Tag Archives: Fox News

Bringing Americans Home

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On Friday, Fox News reported that ten Americans have been released from custody in Venezuela and are headed home to America.

The article reports:

Ten Americans are returning to the U.S. after being released from custody in Venezuela, the Secretary of State said on Friday. 

“Thanks to President [Donald] Trump’s leadership and commitment to the American people, the United States welcomes home ten Americans who were detained in Venezuela,” Secretary of State Marco Rubio said in a statement. “Until today, more Americans were wrongfully held in Venezuela than any other country in the world. It is unacceptable that Venezuelan regime representatives arrested and jailed U.S. nationals under highly questionable circumstances and without proper due process. Every wrongfully detained American in Venezuela is now free and back in our homeland.”

Rubio also thanked the State Department, inter-agency partners, and El Salvador President Nayib Bukele.

The article continues:

He (Secretary of State Marco Rubio) said the U.S. also welcomes the “release of Venezuelan political prisoners and detainees that were also released from Venezuelan prisons. The Trump Administration continues to support the restoration of democracy in Venezuela. The regime’s use of unjust detention as a tool of political repression must end. We reiterate our call for the unconditional release of remaining unjustly and arbitrarily detained political prisoners and foreign nationals.”

The release is part of a prisoner swap in which Bukele agreed to release hundreds of Venezuelans being held in a maximum-security prison in Tecoluca, El Salvador, in return for Salvadoran prisoners being held in Venezuela. 

El Salvador President Nayib Bukele was elected as President of El Salvador in 2019. He has transformed the country–drastically reducing the crime rate and the homicide rate. His cooperation with President Trump has helped make America safer and his own country safer.

Money Talks, But Can It Bring Peace?

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President Trump seems to have a gift for understanding economic leverage. This is becoming very obvious in the Middle East. He has essentially given a number of Middle Eastern Countries a choice–do you want to be economically successful or do you want to continue supporting terrorism? There will be countries that will attempt to play both sides of the fence–traditions and generational hatred are hard to overcome–but the people who rule countries understand they tend to stay in power longer if their country is prosperous. It may come down to a ruler having to decide whether he values his position enough to forgo some of his hatred toward Israel.

As I write this on Monday, the news from the Middle East is that five of the most prominent Arab sheikhs in Hebron—yes, Hebron, the heart of biblical Judea—just declared that they want to join the Abraham Accords, recognize Israel as the Jewish state, and break away from the Palestinian Authority. This is according to a Jewish News Syndicate article posted on Sunday. This might be taken as an indication that Hamas no longer has the power it once had and that Iran is no longer in a position to support Hamas. It is also being reported that Qatar (a major supporter of terrorism) has told the Hamas leaders in Qatar to lay down their weapons. Even Qatar wants peace.

Before we get too excited over this, there is something we all need to take into consideration. It is the Islamic concept of “hudna” defined as a tactical pause intended only for rearmament.

We need to remember that when we are dealing with the Islamist population of the Middle East, we are dealing with generational hatred and indoctrination. In Gaza, the indoctrination begins with telling very young children that they should be martyrs in the quest to retake Jerusalem. Overcoming this indoctrination will take time and will not be easy.

Memri.org, one of the most reliable sources for information on current events in the Middle East, recently reported that the United Arab Emirates (UAE) Foreign Minister Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed gave an interview to Fox News in which he called for the release of the Israeli hostages held by Hamas, for the formation of a government in Gaza that does not include this movement, and for the establishment of calm there.

Living with constant terrorism and war does not make for a stable government, and many Middle Eastern leaders want to maintain their positions. If that means joining the Abraham Accords to create prosperity in their countries and to create longevity for their rule, they may be willing to do that.

The FBI Is Doing Its Job

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On Saturday, Fox News reported that the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) has successfully conducted investigations into large-scale sex predator operations.

The article reports:

FBI Deputy Director Dan Bongino announced on Saturday that during his and Director Kash Patel‘s first three months in office, the agency conducted large-scale sex predator operations, made multiple foreign intelligence and FBI “most wanted” arrests, and aided partners in immigration enforcement.

In an X post, Bongino said two child sex predator stings resulted in the rescues of hundreds of children.

Operation “Restoring Justice” apprehended 205 child sex predators and 764 purveyors, while rescuing 115 children, he said. A separate venture, Operation “Soteria Shield,” resulted in the apprehension of 244 child predators, and 109 children were rescued.

The article notes:

The FBI also apprehended, imprisoned, and deported thousands of illegal immigrants in coordination with federal partners.

More than 700 anti-ICE riot arrests were made in coordination with state and federal agents, as the FBI poured through data in pursuit of more bad actors. 

The article concludes:

“We are not done,” Bongino said. “We are in the process of identifying and moving in on those who threw rocks at law enforcement officers and damaged property. I told you we would not forget. I wasn’t kidding. . . . We told you that the rioting was not going to slow us down. It has not. We are fully engaged.”

Though the FBI acknowledges there is more work to be done, he said to stay tuned on disclosures and the public corruption fronts. 

“For those who have been patient with us, thank you,” Bongino said. “For those who are out of patience, thank you, too. Believe me, we understand. God bless America, and all those who defend Her.”

This is the result of an apolitical FBI that is free to do its job.

When The Interview Does Not Go As Planned

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Enforcing the rule of law can be messy. Maintaining control of a potentially dangerous situation can result in actions that are misunderstood. The media loves to misunderstand any action taken by a Republican or any individual associated with President Trump. If someone can make a scene, it can be promoted to media gold.

On Thursday, The Blaze posted an article illustrating what happens when the media misjudges its interviewee.

The article reports:

A security expert appeared to stun the CNN anchor who asked him to assess the incident where a Democrat politician was aggressively shoved out of DHS Sec. Kristi Noem’s press conference.

