Flotsam and Jetsam - Trump Sets Sights on Iran's Power, Bridges and Oil

Until now, the military action in Iran has focused on the Iranian leadership, with attacks carried out mostly by Israel, and their military capabilities, largely with US Forces, leaving the civilian infrastructure of power, transport and revenue generation (oil) largely alone, hoping that if and when a suitable government of Iran emerges it won't be left with a country without the ability to take care of itself. Now, Trump is threatening to start dismantling the underpinnings of the regime further, by targeting power plants, bridges and oil production if the IRGC does not open the Straits of Hormuz to international traffic. Jim Hanson @JimHansonDC, "It doesn't get more straightforward than this from President Trump. The gloves come off Tuesday against the Ayatollahs." Althouse has the vapours over his use of the curse word, "Open the Fuckin’ Strait, you crazy bastards, or you’ll be living in Hell - JUST WATCH! Praise be to Allah." "That's the way our President speaks...Hard to believe, but there it is." Sundance at CTH, President Trump Fills in Remarkable Background Details – Deal Tomorrow or U.S. Begins Systematic Destruction of Iranian Infrastructure. OutspokenSamantha @Outspoken_Sam, "Yes, I did in fact vote for a President who would call our enemies "crazy bastards" and threaten to send them to hell if they didn't take us seriously. What's actually embarrassing is voting for someone to send them money."

