Cut to the News
Cut through the clutter to today's top news
May 19, 2021
Good morning
Welcome to today's top news. Sorry, running a bit late today. Had to recover a bit from yesterday's second shot.
Leading the News . . .
Did Covid Come From the Lab? Mike Pompeo says Yes . . . Did the Covid-19 virus come from a lab in Wuhan, China? To ask that question in public was, until recently, to out yourself as a person wearing a tinfoil hat. It was nothing more than a far-right crackpot conspiracy theory, “disinformation” that could get you banned from Twitter, YouTube and Facebook all at once, the kind of thing you only dared discuss in
private. Yesterday I asked that question of former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo. His answer: Yes. He told me he’s believed that it’s come from a lab for “some time” and lays out the evidence. (Evidence, he says, that has troubling implications for Dr. Fauci.) Why does this matter? Because we want to prevent it from happening again. Common Sense with Bari Weiss
Listen to the interview. Like Candace Owens and a couple other brave ladies in the business, Bari Weiss speaks the truth.
Chernobyl is showing signs of a possible new nuclear accident, scientists say . . . Nuclear reactions are smoldering again. Scientists are warning that and another explosion could occur in Chernobyl due to the spike in neutron numbers in an underground room called 305/2. The numbers may indicate that new fission reactions are taking place, and there’s a possibility the smoldering nuclear reaction — in a room that’s
currently unreachable — could lead to an explosion. The Chernobyl disaster was a nuclear accident near the No. 4 reactor in the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant, close to the city of Pripyat in the north of the Ukrainian SSR. The April 26, 1986 disaster is considered the worst nuclear disaster in history for the amount of money it cost and the number of lives lost. The Chernobyl disaster is one of two energy-related accidents that were rated a level 7, the maximum. The Hill
Both of these incidents should've been prevented. If only our national security "experts" did their jobs of providing 'strategic warning,' i.e. alerting policy-makers to the emergence of critical threats to our country. 'Strategic warning' aims to prevent 'strategic surprise,' such as COVID-19 pandemic, nuclear disasters, or an impending crisis or war. It is the primary mission of intelligence, which is, tragically, overlooked by the IC,
in favor of relentless pursuit of tactical "bright and shiny objects."
Biden plan to expand welfare as we know it . . . President Joe Biden has claimed some turf in his battle to leave behind a legacy rivaling former Democratic Presidents Franklin Roosevelt and Lyndon Johnson, but his plans to convert pandemic-era programs into permanent ones face hurdles on Capitol Hill. As top officials are busy touting his overhaul of the Child Tax Credit, which goes into effect this summer, the president who wants
to be seen as transformative as the 32nd and 36th chief executives is plowing ahead with an intention to convert pricey emergency COVID-19 programs into permanent federal benefits. There is just one problem: the evenly divided Senate. Washington Examiner
Biden lavishly praises Rashida Tlaib after heated discussion, probably about Israel . . . Look in the video how Democratic Rep. Rashida Tlaib of Michigan, a Palestinian-American, is lying in wait for him as he lands in Detroit. Afterward, Biden laid it on thick:
And Rashid Tlaib. Where is she? I tell you what, Rashid, I want to say to you that I admire your intellect, I admire your passion, and I admire your concern for so many other people. And it’s mine from my heart. I pray that your grandmama family are well, I promise to do everything you see that they are in the West Bank. You’re a fighter. And God, thank you for being a fighter. White House Dossier
Radicals.
House Passes COVID-19 Hate Crimes Act, Signature Away From Becoming Law . . . The House of Representatives overwhelmingly passed the COVID-19 Hate Crimes Act Tuesday, clearing Congress with bipartisan support. The bill, which was introduced by New York Democratic Rep. Grace Meng and Hawaii Democratic Sen. Mazie Hirono, passed 364 to 62, above the two-thirds majority required. It passed the Senate 92-6 in April, and now heads to President
Joe Biden’s desk to be signed into law. Daily Caller
Overdue conversation about black-on-Asian violence . . .
Political leaders, activists, and the media have widely attributed the rise in hate crimes to former President Donald Trump's controversial use of the terms "China virus" or "kung flu." History, however, presents inconveniences that cannot be ignored. Before the pandemic and before Trump’s presidency, anti-Asian violence had existed in major urban locales. It looked disturbingly like today’s attacks. Local leaders of these deep-blue areas used to bend over backward to deny any possibility
of a racial motive. National leaders used to pay no attention. Horrendous crimes against Asians have now become commonplace in major urban centers: San Francisco, Oakland, Los Angeles, New York, and Seattle. The culprits not white. A survey conducted by the San Francisco Police Department in 2008 revealed that 85% of the city’s violent crimes were black-on-Asian, a figure officials in this notoriously liberal city confronted with "squeamishness." Washington Examiner
McCarthy opposes Jan. 6 commission over failure to examine leftist violence . . . Democrats were silent and even supportive for months while violence raged in America’s cities last year. But the riot in the Capitol made them suddenly concerned with domestic extremism. According to The Hill: House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) on Tuesday said he will not support bipartisan legislation for the 9/11-style commission to probe
the Jan. 6 Capitol riot. White House Dossier
New York AG Probe of Trump Organization Now a Criminal Investigation . . . The New York attorney general’s office’s investigation of former President Donald Trump’s business now has a criminal component, a spokesman said Tuesday night, joining the Manhattan district attorney’s office probe and expanding a monthslong inquiry that until now had been focused on civil fraud.
