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Author: adler

  • FEC Complaint Filed Over Squad Member Cori Bush’s Private Security Payments to Husband

    FEC Complaint Filed Over Squad Member Cori Bush’s Private Security Payments to Husband

    Marxist Rep. Cori Bush (D-MO) is one of the newer members of the America-hating Democrat Squad serving in Congress.
    Bush made a name for herself during the Ferguson riots when leftist protesters looted and burned down the Ferguson business district not once but twice in 2014.
    Bush also pushed the Democrat Party’s Defund the Police campaign but pays $200,000 a year for her own personal security.
    The Foundation for Accountability and Civic Trust (FACT), a government watchdog group, has filed a complaint with the Federal Election Commission (FEC) to investigate campaign payments of $62,359 from Bush to her husband Cortney Merritts for security services.
    Bush and Merritts recently married but have been together since before Bush took office. It appears that Merritts was added to her campaign’s payroll after the start of their relationship.
    On their website, FACT shares, “We are dedicated to exposing unethical behavior and making sure it receives the attention it deserves. From completing a thorough investigation to employing an aggressive television, print, and social media strategy, FACT will not simply hope the truth comes out—we will ensure it does. The mission of FACT is simple:  To strengthen our republic by demanding the truth.”
    The complaint reads: 

    Payments that are not for bonafide services at fair market value could fall under one of two prohibited categories—“payments to family members” or “gifts”. Candidates may not use campaign funds for personal use. “Personal use means any use of funds in a campaign account of a present or former candidate to fulfill a commitment, obligation or expense of any person that would exist irrespective of the candidate’s campaign or duties as a Federal officeholder.” Personal use includes: “Salary payments to a member of the candidate’s family, unless the family member is providing bona fide services to the campaign. If a family member provides bona fide services to the campaign, any salary payment in excess of the fair market value of the services provided is personal use.” Personal use also includes “gifts” greater than a “nominal value . . .made on a special occasion.”

    During 2022, Bush’s campaign paid $571,856 for security services. Those payments  included $225,281 to PEACE Security, $62,359 to Cortney Merritts, and $50,000 to Nathaniel Davis. The payments to Merritts were bi-monthly in the amount of $2,500. However, reportedly Merritts does not have a St. Louis private security license, which is needed to perform security services in the area that encompasses Bush’s entire district, nor does he appear within the government database of licensed security professionals in the Washington D.C. area. It was recently revealed that Bush has had a personal relationship with Merritts since before she took office in 2021 and they were married in February 2023.

    At issue is this case is whether the payments made to Merritts were for a bona fide service and at a fair market rate, and if not then they would be either a impermissible gift or a  payment to a family member. When a campaign negotiates salary payments with an unrelated  party, both sides negotiate for their best interest and generally fair market value is naturally reached and paid for a service the campaign needs. However, when the campaign hires someone with whom the candidate has a close personal relationship, there may be favoritism or an incentive for the campaign to pay for services that are not necessary or pay above the fair market value for those services. These types of payments are subjected to more scrutiny, especially when other factors present indicate the payments were not for bona fide services at fair market value. In this case Bush and Merritts clearly had a close relationship that resulted in marriage and there are other factors present, namely that (1) the payments were regularly made at the same time the campaign was apparently paying a security company for the exact same services and (2) the  payee did not have a license to perform the services for which he was being paid.

    Based on the facts above, it appears Rep. Bush’s campaign may have made payments for services that were unnecessary or above fair market value because of her personal relationship with the payee. If so, these payments would qualify as either impermissible payments to a family member or an impermissible gift. Therefore, we request the FEC investigate whether Rep. Bush converted campaign funds for personal use by paying a salary that was not for bona fide services at fair market value. Ultimately, if one or more campaign laws are found to have been broken, we request the FEC hold the respondents accountable.

    The full complaint can be read below.

    Cori Bush FEC complaint by JoeSchoffstall
     
    The post FEC Complaint Filed Over Squad Member Cori Bush’s Private Security Payments to Husband appeared first on The Gateway Pundit.

