Cut to the News
Cut through the clutter to today's top news
August 10, 2021
Good morning
Welcome to today's top news.
Leading the News . . .
A Silver Lining in the GOP Cloud . . . When you look at the result of midterm elections over the past three decades, you see significant “buyer’s remorse” in the composition of the House and Senate. In the 1994 elections, after Bill Clinton’s first two years in office, the House and Senate lurched hard right. Aside from a brief 2001-2002 interlude in the Senate after Jim Jeffords switched parties to give Democrats brief control, both chambers
remained in Republican control until George W. Bush’s second midterm elections in 2006 when they both flipped to Democrat majorities. Both chambers surged further left when Barack Obama was elected in 2008 but, after two years of seeing where the “anointed one” was taking us, they reversed course in the 2010 midterm elections. The House made a huge lurch back to Republican control. While the Senate also moved significantly right in 2010, it would take another four years before it too moved
back into Republican control.
As of the end of this July, Democrats control the House by a mere eight seats. The Senate is evenly split 50-50, leaving the vice president to cast the deciding vote in a dead lock. In other words, leftists are holding on by the skin of their teeth, and they know it.
If history is a harbinger of things to come, we can expect “buyer’s remorse” in the 2022 midterm elections. Both the House and Senate should lurch far into Republican majority territory. If that occurs, it will neuter the president and the progressive Left’s agenda. Patriot Post
Washington Post: Biden has no plan for stemming illegal immigration . . . Even the Washington Post understands that a massive crisis is underway at the U.S. border and President Biden is doing nothing about it. In an editorial, the liberal newspaper notes that Vice President Harris has only come up with an obvious long-term strategy that anyone could have thought of and that will do nothing to affect the current problem. According to
the Post: In its apparent desperation to fashion an immigration strategy that will impose order on increasingly out-of-control migration, the Biden administration has unleashed a torrent of words and goals untethered to specific policies and timetables. To date, on immigration, officials have effectively reversed and rolled back some of the Trump administration’s most pernicious policies, but without a clear road map to address the immediate crisis — a decades-high surge in illegal
border-crossing — or the long-term challenge driving migration: dysfunction, disorder and decay in Central America. White House Dossier
Democrats gamble on GOP caving in debt ceiling fight . . . Congress is barreling toward a high-stakes showdown over the nation's borrowing limit, with neither party ready to blink. Congressional leaders will soon need to find a way to pass legislation raising or suspending the debt ceiling, or risk a default that could have catastrophic ramifications for global financial markets. So far, they appear content to play a game of chicken
reminiscent of the 2011 standoff that resulted in the S&P taking the historic step of downgrading the U.S. credit rating.
One option for Democrats would be to try to raise the debt ceiling on their own as part of a $3.5 trillion spending package they will try to pass this year under budget rules that let them avoid the need for any GOP votes. Instead, they appear to be betting that Republicans will ultimately put up the votes to help raise the spending limit. The Hill
Independents cooling on Biden spells trouble for Democrats in 2022 . . . President Joe Biden is having a quiet week, but the decline in his popularity may be problematic for Democrats if it proves to be more than a summer slump. Biden's surprisingly steady approval ratings are starting to crater, though his disapproval numbers have consistently climbed during the first six months of his administration. That is a foreboding trend for
Democrats before the 2022 midterm elections when the party is clinging onto power with slim majorities in the House and Senate. Barely half of the country approves of Biden's job as president, his lowest average rating since his January inauguration, according to FiveThirtyEight. That number is down from a 55% high in March. While that may not be a dramatic drop, it means Biden is not infallible to the drumbeat of time or shifts in political currents. Washington Examiner
Progressives turn up heat on Biden over student loans . . . Progressives who have spent months pushing President Biden to cancel billions of dollars in student debt are now targeting the end of a federal pause on loan payments as a deadline for White House action. Biden on Friday extended a freeze on student loan bills until Jan. 31, but said it would be the last time the Education Department renewed a pause on payments that’s been in
place since the start of the coronavirus pandemic. While the president won praise from some Democrats, he also raised the odds of a fierce intraparty debate spilling over into an election year by pushing the student loan repayment cliff into 2022. The Hill
Second Federal Court Blocks Biden Mandate Requiring Doctors To Perform Trans Surgeries Against Conscience . . . A federal court has blocked President Joe Biden’s mandate that would require doctors to perform transgender surgeries against their consciences. Judge Reed O’Connor of the United States District Court for the Northern District of Texas, Wichita Falls Division, granted “a permanent injunction” to the Christian plaintiffs “to be