Democrats are outraged over the video footage of U.S. Senator Alex Padilla of California being dragged out of a briefing Thursday, but instead of justifying the outrage, Josh Campbell said the agents acted appropriately to the threat.

The security expert cited a number of actions which generally result in someone being removed from a press conference–interrupting the speaker before the question and answer period puts security guards on alert, and turning toward the agents escorting the person out is seen as indicating a lack of compliance.

A Fox News article posted Friday reports:

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) said Padilla did not initially identify himself as a senator, and was not wearing his Senate security pin.

However, footage captured by Fox News shows him saying, “I’m Senator Alex Padilla, I have questions for the secretary,” as he was escorted out of the room.

Noem told The Story’s Martha MacCallum that Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) personnel began handcuffing the senator in the hallway, at which point he identified himself, and they ceased action.

Considering the constant stream of threats made against President Trump and the people in his administration, I believe that the actions taken by the security staff. There is no reason for outrage.

Jurisdiction Matters

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On May 45h, PJ Media reported the following:

When President Trump returned to the White House, he didn’t just get to work cleaning up Joe Biden’s mess—he set his sights on dismantling decades of entrenched bureaucratic bloat, waste, and corruption. With a relentless series of executive orders and policy directives, Trump reignited his mission to drain the swamp—this time with laser precision and zero patience for the status quo.

Predictably, the left went into full-blown panic mode. Liberal legal groups immediately launched a barrage of lawsuits, cherry-picking friendly courts in a shameless attempt to stall Trump’s agenda. They’re terrified of losing control over the bloated regulatory state they’ve used for years to push policies they could never pass through Congress.

But that strategy just hit a major roadblock. In a landmark ruling on Saturday, the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals handed the Trump administration a decisive legal victory—one that could fundamentally change how activist judges and forum-shopped cases interfere with executive authority. 

“This is a huge victory for President Trump and his Article II powers granted in the United States Constitution. It’s also a victory for US Agency for Global Media (USAGM) and VOA,” Kari Lake told Fox News Digital. Lake now serves as a USAGM senior advisor to the Trump administration. “We are eager to accomplish President Trump’s America First agenda which has always been to modernize and make our government efficient while cutting waste, fraud, and abuse.”

Kari Lake told Fox News

The appeals court’s 2-1 ruling Saturday emphasized the judiciary’s deference to executive authority in matters concerning federal employment and contractual decisions.

The court noted that the district court likely lacked jurisdiction to interfere with the administration’s personnel actions and funding decisions, particularly regarding grant agreements with non-federal entities like Radio Free Asia and the Middle East Broadcasting Networks.

This ruling  Trump’s March 14 executive order (EO), which aimed to dismantle USAGM operations.

The article at PJ Media concludes:

The significance of this decision extends far beyond these specific cases—it establishes clear jurisdictional parameters that could affect dozens of pending lawsuits against Trump administration policies. While the administration won’t prevail in every case, this ruling suggests courts may need to more carefully consider their jurisdictional authority before issuing sweeping injunctions against executive actions.

The D.C. Circuit Court just handed Trump a game-changing victory that will help him clean house in 2025.

Let’s hope that this is the first of many good decisions by the courts.

The Actions Of A Nasty Little Man

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On Saturday, Townhall posted an article illustrating one way the Biden administration was involved in the lawfare against President Trump. There were many aspects of the actions of the Biden administration that were clearly illegal.

The article quotes Fox News:

The Biden White House turned over government cellphones belonging to President Donald Trump and former Vice President Mike Pence to the FBI in May 2022 as part of a bureau probe into the aftermath of the 2020 election, tying Trump to that investigation without sufficient predication, Fox News Digital has learned.

The FBI did not need a warrant to physically obtain the government phones from the Biden White House.

But after acquiring the devices, agents began drafting a search warrant to extract the phones’ data, sources familiar with the investigation told Fox News Digital.

“The Biden White House played right along with the FBI’s ‘gotcha’ scheme against Trump,” a source familiar with the investigation told Fox News Digital. “Biden’s Office of White House Counsel, under the leadership of Dana Remus and Jonathan Su, gave its blessing and accommodation for the FBI to physically obtain Trump and Pence’s phones in early May 2022. Weeks later, the FBI began drafting a search warrant to extract the phones’ data.”

The phones were obtained and entered as evidence as part of the FBI’s original anti-Trump 2020 election investigation, which eventually was taken over by special counsel Jack Smith. That case was known inside the bureau as “Arctic Frost” and was opened April 13, 2022, by anti-Trump former FBI agent Timothy Thibault.

Thibault, according to whistleblowers, broke protocol and played a critical role in opening and advancing the bureau’s original investigation related to the 2020 election, tying Trump to the probe without sufficient predication. Thibault broke protocol by taking action to open the investigation and involve Trump despite being unauthorized to open criminal investigations in his role. Only special agents have the authority to open criminal investigations.

There were a lot of rules and policies ignored in the treatment of President Trump during the Biden administration. It would be nice to see the people who ignored those rules and policies held accountable. Unfortunately, if the case of Former FBI attorney Kevin Clinesmith is any indication, there will not be serious consequences for their actions. Clinesmith lied on the FISA (Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act) application. His lie resulted in the illegal surveillance of President Trump and his campaign and to the Russia Hoax. Clinesmith in August pleaded guilty to “one count of making a false statement within both the jurisdiction of the executive branch and judicial branch of the U.S. government, an offense that carries a maximum term of imprisonment of five years and a fine of up to $250,000.” He was given 12 months probation, 400 hours of community service, and no fine.