  • Pentagon Inspector General: Joe Biden is Hiding Classified Documents Detailing Side Deals He Made with Taliban and Against US Troops

    Pentagon Inspector General: Joe Biden is Hiding Classified Documents Detailing Side Deals He Made with Taliban and Against US Troops

    Taliban fighters with US weapons in 2021.
    A report from Fox News back in 2021 highlighted the scope of the crisis unfolding in Afghanistan as the Taliban took control of 75,000 US vehicles, 200 US aircraft, 600,000 US weapons, and $85 billion in military funding.

    This is like Obama’s Fast and Furious gun-running scandal on steroids.
    Today the Taliban is patrolling the streets of Kabul in US humvees.

    Taliban Humvees now patroling the Kabul city. #Afghanistan pic.twitter.com/OafpsEWVpH
    — FJ (@Natsecjeff) August 15, 2021

    The big story might be the pallets of cash the Taliban have been posting videos of pallets of weapons and stacks of $100 bills they have seized.

    Here is a more complete list of US equipment now controlled by the Taliban:
    -2,000 Armored Vehicles Including Humvees and MRAP’s-75,989 Total Vehicles: FMTV, M35, Ford Rangers, Ford F350, Ford Vans, Toyota Pickups, Armored Security Vehicles etc-45 UH-60 Blachhawk Helicopters-50 MD530G Scout Attack Choppers-ScanEagle Military Drones-30 Military Version Cessnas-4 C-130’s-29 Brazilian made A-29 Super Tocano Ground Attack Aircraft 208+ Aircraft Total-At least 600,000+ Small arms M16, M249 SAWs, M24 Sniper Systems, 50 Calibers, 1,394 M203 Grenade Launchers, M134 Mini Gun, 20mm Gatling Guns and Ammunition-61,000 M203 Rounds-20,040 Grenades-Howitzers-Mortars +1,000’s of Rounds-162,000 pieces of Encrypted Military Comunications Gear-16,000+ Night Vision Goggles-Newest Technology Night Vision Scopes-Thermal Scopes and Thermal Mono Googles-10,000 2.75 inch Air to Ground Rockets-Recconaissance Equipment (ISR)-Laser Aiming Units-Explosives Ordnance C-4, Semtex, Detonators, Shaped Charges, Thermite, Incendiaries, AP/API/APIT-2,520 Bombs-Administration Encrypted Cell Phones and Laptops all operational-Pallets with Millions of Dollars in US Currency-Millions of Rounds of Ammunition including but not limited to 20,150,600 rounds of 7.62mm, 9,000,000 rounds of 50.caliber-Large Stockpile of Plate Carriers and Body Armor-US Military HIIDE, for Handheld Interagency Identity Detection Equipment Biometrics-Lots of Heavy Equipment Including Bull Dozers, Backhoes, Dump Trucks, Excavators
    Much of the information included in the above list is public record.
    And now there are reports that US weapons abandoned in Afghanistan are showing up in other war zones.
    US weapons abandoned in Afghanistan are turning up in Indian-controlled Kashmir.
    Now this…
    Joe Biden forced US troops to stand down even when checkpoints were attacked in Afghanistan.
    Via investigative reporter Paul Sperry.
    And Joe Biden is hiding the side deals he made with the Taliban before the calamitous withdrawal from Afghanistan.

    BREAKING: Biden made US troops in Afghanistan coordinate w/ his envoy Khalilzad on how & when they could engage with the Taliban enemy. Troops were not allowed to engage even when checkpoints attacked. In Doha, Khalilzad brokered withdrawal w/ the Taliban 5 Obama freed from Gitmo
    — Paul Sperry (@paulsperry_) March 1, 2023

    BREAKING: The Pentagon’s inspector general for Afghanistan complains in a new report the Biden administration is hiding classified annexes detailing side deals it made with the Taliban before the withdrawal, including restrictions on US fighting and Taliban counterterror efforts
    — Paul Sperry (@paulsperry_) March 1, 2023

    More from Paul Sperry.

    “[T]he Taliban Five sat across the negotiating table from Biden’s envoy to Afghanistan, Zalmay Khalilzad, where they participated as key members of the official Taliban delegation who negotiated the final terms of the US withdrawal.”https://t.co/lpnHhnGAd8
    — Paul Sperry (@paulsperry_) March 2, 2023

    So where are the impeachment proceedings proceed?
    Joe Biden is working against the United States on several fronts.
    The post Pentagon Inspector General: Joe Biden is Hiding Classified Documents Detailing Side Deals He Made with Taliban and Against US Troops appeared first on The Gateway Pundit.

