if there aren’t any to buy, the money just goes into the initiative’s bank account for when someone does have credits to sell.

Under the heading of “win-win” for Spanberger, she can blame all that electric use on data centers, not former Gov. Ralph Northam’s economic suicide pact with California called “Green Virginia 2030,” which already had Dominion take two power plants offline and turn Virginia into the largest importer of electricity in the USA. (Thus, that controversial “Valley Link” power line project.)

The article notes:

However, there is a commonwealth not far away that—to the surprise of many—pulled itself out of the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative. That commonwealth is Pennsylvania. Similarities?

Sure, they have a Democrat governor; they even have a Democrat governor who fancies himself a contender for the presidential nomination in 2028. That’s where the similarities start to fade.

The article notes:

For good measure, Spanberger signed a law this year making it illegal to do what Youngkin did when he pulled out of the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative. Now there has to be legislation passed and signed by the governor to rescue us.

Elections have consequences.

Border Patrol Is Doing Its Job Well

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On Wednesday, Breitbart posted an article about the success of the Border Patrol in keeping dangerous drugs off our streets.

The article reports:

U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers at ports of entry in Texas have seized more than 9,000 pounds of methamphetamine with a street value of more than $80 million in just four incidents during the month of June. The thwarted cartel smuggling attempts occurred in Laredo, El Paso, and Pharr, Texas.

In two interdictions on the Juneteenth holiday, officers seized more than $72.3 million in methamphetamine as smugglers attempted to push through two south Texas ports of entry. The larger of the two seizures occurred on June 19 at the World Trade Bridge in Laredo, when a CBP officer referred a 2011 Dodge Ram stake-bed truck purportedly hauling a shipment manifested as “polypropylene” for secondary inspection.

Officers deployed a canine team and used non-intrusive inspection technology to search the vehicle’s interior. The enhanced inspection and search of the stake-bed truck uncovered more than 7,000 pounds of methamphetamines valued at more than $63 million hidden within the commodity being brought into the country.

The second seizure occurred on the same day at Pharr International Bridge. In that incident, officers searched a tractor-trailer attempting to enter the United States from Reynosa, Tamaulipas. Officers referred the vehicle to a secondary inspection area where nonintrusive inspection equipment detected anomalies within the trailer.

The article concludes:

CBP El Paso Director of Field Operations Ray Provencio commented on the arrest and seizure of the narcotics, saying, “CBP officers use their experience and advanced technology to stay one step ahead of smugglers. Their dedication and vigilance play a critical role in protecting our communities from the dangers of illicit drugs.”

As exclusively reported by Breitbart Texas, nationwide narcotics seizures have increased in recent months as illegal alien apprehensions continue to remain below 10,000 per month along the southwest border. The reduction in illegal border crossings has allowed CBP officers and the U.S. Border Patrol to focus on enhanced counter-drug strategies.

Imagine how many lives could have been saved if this policy had been carried out consistently in recent years.