Maryland, My Maryland

From the  Epoch Times, Supreme Court Will Consider If Maryland Parents Can Opt Children Out of Pro-LGBT Storybooks. 

The U.S. Supreme Court on Jan. 17 agreed to hear a request from a group of Maryland parents to opt their young children out of having storybooks that promote LGBT lifestyles read to them. The court granted the petition in Mahmoud v. Taylor in an unsigned order. No justices dissented, and the court did not explain its decision.

The petition was filed on Sept. 12, 2024, after the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit turned away the parents’ request for an injunction to halt the Montgomery County Board of Education’s policy of promoting the books.

The case goes back to November 2022, when the board mandated new “LGBTQ-inclusive” storybooks for elementary school students that promote gender transitions, Pride parades, and same-sex romance between young children. The board instructed employees responsible for selecting the books to use an “LGBTQ+ Lens” and to question whether “cisnormativity,” “stereotypes,” and “power hierarchies” are “reinforced or disrupted,” the petition said.

Parents were initially told they could opt out on behalf of their children when the storybooks were read, according to the petition. The board changed its policy in March 2023. Beginning with the 2023–2024 academic year, the opt-out policy would no longer be in effect. “If parents did not like what was taught to their elementary school kids, their only choice was to send them to private school or to homeschool,” the petition said.

Hundreds of parents, largely Eastern Orthodox Christians and Muslims, showed up at board meetings and testified that their respective religions required that young children not be exposed to instruction on gender and sexuality that was inconsistent with their religion.

After “parents emphasized how impressionable young children are and how they lack independent judgment to process such complex and sensitive issues,” the board members accused parents of promoting “hate” and likened them to “white supremacists” and “xenophobes,” according to the petition.

The parents sued after the board declined to accommodate them, arguing that they had a constitutional right to opt out of such instruction.

On Aug. 24, 2023, U.S. District Judge Deborah Boardman denied the parents’ application for an injunction to block the cancellation of the opt-out policy. A divided Fourth Circuit panel upheld the ruling on May 15, 2024, holding that the parents had failed to demonstrate that an injunction was justified. The panel added that it took no view as to whether the parents would be able to produce enough evidence later in the proceeding to succeed in their case.

They don't want you teaching your own kids. I'm going to guess the Supremes will overturn this.

Random Celebrity News

For some values of "random", "celebrity" and "news." First, from RVN, Nicki Minaj Faces Assault Lawsuit After Alleged Backstage Blow-Up

Nicki Minaj, the Grammy-nominated rapper, has been sued for assault, battery, and intentional infliction of emotional distress by Brandon Garrett, who claims to be her former manager.

The lawsuit stems from an alleged backstage incident during Minaj’s Pink Friday 2 World Tour in April 2024, following a performance at Detroit’s Little Caesars Arena. Garrett filed the lawsuit on Friday in Los Angeles Superior Court through his attorney, Thomas Feher.

In the complaint, Garrett alleges that Minaj, 42, struck him during a confrontation in her dressing room over a task he delegated to another employee.

But all celebrities are not horrible all the time. Also at RVN, Nicole Kidman Breaks Down in Tears Honoring Her Late Mom at Awards Show

Nicole Kidman delivered a heartfelt and emotional speech at the Palm Springs International Film Awards on Friday, dedicating her International Star Award to her late mother, Janelle Kidman.

The Oscar-winning actress was recognized for her performance in the film Babygirl during the festival in Palm Springs, California.

The award was presented by fellow actress and film icon Jamie Lee Curtis.

When Kidman stepped onstage to accept the honor, she quickly turned her focus to her personal loss, referencing the passing of her mother in September.

The Mixed reports Angelina Jolie Lashes Out At ‘Liars’ After Her Divorce From Brad Pitt Is Finally Finalized. Our long national nightmare is over at last. 

Earlier this week, we reported that Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt had finalized their divorce after a grueling eight year legal battle. Now, Jolie has broken her silence for the first time since then to slam “liars.”

While being interviewed by W Magazine, Jolie was asked what her “pet peeves” are. “So many things. But my pet peeve is somebody who is a liar,” replied Jolie, 49. Though Jolie didn’t mention any specific names, she proceeded to double down.

“Somebody who feels a need to not say the truth or what they want, what they feel,” Jolie continued. “There’s a big version of that — and I’m not trying to be heavy about it — but people who say one thing and mean another, who aren’t completely who they are. I think a lot of people don’t say what they mean.”

Some saw this as a jab at Pitt, 61. Indeed, it came just days after Jolie and Pitt finalized their divorce. She had initially filed back in 2016, citing irreconcilable differences at the time. While they are still fighting it out in court over their French winery Chateau Miraval, they were able to come to an agreement on divorce terms and they each signed off on it.

At Breitbart, Cowboys Kicker Apologizes to Cheerleader for Drilling Her in the Head with Ball. Sounds like the basis for a beautiful friendship.

Cowboys kicker Brandon Aubrey hasn’t had much to apologize for this year, as he has been
one of the few bright spots for Dallas. However, Aubrey decided to issue a public apology after an errant kick on Sunday hit an innocent cheerleader in the head and sent her crashing to the ground.