“We have informed the Trump Organization that our investigation into the organization is no longer purely civil in nature,” said Fabien Levy, a spokesman for the attorney general’s office. “We are now actively investigating the Trump Organization in a criminal capacity, along with the Manhattan DA.” Wall Street Journal
Coalition of 19 States’ AGs Urge Biden to Reinstate Keystone After Mass Gas Shortages Caused by Cyberattack . . . 19 states urged President Joe Biden to reinstate the Keystone XL pipeline and reverse his energy policies because of the recent gas shortages. Gas shortages along the East Coast caused by a cyberattack on the Colonial Pipeline prove the need for reliable gas pipelines in the U.S., the 19-state coalition of
attorneys general led by Montana Attorney General Austin Knudsen wrote in a letter to Biden on Monday. The U.S. needs better energy infrastructure if the shutdown of one pipeline leads to such extreme spikes in prices and lines at gas stations, the state attorneys general said. Daily Signal
Dem Mayor will grant interviews to 'Black or Brown journalists' only . . . Reporters out of Chicago are alleging that Democratic Mayor Lori Lightfoot is now granting interviews only to journalists of color. NBC 5 Chicago political reporter Mary Ann Ahern took to Twitter on Tuesday to mark the "midway point" of Lightfoot's first term in office and apparently acknowledged her failed effort to land an interview. "As @chicagosmayor
reaches her two year midway point as mayor, her spokeswoman says Lightfoot is granting 1 on 1 interviews - only to Black or Brown journalists," Ahern tweeted. Fox News
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Ex-Space Force commander: DOD videos claimed white people are ‘inherently evil’ . . . A recently relieved Space Force commander claimed Monday night that the Pentagon sent a service members a video that claimed that America and white people were “evil.” Lt. Col. Matthew Lohmeier told Fox News’ “Hannity” that the videos “were sent out to every base [and] servicemember” and “we were asked to watch [them] in preparation for our extremism
down days and discussions on race.” Those videos, Lohmeier added, “taught that the country was evil, that it was founded in 1619 and not 1776, and that whites are inherently evil.” In early February, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin ordered a military-wide stand down in an effort to tackle domestic extremism in the ranks following the Jan. 6 riot at the U.S. Capitol. New York Post
Watch for he nomenklatura to throw him out, not only out of the Space Force, but out of the military. (I incorrectly stated in a previous post that Col. Lohmeier was ousted from the military rather than the Space Force).
Colonial Pipeline Russian hacker Darkside reaped $90M from 47 victims . . . The Russian ransomware group responsible for the Colonial Pipeline hack, Darkside, reaped just over $90 million in Bitcoin ransom payments from 47 victims before announcing it would cease operations, according to blockchain analytics firm Elliptic. Approximately 47% of victims paid a ransom to Darkside, with an average payment of about $1.9 million. The firm added
that Darkside was on track for a record month for ransom payments in May before deciding to shut down operations. Fox Business
Colonial Pipeline’s Computer Network Temporarily Goes Dark, Again . . . The Colonial Pipeline’s computer network that enables oil refiners and clients to reserve space and observe the status of fuel traveling through the pipeline experienced an outage Tuesday. Although fuel shipments quickly proceeded as normal, Colonial Pipeline executives tried to quell any concerns about another gas shortage. Colonial said the most recent network
outage was “not related to the ransomware or any type of reinfection. Daily Caller
Biden Makes 'Stunning' Move to Waive Sanctions On Putin’s Pet Pipeline Project . . . The Biden administration will waive sanctions against a company building the Nord Stream 2 pipeline, a move that will likely allow completion of a project that the Russian government is using to increase its influence in Europe. Biden administration is waiving sanctions against Nord Stream 2 AG and its CEO, Matthias Warnig. Nord Stream 2 is a German
company controlled by Gazprom, the Russian state-controlled oil giant. Warnig is a former East German intelligence officer said to be close to Russian president Vladimir Putin. In March, Secretary of State Antony Blinken called the pipeline "a Russian geopolitical project intended to divide Europe and weaken European energy security." He said the pipeline was a "bad deal" for Europe and that the Biden administration was "committed to complying" with bipartisan legislation to impose
sanctions. Washington Free Beacon
Biden's best gift to Russia yet. Sleepy Joe barks at Putin but instead of biting, he rolls over and wags his tail. Joe completely has eroded his negotiating leverage with Putin, ahead of the meeting.
