Congress must do more to stop China’s military-industrial spying on US campuses . . . Editorial. Beijing exploits America’s top research universities to boost the Chinese military-industrial complex, and it needs to stop. A new report from the Foundation for Defense of Democracies details how China-sponsored Confucius Institutes at campuses across America facilitate Beijing’s espionage. In particular, research partnerships with 28 universities (including Stanford, Tufts and Texas A&M) boost Beijing’s military apparatus, including intelligence, nuclear weapons and cyberespionage platforms. New York Post

 

Israel fails in its bid to draw US backing for direct action against a nuclear-armed Iran . . . Israel’s big guns missed their aim this week in their highly publicized bid to extract from the Biden administration some support for military action against Iran should diplomacy fail. Following the letdown of the intensive talks Defense Minister Benny Gantz and Mossad Director David Barnea conducted with US security officials, Foreign Minister Yair Lapid had a go with Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Friday, Dec 10. Any sort of sanctions relief, he argued, would offer Iran the gift of extra funding for its terrorist operations and missile development. This would in no time upset the balance of power in the region. Signifying that his argument was as ineffective as the points made by his colleagues to their US counterparts, a chastened Lapid said only that he had had “a good conversation” with the Secretary of State. This rounded off a pretty fruitless week for Israel’s drive for support for a proactive policy against Iran. DEBKAFile

 

Jill Biden more political opportunist than wife . . . Opinion. By Cheryl Chumley. President Joe Biden has a problem forming complete sentences, has a challenge walking without assistance, has a difficulty stringing together thoughts that seem cohesive in the light of verbal day, and that often leave the listener in various states of wonder and perplexity — and those are his good days.  But to his wife, Jill, that’s “ridiculous.” Her powers of denial are great. Unfortunately, they’re not great enough to blind the rest of the world to the obvious. In a recent interview  on “CBS Sunday Morning” in which she was asked to address concerns about her husband’s mental fitness and ability to lead, the first lady blithely dismissed, with a curt reply: “I think that’s ridiculous,” she said.
Only — it’s not.

 

Biden’s bumbling has become far too noticeable to disguise.
Here's what voters truly think. “Nearly Half of Voters Question Biden’s Mental Fitness, New Poll Finds,” National Review wrote just a few weeks ago. By the numbers, that Politico/Morning Consult survey found that 48 percent of voters expressed doubts about Biden’s mental capabilities. What’s more significant is that just a year earlier, almost two-thirds of voters believed Biden was mentally fit to lead. The more we see of Joe, the more we wonder: Is Joe really in there? Washington Times

 

Ukraine blames Germany for ‘blocking’ Nato weapons supply . . . Ukraine’s new defense minister has blamed Germany for blocking the supply of weaponry to Kyiv through Nato, despite US warnings of a possible imminent invasion by Russian forces. Oleksii Reznikov told the Financial Times that Berlin had in the past month vetoed Ukraine’s purchase of anti-drone rifles and anti-sniper systems via the Nato Support and Procurement Agency. However, Germany had since relented on the first item, after deeming it non-lethal. “They are still building the Nord Stream 2 pipeline and at the same time blocking our defensive weapons. It is very unfair,” Reznikov said, referring to the Russian gas pipeline that runs through the Baltic Sea to Germany and bypasses existing supply routes through Ukraine. Financial Times

 

G7 warns Russia of ‘massive consequences’ if it attacks Ukraine . . . Russia will face “massive consequences and severe cost” if it pursues further military aggression against Ukraine, foreign ministers from the G7 group of democratic powers warned Sunday. The G7 countries are united in their “condemnation of Russia’s military build-up and aggressive rhetoric towards Ukraine,” ministers said in a statement following two days of talks in the northern English city of Liverpool. “We call on Russia to de-escalate, pursue diplomatic channels, and abide by its international commitments on transparency of military activities,” reads the statement, on behalf of ministers from Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom and the United States. “Russia should be in no doubt that further military aggression against Ukraine would have massive consequences and severe cost in response.” The text does not clarify what such consequences could entail, but Western leaders have spoken about economic sanctions on Russia and increased defense assistance to Ukraine, rather than a direct military response. PoliticoEU

 