Aubrey drilled a Dallas cheerleader Michelle Siemienowski in the back of the head during the Cowboys’ 23-19 loss to archrival Washington on Sunday.

A day after taking a pigskin to the noggin, Siemienowski posted the apology she received from Aubrey on Instagram.“Michelle, so sorry about hitting you on KO!” Aubrey wrote on the Game Day guide. “Hope you are doing well! Love watching y’all!”Siemienowski allayed any fears of a grudge being held in her response.”No hard feelings here,” Siemienowski said. “Now I have a souvenir for my last game of my rookie season.”

Also at Breitbart, a Report that the  Golden Globes Barred Gal Gadot from Wearing Yellow Ribbon for Hostages; UPDATE: Golden Globes Responds. Anti-semitism is rampant in our "Cultural Elite."

The Golden Globes reportedly prevented Hollywood star Gal Gadot from wearing a yellow ribbon pin to show solidarity with the Israeli hostages in Gaza — but allowed others to wear a pro-Palestinian “red hand” pin.

The red hand, which also appeared at awards ceremonies in 2024, is considered highly offensive by Israelis and Jews — not because it calls for a ceasefire, but because its symbolism dates to the lynching of two Israeli reservists in 2000.

Films with Israeli and Jewish themes did well at this year’s Golden Globes. But mogul Jay Penske, who owns the awards ceremony, is known to have anti-Israel views.

According to the online outlet Kveller, the reason Gadot was not allowed to wear the yellow pin was that she was a presenter at the ceremony: “Gadot, like other presenters, was not allowed to share any political insignia on stage, so she had to forego wearing a yellow ribbon for the hostages, but it was reported that she prominently wore a yellow diamond ring in their honor.”

At Althouse, "It felt like such an invasion — such a bizarre, rape of some kind. Nothing pointed toward this need to be tighter or smaller or firmer or younger, especially there."

Said Brooke Shields, quoted in "Brooke Shields Received a Vaginal Rejuvenation Without Consent" (NY Magazine).

The revelation comes on the occasion of a new memoir — called "Brooke Shields Is Not Allowed to Get Old: Thoughts on Aging as a Woman." Shields is 59 years old, and the surgery happened when she was in her 40s and sought labia reduction surgery. We're told that afterwards the surgeon told her he "threw in a little bonus." Shields chose not to sue at the time and is choosing to work through what she calls "shame" by writing about it.

 OutKick, MAGA Bikini Congresswoman Dubbed 'Sexiest Woman In Congress,'  Not the highest bar. 

Anna Paulina Luna hands down pic.twitter.com/G52ZnnFdUT

— Vicente (@TheVicenteJr) January 7, 2025

BIS, Angel Reese Takes Jab At Haters Who Criticized Her Revealing Outfit With New Vogue Cover: ‘Gave Y’all Covergirl’ .

Angel Reese took a not-so-subtle jab at fans who criticized her recent New Year’s ‘barely there’ pics by announcing that she was now a Vogue cover girl.

“I ‘covered up’ and gave y’all COVERGIRL,” the Chicago Sky star posted on X and Instagram.

Her comments were a clear shot at critics who were taken aback after Reese posted incredibly revealing pictures on New Year’s Day.

Reese was spotlighted in Vogue along with Paris Olympic hero Gabby Thomas for a piece on the meshing of sports and fashion.

“It’s always been both: basketball and fashion,” Reese told the magazine. “I was always in my mom’s closet, putting on her stuff. I liked to carry a purse. Hair done. I wanted to look put together. I still do.”

 At OTP, Sofía Vergara Sparks Rumors After Date With F1 Star Lewis Hamilton

Sofía Vergara is living life in the fast lane. The “Modern Family” alum, 52, has sparked fresh romance rumors with seven-time Formula One champ Lewis Hamilton after enjoying a lunch date with the British driver, 40, in NYC on Tuesday.

Vergara was spotted grinning from ear to ear as she joined Hamilton and friends at a restaurant in the Big Apple.

The duo sat next to each other during the two-hour outing.

Onlookers told TMZ that the “Griselda” actress was so involved in the table talk that she barely touched the food on the plate in front of her. After the outing, the duo were seen beaming as they chatted away with one another on the sidewalk outside the restaurant in images obtained by the outlet.

Flotsam and Jetsam - One More Day - Biden Leaves US Broke

 But who's counting? Althouse has the timer at Countdown.

At Power Line, The Week in Pictures: Two Days to Go! Althouse also finds "Trump is returning as a colossus." Writes Maureen Dowd, in "Trump Brings a Chill to Washington" (NYT) and "Many Americans who otherwise dislike President-elect Donald J. Trump share his bleak assessment of the country’s problems and support some of his most contentious prescriptions to fix them..." "... according to a new poll from The New York Times and Ipsos". At Hat Hair, Dave Strom finds projection among Democrats, Deep Question of the Week: Will Trump Execute Generals, Assassinate Media Figures? But that should scare us because it's insight into what they're planning. Dave Strom finds Democrats Now Threatening People Who Donated to Trump's Inauguration. Chris Rufo et al at City Journal worries Will the Left Disrupt the Inauguration? "A network of progressive groups and militants is preparing for battle." But NewsMax assures us Inauguration Protests Only Fraction of 2017.