Forgetting The Lesson Of October 7th

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Any plan that puts the Palestinian Authority or the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) back in control of the Gaza Strip is simply a path to war and to the genocide of the Jews in Israel. In 2005, Israel moved the Jewish settlements out of Gaza and gave the area over to be governed by the Palestinians. In January 2006, Hamas was elected by the Palestinians in Gaza as their government. In 2006, rockets were being fired into Israel from Gaza. That continued until Gaza was pretty much decimated by the Israeli Defense Forces.  The greenhouses that had formed the basis of the successful Gaza economy were destroyed by the new residents and the metal water pipes used to make rockets. It was evident from the beginning that Gaza had no intention of being a peaceful neighbor to Israel. Their children were taught the glories of martyrdom from an early age. Things continued to get worse until October 7, 2023, when Gaza launched a brutal attack on Israel. The lessons of history illustrate the fact that if peace is a goal, the Jews need to rule Gaza. Unfortunately, Europe has not yet learned that lesson.

On March 8, Fox News reported the following:

A $53 billion Arab-backed plan for the reconstruction of Gaza has garnered support from France, Germany, Italy and the U.K., after receiving pushback from the U.S. and Israel. 

“The plan shows a realistic path to the reconstruction of Gaza and promises – if implemented – swift and sustainable improvement of the catastrophic living conditions for the Palestinians living in Gaza,” the foreign ministers wrote in a joint statement. 

The foreign ministers called for a post-war plan based on “a solid political and security framework,” but reiterated the need for Hamas to not be able to govern Gaza. Additionally, the European leaders said that they are supportive of the Palestinian Authority’s (PA) “central role” in a post-war Gaza and “the implementation of its reform agenda.”

The $53 billion Egyptian plan was meant as a counter to President Donald Trump’s U.S. takeover idea and comes after Cairo rejected the idea of accepting displaced Gazans for “national security” reasons. While Trump’s plan would resettle Palestinians outside the Strip, Egypt’s proposal focuses on Palestinian-led reconstruction efforts. 

Both the U.S. and Israel have rejected the Arab-backed plan for Gaza reconstruction. Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs Spokesperson Oren Marmorstein said in a statement that the plan “fails to address the realities of the situation following October 7th, 2023, remaining rooted in outdated perspectives.”

The Arab countries know the history of the Palestinians and Hamas. They do not want to import terrorists into their country. That is the root of this alternative plan. The Palestinian Authority has the same goals as Hamas. This is not a path to peace, it is a road to another war. Unless you break up the Palestinian Authority and Hamas and get them to focus on living happily in various Arab countries, you will not achieve peace.

The Road Toward Fiscal Sanity

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On February 22nd, Fox News posted an article listing seven things that happened this week that will move us toward more a fiscally responsible government.

Here is the list:

1. On Thursday, U.S. District Judge Christopher Cooper, an Obama appointee, shot down a request from several federal labor unions, including the National Treasury Employees Union (NTEU), to pause the mass firings of federal workers by the Trump administration.

2. DOGE was handed another victory by U.S. District Judge Tanya S. Chutkan, who denied a request to issue a temporary restraining order preventing Musk and DOGE from accessing data systems at the Department of Education, Office of Personnel Management (OPM), Department of Labor, Department of Health and Human Services, Department of Energy, Department of Transportation and Department of Commerce. 

3. DOGE scored a win in court after a federal judge declined a request to temporarily block Elon Musk’s government efficiency team from accessing sensitive data from at least three federal agencies.

4. Earlier this week, DOGE announced it had discovered an identification code linking U.S. Treasury payments to a budget line item, which accounts for nearly $4.7 trillion in payments, that was oftentimes left blank.

5. Schools spent hundreds of billions of COVID relief funds on expenses that had “little” impact on students, such as Las Vegas hotel rooms and the purchase of an ice cream truck, according to the Trump administration’s cost-cutting department.

…The cost-cutting department also revealed that schools spent $60,000 in COVID relief funds on swimming pool passes, while a California district used its funds to purchase an ice cream truck.

6. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth is working with DOGE to make cuts within his department, saying he believes it will find waste “not core to our mission.”

7. DOGE revealed on Tuesday that the U.S. government has more than 4 million active credit cards on its books.

“The US government currently has ~4.6M active credit cards/accounts, which processed ~90M unique transactions for ~$40B of spend[ing] in FY24,” DOGE said in a post on X.

We are definitely moving in the right direction.

 

Let The Savings Begin

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Our bloated national budget has needed slashing for some time now. We are seeing the Department of Government Efficiency identify serious waste and possible fraud. Hopefully, that waste will disappear in the budget that will be passed by Congress in the coming weeks. On Wednesday, American Greatness posted an article about some of that waste that can be eliminated.

The article reports:

On Monday, the Department of Education (ED) announced that it would be cutting another $600 million in taxpayer funding that had been used to promote “divisive” and “inappropriate” left-wing ideologies, including diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI).

According to Fox News, the funding was primarily through grants to support programs in favor of DEI and other far-left ideas, including “instruction on White privilege and White supremacy.” The $600 million cut follows the announcement of another drastic cut of $370 million in DEI training for the department, after Elon Musk and the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) uncovered such wasteful and partisan spending.

The $600 million in funding was targeted due to “requiring practitioners to take personal and institutional responsibility for systemic inequities (e.g., racism) and critically reassess their own practices,” the ED revealed. It had also funded “spaces for critical reflection to help educators confront biases and have transformative conversations about equity,” and other initiatives that focused on “building historical and sociopolitical understandings of race and racism to interrupt racial marginalization and oppression of students in planning, instruction, relationship building, discipline and assessment.”

America spends more money per pupil on education than any other country in the world, and we get the least for our money. It’s time to go back to teaching our children the skills they need to navigate the world as adults–reading, writing, basic mathematics, how to balance a checkbook, how to prepare a budget, how to fill out a job application, and maybe some obsolete skills like how to read a map. We can teach them computer skills also, but we need to remember that the generation born in the past twenty or thirty years is probably more adept at using computers than the people teaching them. Let’s make sure our children have the basic tools that will allow them to learn throughout life rather than indoctrinating them in philosophies that will hinder them rather than help them.