  • Liz Cheney Has a New Job After Being Booted from Congress

    Liz Cheney Has a New Job After Being Booted from Congress

    Don’t feel sorry for Liz Cheney.  During her time in Congress, and while constantly attacking President Trump and chairing the shame January 6th Committee, Cheney grew her net worth from approximately $7 million in 2017 to and estimated $44 million today.
    What a haul!
    Now, Cheney has accepted a new job at the University of Virginia.
    The University of Virginia Center for Politics reported Cheney will be hired as a professor of practice.
    The former Wyoming lawmaker will start her new job immediately and has a contract until the fall semester.
    Cheney lost her re-election bid after being primaried by Rep. Harriet Hagemen who was endorsed by Trump.

    Oh weird, I thought she was from Wyoming?
    Liz Cheney Settles for Virginia Professorship After Being Fired from Congress https://t.co/3GantAyeqt
    — Benny Johnson (@bennyjohnson) March 2, 2023

    Per NBC:
    Cheney said in a statement shared by the center she hopes her work at the university will “contribute to finding lasting solutions that not only preserve but strengthen our democracy” at a time when “there are many threats facing our system of government.”
    “Preserving our constitutional republic is the most important work of our time, and our nation’s young people will play a crucial role in this effort,” she said. “I look forward to working with students and colleagues at the Center to advance the important work they and others at the University of Virginia are doing to improve the health of democracy here and around the world.”
    Cheney is the second lawmaker to receive a position at a university after voting to impeach President Trump.
    The Gateway Pundit reported back in October of last year that Senator Ben Sasse who previously voted for President Trump to be impeached, resigned to take a job as the President of the University of Florida.
    Students at the University of Florida were not thrilled to to see Sasse on campus and the same might go for Cheney at UVA’s campus.
    University of Florida Protesters Interrupt Never Trumper Ben Sasse’s Q&A Session (VIDEO)

    The post Liz Cheney Has a New Job After Being Booted from Congress appeared first on The Gateway Pundit.

  • NEW: Congressional Ethics Committee Releases Update on Investigation Into AOC

    NEW: Congressional Ethics Committee Releases Update on Investigation Into AOC

    The Office of Congressional Ethics on Thursday released an update to the investigation into Democrat Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez.
    The Committee said there is “substantial reason to believe” AOC “accepted impermissible associated with her attendance at the Met Gala in 2021” that violated “standards of conduct and federal law.”

    BREAKING: The Office of Congressional Ethics has released a statement in which they say there is “substantial reason to believe” AOC “accepted impermissible associated with her attendance at the Met Gala in 2021” that violated “standards of conduct and federal law.” pic.twitter.com/cR215TfY6J
    — Greg Price (@greg_price11) March 2, 2023

    AOC was under investigation for accepting an “impermissible gift” to attend the Met Gala.
    “Specifically we believe Representative Ocasio-Cortez has violated clause 5 of Rule XXV of the Rules of the House of Representatives (commonly known as the Gift Rule) by accepting admission to the Met Gala, an event whose per seat costs is reported to range from $35,000 to $50,000 without having a permissible exemption to allow the acceptance of the lavish gift,” the American Accountability Foundation wrote last year.
    “If Representative Ocasio-Cortez has used campaign funds to pay for this ticket, she has also violated FEC prohibitions on campaign funds being used for entertainment purposes,” they added.
    Recall, AOC attended the Met Gala last year and donned a “Tax the Rich” mermaid gown.
    AOC at the Met Gala
    Two separate ethics complaints were filed against Alexandria Ocasio Cortez for her appearance at the $30,000 per ticket Met Gala.
    In September 2021, the National Legal and Policy Center joined the American Accountability Foundation (AAF) in filing an ethics complaint for her acceptance of the tickets and the lavish gifts that come along with it.
    A spokesperson for the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the charity that receives the proceeds of the Met Gala, told the Caller that AOC was a “guest of the museum.”
    On top of all that, Ocasio-Cortez also accepted a ticket for her boyfriend, Riley Roberts. According to House Gift Rules, lawmakers are only allowed to provide a second ticket to a charity fundraiser to a spouse or dependent child.
    “Thus, because her boyfriend is not her ‘spouse or dependent,’ her acceptance of an ‘invite plus one’ to the Met Gala would violate the Gift Rule unless AOC or her boyfriend paid for his $35,000 ticket, an unlikely scenario,” the NLPC’s complaint states.
    Even the designer “Tax the Rich” mermaid gown that AOC wore might have violated the ethics rules. NLPC’s complaint argues that Ocasio-Cortez’s use of a custom “tax the rich” dress, even if borrowed as she claims, violates the gift rules because the designer used “valuable professional services in designing and making this one-of-a-kind dress.”
    The post NEW: Congressional Ethics Committee Releases Update on Investigation Into AOC appeared first on The Gateway Pundit.