At NewsMax, Sen. Ron Johnson tells Newsmax We Must Confirm Trump's Nominees. Teri Christoph at RedState worries about What Happens If We Don't Have a SecDef When Trump Takes Office on Monday? "Four years ago, Trump's deputy secretary of Defense, David Norquist, stayed on the job until Lloyd Austin was confirmed. If the Biden team won't offer the same courtesy, then it sounds like a plan is falling into place to ensure that the military might of the United States remains intact." Sundance at CTH hosts as Glenn Greenwald Gives Perspective on Tulsi Gabbard’s Changed Support for FISA-702. "Personally, given the change in position, the fallback position is to hope DNI Tulsi Gabbard moves to curtail the number of people with access to the database and provide demonstrable accountability for any unlawful use of it." Madeline Leesman at TownHall reports Kristi Noem Faces Off With Democrat Senators in Confirmation Hearing. Just shoot the dogs, Kristi. At NewsMax, Democrats Warm to Trump UN Nominee Stefanik.

Marco Rubio destroys Kristen Walker in his defense of mass deportations. Absolutely brilliant answer.

Seriously this is how absolutely every single Republican must talk about deportations because this is the truth and this is where we are as a country because of the last four… pic.twitter.com/oyDK8MHJdl

— Insurrection Barbie (@DefiyantlyFree) January 17, 2025

Misty Severi at JTN reports First House Judiciary hearing to focus on border failures, two days after inauguration. Cremieux Recueil has Lessons About the Civil Service and Political Appointees. "What does history tell us about how the executive branch can run the government?" Trump effect? US News, Federal Reserve Says It Will Leave Climate Change Organization. "The Federal Reserve said Friday that it is leaving an international grouping of central banks that focused on how the financial system could help combat climate change." Beege Welborn at Hat Hair VIP, Last Bank Out the Door, Please Hit the LEDS: Federal Reserve Exits Global Climate Coalition. MAGA Voice@MAGAVoice, "HOLY SH*T  This young man was FIRED from the Space Force since he criticized DEI. Trump said he will hire him TRUMP KEPT HIS PROMISE. He just hired him as United States Under Secretary of the Air Force MAKE THIS GO VIRAL ON 𝕏. LET’S GO "

At Ace's

DC_Draino@DC_Draino "Biden left us with a maxed out credit card" Quote zerohedge @zerohedge, "In Her Last Official Act, Yellen Warns US Will Hit Debt Ceiling One Day After Trump Inauguration." Insty,  THIS IS NO ACCIDENT, BUT BY DESIGN. "But Trump should use it as an excuse to go Full Millei. Never let a crisis go to waste!"  But Wait, there's more, at Da Caller, Biden Admin Cuts Failing EV Company A Fat Check On Its Way Out The Door.

At RedState, 'Bonchie'  calls it SCARY: Mike Johnson Recounts Meeting With Joe Biden, Shocks With Tale of Senility and Subterfuge, details how Biden denied signing an order he had signed. "In other words, someone had used subterfuge to get the President of the United States to sign an executive order he didn't even know he was signing. Those around him were weaponizing his senility to push through their far-left agenda, and Biden wasn't even sentient enough to notice. That is the very definition of shocking." Capt. Ed at Hat Hair, Johnson: Here's When I Knew Biden Wasn't Running Anything. The Maine Wire, We All Knew: Mike Johnson Meets Biden's 'I Didn't Do That!' John Ekdahl@JohnEkdahl, "Furthermore, his description of Schumer, Jeffries, Kamala, CIA Dir Burns, etc all freezing in panic when Biden requested they clear the room so he could 1-on-1 with Johnson confirms they were all in on the coverup."  Hat Hair's John Sexton, How Biden's Inner Circle Managed His Decline. Sarah Arnold at TownHall, Melania Trump Slams Obamas for ‘Withholding’ Key Info During Transition. Sarah Hoyt asks Incompetence or Malice? Both of course. 

st-official-act-yellen-warns-us-will-hit-debt-ceiling-one-day-after-trump

 At Insty, WELL, BYE:

What will people remember about Joe Biden? Johnny hit the streets to find out pic.twitter.com/PCISKc8CTu