Drastic Changes At The Southern Border

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On Tuesday, Twitchy posted an article about the changes at our southern border since President Trump took office.

The article reports:

Bill Melugin of Fox News is reporting border crossing numbers are plummeting like he’s never seen before. It’s a pretty safe bet President Donald Trump’s immigration law enforcement is making would-be illegal aliens have second thoughts.

The article quotes Bill Melugin:

Per sources, Border Patrol recorded just 582 illegal crossings at the southern border yesterday, with not a single one of the nine sectors hitting 200.I’ve never seen anything this low in all of my border coverage.

The numbers were already flat/low in Biden’s final week, bouncing between 1,200-1,400 illegal crossings daily, but the numbers have been falling off a cliff since Trump took office.

Last three days January 24 – 665January 25 – 731January 26 – 582To put this into perspective, at the height of the border crisis in December 2023, Border Patrol hit a record high 11,000+ illegal crossings across the border in a single day, with the Del Rio sector alone getting 4,000+

I’m told there were 582 illegal crossings across the southern border yesterday, with only 60 happening in the Del Rio sector.

And there are no longer 1,500+ migrants being released at ports of entry via the CBP One cell phone app every single day, as Trump immediately terminated the program.

It’s still very early – we’ll see if these incredibly low numbers hold, especially heading into spring.

The bottom line of this is very simple.

The article concludes:

Putting a literal army at the border will do that.

The apparent ease with which Trump has activated the full might and resources of the Unites States government to combat illegal immigration has many commenters drawing the same conclusion.

Yes, Biden had the capability to practically stop border crossings at his wrinkly fingertips his entire term, but he chose not to use it. The only conclusion one can draw from that is he wanted our country to be overrun with illegal aliens. It’s a sure bet Kamala Harris would have followed suit if she succeeded him.

The Last Straw

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On Friday, Fox News reported that Hugh Hewitt has left The Washington Post. Hugh Hewitt is a conservative columnist who has written articles for The Washington Post for the past seven years. Last year he wrote 48 articles for the paper; this year he has written only 7.

The article reports the circumstances of his leaving:

Hewitt quit after a clip of him went viral earlier on Friday when he walked off the Washington Post’s online show, “First Look,” with liberal columnists Jonathan Capehart and Ruth Marcus on its “Washington Post Live” platform. It came during a discussion of former President Trump’s rhetoric around election integrity.

“Does it seem like Donald Trump is laying the groundwork for contesting the election by complaining that cheating was taking place in Pennsylvania?” Capehart asked Marcus. “By suing Bucks County for alleged irregularities, and this is on top of his continual assertion that if he loses, it’s because of cheating.”

Marcus said Trump had been preparing to blame an election loss on cheating for months.

“No election can be fair in Donald Trump’s mind unless Donald Trump wins it,” Marcus said.

As Marcus went on, Hewitt tried to interject, but Capehart snapped, “Let Ruth finish, Hugh.”

“Well, I’ve just got to say, we’re news people, even though it’s the opinion section,” Hewitt said. “It’s got to be reported. Bucks County was reversed by the court and instructed to open up extra days because they violated the law and told people to go home. So that lawsuit was brought by the Republican National Committee, and it was successful. The Supreme Court ruled that Glenn Youngkin was successful.

“We are news people, even though we have opinions, and we have to report the whole story if we bring up part of the story,” Hewitt added. “So, yes, he’s upset about Bucks County, but he was right, and he won in court. That’s the story.”

After a brief pause, Capehart said, “I don’t appreciate being lectured about reporting when, Hugh, many times, you’ve come here saying lots of things that aren’t based in fact.”

Hewitt stood up and said, “I won’t come back, Jonathan. I’m done. I’m done. This is the most unfair election ad I’ve ever been a part of. You guys are working. That’s fine. I’m done.”

That’s how the major media works–by not mentioning that the Republicans had won both court cases, they spun the story to make President Trump look as if he were not justified in filing the lawsuits.

I have followed Hugh Hewitt for years and am glad that he had the integrity to stand up and leave.

When Your Interviewer Won’t Let You Change The Subject

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Last night, Just the News posted an article about Vice-President Kamala Harris’ interview with Fox News host Bret Baier. The article described the interview as contentious.

The article reports:

Vice President Kamala Harris declined on Wednesday to answer why the majority of the country believes the United States is on the “wrong track” after three and a half years of the Biden administration. 

The question was posed by Fox News host Bret Baier during the vice president’s first sit-down interview with the network. The interview aired during Baier’s “Special Report” and was conducted in Pennsylvania. It focused on top voter concerns heading into the general election in November, such as immigration and the economy. 

“More than 70% of people [say] the country is on the wrong track,” Baier said. “If it’s on the wrong track, that track follows three and a half years of you being vice president and President [Joe] Biden being president … Why are they saying that if you’re turning the page, you’ve been in office for three and a half years.”

Harris pushed back that former President Donald Trump has been “running for a decade,” to which Baier questioned what she meant.

“What I’m talking about is that over the last decade … it is clear to me and certainly the Republicans who are on same stage with me, the former Chief of Staff to the President Donald Trump, former Defense Secretaries, national security adviser and his vice president, one, that he is unfit to serve, that he is unstable, that he is dangerous, and that people are exhausted with someone who professes to be a leader who spends full time demeaning and engaging in personal grievances and it being about him instead of the American people. People are tired of that.”

When Baier pushed about more than half the country supporting Trump, despite Harris’ claims about people being tired of him, she merely stated that elections are “not supposed to be easy.”