exempt from the government’s requirement to perform abortions and gender-transition procedures.” “Today’s ruling protects patients, aligns with current medical research, and ensures doctors aren’t forced to violate their religious beliefs and medical judgment–a victory for common-sense, conscience, and sound medicine,” vice president and senior counsel at Becket Fund for Religious Liberty Luke Goodrich said Monday. The plaintiffs are a religious hospital and a group of over 20,000
healthcare professionals, Daily Caller
Biden under fire for disintegration of Afghan forces . . . The rapid disintegration of Afghanistan has sparked a blame game across Washington and throughout the world as a series of stunning Taliban victories have left the U.S.-backed government in Kabul reeling and the Biden administration scrambling to stop the bleeding. Insurgent Taliban fighters on Monday claimed their sixth provincial capital in Afghanistan, capping a whirlwind
weekend offensive in which the group overran government forces in strategically vital regions and led to a warning to Americans from the U.S. Embassy in Kabul to get out of the country as soon as possible. White House Dossier
Did Biden's "experts" really expect the Taliban to negotiate with them?
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Where are the illegal immigrants going? . . . Watching television coverage of people crossing the border illegally at our southern border, I began to wonder: Where are they going? I was shocked to learn that the Biden administration refuses to tell the states and cities how many people they are sending – and who they are sending. Apparently, immigrants just get put on airplanes, buses, and trains and go off into America. We are
learning that a substantial number of the people who have crossed the border illegally have COVID-19. McAllen, Texas, had to declare a state of emergency when 7,000 infected immigrants arrived there. So, the Biden government could send people with COVID-19 to your neighborhood and then refuses to tell you that it has put you at risk. By Newt Gingrich. ANALYSIS/OPINION. Washington Times
As Violent Crime Rises Across Country, DCCC Chairman Backs Anti-Police Policies . . . House Democrats are heading into the 2022 election cycle with a campaign chairman who has a long track record of backing the left-wing policies that experts blame for the rise in crime across the country. Rep. Sean Patrick Maloney (N.Y.), who has chaired the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC) since January, has a record of backing
progressive policies such as an end to cash bail. He also staffs his office with anti-police activists. In cities across America, violent crime rates are more than doubling. Last year, murder rose by 65 percent in Chicago, 58 percent in New York, 87 percent in Louisville, and 64 percent in Minneapolis. Republicans are putting Democrats' support for soft-on-crime policies and defunding the police center stage as they seek to gain control of both houses of Congress in 15 months. Free Beacon
Military academies stonewall demands for transparency of CRT curriculum . . . Watchdog organizations say the Department of Defense is ignoring calls for transparency into critical race theory curriculum at the nation’s service academies.
The Washington-based Judicial Watch has filed a lawsuit seeking information about CRT instruction at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, following up on a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request in April for records and contracts related to “diversity, equity, inclusion, and equity training” at the storied academy.
Judicial Watch filed suit after the FOIA request went unanswered. Federal agencies must respond to a FOIA request within 20 business days unless there are “unusual circumstances.” “Under the law, they’re not being forthcoming,” Mr. Fitton said. “Some of it is the bureaucracy. And the other factor that one can presume is that they don’t want the information to be released for political and other reasons.” Washington Times
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Watch: French Police Check COVID Passports, the Reactions Are More Disturbing. . . They want this to happen here. You know Democrats, Biden, Anthony Fauci, and the CDC want to have a similar system as they have in France regarding COVID. The CDC especially since they’re now some secret government body after the illegal extension of the eviction moratorium. They dictate all policy now, or so it seems. Joe Biden just shrugs and nods his head at
whatever they tell him. But a video from Paris shows French police going up to ordinary folks who are just eating and drinking at cafes to check if they’re supposed to be there. Do they have their COVID passports? The policy went into full effect recently and the video captures these French citizens being totally okay with it, which is the most disturbing part. Townhall
Viktor Orbán and the Defense of the Nation . . . Commentary. By Roger Kimball. from my tiny corner of the Twittersphere I offer up a gem by the angry NeverTrumper Anne Applebaum. Responding to a Tweet noting that Tucker Carlson was broadcasting from Hungary, that, in fact, he had just interviewed the Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, Applebaum issued this day-brightener: “In Orban’s Hungary, +90% of media is controlled by
the ruling party. Businesses are physically and legally harassed if they don’t toe the party line (or if someone wants them, cheap). Elections are manipulated. Party leaders are mysteriously rich. A model for Fox?” The inadvertent humor was not lost on her readers. Arthur Schwartz asked the critical question: “Who wants to tell her?”