— Jesse Watters (@JesseBWatters) January 17, 2025

YouTube, at the Fourth Rail, Biden's SHOCKING Attempt to Amend the Constitution Overnight! Ed Whelan@EdWhelanEPPC "Guess who testified in October 2021 that the "President has no role" in the amendment process and "is not part of the amendment process"? Georgetown law prof Victoria Nourse." Quote Georgetown Law@GeorgetownLaw, "Congratulations to #GeorgetownLaw Professor @vicnourse on her decades of hard work advocating on behalf of women's rights and the Equal Rights Amendment #ERA, which Pres. Biden this morning said should be considered the law of the land. Read more: https://cnn.it/3CdaV5A" Beege Welborn adds John J. Vecchione@VecchTweets, "This is the biggest embarrasment for Georgetown Law since the persecution of @ishapiro . Do we have a professor who backs the "sovereign citizen" theory as well? John Eastman is being disbarred for a less crazy theory." Althouse, "In a political environment like this, you throw at the wall whatever you can." ""This is a political rather than a legal struggle.... It would succeed only in a different environment than we have.... The real question is what political message is being sent." Said lawprof Laurence Tribe, quoted in "Can He Do That? Here’s What Biden’s Move on the Equal Rights Amendment Means. Presidents have no direct role in approving constitutional amendments. So what could President Biden’s pronouncement recognizing a new one actually do?" (NYT)." Twitchy, We're SO Glad He's VP! Check Out How J.D. Vance Dunked on Biden's Lame Attempt to Amend the Constitution. JD Vance @JDVance, "Hey Joe if we’re doing fake shit on the way out can you declare Pete Rose into the Hall of Fame? See you in two days!"

Fox news hosts the Great Victor Davis Hanson, Liberal California may have a political 'reawakening' after wildfire disaster, historian predicts "Californians may 'fuel a revolt' amid LA wildfires." Well, maybe, but I'm not holding my breath. The Orange County Register reports Investigators looking into whether Palisades fire kicked off by previous blaze. Did the winds whip up embers? Eric Spiegelman@ericspiegelman, "The water pressure also failed during the 1961 Bel Air and Topanga Fires. In the years after, LAFD and DWP planned a number of improvements, for those specific areas, to make sure that never happened again. One of those improvements was the construction of the Santa Ynez Reservoir, built expressly for emergencies in the Pacific Palisades. That reservoir was empty last week." Also at Fox, FEMA leaving thousands of Helene victims without shelter. 

NewsMax, Judge Cannon Skeptical of Releasing Jack Smith Docs Report. Sundance, Judge Aileen Cannon Highly Skeptical of DOJ Request to Release Report on Mar-a-Lago Documents Case to Congress. Since she ruled he was illegally appointed, she should also rule that all his work is illegal "fruit of the poisonous tree." At Twitchy, AG Merrick Garland Gets a Rousing Sendoff in Video That Could Be of Assistance to Trump & Pam Bondi. Sundance, A Revealing Main Justice Parade Provides us with a Visual Scale of The Problem President Trump Faces. If they don't give Pam Bondi the same respect, they need to be forced out.

Mia Cathell at TownHall hears Fani Willis Demands More Taxpayer Money.

Sundance reports TikTok Social Media Platform Scheduled to Go Dark in USA Sunday. It did. And, President Trump Says 90-Day Extension for TikTok is Possible. NewsMax, 'Shark Tank's' O'Leary: Investors Have $20B to Buy TikTok. At Althouse, Taking down TikTok punched a hundred holes in my blog. "Where I had embedded video yesterday, it now looks like this:

Every post that had an embedded TikTok video now looks empty like that and is missing its point. Every post where I linked to anything on TikTok has been turned — forcibly, by our government — into something that would not be posted." It's January 19th. Do you know where your children are?

Sundance gloats as CBS Executives Debating Settlement with Donald Trump Over $10 Billion Lawsuit. "Trump’s lawsuit against CBS, which seeks $10 billion in damages, alleges that the network committed election interference by editing portions of an interview with Harris, favoring her campaign for president. Trump claimed CBS aired one version of the interview on “60 Minutes” and another version on its show “Face the Nation,” each containing different answers about Israel. CBS has said it aired a more succinct version of Harris’s interview on “60 Minutes.”"

From Campus Reform, Wellesley College offers ‘Queer Bible’ course to examine ‘varieties of gender in the ancient world’ and ‘queerness of gender’. "The class is ‘an examination of queer readings of the biblical canon and the canon of contemporary queer theory.’ The professor is also offering a course on ‘Decolonizing the Bible.’" John Sexton at Hat Hair reports a Detransitioned Student Prevented from Speaking About His Experience on Campus. The greatest modern heresy. 

Palm Sunday

with Xenia Tchoumi, who, like many Russians, has a fondness for ice-free ports:

Phys.org, Tree islands restore nature in oil palm plantations: Researchers look into native species recovery in Sumatra

A long-running experiment led by Göttingen University, Germany, and including the IPB University, Bogor and Jambi University in Indonesia, has investigated how ecological restoration promotes biodiversity recovery in oil palm plantations in Sumatra. Their findings reveal that establishing islands of trees within large oil palm monocultures can promote the recovery of native tree diversity through natural regeneration. The results were published in Science.

The international research team established 52 tree islands of varying sizes and diversity of planted trees in a conventional industrial oil palm plantation in Sumatra, Indonesia. This innovative experimental setup provided valuable insights into how initial restoration decisions influence biodiversity in oil palm-dominated landscapes.