Of course, most of yesterday's digits were spilled on the rescue of the weapons system operator of the F15 that was shot down over Iran. It appears the airman, injured in the incident, evaded capture, and climbed a 7,000 ft mountain to wedge himself into a hidey-hole to await rescue. Reports are the US built a runway to land rescue planes in the desert, rescued the WSO, and had to ditch two C-130s in place due to mechanical issues, blowing them up to prevent their secrets from being revealed. It is also reported that Irani resistance slowed the IRGC search, and the CIA promoted a hoax to mislead the IRGC as to where the man was hiding. I'm not so sure of the first, and I expect the CIA to lie at every available opportunity, especially to make themselves look important. Stacy McCain calls it an Easter Miracle: U.S. Rescues Second Crewman From Downed F-15E in Iran. Streiff at RedState explains How the Amazing Rescue of Two American Airmen Unfolded. Althouse has the NYT take, "The rescue followed a life-or-death race between U.S. and Iranian forces that stretched over two days to reach the injured airman, a weapon systems officer, officials said." ""The operation took commandos deep inside Iran and involved hundreds of special operations troops. There were no U.S. casualties among the rescue team, Mr. Trump said. The rescued officer had 'sustained injuries, but he will be just fine,' Mr. Trump added..." From "Iran War Live Updates: U.S. Rescues Officer From Downed Fighter Jet in Iran, Trump Says" (NYT)." From Sundance, President Trump Announces, F-15 Crew Member Rescued in Daring Raid and Former CENTCOM Commander Frank McKenzie Discusses U.S. Rescue Operation in Iran. RedState's Nick Arama thinks the Former CENTCOM Commander Delivers the Perfect Comment on the Rescue of Officer From Iran. wretchardthecat @wretchardthecat, "The most interesting aspect of the weapons officer rescue in Iran was CENTCOM's ability to use so many disparate personnel and capabilities in such a rapid and integrated way. They were making it up as they went along with complex tools and time critical sequences...A lot of the news focus is naturally on the machines, because that is what you can see. But someone told me years ago that air forces are not made out of planes. They are made up of people, and that is what we glimpsed here." Eric Daugherty @EricLDaugh, "BREAKING: Former CENTCOM commander Ret. Gen. Frank McKenzie just said it PERFECTLY “It takes a year to build an aircraft — and it takes 200 YEARS to build a military tradition where you don't leave anybody behind!”" Insty at his substack, The Iran Operation, "Was the secret weapon AI staff work?" Ace cites Tousi TV: Second F-15 Pilot Rescued as Iranian Civilians Aid American Operation to Rescue Him. Morse Report @MorseReport, "BREAKING: The rescued F-15 pilot downed over Iran survived entirely ON HIS OWN inside a mountain crevice: “Completely invisible to the enemy.”" Stephen Green @VodkaPundit, "U.S. engineers were repairing and even building new airfields on Okinawa while the battle for the island was still ongoing." Quote Kingofnowhere @Kingofnowher_e, "A French general at Trump’s plan to build a runway inside Iran to fly out uranium under active bombing: “American officials should stop snorting cocaine between meetings.”" cdrsalamander @cdrsalamander, "It isn't so much that Iranians are that bad, it is just that Americans are that good." Quote C Schmitz @chrisschmitz "That location confirmed by @andynovy is just 50km from the City Centre of Isfahan, a city with about 2.2m Inhabitants. The IRGC cant prevent an enemy ad-hoc Airfield half an hour drive from one of the largest cities in country. x.com/andynovy/statu…" Driscoll at Insty, “FIGHTING US TROOPS ISN’T LIKE BEATING TEENAGE GIRLS:” Nioh Berg @NiohBerg, "Hearing a bunch of dumb regime loyalists also got killed last night because they wanted the $60k bounty and climbed up the mountain only to realise fighting US troops isn't like beating teenage girls. Good riddance really." Northern Barbarian @xnoesbueno, "OK. To recap. In the last 24 hours: 1) American military set up a base within enemy territory to rescue a downed flier, defying the ill-wishes of countless lefty douchebags plus fulfilling the shahadat jones of untold IRCG and Basij. 2) Americans reclaimed their indigenous rights to the Moon, declared it the 51st state, named it Trump, that our crazy orange president may moon his adversaries and nattering naysayers unto eternity. This will be most fun during those periods when the celestial orb formerly known as the Moon appears in an orange-ish hue. The phenomenon formerly known as a blood moon will henceforth be called a more Trumpy Trump. 3) Canadians, feeling the sting of American mockery, got pissed off. 4) King Charles III affirmed his allegiance to Islam, in an act of the kind of obtuse regal boneheadedness that traditionally has preceded the downfall of kings. 5) France douchebaggedly asserted its Frenchness on the international stage, in an act of the kind of obtuse French boneheadedness that is likely to bite France in the ass. 6) America, Fuck Yeah (Also, American astronauts, with a Canadian along for the ride, unclogged a space toilet enroute to Trump, the celestial object formerly known as the Moon)." And, Northern Barbarian @xnoesbueno, "The phrase that comes to mind is, "America, Fuck Yeah." Quote RiverOaksGuy @Bowtiedplayer, "Imagine being Iran's leadership right now You once were the feared boogie man of the Middle East. Instead, you get the complete shit kicked out of you for 5 weeks straight, your entire navy sunk, your supreme leader killed, and you FINALLY shoot down 1 plane." At Calling All Rush-Babes, *About that rescue of a downed pilot inside Iran. America Wins! A Driscolly post at Insty, “IT’S A TESTAMENT TO THE U.S. MILITARY THAT NO AMOUNT OF EQUIPMENT IS MORE VALUABLE THAN A SINGLE AIRMAN’S LIFE:” Peter Meijer @PeterMeijer, "Between January’s Maduro extradition and today’s F-15 WSO rescue, President Trump is demonstrating an exceptionally high risk tolerance for military operations in his second term. Not a great time to be an adversary of the US!" Quote RedDevil @Snakeeater36 "SOF elements made a flying ORP and went and got dude in the dead of night….possibly dismounted, then BIP’ed the plane, and left. I think we have entered a time where our military is allowed to take bolder risks than we have seen in a long time."