The nearly 30-minute interview featured other moments where Harris and Baier spoke over each other, including on the more controversial topics like Biden’s mental acuity. They also kept interrupting each other on the first question, regarding border security and immigration.

There are various clips of the interview all over the internet. The bottom line is that Kamala Harris did not do well and her handlers are claiming that she was ambushed. The interview was so bad that President Trump has posted the full interview on his X account. This ‘lady’ clearly is not qualified to be President.

At Least They Admitted That They Were Wrong

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There were a lot of problems with the fact-checking at the Trump/Harris debate. One problem was that all of the fact-checking was done on President Trump and there was no fact-checking on Kamala Harris. Some of the fact-checkers got it wrong. That is starting to come out.

On Thursday, Fox News reported that Time Magazine had corrected one of its fact-checks.

Fox News reports:

Time magazine was forced to correct its coverage of the ABC News Presidential Debate after implying former President Trump’s statement that Vice President Kamala Harris supported free gender-transition treatment for detained migrants was “false.”

During the debate on Tuesday night, Trump remarked on Harris’ old position as one of many left-wing issues she appeared to have walked back on since running for president.

“Now she wants to do transgender operations on illegal aliens who are in prison,” Trump said.

Though Harris pledged she would support taxpayer-funded gender care for detained migrants in an ACLU candidate questionnaire during her first presidential campaign, Time first reported the statement as “false.”

The article notes:

CNN brought Harris’ position back into the spotlight Monday night after senior editor Andrew Kaczynski reported to host Erin Burnett about the recently uncovered 2019 ACLU candidate questionnaire featuring Harris’ policy position.

“It is important that transgender individuals who rely on the state for care receive the treatment they need, which includes access to treatment associated with gender transition. That’s why, as Attorney General, I pushed the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation to provide gender transition surgery to state inmates,” Harris pledged.

Time Magazine has admitted it was wrong. Will any other mainstream media follow suit?

Those Who Fail To Learn The Lessons Of History Are Doomed To Repeat Them

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Presidential candidate Kamala Harris has announced her economic plan to stem inflation. She has stated that her goal is to make life in America more affordable for everyone. Her intentions may be noble, but her knowledge of economics and human nature leaves a lot to be desired.

On Friday, Fox News reported:

A liberal economic columnist criticized Vice President Kamala Harris’ proposal to control prices on food and groceries as “totally unworkable” and compared it to failed efforts by communist governments.

“It‘s not going to be markets, it‘s not going to be supply and demand that’s determining how much your grocery store charges you for milk or for eggs, it‘s going to be some bureaucrat in D.C., which seems like totally unworkable,” Catherine Rampell said on CNN on Friday.

Rampell, a columnist for the Washington Post and a CNN economics and political commentator, argued the plan was “bad” for various reasons, from practicality to effectiveness.

“Well, first of all, nobody can explain what price gouging means,” she said on CNN, saying the idea of “excessive” prices or profit margins is subjective and thus “very hard to pin down what this would actually mean.”

The article also notes:

“We’ve seen this kind of thing tried in lots of other countries before; Venezuela, Argentina, the Soviet Union, et cetera. It leads to shortages, it leads to black markets, you know, plenty of uncertainty,” she said.

“And beyond that, the specific way this bill is written might actually increase prices because of some of the other language in it, things like requiring companies — public companies to disclose in their quarterly reports, their quarterly earnings reports, how they’re setting prices, which is a great way to help them collude, which normally we don’t want them to do,” she explained.

If you want to bring down inflation, the first thing you need to do is cut government spending and regulation. After that is done, open up America’s energy resources and loose the free market on all areas of our economy. The return to the free market will make economic success available to anyone who is willing to work for it. That should be everyone’s goal.

Milton Friedman is credited with saying, “If you put the federal government in charge of the Sahara Desert, in five years there’d be a shortage of sand.” Kamala Harris needs to consider that quote when planning her economic program.

Hiding The Increased Cost Of Medicare Premiums Caused By The Passage Of The Inflation Reduction Act

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The Inflation Reduction Act did a lot of things. One of the things it did not do was reduce inflation. We are now finding out that it will cause a significant increase in the cost of Medicare Insurance.

On Wednesday, Fox News posted an article about the use of taxpayer money to delay the increases until after the election.

The article explains:

In a move critics say is designed to shield the Biden-Harris administration from election fallout, the administration has leveraged taxpayer funds to mask upcoming increases in Medicare premiums.

Under the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), which was intended to cap out-of-pocket drug costs for Medicare beneficiaries, insurers are poised to significantly hike monthly premiums, with average bids for Part D plans expected to triple by 2025.

In response to potential voter backlash, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) rolled out a three-year “demonstration project” to subsidize these premiums, aiming to keep them artificially low. However, despite the appearance of relief, some critics are saying that taxpayers will fund a dramatic increase in subsidies — from $30 per recipient per month in 2024 to $142.70 in 2025 — raising concerns about the long-term impact on government spending and debt. 

The article notes:

Research published by Fidelity, an investment research group, shows that a 65-year-old retiring today can expect to spend $165,000 on health care in retirement, a 5% increase from last year and more than double the estimate from 2002.

Yet, there appears to be a disconnect for many Americans between the actual projected cost of health care in retirement and how much they expect to spend on those expenses. The average American thinks they will spend about $75,000 on health care and other medical expenses, less than half of Fidelity’s calculation, according to the research.

The estimate assumes that an individual is enrolled in Medicare – including Part A and Part B, which cover most hospital care and doctor’s visits – and Part D, which covers prescription drugs. Other expenses such as Medicare premiums, over-the-counter medications, dental and vision care and other costs typically not covered by Medicare are “left to retirees to manage on their own,” the report said.