For instance, standard plantation management usually includes suppression of the undergrowth by using large amounts of herbicides and fertilizers. However, a diverse range of native species successfully colonized the tree islands, including trees that are endemic to Sundaland, meaning that they are only found in this region. Islands of trees in an oil palm plantation. Credit: Gustavo Paterno

Within just six years, many of these trees have already begun fruiting, with some exceeding 15 meters in height. Interestingly, alien species—meaning those not native to the study region—represented only ten percent of the natural regeneration in the restored areas.

Flotsam and Jetsam - Inauguration Moved Indoors, Biden Proclaims 28th Amendment Passed, CNN Liable for Defamation

Two more days, but who's counting? The Pop Times, that's who, Countdown to Inauguration. Instapundit, at his substack says Happy DJT Day "Monday marks a new kind of holiday." The Free Bacon sees Apex Trump " Donald Trump's power arrives before the presidency."

Of course, you've probably heard, from Sundance at CTH, Citing “Weather Concerns” President Trump Announces Inauguration Ceremony Moved Inside Capitol Rotunda. "Citing concerns with “cold weather,” nudge-nudge, wink-wink, say-no- more / say-no-more, President Trump announces via Truth Social that his swearing in and inauguration speech will now be moved inside and take place in the Capitol rotunda." The weather Monday is supposed to be mid-20s, with wind chills bringing the "feels-like" into the teens. No big deal for a midwesterner or an Alaskan, but a bit daunting for us mid-Atlantic folk. No need to subject large crowds to it. At Twitchy, David Axelrod, Twitter's Own Petty Betty, Scoffs at Trump's Indoor Inauguration and via the Wombat's In The Mailbox: 01.17.25 (Evening Edition), Twitchy: Tim Walz Tries To Dunk On Trump For Moving Inauguration Indoors & Gets Rekt and The Federalist, Federalist CEO Sean Davis Drops Stunning Details About The Butler Trump Assassination Attempt In Tucker Carlson Interview, Of course, security concerns may be playing a part; there have only been two near miss assassination attempts on the former President and President-to-be in the past year. Insty is PROBABLY TOO SUSPICIOUS. BUT I HOPE SECURITY IS EXTRA TIGHT. @instapundit @instapundit, "All these absences make me nervous for Trump’s safety." Quote Miranda Devine@mirandadevine, "The good news just keeps coming! Nancy Pelosi won't attend Trump's inauguration." Susan Crabtree@susancrabtree, "BREAKING: Trump to announce Sean Curran, the head of his Secret Service campaign detail, as Secret Service director, according to three sources who I've spoken over several days this week. Curran is on the right in this iconic photo from the July 13 Butler assassination attempt. More to come..."

Sundance hosts DHS Nominee Kristi Noem Senate Confirmation Hearing – 9:00am EST Livestream. From Fox, Trump DHS pick Noem pledges to end controversial app used by migrants on 'day one’ "Nearly 1.5M have been paroled in through CBP One and a linked parole program." Dave Strom at Hat Hair hears Senator Blumenthal say to Kristi Noem: Ignore the 300,000 Missing Children... under Biden. Bad Hombre@joma_gc, "Sen. Moreno: Mayorkas let in about 12,000 murderers. How many would you let in? Gov. Noem: None. Sen. Moreno: Mayorkas let in 6,000 rapists into this country. How many would you let in? Gov. Noem: My goal would be none. Sen. Moreno: Mayorkas let in 600,000 with criminal convictions. How many would you let in? Gov. Noem: Those with criminal convictions will be immediately removed. Sen. Moreno: How many private jets will you send to fly people into this country? Gov. Noem: We won’t be undertaking that program. Sen. Moreno: How many illegals will you be housing in luxury hotels? Gov. Noem: That will not be a part of this new administration. Sen. Moreno: How many sex change operations for illegals would you fund? Gov. Noem: We will not allow that." At the Balmer Sun, Alsobrooks questions Trump's EPA nominee Lee Zeldin. From the Wombat's In The Mailbox: 01.17.25 (Morning Edition), from Twitchy, Yup, She BROKE Him! Adam Schiff Still CRYING to Nicolle Wallace About Pam Bondi and It's GLORIOUS (Watch). At WUWT, Live at 1 p.m. Eastern Time: Trump’s Climate Cabinet – The Climate Realism Show #141. Wombat's In The Mailbox: 01.17.25 (Evening Edition), Louder With Crowder: Bernie Sanders tries playing the “oligarchy” card with Trump’s Treasury Secretary, gets hit with a reality check, MAHA for the win!, American Greatness: 145 House Dems Vote Against Bill to Deport Illegal Aliens Who Commit Sexual Assault, Nearly Half of Federal Employees Say They Plan to Resist Trump’s Incoming Administration, and Pete Hegseth is the Leader Our Military Needs, Legal Insurrection, Sen. Mazie Hirono Establishes that No Trump Nominees Have Made Unwanted Sexual Advances, Victory Girls: Tammy Duckworth Dragged By Fox News Joey Jones, The Federalist  Conservatives Say, Noem Confirmation Hearing Highlights How Much DHS Rot She’ll Have To Clean Out, and Good Riddance, Deb Haaland.