While progressives aren't yet so obtuse as to actually express their anger at the military's (and by extension, Trump's) victory in this rescue, they have begun to counterattack by highlighting the cost of the incident, four airplanes lost (the F15, an A10 Warthog, and two C-130s). Bad Hombre @Badhombre, "Trump orders two transport planes blown up so Iranians don’t steal and reverse-engineer our technology after a wildly successful rescue mission of two American pilots deep inside Iranian territory. Biden leaves behind $85 billion in military equipment to the Taliban and over 100 military K9s abandoned at Kabul airport during a disastrous withdrawal that killed 13 service members. Take a guess which one Democrats are calling a success. InfantryDort @infantrydort, "America, please don’t listen to the new narrative that we wasted so much equipment to save one life. There’s a reason recruiting is through the roof. And it’s because we don’t leave your sons and daughters behind enemy lines because it’s financially convenient." Lee (Greater) @shortmagsmle, "I’m noticing a lot of foreigners who seem to not understand why we’d risk hundreds of lives, spend millions of dollars, and sacrifice several aircraft to rescue one guy. And the reason they don’t understand is also the reason people can’t be made American by a piece of paper." Quote Daniel Foubert @Arrogance_0024 "Lose all this to rescue 1 pilot and call it your greatest military success of all time." Varad Mehta @varadmehta, "Can't wait to hear tomorrow about how the US being able to conduct a massive search and rescue op inside Iran, find the missing airman while killing a bunch of Irani goons, and then escape more or less unscathed, is a defeat for America and makes the mullahs stronger than ever." Rabbi Linda Goldstein @realrabbilinda, "Imaging losing 1 plane for every 13,000 strike missions and thinking that America is winning the war in Iran. At this rate, Iran can absorb 52,000,000 strikes to down the remaining 4,000 US strike aircraft. America will lose." From Twitchy, T. Becket Adams Nails the Moment: Europe Disappointed U.S. Actually Saved Its Pilot in Iran. Kama @Kama_Kamilia, "Im beginning to understand, why Americans feel the way they do about us. Incomprehensibly difficult operation to save the finest America has to offer. And all morons can scream about is “what about the money?” while incessantly lying." Quote Robin Monotti @robinmonotti "We are witnessing the greatest humiliation of the US military since Vietnam, and this will be Trump's legacy! Another hundreds of millions fighter plane downed by Iran:" Stelios Panagiotou @Panagiotou90St, "People underestimate how much third worldist anti-westerners have infiltrated western discourse. After a while, there are no excuses for not getting this. The demoralisation and destabilisation op didn’t start yesterday." wretchardthecat @wretchardthecat, "How long before the theory emerges that the US deliberately ordered the F-15 crew to bail out over Iran so they could rescue them dramatically."

Lee (Greater) @shortmagsmle, "Everyone cried about the press losing their normal ability to freely roam the pentagon soliciting leaks, but notice how the military just pulled off an incredible top secret rescue operation without any Bolshevik subversion gumming things up." Bryan O'Nolan @BryanONolan, "Moonshot. Soldier rescued. NYT doesn’t know what NATO stands for. Glorious few days we’ve had." Althouse and her NYT, A NYT column refers to "Fuck around and find out" as "the unofficial Proud Boys motto.", "I'm reading "America Is Used to Hiding Its Wars. Trump Is Doing the Opposite" by Charles Homans..."

Stacy McCain astonished by the Lifestyles of the Rich and Shameless: The Family Had ‘Great Satan’ Green Cards. Fugitive Caesar @ThomBrady5, "I was considering this from the American perspective, but from the Arabic, Iranian, and Muslim perspective this is a huge propaganda coup for the American government. These photos completely discredit Iran, at a moment when Iranian soldiers are deserting and demoralized." Quote Secretary Marco Rubio @SecRubio, "Until recently, Hamideh Soleimani Afshar and her daughter were green card holders living lavishly in the United States. Afshar is the niece of deceased Iranian Major General Qasem Soleimani. She is also an outspoken supporter of the Iranian regime who celebrated attacks on..."