As of April 2024, about 67.3 million Americans were enrolled in Medicare, according to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. Of those, about half were enrolled in a Medicare Advantage plan, while about 80% were covered by Medicare Part D.

“They just want to get through the election,” Grogan (former President Trump advisor Joe Grogan) said. “They’re hoping after the election they can face it, but its gonna need to be dealt with in the next 12–18 months. They did not believe it would be this bad and its only gonna get worse.” 

Medicine was much more efficient and much cheaper before the government got involved. It is time to let medicine become a free-market part of the economy. More competition will provide more care at a more reasonable price for everyone.

 

 

The Slant On This Story Is Very Subtle

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Remember when Fox News was conservative? Those days are gone. On Monday, Fox News posted an article about the coming budget battle in Congress. Unfortunately Congress has not followed its own budge procedures since 2008, one of many reasons the federal deficit has grown so fast.

The article states:

The ultra-conservative House Freedom Caucus is signaling it will not help Congress avoid a government shutdown next month unless a short-term spending bill is linked to a bill requiring proof of citizenship to register to vote.

First of all the House Freedom Caucus is not ultra-conservative. They are conservative, period. Ten years ago they probably would have been considered middle of the road. Just for the record, why is requiring proof of citizenship in order to vote a problem?

The article continues:

The House GOP rebels are also calling for a short-term spending plan to extend until the new year, at which point allies of former President Trump hope he will be in the White House again. 

That puts the group in direct opposition to their more traditional GOP colleagues, including House Appropriations Chairman Tom Cole, R-Okla., who suggested last month that he would want to finish the government funding process by the end of 2024.

With just six of 12 individual appropriations bills having passed the House, and none yet in the Senate, it is all but certain that a short-term extension of the current year’s funding levels will be needed to keep the government open past the end of the fiscal year on Sept. 30.

…The House passed the Safeguarding American Voter Eligibility (SAVE) Act last month with five Democrats voting with every single House Republican in passing the bill. 

However, it is opposed by the White House and likely will not get a vote in the Democratically-held Senate, meaning its inclusion in a final CR would be fighting an uphill battle.

Cole told reporters last month that he would prefer something with wider bipartisan appeal, like supplemental disaster relief funding, to be attached to a CR instead.

“I haven’t really thought about it yet, it’s not a big deal to me. But again, if it can’t pass the Senate, it isn’t going to be an effective CR,” Cole said when asked about the SAVE Act. “So a real CR, you know, I’m more interested actually in disaster relief. That’s something that I think the two sides can come together on.”

It would be nice if someone in Washington would do their job and get back to the prescribed budget process.

 

The Latest Debate Rules

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On Saturday, Fox News reported that CNN has announced its rules for the first presidential debate on June 27.

The article reports:

The campaigns of President Biden and former President Donald Trump have agreed to the rules, CNN said on Saturday, noting that it is not “impossible” for independent candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to join the pair on stage.

To qualify for the CNN showdown, a candidate must have received 15% support in four separate national polls, and be on the ballot in enough states to reach 270 electoral college votes. Currently, Kennedy is on the ballot in six states, totaling 89 potential electoral college votes.

The article concludes:

The network also noted that candidates’ podiums and positions will be determined by a coin flip, their mics will be muted outside of speaking time, and that candidates will be provided only with a pen and a pad of paper.

Candidates will not be allowed to bring props or prepared notes. 

This could get interesting. I do not believe that RFK, Jr., has enough time to qualify for the debate. I am also not sure what he would add to the debate. His presence might be good for the Democrats because it would distract people for the predictable feebleness of President Biden. The inclusion of RFK, Jr., also might provide some interesting dialog between President Trump and RFK, Jr. If I were holding the debate, I would check President Biden for electronic devices. I would set up electronics to jam any wireless transmissions in the room, and I might consider drug testing for certain drugs. However, since CNN is hosting the debate, I seriously doubt any of that will be done.

The recent pictures of President Biden show an alarming decline in his awareness of where he is and what he is supposed to be doing. I can’t image what this debate will be like.

A Very Odd Story Out Of North Carolina

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This story is just now making the news.

According to WRAL News posted May 23:

A Fort Liberty soldier shot and killed a utility worker he believed was trespassing outside his home in Moore County, authorities say.

According to the Moore County Sheriff’s Office, around 8:15 p.m. on May 3, deputies were called to a home on Dowd Road in Carthage.

For those who may not know, Fort Liberty was formerly Fort Bragg. There are a few very weird details about this story.

Red Voice Media reports on May 25:

According to reports, two individuals identified as Chechen men were discovered near the soldier’s residence. The family alleges that one of the suspects, 35-year-old Ramzan Daraev from Chicago, was taking unauthorized photographs of their children. As the family confronted the intruders in a wooded area of the property near a power line, a violent altercation ensued, resulting in Daraev being shot multiple times at close range. Another man, identified as Dzhankutov Adsalan, was found in a vehicle at a distance from the incident and was subsequently questioned and released. The investigation is being led by the Moore County Sheriff’s Office.

Fox News reported on May 23:

Sheriff Ronnie Fields said Daraev was working as a subcontractor for Utilities One, a company based in New Jersey, at the time of his death. Investigators are still working to verify his official employment and immigration status.

At the time of the incident, Daraev was not in possession of any utility equipment, utility clothing, or identification. The incident has been reported to the U.S. Department of Labor, Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA).

Sources tell Fox News that “power company employment is often a cover for status/action” that U.S. intelligence agents use for surveillance of foreign targets overseas.

Another Fox News report stated that the network had unsuccessfully tried to reach the ‘power company’ through telephone calls and emails but had gotten no response.