Sundance, Stephen Miller Encapsulates Immediate Objectives of President Trump. "Stephen Miller articulates the non-pretending reality of what the people around Joe Biden have done with horrific outcomes for our nation.  Then Miller quickly moves to articulate what exactly President Trump is going to do about it." The NYSun wonders Will Trump Call Biden’s Bluff on Cuba? "Senator Rubio, at his confirmation hearing for secretary of state, makes it clear that he knows what the Castroite communists are up to." Shooting News Weekly sees ATF Reverses ‘Zero Tolerance’ Enforcement Policy That Shut Down Hundreds of FFLs Nationwide, Trump effect? At WaEx, Trump brings hope for shoring up the steel industry. At Oil Price, U.S. LNG Industry Prepares for Boom Years Under Trump. From Da Wire, Energy Experts Urge Incoming Trump Administration To Stop EPA Abuse. From the Wombat's In The Mailbox: 01.17.25 (Morning Edition), Louder With Crowder, Oh no, you guys! Mike Pence is OPPOSING RFK Jr’s nomination as HHS Chairman and Sources: Hegseth’s Confirmation. More Trump effect? at Ace In a "Huge Win," the Woke Corporate Cartel "Net Zero" Stops Operations as Corporations Back Away from Toxic Wokeness, "This was the group of financial services companies using their immense power to force countries to immiserate themselves by not producing energy."

Sundance, Speaker Mike Johnson Selects Arkansas Rep Rick Crawford to Chair Powerful House Intel Committee

Also at Da Wire, Greenland PM: ‘We Don’t Want To Be Americans … But We Want A Strong Cooperation’ "Egede said he wants the U.S. to maintain its military presence in Greenland." Algemeiner, Mike Waltz Vows Trump Admin Will Support Israel Resuming Operations in Gaza if Hamas Violates Ceasefire Deal. Mark Simon on Substack, The CCP Was Expecting a Harris Win. It Didn’t Happen and Trump’s Election is Changing Xi’s GamePlan.

Capt. Ed at Hat Hair, More Biden: I Hereby Commute ERA's 1982 Deadline Too. President Biden @POTUS "Today I'm affirming what I have long believed and what three-fourths of the states have ratified: The 28th Amendment is the law of the land, guaranteeing all Americans equal rights and protections under the law regardless of their sex." WaT, National Archives rebuffs Biden’s attempt to add Equal Rights Amendment to Constitution. It doesn't work like that. Noah Rothman @NoahCRothman, "When you think about it, it’s nice to live in a system where the commander of the armed forces declares that the founding legal charter is permanently amended and we all just laugh at him and nothing happens." Mark Hemingway@Heminator, "*RECORD SCRATCH* "Yup, that's my wife ratioing the president of the United States. You're probably wondering how I ended up here, well..." Quote, Mollie@MZHemingway "Replying to @POTUS Sir, this is not how the Constitution works. Dementia is not a magic ticket to become a dictator that asserts Constitutional amendments into existence." Ace, Demented Tyrant Biden Now Presumes to Change the Constitiution By His Kingly Pronouncement, Adding an Amendment to the Constitution Via a Tweet.

PJM's Matt Margolis, Biden Issues Thousands More Commutations in New Clemency Blitz. Sundance, Biden Pardons 2,500 “Non-Violent Drug Offenders” and Indicates More Pardons Likely. From WokeSpy, “We Did It, Joe!” – Poll Finds Biden Is Set To Go Down As One Of America’s Worst Ever Presidents. Althouse, "Joseph Robinette Biden Jr.’s obituary will be stalked by the counterfactual: What if he hadn’t made the selfish decision to run for reelection?" ""What if he had passed the torch a year or even six months earlier?... The way that events unfolded—his catastrophic debate performance, the stark clarity with which the nation came to understand his geriatric state–-beggars belief. Why didn’t Democrats stage an intervention earlier? Why didn’t his aides stop him from running?" Writes Franklin Foer in The Atlantic, in "How Biden Destroyed His Legacy/The president’s accomplishments are considerable, but on his signature issue of preserving democracy, he failed spectacularly."" "ADDED: I keep rereading this sentence: "A cabal intent on preserving its own power would never have blundered in such tragically self-defeating fashion." It gets funnier every time." Matt Vespa at TownHall, The NYT Details the Dem Plot to Oust Joe Biden...and It's a Doozy. Scott Jennings@ScottJenningsKY "Step 1 - engage in the largest coverup of a president’s mental condition in the history of the United States" Quote, Axios@axios, "How to lead like Biden chief of staff Jeff Zients: 8 skills to know https://trib.al/VULXBj6"

From the Wombat's In The Mailbox: 01.17.25 (Morning Edition), Louder With Crowder, Let’s take a dump on Joe Biden one final time – his farewell address was a derptastic swan song, Don Surber: Best farewell speech of my life, First Street Journal: It was never about “protecting democracy”. Via the Wombat's In The Mailbox: 01.17.25 (Evening Edition), The Lid: Another Poll Shows Americans Think Joe Biden is the Worst President in History, Shot In The Dark, The Bullets We Dodged, The Federalist: An Embarrassment For Every Month: The Worst Blunders, Failures, And Flops Of Biden’s Final Year,