Tom Kratman @TKratman, "From Martin Iles, reposted: Having lived in the USA for nearly two years, I've realised something. The USA and the remainder of the Western world are no longer aligned. We all laugh and mock when the Americans say, "Freedom!" because we truly think we're as free as they are. Wrong. We're not. Not even close. The laws, the mindset, and the behaviour, is totally different in this regard..." Eric S. Raymond @esrtweet, "Hello, Europeans. The first thing you need to understand about the rant I'm about to utter is that I'm not MAGA, not a Trumpite, but a libertarian who has in the past nevertheless been strongly supportive of US military presence overseas. Because I want the wars that defend this country to be fought in somebody else's country, as far away from me as possible with a nice big ocean in the way. Also relevant: I have a history of having lived in Europe and traveled there extensively. I was at one time bilingual in English and Spanish, and have been passably fluent in Italian and French as well. I could probably still find my way around London and Rome and central Paris reasonably well. So if you're tempted to tell yourselves that I'm some kind of parochial American hick, abandon that hope. All that was set-up. So that, when I tell you that almost the entirety of the US electorate, not just Trump supporters, is increasingly fed up with your shit, take me seriously. We've been cleaning up your messes and keeping the sea lanes open since 1917. And that was for you, not us - we, being very close to resource self-sufficient, don't need that investment so much. We've spent enormous amounts of blood and treasure on keeping you safe. We risked nuclear hellfire on our own cities for nearly 50 years to keep Soviet tanks from rolling through the Fulda Gap..." John Ʌ Konrad V @johnkonrad, "NATO is in far bigger danger than anyone realizes. And the reason has nothing to do with defense budgets. The real danger is psychological. It’s cultural. Europeans didn’t just free-ride on American security for 80 years. They built an entire identity around the idea that they evolved past the Americans protecting them. That identity is now the single biggest obstacle to Western survival. And the darkest irony is: we helped build it..." At TownHall, Alan Joseph Bauer says Allahu Akbar, Europe! "Europe is lost as a Christian continent, and its demise is self-inflicted." Dave Manney at PJM thinks Macron’s Latest Comments Show France Hasn’t Learned a Thing. Why would he, he hasn't suffered much, yet. At WUWT, Miliband Expected to Block North Sea Oil Drilling. At RCE, If Washington Wants Lower Gas Prices, It Should Get Out of the Way. It should, but it won't. Its power comes from meddling.

At NYPo, California’s fraud problem is so bad the DOJ will ‘never have enough’ prosecutors to fight it. Really his a few hard, and it will make many of the rest look for safer grifts. Mike Solana @micsolana, "glad we're mainstreaming a conversation on california's rail disaster, as it's the gateway to understanding why america can't build anymore. but the msm is still afraid to spell it out: the purpose was never to build rail, but to buy union votes. in this, the dems succeeded." Quote 60 Minutes @60Minutes, "An ambitious state-run high-speed rail project linking Los Angeles and San Francisco hasn’t stayed on track. 60 Minutes reports on the costly struggle to bring high-speed rail to the United States, Sunday. http://60Minutes.com."

From the Free Bacon, Maine Democrat Graham Platner Called Jesus a 'Zombie' and the Virgin Mary 'a Skank' in Unearthed Reddit Post "'I've been about as crudely atheist as one can be,' Senate candidate wrote." At Althouse, "Candidates and incumbents should center each day on content creation.... creating output tailored specifically for TikTok or Instagram or YouTube." ""It means several hours a day filming in campaign offices — even candidates’ homes.... Successful candidates understand they are putting on a permanent show...Writes David Plouffe, in "Always Be Posting: The New Rules for Democratic Candidates" (NYT)."

Wall Street Apes @WallStreetApes, "A company was paid more than 6 figures to bring in trucks and setup the No Kings Day protest at the Capitol in St Paul, Minnesota “We provided the stage, the sound, the lighting and contracted in all the generators and infrastructure and video towers and set them up for the No Kings three rally at the Capitol” “We brought in, oh, about about a hundred speakers, which are kind of over here and all the electrical infrastructure — it had to have been 30 different trucks worth of stuff that came” The company was Slamhammer Sound & Roadcase Co, they talk about the logistics and equipment used during the 'No Kings' protest in St Paul, Minnesota on March 28, 2026 It’s always paid and highly organized." DataRepublican (small r) @DataRepublican, "As fun as it is to see ActBlue exposed, one must always ask the motives when legacy media seemingly puts crosshairs on its own. It’s long been a goal of the “democracy” camp to overturn Citizens United and ban PAC money. Here’s the catch: they want to replace it with union money and taxpayer-funded money schemes much like the NGO gaming of subsidized campaigns which allowed Mamdani to win in NYC. They more or less are moving towards a total monopoly on campaign funds for Democrats. Yes, let’s enjoy the collapse of ActBlue. But beware." Quote Peter Schweizer @peterschweizer, "NYTimes report on Dark Money in politics: "In the 2024 election cycle, over 40 percent of the nearly $2 billion raised by the largest Democratic super PACs came from entities that did not disclose their donors, according to the Times analysis. That was twice the rate of the largest Republican super PACs that cycle."