Opinion | Vladimir Putin Shouldn’t Be a Right-Wing Hero . . . No CPAC invitation will be in the offing anytime soon, but Vladimir Putin has picked up admirers on the populist right in the United States and abroad that he doesn’t deserve.
With Putin threatening to invade Ukraine, the Russian dictator will again become a top-of-mind concern for the United States. In recent years, there’s been a reversal in which Democrats who were consistently soft on Russia from the Cold War to Hillary Clinton’s attempted reset have become, at least rhetorically and in theory, much tougher-minded about Moscow, while elements of the American right that once were the fiercest Cold Warriors have warmed up to Russia as Putin has grounded his autocracy in religion and social conservatism. New York Post

 

4 States Call in National Guard to Deal With Health Care Staffing Crisis . . . At least four states in recent weeks have called in members of the National Guard to deal with health care staffing issues amid COVID-19 vaccine mandates for hospital and nursing home workers. Late last week, Indiana became the latest state to deploy the National Guard to hospitals. The Indiana Department of Health confirmed to local media that Guard members were sent to 13 facilities after officials with Indiana University Health, the state’s largest hospital system, made the request. Indiana University officials said it’s dealing with “all-time highs” of both COVID-19 and non-COVID-19 patients. Earlier this year, about 125 Indiana University health care workers were fired for not complying with the system’s vaccine mandate, although the hospital said at the time that most fired workers were part-time. Epoch Times

 

Harris announces new Central American investment as part of immigration effort . . . Pepsi, Cargill and several other companies will make new investments in Central America, Vice President Kamala Harris announced Monday, saying it was the latest success in her effort to try to create opportunities in those communities that might keep future would-be illegal immigrants at home. The seven new companies mark the second round of commitments Ms. Harris has touted as part of her “Call to Action” in Central America. She said some of the earlier commitments, announced in May, are already showing results, including Microsoft, which has “catalyzed” broadband access to 1.1. million people, and development of clean energy. Nespresso has also promised to spend $150 million between now and 2025, for the first time buying its coffee from Honduras and El Salvador. Washington Times

 

 

 

Evangelical ministry asks Supreme Court to hear defamation case against Southern Poverty Law Center . . . An evangelical Christian ministry is asking the Supreme Court to take up its 4-year-old defamation lawsuit against the Southern Poverty Law Center, arguing that the “actual malice” standard established in the court’s landmark New York Times v. Sullivan case should be tossed.
D. James Kennedy Ministries, the namesake of the late pastor of Coral Ridge Presbyterian Church in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, sued the SPLC in 2017 after the Birmingham, Alabama-based organization designated the media ministry as a “hate group.”
The ministry says it is far from a hate group and preaches biblical messages, including the tenet that marriage was created to be between a man and a woman. Washington Times

 

Overwhelming Number of Diversity Officers at US Colleges Hold Anti-Israel Views, Study Says . . . An overwhelming number of diversity, equity, and inclusion officers at American universities, who are ostensibly hired to create a welcoming space on campus, use social media to bash Israel and Jews, according to a study. Researchers reviewed the Twitter feeds of 741 diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) officials at 65 different U.S. universities to determine their attitudes on Israel and, for purposes of comparison, China. They found that DEI staff "tweeted, retweeted, or liked almost three times as many tweets about Israel as tweets about China." Of the tweets in question, 96 percent were critical of Israel, and 62 percent of the China-centered tweets were favorable. "The overwhelming pattern is that DEI staff at universities pay a disproportionately high amount of attention to Israel and nearly always attack Israel," the study concludes. The study, Inclusion Delusion: The Antisemitism of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Staff at Universities, was released this week by the Heritage Foundation Washington Free Beacon

 

Chris Wallace Announces Departure From Fox News, Will Go To CNN . . . Chris Wallace announced his departure from Fox News at the end of his show Sunday. “After 18 years – this is my final ‘Fox News Sunday,'” Wallace said at the end of his show. Daily Caller

 

Biden Sends Two Guys Holding Horse Reins To Help Defend Ukraine Border . . . As Russia prepares to invade Ukraine, President Biden has responded decisively by sending a couple guys from the Texas border to beat back the advancing forces.  "Putin, you're gonna be sorry," said Biden to a Russian nesting doll on his desk he mistook for Putin. "I'm sending my top two men—the horse whip guys—to stop you. Did you see what they did to those Dominicans? You're in for it buddy! I'll bet you're scared now!" 
The two Texas border guards were dropped into Ukrainian territory from a military aircraft along with their horses and legendary leather reins.  After international outcry that the horse whip guys were being too rough on the Russian soldiers, Biden opted instead to let the Russians in and give them $450,000 instead. Babylon Bee