 

 

The Plan To Turn Florida Into A Blue State

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The population of Florida is growing as people flee the high taxes and high cost of living in many of the northern states. That immigration is not turning Florida blue–most of the arrivals know what they are fleeing. However, the Biden administration has another way of making sure that Florida becomes a reliable Democrat state.

On Tuesday, Fox News posted an article detailing where the migrants who are being flown into America by the Biden administration are being placed. Two Florida cities top the list–Miami with 91,821, and Ft. Lauderdale with 60,461.

The article reports:

During an eight-month period from January through August 2023, roughly 200,000 migrants flew into the U.S. via the program. Of those, 80% of them, (161,562) arrived in the state of Florida in four cities: Miami, Ft. Lauderdale, Orlando and Tampa Bay, according to DHS data obtained via a subpoena by the House Homeland Security Committee and provided to Fox News.

The policy was first announced for Venezuelans in October 2022, which allowed a limited number to fly or travel directly into the U.S. as long as they had not entered illegally, had a sponsor in the U.S. already, and passed certain biometric and biographical vetting. The program does not itself facilitate flights, and migrants are responsible for their own travel.

On April 18th, I posted an article about voter information being given to the people who are illegally crossing our southern border. Flyers are posted at the migrant services center near Brownsville, Texas, that tell illegal aliens: “Reminder to vote for President Biden when you are in the United States.” Voting by illegals is illegal, but these illegal border crossers are not being told that.

The article at Fox News concludes:

DHS has said that those who enter the U.S. under the program undergo and clear a “robust security vetting” as well as other eligibility criteria. 

“These processes are publicly available online, and DHS has been providing regular updates on their use to the public. These processes are part of the administration’s strategy to combine expanded lawful pathways with stronger consequences to reduce irregular migration, and have kept hundreds of thousands of people from migrating irregularly,” a spokesperson told Fox News Digital this month.

Remember that at the same time this is going on, Democrats are trying to prevent voter ID laws from being enacted and enforced. All Americans need to do all they can to fight for fair elections. Every illegal vote cancels out a legal vote.

I Don’t Think The Biden Administration Wants To Hear This

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On April 5th, Fox News posted an article about a recent statement by Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. There are a lot of centrist Democrats who will agree with the premise behind his statement.

The article reports:

Independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. on Friday said he is “disturbed” by “the weaponization of government against” former President Donald Trump. 

He also vowed that if elected president, he would appoint a special counsel to investigate whether “prosecutorial discretion was abused for political ends” in cases related to the Jan. 6 Capitol riot. 

Kennedy on Friday issued a statement in an effort to “clarify his views on the events of January 6, 2021.”

“January 6 is one of the most polarizing topics on the political landscape. I am listening to people of diverse viewpoints on it in order to make sense of the event and what followed. I want to hear every side,” Kennedy said, adding that it is “quite clear that many of the January 6 protesters broke the law in what may have started as a protest but turned into a riot.” 

“Because it happened with the encouragement of President Trump, and in the context of his delusion that the election was stolen from him, many people see it not as a riot but as an insurrection,” he said. 

I disagree with his statement that the rioting happened with the encouragement of President Trump. The direct quote from President Trump’s speech is, “I know that everyone here will soon be marching over to the Capitol building to peacefully and patriotically make your voices heard.” That is not incitement to riot.

The article notes:

But Kennedy said that “reasonable people, including Trump opponents, tell me there is little evidence of a true insurrection.” 

“They observe that the protesters carried no weapons, had no plans or ability to seize the reins of government, and that Trump himself had urged them to protest ‘peacefully,’” Kennedy said. 

Please follow the link above to read the entire article. If nothing else, Kennedy recognizes the danger of an overly-powerful government using its power to silence its political opposition.

An Executive Order That Will Impact The 2024 Election

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Under American law, non-citizens are not allowed to vote in federal elections. In some areas, non-citizens are allowed to vote in local elections, but that is somewhat limited. Unfortunately, due to an Executive Order signed by President Biden in January 2021, non-citizens and illegal immigrants will have an influence on our presidential and Congressional elections.

On Thursday, Fox News reported the following:

Immigration experts are raising the alarm about how the increasing flow of migrants illegally crossing into the U.S. may significantly impact states’ representation in the House of Representatives and Electoral College.

Shortly after taking office in January 2021, President Biden signed an executive order requiring that the U.S. Census Bureau factor in all residents, including noncitizens, as part of its decennial calculation of the U.S. population. As a result, the apportionment of House seats and, therefore, electoral votes for presidential elections, could be swayed as migrants continue to pour over the southern border.

“Illegal immigration has all kinds of effects and among them is that it distorts the mechanics of democratic government,” Mark Krikorian, the executive director of the Center for Immigration Studies, told Fox News Digital in an interview. “Illegal immigrants aren’t even supposed to be here, so their inclusion in the census count for purposes of apportionment really is outrageous.”

“There are a lot of close votes in Congress, more than there used to be. So, it can, in fact, make a difference,” Krikorian said. “It shouldn’t be a question of: Does this give you personally more influence in Washington? The question should be: Is it right? Is it healthy for our democratic process to be distorted this way? The answer is no.”

The next President can overturn this order if he chooses to. Vote carefully.

Let’s Leave The United Nations And Ask It To Leave New York City

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Today, Fox News reported that Israel has shared information with the Biden administration on staffers for United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) who were involved in the October 7 attacks on Israel.

The article reports:

The dossier specifically alleges that 12 employees who worked with the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) aided in different capacities. 

According to the dossier, seven UN staffers crossed into Israel on Oct. 7 while other were accused of “participating in a terror activity” or coordinating vehicle movements.

The document says two joined Hamas terrorists in raiding an Israeli kibbutz and directly participated in violence, another two staffers kidnapped an Israeli woman, holding her hostage in their personal home; and, another UN staffer doled out ammunition to the Hamas terrorists.