Sundance seems concerned that Asst Attorney General Harmeet Dhillon Campaigns Hard to Replace Pam Bondi.

Erick Florack at PJM goes there, The Islamic Immigrant Problem. AG @AGHamilton29, "A+ dad. Lowlife antisemite decided to randomly threaten a dad and two kids because they were Jewish. The dad rightly pulled out his gun and held him at gunpoint until the police got there and arrested the aggressor. Also will note this as a good example of why it’s good to live in a place like Florida. There are definitely some states/cities where the dad would have been the one arrested." Quote Unlimited L's @unlimited_ls, "NEW: Muslim man arrested after calling a Jewish family “dirty people” at a Miami Beach park and then claiming he had First Amendment rights Ahmad Zeeshan, 32, reportedly asked, "Are you guys Jewish?" and after confirmation yelled, "Get the fk out of here, you fking dirty people." Zeeshan allegedly threatened to attack the father, who pulled a gun after feeling his and his children’s safety was at risk. Both men called police. Zeeshan said the father threatened him with a gun, while the father said Zeeshan was yelling anti-Semitic slurs."

Driscoll calls it a GENIUS MOVE: Did ICE Just Use the DMV as Bait to Lure Illegal Alien Truck Drivers? The Drunk Republican @DrunkRepub, “Now have ICE operate the DMVs.” PJM's Cathy Salgado, Dem Senator Mourns Criminal ‘Asylum Seeker’ Who Caused Big Pileup While Fleeing ICE. "Democrat Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) is shedding crocodile tears over an “asylum seeker” who was “driving to work” when “he was rear-ended by an ICE vehicle.” The real story? He was an illegal alien with a years-old final deportation order who caused a massive vehicle pile-up while fleeing immigration officers. And the illegal alien caused severe injuries to immigration officers, too." Behold my Senator. Bill Melugin @BillMelugin_, "BREAKING: DHS tells @FoxNews that this “asylum seeker” is actually a Honduran illegal alien who has had a final deportation order since 2018, & when ICE targeted him in Baltimore, he fled in his vehicle at high speeds, slammed on his brakes and caused a multi car pileup, then he bailed out and ran away on foot before being chased down and arrested. DHS says two ICE agents were hospitalized as a result of the crash, and they are accusing Sen. Van Hollen (D-MD) of misrepresenting what happened here." Quote Senator Chris Van Hollen @ChrisVanHollen, " Ever Alvarenga, an asylum seeker, was driving to work Thursday morning when he was rear-ended by an ICE vehicle. He is still in the hospital after suffering significant injuries to his head, chest, back, & hands. After the accident, he was detained & ICE now refuses to allow his attorneys to meet with him privately, a clear denial of the due process rights afforded to all under our Constitution. ICE tactics are endangering our communities & violating the Constitution."

AG @AGHamilton29, "In the 1970’s, the KGB put together an operational plan for undermining America via informational warfare and ideological subversion: “To change the perception of reality of every American to such an extent that no one is able to come to sensible conclusions in the interest of defending themselves, their family, their community, and their country” That same strategy has been actively deployed by America’s enemies with the assistance of some people at home now..." Quote, Jamie Weinstein @Jamie_Weinstein, "What’s incredible about the response to this tweet is a bunch of prominent figures just openly admitting, “yea, we are rooting against America in Iran.” Saying essentially Iran has the moral high ground." At Twitchy, SHOUT IT! Gene Simmons Taking on HORDE of Angry, Mouth-Breathing, Anti-American Trolls Is GLORIOUS and Stephen King Sweeps the Bad Timing Awards With an EPIC Fail About Trump's Situation Room.

Kyle Becker @kylenabecker, "This is all intentional. Race relations were actually improving until the second term of Obama. Then the propaganda media activated the Ferguson/BLM playbook — straight out of Critical Race Theory — and it's been downhill ever since." Quote The Rabbit Hole @TheRabbitHole, "In the 2010s: - Focus on Race up, - Race Relations down."