  • Schools Are Pushing Gender Pronouns And Hiding It From Parents

    By John Ransom for RealClearWire
    A new report reveals students in the nation’s largest school districts are encouraged to change their names and pronouns without parental knowledge, even though those same schools require parental approval for over-the-counter medicine.
    The report, released by The Defense of Freedom Institute for Policy Studies (DFI), found that “eight of the nation’s 20 largest school districts allow students to use names and pronouns at school aligned with their gender identity without parental knowledge and consent,” said DFI.
    “Yet these same districts, including New York City Department of Education, Los Angeles Unified School District, and Chicago Public Schools, require parental permission to dispense over-the-counter medication to students at school,” added DFI. 
    The report comes one day after news broke that Saint Paul Public Schools are “explicitly instructing teachers to use students’ preferred names and pronouns with or without parental consent,” according to WZTV Nashville.
    The study said that while the schools rightfully followed parental wishes regarding medications, the same logic wasn’t applied to the use of pronouns, overthrowing “the social and cultural consensus that parents decided what was best for their children.”
    “School districts across the country are failing to respect the rights of parents to make decisions for their minor children,” said Bob Eitel, co-founder and president of DFI. 
    Related: Biden’s Transgender HHS Assistant Secretary Rachel Levine Shredded After Calling for Censorship of Opposition to ‘Gender-Affirming Care’ For Kids
    Dozens of parents spoke to the New York Times last month, saying that keeping secrets from parents is “a stab in the back from the school system.” 
    The Times details the work of a transgender clinical psychologist, Dr. Erica Anderson, who is advocating for parental rights. 
    “It’s well established that one of the most important factors in helping gender-questioning children is family support,” Anderson told Fox News Digital. 
    “So to deliberately deprive a child of support at a time potentially when they most need it is, I think, a serious error in judgment,” she added.
    The DFI report says there are serious risks that come with changing how children interact with teachers and peers.
    “Interim guidance from the United Kingdom’s National Health Service explains that ‘early social Transition’ in children is an ‘active intervention’ that ‘should not be viewed as a neutral act’” said the DFI report.  
    The survey said that a wide range of lobbying groups such as GLSEN, the Human Rights Commission, the American Civil Liberties Union and the National Education Association authored a guidebook that recommends schools discuss gender pronouns with students while cautioning them to be prepared not to inform parents. 
    Related: VP Kamala Harris Affirms There Are Two Genders In Artemis Space Launch Remarks
    DFI recommended governors, legislatures, boards of education, education agencies, school districts, school boards and schools push back against such guidance to ensure that parents direct medical and mental health decisions for their children.   
    “Most importantly, parents should know their rights and demand transparency from their schools,” the report concluded. 
    Syndicated with permission from RealClearWire.
    The post Schools Are Pushing Gender Pronouns And Hiding It From Parents appeared first on The Political Insider.