Tell her, that is to say, that the media in this country, like Ivory Soap, is “99.44 %” pure, i.e., owned lock-stock-and-barrel by the regime party, consisting of the Democrats, testosterone-free Republicans, and whatever glandular configuration NeverTrump acolytes like Anne Applebaum, Max Boot, Bill Kristol, Gabriel Schoenfeld, Charles Sykes, and their brethren represent.
In a Chyron accompanying his interview with Viktor Orbán, Tucker Carlson advised his listeners “You should know what is happening here in Hungary.” Indeed. I recommend the interview. It is a breath of fresh air, a thoughtful and intelligent alternative to the usual
pabulum on offer from the public relations department of the Democratic Party, aka the mainstream media. Orbán, like the Brazilian leader Jair Bolsonaro, and indeed like Donald Trump himself, are always being derided as “authoritarian,” “fascistic” leaders by the very people who embrace the authoritarianism of the reigning consensus. Epoch Times
The Orban issue is not simple. Listening to the interview is important. But context is everything.
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Pfizer Is Lobbying The Government For Third Vaccine Doses, And It Could Make Them Billions . . . Pfizer has helped pave the path for Americans to get a third booster dose of its mRNA COVID-19 vaccine, and the company stands to rake in billions in additional profit if the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approves a third dose. Daily Caller
Pentagon to require COVID-19 vaccine for military by mid-September . . . The Pentagon will require members of the US military to receive a COVID-19 vaccine by mid-September, according to a memo Monday. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said in the missive, which was expected to be sent to troops Monday, that the vaccine requirement will be implemented by Sept. 15 at the latest. The edict affects active-duty members. “I will seek
the president’s approval to make the vaccines mandatory no later than mid-September, or immediately upon [full approval of the vaccine by the Food and Drug Administration], whichever comes first,” Austin wrote. NYP
The superspreader event was supposedly scaled back. David Letterman, Conan O’Brien and former Obama aide David Axelrod and Nancy Pelosi were among those reported disinvited. But it looks like plenty of people still made the cut. So instead of a superspreader event, it was just a “spreader” event.
Disparate impact: Black Americans to bear brunt of burden from vaccine passports . . . Black Americans look to be the biggest potential losers if "vaccine passports" are implemented on a wide scale, a possibility that looks more likely amid rising fears of the SARS-Cov-2 "Delta variant." New York City this week became among the first municipalities in the country to make vaccination mandatory for both employees and patrons at public
venues like restaurants and fitness centers. New York City Mayor Bill De Blasio called the measure "crucial," claiming that it will "encourage a lot more vaccinations." The rule will likely have an outsized effect on black New York City residents, insofar as vaccination rates among black Americans overall have consistently lagged behind those of other demographic groups. Just the News
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Wall Street bonuses to be bumped by as much as 35% this year . . . Wall Street’s bankers are on track to pocket some serious bonus checks this year as revenues soar and firms up the ante to retain talent. Wall Street’s legions of financiers, analysts and dealmakers — many of whom have already benefited from recent pay increases — can now expect double-digit bumps to their year-end bonuses, according to newly released data from
compensation consulting firm Johnson Associates. Bonuses for 2021 will be higher by as much as 35 percent in some cases with the biggest boost going to investment banking underwriters amid a surge in multi-billion-dollar deals, like Discovery and NBCUniversal, the data shows. NYP
Subway franchisees are fed up with Megan Rapinoe’s TV ads . . . Megan Rapinoe kicked up another round of controversy at the Tokyo Olympics — and now a group of Subway franchisees are pressuring the fast-food giant to give her the boot. The 36-year-old, purple-haired soccer star — who kneeled during the National Anthem to kick off the Tokyo Olympics before leading the United States to a bronze medal this week — began a stint as a