Antony Blinken and Sergey Lavrov to 'test the proposition' of more stable US-Russia relations . . . Secretary of State Antony Blinken’s trip to Iceland for a convocation of the Arctic Council will end with a private meeting with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov for a conversation that could set the table for a presidential-level meeting this summer. “The bilateral meeting . . . will provide an opportunity to test the proposition of
whether we can achieve a relationship with Moscow that is more stable and predictable,” State Department spokesman Ned Price said in a Tuesday evening statement. It will be the first in-person meeting between the two men in Blinken’s tenure as top diplomat, just weeks ahead of an expected encounter between President Joe Biden and Russian President Vladimir Putin. Washington Examiner
'Stable and predictable' is out-of-the-question as Russia's strategic ambitions and security doctrine are on a direct collision course with US foreign policy in Eurasia, risking a kinetic conflict that could escalate into a nuclear war. Aim for a transactional relationship.
Pentagon reportedly running secret army of 60,000 around the world . . . The Pentagon is running a 60,000-strong secret army made up of soldiers, civilians and contractors, who travel the world under false identities embedded in consultancies and name-brand companies — without the knowledge of the American people or most of Congress. The top-secret army was created by the Pentagon over the past 10 years as part of a program called
“signature reduction,” and operates both domestically and internationally using a low-profile force of clandestine warriors who sometimes wear civilian clothes as they carry out their assignments. The force is 10 times the size of the covert elements of the CIA, comes with a cost of more than $900 million, and engages about 130 private companies in operations in locales like the Middle East and Africa, the report said New York Post
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Covid-19 Shots for Teens Can Hit Legal Snags and Parental Pushback . . . A 16-year-old in South Carolina can get a Covid-19 vaccine without a parent’s permission. A 17-year-old in New York can’t. In Oregon, anyone 15 or older can, but not if a pharmacist is the one giving a shot. With children aged 12 to 15 newly able to receive a Covid-19 vaccine, the patchwork of state laws that govern whether minors can receive the shots without their
parents’ permission brings a new wrinkle to inoculation efforts. And vaccine providers—from family doctors to drugstores—are sorting out how to navigate situations in which children want the shot but their parents say no. “I was just on a call with doctors from other states and people were, like, ‘Maybe we do, maybe we don’t’ ” require parental consent for various ages, said Dr. Elizabeth Mack, a pediatric critical-care physician who is vice president of the South Carolina chapter of the
American Academy of Pediatrics. Wall Street Journal
COVID ground zero? Wuhan lab-leak theory and the Fauci connection . . . The Wuhan Institute of Virology lab has been a focus of suspicion since the earliest days of the COVID-19 crisis, primarily because it's a high-level coronavirus research lab that sits just a few miles from where the Chinese government said the first known outbreak of the disease occurred in an outdoor wet market. The seemingly improbable coincidence has led to
suspicions that a risky coronavirus experiment may have been the source of an accidental leak of the virus from the lab into, first, Wuhan itself, then the wider world. Leaders from across the globe are calling for a thorough investigation into the lab's experiments, its security protocols and its internal records. Here's what is known about the Wuhan Institute of Virology so far. Just the News
House Republicans stage rebellion over mask rules . . . GOP members are challenging Speaker Nancy Pelosi over mask rules in light of the CDC guidance released last week. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) snapped a selfie with a few other maskless members and posted it to social media. Taking pictures on the House floor is against longstanding rules due to security concerns. At one point, Rep. Robin Kelly (D-Ill.) came over and
confronted the rebellious crew and asked them to be more respectful of other members and staff. Politico
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Israel Says It Is Assessing Possible Cease-Fire With Hamas . . . Israel is assessing the conditions for a cease-fire, a senior Israeli military official said Wednesday, after an intense 10-day air and artillery campaign against Hamas in Gaza met a growing chorus of calls for a halt to the deadly conflict. “We are now assessing whether the achievements are enough to bring the message to Hamas,” the official said. “We can
go more days, more weeks…we have a very good bank of targets.” The official said Israel wants to see an agreement to end fighting which includes international pressure on Hamas to address its ability to build up its forces and the return of the bodies of two soldiers who went missing in the 2014 war. Wall
Street Journal
Israel's Gantz tells US defense chief IDF Gaza operation will continue . . . Defense Minister of Israel Benny Gantz on Tuesday updated US defense chief Lloyd Austin on the sate of combat in the Gaza conflict. He said: that Operation Guardian of the Walls would continue until Hamas was “deterred for the long term” and “long-term quiet is achieved.” He pointed out that Hamas continues to fire rockets at civilian
populations. Israel handed over to the Biden administration classified intelligence revealing Hamas’s clandestine operations in the tower building that Israel bombed last week. AP and Al Jazeera staffs left the building after they were warned by Israel that it was about to collapse. DEBKAfile
BLM 'stands in solidarity' with Palestinians, vows to fight for 'Palestinian liberation' . . . The leading Black Lives Matter organization declared "solidarity with Palestinians" Monday, a week after Hamas terrorists in Gaza began firing a relentless barrage of rockets into Israel, indiscriminately shelling civilian targets as well as dropping some missiles short and blowing up buildings within its territory. "Black Lives Matter
stands in solidarity with Palestinians," the group tweeted. "We are a movement committed to ending settler colonialism in all forms and will continue to advocate for Palestinian liberation. ( always have. And always will be ). #freepalestine." The announcement prompted a "thank you" tweet from the controversial Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement, or BDS, which has for years called for an economic embargo of Israel. Fox News
Take those BLM yard signs down. Now is a good time.