  • Bipartisan Train Safety Legislation Introduced In Congress

    By J.D. Davidson (The Center Square)
    Republicans and Democrats in Congress want to tighten railroad regulations and spend more than $20 million to develop rail safety nearly a month after a train carrying hazardous materials derailed near the Ohio-Pennsylvania border.
    New legislation proposed by three Democrats and three Republicans addresses instruments that monitor high temperatures and help prevent wheel bearing failures, which the National Transportation Safety Board said caused the Feb. 3 Norfolk Southern derailment in East Palestine, Ohio.
    “It shouldn’t take a massive railroad disaster for elected officials to put partisanship aside and work together for the people we serve – not corporations like Norfolk Southern,” said Sen. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio. “These commonsense bipartisan safety measures will finally hold big railroad companies accountable, make our railroads and the towns along them safer, and prevent future tragedies, so no community has to suffer like East Palestine again.”
    The Railway Safety Act of 2023 focuses on five areas, including stronger safety procedures and notifications for trains carrying hazardous materials, wheel bearing failure, crews, future improvements and support for communities impacted by rail disasters.
    “What happened in East Palestine was a horrific tragedy,” said Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Missouri. “The safety regulations governing our nation’s railroads must be updated to ensure that a disaster like this never happens again.”
    Related: East Palestine Mayor Eviscerates Biden Over Ukraine Visit: ‘He Doesn’t Care About Us’
    The bill would mean new safety requirements and procedures for trains carrying hazardous material and require carriers to give advanced notice and information to state emergency officials about the contents. It would also establish rules for train size and weight.
    “The Norfolk Southern train derailment left Pennsylvania and Ohio families, businesses, and first responders grappling with a disaster that spilled hazardous materials in their community. It shouldn’t have happened here and it shouldn’t happen anywhere else in America,” said Sen. Bob Casey, D-Pennsylvania. “The Railway Safety Act will make freight rail safer, hold rail companies accountable for putting communities and workers in harm’s way, and protect people over profits.”
    The bill would require two-person crews aboard every train and increase fines the U.S. Department of Transportation can impose for safety violations. Ohio lawmakers, last week, also proposed a two-person crew requirement on trains in the state, and that plan was met with opposition from the Ohio Railroad Association, which said that should be handled at the federal level.
    The bill would also pump $22 million into the Federal Railroad Administration for research and development grants and another $5 million to the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration for stronger tank car safety features.
    The act would also require trains carrying hazardous materials to be scanned by hotbox detectors every 10 points and establish requirements for wayside detectors.
    Related: Rosie O’Donnell Slams Government Response to Ohio Train Derailment, Drops 9/11 Comparison
    According to the NTSB, Norfolk Southern train 32N, a general merchandise freight train, was traveling from Madison, Illinois, to Conway, Pennsylvania, with 149 cars, including 20 cars with hazardous materials among its cars. A total of 38 cars derailed, including 11 tank cars with hazardous materials.
    As previously reported by The Center Square, NTSB Chairwoman Jennifer Homendy said each rail company establishes its critical thresholds for heat in wheel bearings. Norfolk Southern’s is 115 degrees Fahrenheit; the second of the two indicators the crew received showed the temperature at 103. The final reading, which came miles later, was at more than 250 degrees.
    That was too late, Homendy, has said.
    “Through this legislation, Congress has a real opportunity to ensure that what happened in East Palestine will never happen again. We owe every American the peace of mind that their community is protected from a catastrophe of this kind,” said Sen. J.D. Vance, R-Ohio.
    Syndicated with permission from The Center Square.
    The post Bipartisan Train Safety Legislation Introduced In Congress appeared first on The Political Insider.