pitchwoman for the fast-food giant this spring. In one spot, Rapinoe — who has been a vocal proponent of equal rights and equal pay for women — knocks a burrito out of a guy’s hands by kicking a soccer ball at him. Late last month on a discussion forum hosted by the North American Association of Subway Franchisees, a Wisconsin store operator posted a picture of a hand-scrawled note from an irate customer taped to the front door of his shop. "Boycott Subway until Subway fires the
anti-American … Megan Rapinoe, the creep who kneels for our beloved National Anthem!" the note read. Fox Business
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A Pediatric Association Stifles Debate on Gender Dysphoria . . . Is it safe for adolescents to undergo gender “transition”? Is it wise for children to take hormones that block puberty? The American Academy of Pediatrics not only has answered these questions in the affirmative but is determined to stifle any debate. On Friday the AAP told an international consortium of more than 100 clinicians and researchers who doubt the
reigning orthodoxy that they couldn’t set up an information booth at the association’s national conference. The cosmetics company L’Oreal and the National Peanut Board will be there, but not the Society for Evidence-Based Gender Medicine. SEGM’s members object to the widespread use of “affirmative care” protocols, which mandate that adolescent and even pediatric patients who claim to have gender dysphoria—severe discomfort with their biological sex—receive immediate “affirmation” from their
physicians. These young people are then frequently encouraged along a path of rapid “transition” via hormone treatments and surgery. WSJ
Religious Victory: Judge Blocks Mandate Requiring Doctors to Perform Gender Reassignment Surgery . . . A federal court in Texas blocked a transgender mandate from President Joe Biden that would require doctors to go against their religious beliefs and perform gender transition surgeries. Judge Reed O’Connor granted a permanent injunction and said that the doctors are "to be exempt from the government’s requirement to perform abortions and
gender-transition procedures." "Today’s ruling is a victory for compassion, conscience, and common sense," said Luke Goodrich, vice president and senior counsel at Becket Fund for Religious Liberty. "No doctor should be forced to perform controversial, medically unsupported procedures that are contrary to their conscience and could be deeply harmful to their patients." Townhall
Why are some Teslas crashing on this same road? . . . Tesla’s Autopilot and Full Self Driving (FSD) features have come under increasing scrutiny recently, as some crashes appear to involve these automotive features. Now, one driver is pointing out that a series of incidents have happened on one road in Yosemite Valley, California. A user on Reddit who goes by the name BBFLG shared his story driving his Model X in hopes that Tesla would
improve its technology. "Hands on wheel, eyes on road, vehicle just wanted to keep going straight. It barely followed the curve at the last minute and even with hands on the wheel, there was no way I could stop or turn as it entered a gravel-covered area.” The user also said that his car mistook the moon for a yellow light. In the same post, the user shared that rangers in the area reported at least five crashes, including his own, on the same spot on Northside Drive. The
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) opened 27 investigations in March into car accidents involving Tesla vehicles. The majority of the investigations appear to involve the Autopilot — or advanced driver-assistance system — feature. The Hill
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Trump couture: Ex-president unveils new version of MAGA hat he ‘just designed’ . . . Does Donald Trump have more time on his hands than we thought? In a fundraising email to supporters over the weekend, the former president announced a new version of the trademark red “Make America Great Again” hats and claimed he had “just designed” the new offering. “I just designed our BRAND NEW MAGA Hat and I want YOU to have it,” the email
teased would-be donors to Trump’s Save America PAC. “You’ve always been one of my most LOYAL supporters, so I don’t want you to have just ANY hat… I want YOU to have the MAGA Hat that I personally HAND-SIGNED for YOU.”
The email included an image of the red hat with white “MAGA” lettering and gold trim, as well as options to donate $25, $50, $100, or $250. “Our movement isn’t slowing down, in fact, it’s only speeding up,” the email concluded. “That’s why I wanted to design a NEW HAT for all of our best supporters.” For those content with an unsigned version of the hat, the chapeau is available for $40 on the Save America website. New York Post
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Rebekah Koffler
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