I have previously posted pictures of a Palestinian kindergarten class (article here) showing the students dressed in combat gear preparing to invade Israel and drive the Jews into the sea. Schools and camps in Gaza are funded by UNRWA. This is what they are teaching the children.

The article notes:

The dossier specifies the UN workers involved, providing their photos and a description of their roles at the agency. 

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said the individuals who were alleged to have been involved in the attack are no longer employed. 

“Of the 12 people implicated, nine were immediately identified and terminated by the Commissioner-General of UNRWA, Philippe Lazzarini; one is confirmed dead, and the identity of the two others is being clarified,” said Guterres.

Would they still be employed if the information had not been shared?

This Really Isn’t What I Wanted To Hear

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On Sunday, Fox News posted an article about a statement made by Chinese leader Xi Jinping during his year-end address on Sunday.

The article reports:

Chinese leader Xi Jinping promised the reunification of Taiwan with mainland China during his year-end address on Sunday.

Tensions between China and Taiwan remain high, and Taiwanese voters are set to participate in the island’s elections on Jan. 13. Xi has repeatedly affirmed China’s stance that Taiwan is a part of China and that it must be reunified, by force if necessary.

“All Chinese on both sides of the Taiwan Strait should be bound by a common sense of purpose and share in the glory of the rejuvenation of the Chinese nation,” Xi said in Sunday’s address.

“The motherland will surely be reunified,” he added.

The speech was the second time in a matter of days that Xi addressed the Taiwan issue. Xi also vowed to reunify Taiwan on Tuesday during a symposium in Beijing commemorating the 130th anniversary of the birth of Mao Zedong, the founding father of Communist China.

…Taiwan split from mainland China in 1949, when democratic forces fled there after losing a civil war against the Chinese Communist Party.

Knowing all of the money that has flowed from Communist China to the Biden family, I seriously doubt that President Biden would interfere in a communist takeover of Taiwan. However, if President Trump is elected next year, I don’t think China would move on Taiwan. That would make it in China’s interest to prevent another Trump Presidency. Because China is a major financial player in America’s mainstream media, I expect to see a lot of hit pieces on President Trump in the coming months. Those stories will be proven false after they have done their damage.

 

 

How Is The Plan Actually Working?

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On Monday, Fox News posted an article about California Governor Gavin Newsome’s plan to end homelessness in California.

The article reports:

As Newsom took over following the 2003 San Francisco mayoral election, the then-mayor-elect said that December he intended to “aggressively” make ending homelessness in his city his administration’s top priority.

The plan involved a 10-year strategy to end chronic homelessness with “tens of millions” of federal dollars in funding to create 550 “supportive housing” units for the troubled homeless, SFGate reported at the time.

Fast-forward to December of this year and the announcement of that strategy is now two decades old. San Francisco, along with the rest of California, is far from solving the problem.

In fact, the growing homeless population has become a central issue in California’s political debate.

“Twenty years ago, then-Mayor Newsom laid out his 10-year plan to end homelessness in San Francisco,” California GOP chairwoman Jessica Millan Patterson told Fox News Digital. “Not only does the problem remain unsolved today, but in the time since, he has taken his failures statewide, where communities across California are grappling with the devastating homeless crisis.”

The article notes:

Newsom was elected governor in 2018 and re-elected in 2022, with 2023 marking his fifth year in office.

Newsom took some heat earlier this year after San Francisco cleared out its homeless encampments ahead of Chinese President Xi Jinping’s summit with President Biden in the city.

“I know folks are saying, ‘Oh they’re just cleaning up this place because all those fancy leaders are coming to town,'” Newsom said at that time. “That’s true, because it’s true – but it’s also true for months and months and months before APEC [Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit], we’ve been having conversations.”

I don’t claim to have a solution to homelessness, but it is interesting that the streets of San Francisco could be cleaned up for a state visit.

Veterans Take Note!

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If you are a veteran, the Biden administration is not your friend. At least the Trump administration made some attempt to clean up the problems in the Veterans’ Administration (VA) health system. The Biden administration is working hard to make it worse.

On Friday, Fox News reported:

A long-standing arrangement between the Department of Veterans Affairs and Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to process claims for migrant medical care is drawing scrutiny from veterans’ advocates — who are concerned that it could affect the agency’s mission of caring for veterans — amid an ongoing border crisis and existing complaints about the care delivered to veterans.

“I’d like to understand why the VA is involved,” Russ Duerstine, executive director of Concerned Veterans for America and a veteran of the United States Air Force, told Fox News Digital.

When an illegal immigrant under ICE detention requires healthcare, they are typically treated on-site by medical professionals. However, if specialist or emergency care is required, they may be transported to an independent private provider.

In such cases, ICE contracts with the VA’s Financial Service Center (VA-FSC) to process reimbursements to those providers. According to a report from July, ICE has hundreds of letters of understanding in which ICE’s Health Service Corps (IHSC) will reimburse providers at Medicare rates. That uses the VA-FSC’s Healthcare Claims Processing System — a portal that allows providers to submit and view claims and access other resources.

The article notes that although the VA plays a role, it does not provide or fund any health care services to individuals detained in [ICE] custody. At no time are any VA health care professionals or VA funds used for this purpose. So why then is the VA even involved?

The article also notes:

Darin Selnick, who served as veterans’ affairs adviser on the Domestic Policy Council during the Trump administration and also as a senior adviser to the VA secretary, said the arrangement was also a surprise to him and others he knew who served during the administration. He believes it would have been stopped if it was more widely known among officials.

“In my position, we would have stopped this, because if the VA had the extra ability to do this, then they should have been doing it for the veterans and not for another agency,” he said.

Duerstine, of Concerned Veterans for America, said he would like to see Veterans’ Affairs committees in Congress take a deeper look into the VA’s role.