  • FBI Confirms COVID-19 Likely Came From Wuhan Lab

    By Casey Harper (The Center Square)
    The FBI has confirmed initial reports that the Biden administration is now saying the most likely source of COVID-19 is the virology lab in Wuhan, China.
    The news comes after the Wall Street Journal reported that the Department of Energy gave classified briefings to key lawmakers and the White House saying the most likely origin of the virus was the lab in China.
    “[FBI] Director Wray confirmed that the Bureau has assessed that the origins of the COVID-19 pandemic likely originated from a lab incident in Wuhan, China,” the agency said in a statement.
    House Republicans have vowed to investigate the origins of COVID-19 and whether American taxpayer dollars may have played a role since the lab has received federal funding.
    Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Pandemic Chairman Brad Wenstrup, R-Ohio, and House Committee on Oversight and Accountability Chairman James Comer, R-Ky., said they are widening their investigation into the matter.
    “Uncovering the truth about the origins of COVID-19 is vital to U.S. national security, critical to the prevention of future pandemics, and will bring some semblance of closure to the families of those who lost loved ones during the pandemic,” the lawmakers wrote in a letter to the Biden administration, requesting documents, communications, records and more.
    Related: Face Masks And Lab Leaks No Match For Progressive Ideology
    The Biden administration’s admission comes after Republicans were roundly mocked by other lawmakers and the media during the pandemic for making the same assertion, as The Center Square previously reported.
    In 2020, the Associated Press called the idea a “myth.” The same year, The New York Times called it a “conspiracy theory,” and The Washington Post called it a “fringe theory.”
    In 2021, social media companies like Facebook were taking down posts that claimed COVID-19 was man-made.
    “FBI Director Wray confirmed on national TV that the FBI has thought COVID came from the Wuhan lab for a long time,” said House Majority Leader Steve Scalise, R-La. “Republicans were right all along. But got called conspiracy theorists. Will the media and Big Tech be apologizing to us?”
    Related: Wuhan Backlash Erupts After Stunning Biden Administration Admission
    Republican lawmakers blasted those tech companies and the media for “covering up” for China.
    “The media originally labeled anyone who questioned China’s official COVID narrative as xenophobic, a conspiracy theorist, and more,” said Sen. Tom Cotton, R-Ark., who was among the first to push the lab-leak theory. “They never did apologize for covering up for China. Worse, they’re still doing it.”
    Syndicated with permission from The Center Square.
    The post FBI Confirms COVID-19 Likely Came From Wuhan Lab appeared first on The Political Insider.

  • Smithsonian’s New ‘American Women’s History Museum’ Will Feature Biological Males In Attempt To Be ‘Inclusive’

    Smithsonian’s New ‘American Women’s History Museum’ Will Feature Biological Males In Attempt To Be ‘Inclusive’

    The Smithsonian Institution will reportedly feature transgender women in their proposed American Women’s History Museum as a means to be “inclusive.”
    Interim director Lisa Sasaki announced the news in a column in the New York Times discussing donations to the potential new museum. Creation of the museum was enacted by Congress in 2020.
    Sasaki, according to the Times, “plans to include transgender women” as a means to begin a “national discussion … about the acceptance of transgender identities.”
    Again, this is a museum that promotes science, pretending that biological men are actually women.
    “We have a job to build a museum that’s going to serve the public for a very, very long time,” Sasaki said. “From the DNA of this museum, there has been a desire to be inclusive.”

    “The proposed Smithsonian American Women’s History Museum will include biological males who identify as transgender women.”
    And the ⁦@smithsonian⁩ kicking out Pro Life Americans from its museum was an “aberration”. Right. https://t.co/Xrg5arlMxO
    — Move to South Carolina (@KihneSheila) February 28, 2023

    RELATED: Tucker Carlson Relentlessly Mocks AOC For Thinking The Reason She’ll Never Be President Is Americans ‘Hate Women’
    Smithsonian Women’s Museum Will Include Transgender Women
    If Sasaki was actually concerned about DNA, she’d be cognizant of the fact that biological men and biological women have very different DNA.
    And that doesn’t change no matter how much one pretends otherwise.
    “There is no monolithic experience of womanhood,” the New York Times writes.
    There is, however, a mono-chromosomal experience baked into a woman’s DNA. But the Smithsonian is just going to gloss right over that by including biological males in their Women’s museum.
    It’s Science! Don’t deny it.
    The trans agenda comes to the Smithsonian American Women’s History Museum https://t.co/KNJRNtZDWi
    — TheBlaze (@theblaze) March 1, 2023

    The Smithsonian Institution’s proposed American Women’s History Museum already features transgender women on its official website.
    They mention Sylvia Rivera, a transgender activist born Ray Rivera, and co-founder of the Street Transvestite Action Revolutionaries.

    Smithsonian American Women’s History Museum to include transgender women https://t.co/wdYr015XbG
    Dang it! They took away women’s sports, women’s locker rooms and bathrooms, and now…their history. This is the most insane, immoral, ridiculous crap yet.
    — Chris Noblett (@ChrisNoblett) March 1, 2023

    RELATED: Leftists Infuriated After Kansas Makes History as First State to Pass Bill Defining Women as ‘Biologically Born a Female’
    Rachel Levine Makes Book Series About ‘Inspiring Women’
    Rachel Levine, the assistant secretary at the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), will be featured in the Chelsea Clinton She Persisted book series meant to “inspire women.”
    Levine was the first openly transgender federal official confirmed by the U.S. Senate back in 2021. She transitioned from male to female in 2011, but is not passable by any stretch of the imagination.