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Nepotism running rampant in the Biden administration . . . Donald Trump of course was accused of nepotism for having Ivanka and Jared around. But Jared ended up brokering peace between Israel and several of its neighbors, which was not a bad day’s work. While less pronounced than under Trump, nepotism is coursing through the Biden administration too.Is there a little work Hunter can do? He’s an expert in energy stuff, apparently. The
White House onboarded Julia Reed last week as Biden’s day scheduler after she helped the campaign stage events as an advance aide. The former Chicago-based middle school teacher and Teach for America alumna is the daughter of Bruce Reed, Biden’s deputy chief of staff and former President Bill Clinton’s top domestic policy adviser. White
House Dossier
NYC suspects accused of stealing $2M in COVID relief, flaunting cash online . . . A group of eight young Brooklyn men ripped off $2 million in COVID-19 relief funds by submitting fraudulent unemployment claims — and then stupidly posted pictures of themselves with their ill-gotten cash, prosecutors said on Tuesday. Six of the eight defendants — ranging in age from 18 to 25 — were charged in Brooklyn federal court, documents show.
Two of the suspects — Armani Miller, 24, and Johan Santos, 19 — are still at large. Four of the alleged thieves foolishly flaunted their fortunes on social media, posting pictures of themselves with large piles of cash, according to the court documents. New York Post
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SCOTUS Takes Up Long-Awaited Abortion Case . . . The U.S. Supreme Court will take up a case regarding life in the womb and the ruling promises to have signifiant ramifications for abortion and perhaps even the deadly legacy of two of the worst rulings the Court has ever handed down, Roe v. Wade and Planned Parenthood v. Casey. The Court’s current 6-3 conservative majority has pro-life proponents guardedly optimistic for a
favorable decision, expected sometime in the spring of 2022. The case in question is Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, which raises the question of the constitutionality of states implementing laws that ban abortions after a preborn baby reaches a certain stage of gestational development. This is the basis for the “heartbeat bills” that have been recently passed in several states. Patriot Post
Ben Shapiro, conservative pundits face investigations for satirical union tweets . . . Conservatives are learning the hard way that joking about union organizing is no laughing matter. Commentator Ben Shapiro’s tongue-in-cheek tweet last year about striking employees spurred a federal complaint that touched off a seven-month investigation by the National Labor Relations Board, which ultimately dismissed the matter in a decision announced
Monday. What was the tweet? Referring to Spotify staffers threatening to strike over comedian Joe Rogan’s show, Shapiro, founder of The Daily Wire, tweeted, “I have a message for DW employees. If you ever try anything like this, you can consider your strike permanent.” Washington Times
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Eight Warning Signs You Might Be Sharing Office Space With Terrorists . . . It's all too common in corporate America: you're hanging out by the water cooler and you suddenly think to yourself, "Hey, wait a minute -- is that guy over there with the AK-47 part of a violent insurgent group internationally recognized as terrorists? I think he just might be!" Yep -- accidentally sharing office space with terrorists is a real
problem. Make sure your building doesn't get leveled by a retaliatory airstrike by checking your office space for these eight signs that you might be sharing the building with terrorists:
1. You notice suicide vests hanging on the coat rack. - This could be a hint.
2. The tenants upstairs are constantly disrupting things with their loud footsteps and their rocket launches off the roof. - Upstairs tenants are the worst!
3. You hear cries of "ALLAHU AKBAR!" whenever someone empties the coffee pot and doesn't bother to make another batch. - Accompanied by firing an AK-47 into the air.
4. The office Christmas party gets awkward when the other tenants bring IEDs for the gift exchange. - This could get weird!
5. They only play CNN in the lobby. - The surest sign something is up. Read the rest of the signs in Babylon Bee
I just love those guys at Babylon Bee. Brightens your day with some laughter.
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Rebekah Koffler
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