 At Da Blaze, Here are the top oddities and falsehoods from Biden's farewell address. Bob Hoge, Peter Doocy Reveals What Actually Happened After Hot Mic Caught Biden Calling Him a 'Son of a B' "The Fox News correspondent, who has covered Biden since the launch of his 2020 campaign, said the president called him to address the name call and promised to take him out for lunch, which never ended up occurring." Robby Soave at Reason, Biden's Farewell F-You to Elon Musk, "The president opposes the tech "oligarchy" because it has stopped listening to him."  Sister Toldja at RedState hears The Assessments From Biden Insiders on Karine Jean-Pierre's Tenure Have Started - and They Are Brutal. "“I am not sure there is someone that did more damage to the president’s reputation than her — it is really sad.” At 1945, Blame Joe Biden If Ukraine Loses the War to Russia. Ace, The CIA Analyst and Traitor Who Leaked Israel's Military Plans to Iran Pleads Guilty in Court, Asif Rahman. 

Via the Wombat's In The Mailbox: 01.17.25 (Evening Edition) American Greatness: 145 House Dems Vote Against Bill to Deport Illegal Aliens Who Commit Sexual Assault, Da Fetched reports 145 Democrats Vote Against Deporting Illegal Alien Sexual Predators from U.S. Duane Patterson at Hat Hair has a list of what he thinks were The Top Ten Dumbest Things Said By A Democrat...Thursday. So many to chose from. 

VodkaPundit at Insty, "MANDATES ARE DUMB: And Suddenly, Gavin Newsom’s Electric Car Mandate Looks Pretty Dumb to LA Fire Victims “No mocking these poor folks, America, because this Caltastrophe may have bought more time for the rest of the country to shout down the climate cultists in state houses across the country. California’s proof of concept showed that climate nirvana doesn’t protect the environment for humans.” I’m OK with more mocking." Da Signal reports How a Woke Newsom Appointee Dismantled California’s Volunteer Firefighting Force. Capt. Ed reads the LAT: People Fleeing Dem-Controlled States May Be a Problem For Progs. Via the Wombat's In The Mailbox: 01.17.25 (Evening Edition) ,357 Magnum: The Mayor of LA and the Governor of California Wanted the City to Burn, American Greatness, Man Seen Starting Fires With Blow Torch in LA County Not Charged With Arson, Chicago Boyz: The Fire Next Time, First Street Journal, How the severity of the California wildfires is Donald Trump’s fault, Hollywood In Toto, Andrew Schulz Thinks Fire Fallout Will Turn California Red, The Lid: Another Poll Shows Americans Think Joe Biden is the Worst President in History, We Can Change The World-Together, and California’s Largest Lithium Battery Plant Goes Up in Flames, Legal Insurrection: Recall Effort Against Gov. Gavin Newsom Ignites in California, Nebraska Energy Observer: So the fires continue in Cali along with the demands for politicians to resign, Watts Up With That:Massive Fire Engulfs Moss Landing Battery Plant,

MD Kittle at Da Fed reports Wisconsin Court Race Is A Buyer Beware Election, Conservatives Say.

Stacy McCain finds CNN, GUILTY! GUILTY! GUILTY! At the Independent (UK), CNN found liable for $5 million in defamation trial against US Navy vet over ‘black market’ Afghanistan story. Matt Vespa at TownHall, CNN Suffers Massive Defeat in Defamation Suit Involving Navy Veteran. Sundance grins when a Florida Jury Award $5 Million in Compensatory Damages Against CNN in Defamation Case – Punitive Damage Award Forthcoming. At Twitchy, Try Not to Laugh at Lawyer's Argument Against CNN Having to Pay Punitive Damages in Defamation Suit. Curtis Houck @CurtisHouck "CNN's lawyer argues against the network being hit with punitive damages (after it was found liable for defaming Navy veteran Zachary Young) by saying it'd harm the company financially and hinder its ability to report on major breaking news events like wildfires and crises around the globe." Ace, Convicted Disinformation Outfit CNN: Our Finances Are In Tough Shape and If You Hit Us With Major Punitive Damages We Won't Be Able to Cover Hurricanes and Earthquakes for You. "CNN's own lawyer says that CNN is in "a subtle decline" so that the jury doesn't crush them."  Julio Rosas @Julio_Rosas11, "CNN yesterday vs CNN today:" Ace, CNN Moves Superstar Jim Acosta to a Hot New Time Slot More Worthy of His Towering Stature. "BREAKING: JURY FINDS CNN LIABLE Having a show at midnight is a high-status thing, right?"

Althouse, Supreme Court upholds the TikTok ban. "Opinion here. Per curiam. Sotomayor concurs, but let's read the Gorsuch opinion, concurring:. . . " Pixie at Ace's Daily Tech News 18 January 2025 "Top Story "In a groundbreaking decision that will have lasting consequences for Chinese spyware apps, the Supreme Court said "yeah, whatever" and waved the TikTok divest-or-die law through the gate. (CNN) The law is due to go into effect tomorrow, but since the Biden Administration is currently busy looting the treasury and fleeing the country, will be left to Trump to enforce."