    “…so we really need to welcome diversity and actually CELEBRATE diversity,” according to Rachel Levine, born a biological male but who now identifies as a female.
    Why must kids and parents “CELEBRATE” gender identity in K-12 schools?
    Well, a school that creates a ‘safe,… https://t.co/7d1i4HvflA pic.twitter.com/WmBrmHwU6q
    — Scarlett Johnson (@scarlett4kids) February 26, 2023

    Fox News host Tucker Carlson has mocked Levine, a four-star admiral, as someone who is propped up by the left in their science denial.
    “They tell us they’re in charge of human biology,” he said. “Even if DNA – ‘trans women are women,’ they screech. Meet our Lady Admiral.”

    TUCKER: “A lady who has never been in a fistfight ordering the Chinese military around like she owns it…Next, we’ll have Admiral Rachel Levine wagging his porky finger at Chairman Xi. Surrender your arms China because trans women are women!” pic.twitter.com/TLG6Hv0G5z
    — Kevin Tober (@KevinTober94) February 24, 2023

    “Richard Levine was born a White man, which is to say, an untouchable, the bottom of the caste system,” Carlson said as he ripped the Joe Biden administration for focusing on diversity rather than qualifications.
    “That is bad, but here’s the good news, ladies and gentlemen. With the help of a wig and some falsies, Richard Levine rose above his station,” he quipped.
    “He is now a she, and she is now an admiral. Talk about inspiring.”
    Will it be inspiring enough for the admiral to be included in the Smithsonian Institution’s proposed American Women’s History Museum when it is housed in a physical building years from now?
    That remains to be seen.
    The post Smithsonian’s New ‘American Women’s History Museum’ Will Feature Biological Males In Attempt To Be ‘Inclusive’ appeared first on The Political Insider.

  • Build Back Broke: Poll Shows 60% of Voters ‘Have Less Money in Their Pockets’ Under Biden

    A new Fox News commissioned poll this week shows us what was already pretty obvious— average people are getting financially skewered another year thanks to the Biden Administration.
    The poll was conducted by Beacon Research (D) and Shaw & Company Research (R) who surveyed 1,006 voters throughout the country between February 19-22 of 2023. The margin of sample error for this poll is +/- 3%.
    According to the report discussing the poll, roughly “60 percent of registered U.S. voters say they have “less money in their pocket than they did a year ago.”
    Fifty-seven percent of the respondents also said they have less money to spend now compared to this time in 2022. For comparison, in 2018 the number of respondents who gave the same answer was only 28%.

    She’s lying and even our biased press knows she is. More Americans have less money in their pockets under Biden and Harris. https://t.co/8Do1czjKW8
    — JamieRJN (@JamieRJN) February 23, 2023

    RELATED: Congress Spends Over $100 Billion In Ukraine Aid In First Year Of Invasion
    The Squeeze is Real
    Of those feeling the most of a financial pinch according to the results include “Republican women (78% less money now), rural Whites (69%), Gen Xers (63%), and voters with annual income below $50,000 (62%).”
    Twelve percent of the respondents stated that because of inflation and higher cost of goods, they are having to spend more money, while 31% say things are basically the same financially compared to last year.
    When it comes to pointing the finger at the root cause for their financial hardships, an overwhelming 62% made it clear that they disapprove of President Biden’s handling of the economy, and 66% don’t approve of how he has attempted to get inflation under control.
    When it comes to the health of the economy as a hole, nearly 80% stated that the current state of things are in “fair or poor” condition. Sadly, this is basically the same as reported when the same question was asked last year.

    RELATED: Biden Signs Equity Executive Order Under the Radar Injecting Racism Across the Federal Government
    What Else is There to Worry About?
    The economic and financial footing of our country remains the top issue among likely voters, with a solid 36% reporting that repairing the economy is the top priority among voters of all political affiliations.
    According to the report, “While that 36% is down from 42% in December, it still far outdistances the next highest priorities of immigration/border security (13%), climate (10%), and guns (9%).”
    What issues matter to you? Do you agree or disagree with the view of those who took part in this poll? Let us know in the comments below and across social media.

    Now is the time to support and share the sources you trust.
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    The post Build Back Broke: Poll Shows 60% of Voters ‘Have Less Money in Their Pockets’ Under Biden appeared first on The Political Insider.

  • Face Masks And Lab Leaks No Match For Progressive Ideology

    By J. Peder Zane for RealClearWire
    During much of the COVID pandemic, progressives intimidated, insulted, and sought to censor those who questioned the efficacy of face masks or wondered if the virus might have leaked from a lab in China.
    Displaying their trademark belief that they always possess the truth, progressive politicians, activists, and journalists attacked those who opposed mask mandates as enemies of science and smeared lab leak proponents as peddlers of a fringe “conspiracy theory.”
    Now their tattered narrative regarding COVID-19 is being ripped apart even more by the insistent foe of ideology – reality. On Sunday we learned that the Department of Energy has concluded that the COVID-19 pandemic probably began with the leak of the virus from a Chinese lab. This comes on the heels of an authoritative new study that found face masks have provided no measurable protection to the public.
    In fairness, neither piece of information is the final word on these subjects. The DOE reportedly has “low confidence” in the classified intelligence reports informing its view; the FBI expressed “moderate confidence” in its 2021 determination that a lab leak likely caused the pandemic.
    The mask study’s conclusion – based on a review of many other studies on masks by the well-respected Cochrane Review – was more robust, as its lead author, Oxford’s Tom Jefferson, stated: “There is just no evidence that they make any difference. Full stop.” But other respected experts argue that the study is not definitive.
    Related: Researchers Say City-Wide Vaccine Mandates Did Nothing To Stop The Spread Of COVID-19
    These developments – along with previous studies questioning the effectiveness of lockdowns – should provoke deep soul-searching for progressives who were as wrong as one can be on matters of profound consequence. They will not, because of the left’s anti-democratic impulses.
    To begin, the problem with the progressives’ response to COVID was not that they were mistaken during a time of fog and murk, or even that they used their power to push questionable policies. Such failings are an expression of the human condition. It was, instead, their illiberal assault on the core values of free and open debate that – when allowed to work properly — allow us to identify, address, and overcome those failings.
    American democracy has thrived because of its optimistic humility regarding human understanding. We’ve been driven by the recognition that knowledge is ever evolving, that there is always a better way. Putting these ideas into action requires free speech and open inquiry, as well as the belief that good ideas can come from any Horatio Alger quarter, and that the best ones will triumph in the rough and tumble marketplace of ideas.
    This approach is necessarily fractious; human beings instinctively resist change and resist making room for others. Indeed, our country has failed when it has turned its back on this hurly-burly freedom in the name of rigid ideologies and beliefs.
    Related: Wuhan Backlash Erupts After Stunning Biden Administration Admission
    Sadly, many of today’s progressives, who control most of the levers of power, largely reject this fact-based tradition. Embracing an ideology that hinges on the faith that they know best – that they are duty-bound to lead the masses who aren’t equipped to make good decisions – they cast themselves as secular popes who know the truth on every matter.
    Because their authority rests on their expertise, progressives are largely incapable of admitting error. When their policies fall short – Lyndon B. Johnson said his Great Society programs aimed “not only to relieve the symptom of poverty, but to cure it and, above all, to prevent it” – they inevitably blame a lack of resources or resistant people. Give them any intractable issue, from health care to education, and they will insist that they know what works; all that’s holding them back is money, will, and power.
    When their failures are more cut and dried, they try to minimize the damage by rewriting history. For example, despite unequivocal proof that Donald Trump did not conspire with Vladimir Putin to steal the 2016 election, they still suggest that he did. In response to these recent COVID revelations, I predict progressives will claim that they did the best they could with the information they had, all the while purging our collective memory of the ways they limited the range of permissible facts and ideas.
    My mind has changed about progressives as they have become even more radical in recent years. Once I despaired that Godot would arrive before the scales fell from their eyes. But at least that thought contained a ray of hope. Now I see that they know what’s going on and just don’t care. Like so many figures now on the ash heap of history, they choose ideology over experience every time.
    Syndicated with permission from RealClearWire.
    The post Face Masks And Lab Leaks No Match For Progressive Ideology appeared first on The Political Insider.