Stacy McCain has the Least Surprising News of the Week? "I’m not surprised. You’re not surprised. Nobody’s surprised: A Trump-bashing, Pulitzer Prize-winning political cartoonist — whose illustrations have been published by the Washington Post, New Yorker and Los Angeles Times — was arrested for possession of child pornography." Ace, Trump Bashing WaPo Cartoonist -- the First Black American to Win a Pulitzer for Cartooning -- Arrested for Possession of Child S*x Exploitation Materials. "Oh, you don't say. You don't say. A leftwinger? And a cartoonist? Likes looking at naked children? You don't say, you don't say, you don't say." Althouse, The death of “Democracy Dies in Darkness." "I'm reading "The Washington Post’s New Mission: Reach ‘All of America’ /This week, The Post began trying out a new mission statement: 'Riveting Storytelling for All of America'" (NYT) . . . The new slogan is terrible. The old slogan was also terrible, but at least it was ridiculous. "Riveting Storytelling for All of America" is just really dumb — a dumb slogan expressing the opinion that America is dumb, but what are you going to do?"

Hollywood in Toto, sees Dueling Bills: Maher Slams Dems While Burr Blasts Conservatives. From Slay, Joy Behar: ‘Convicted Felon’ Trump Is ‘Not a Normal Person’. Pot, kettle. Will her head explode on Monday?

The redoubtable Julie Kelly @julie_kelly2, "Sounds like the DC judges held quite the banger in court today--partisan hacks until the very end. Per Politico: Tanya Chutkan before sentencing a J6er to 10 days in prison on misdemeanor: “I only wish the rest of the country could see some of the things I see. This may be, based on what happens outside these courthouse walls, the last one of these. I don’t know. . . .” Lorraine Yuriar at Chapter and Verse, Trump Case Report Volume 1. "This report deals with J6; The FL case report has been held back due to the ongoing trial of Trump's employees, Nauta and DeOliviera."

At Fox, FBI assistant special agent in charge who said New Orleans attack 'not a terrorist event' reassigned, "The FBI later put out a statement confirming the Bourbon Street attack was 'terrorism.'"

From TNP, EXC: San Francisco Settles With Judicial Watch, Will End Taxpayer-Funded Transgender Guaranteed Income Program. If you want more of something, subsidize it. 

news/nancy-pelosi-wont-attend-trumps-inauguration-clintons-bush-obama-will-skip-luncheon/

Rule 5 Saturday - Xenia Tchoumi

This week's Rule 5 special features Xenia Tchoumi:

Xenia Tchoumitcheva (Ксения Чумичева, born 5 August 1987), known professionally as Xenia Tchoumi, is a Russian-Swiss model, entrepreneur, and content creator.

Xenia Tchoumitcheva was born in Magnitogorsk, Russia. When she was 6 years old her family emigrated to Lugano, Switzerland. Tchoumitcheva lived in the Italian part of Switzerland, before moving to London, England. 

She graduated in 2010 from the Università della Svizzera italiana with a Bachelor Degree in economics. She speaks Italian, Russian, German, French, English and Spanish. 

Tchoumitcheva has interned at several financial institutions such as Merrill Lynch, The London Hedge Fund Duet Group and JP Morgan Chase. 

Tchoumitcheva began modelling at the age of 12. She entered the Miss Switzerland pageant in 2006, where she was named 1st runner-up and Miss Photogenic. For the first time, the Miss Switzerland organization offered Tchoumitcheva an appearance contract similar to that of the winner. After the contest she was described as the "most eligible single woman in Switzerland". In May 2009 she was voted as the Best Bikini Body, in a survey by the magazine Schweizer Illustrierte. In 2012 she was profiled in the Spanish GQ magazine. In December 2012, the Swiss edition of Maxim magazine put her on the cover, awarding her the title of "Most Beautiful Woman of the Year". 

A busy girl, 

Tchoumitcheva speaks regularly at universities and conferences about female leadership, as well as her online business, brand creation, and other topics.  She spoke at the Swiss Web Program Festival, at the Cantonal Bank of Geneva, and at the University of St.Gallen Alumni Conference, where she also interviewed the ex-Deutsche Bank CEO Josef Ackermann. In September 2015 she gave a TEDx talk about female leadership and internet against prejudice. 

In 2017, she gave a talk at the United Nations HQ about the power of digital women, and was officially nominated an ITC SheTrades ambassador. 

Tchoumitcheva began to work in commercials and music videos in 2007 (e.g. "Candino-Festina").  She starred in the short movie Les Enfants de la Honte of the French film maker Alain Margot, which appeared on the NIFF film festival. She was in the music video with Italian-Swiss singer Paolo Meneguzzi in May 2010. In June 2011 she was supporting role in the short film Lines.

There's more, but that's enough for now.