Jonathan Turley sees Poison Ivey: Chicago Bulls Release Forward After He Speaks Out Against Pride Month "This week, the Chicago Bulls waived guard Jaden Ivey for “conduct detrimental to the team.” No, Ivey did not assault anyone or gamble on games. He did not call for violence. Ivey expressed his opposing religious beliefs, including criticizing the NBA’s Pride Month celebrations."

The Wombat has FMJRA 2.0: Grinding Forward up and garnering clicks at The Other McCain.

Flotsam and Jetsam - 'Simoleans for Somalians' is Still the Story

Is It Over for Tim Walz? asks Power Line's John Hinderacker, hopefully. PJM's Stephen Kruiser hears Bells Are Jingling All the Wrong Way for Tim Walz. NYPo remembers Tim Walz bragged about child care business in Minnesota during VP debate before $9B Somali fraud scandal came to light. Leave no Somali child unattended! Paul @WomanDefiner, "Remember when Democrats tried to make Universal daycare a thing for the last 15 years? Now you know why." Quote Oilfield Rando @Oilfield_Rando, "The same Somali scams are happening in Seattle. And Maine. And Columbus, Ohio. And a Clarkston, Georgia. x.com/thehoffather/s…" The FOO @PolitiBunny, "Democrats claim there’s a problem … for example, childcare is too expensive. Democrats decide to create a government program to fund and support affordable childcare. Democrats explain people will need to pay more in taxes so childcare is more affordable. Dumb people believe them. Democrats fund groups who are friendly to Democrats who turn around and fund more Democrats. Meanwhile, blaming Republicans because childcare is still not more affordable for some reason. Repeat with ANY ‘problem’ Democrats want to fix." From Fox, Tim Walz pushes back on Minnesota fraud allegations following viral daycare video claiming he "has spent years working to "crack down on fraud" and has taken steps to strengthen oversight of state programs, including initiating investigations into several facilities." He was either complicit or incompetent, or both. Nick Arama at RedState sees New Twists in Viral MN Daycare Story Amid Response From Officials That Won't Go Over Well The Drunk Republican @DrunkRepub, "I cannot stress how important it is for Trump to make an example of Walz and Minnesota. While his term thus far has been very successful (border, foreign policy, BBB, etc.) much of MAGA is dissatisfied because so many crooks and conspirators from the past 10 years have yet to face justice. This is the perfect opportunity to change that! . . . ?" From ET, FBI Surged Resources to Minnesota Early in Federal Fraud Investigation, Patel Says, "‘The FBI is aware of recent social media reports in Minnesota,’ he said, referring to a recent viral video about an allegedly fraudulent day care in the state." From Da Caller, Kash Patel Says FBI Investigation Into Alleged Minnesota Fraud Will Broaden As New Details Emerge. At PM, FBI threatens to denaturalize, deport Somali scammers in Minnesota. "Many are also being referred to immigrations officials for possible further denaturalization and deportation proceedings." Peter St Onge, Ph.D. @profstonge, "In case you're looking for a side gig, whistleblowers on federal fraud receive between 15% and 30% of the recovered amount." Quote JD Ross @justindross, "There is a $10B+ startup just waiting to be built in identifying and successfully litigating against federal and state fraud, double that if you can go after health and disability fraud Like an apolitical, decentralized for-profit DOGE." The Babylon Bee @TheBabylonBee, "Walz Announces $8 Billion Grant To Somali Company To Investigate Fraud https://buff.ly/92fvWoA."

This new Tim Walz ad goes hard.

Come for the learing, stay because you were carjacked.pic.twitter.com/blalJNdjPE

— Dustin Grage (@GrageDustin) December 28, 2025

NotTheBee

Scott Adams @ScottAdamsSays "I'm starting to detect a pattern," Quote Wall Street Apes @WallStreetApes "Attorney Mehek Cooke says massive fraud is taking place in Ohio She says fraudulent Somalian healthcare companies are being created charging as much as $250,000 per family per year FOR DOING NOTHING, it’s all fraudulent It’s all being billed to Medicaid and taxpayers are payingShow more" Elon Musk is on a Xroll: Elon Musk @elonmusk, "The fraud of your taxpayer money is happening nationwide and is liberally applied to attract illegal (and some legal) immigrants who will reliably vote Democrat. The more you look, the more you find. And you don’t need to be a world-class detective to figure it out. This is brazen, daylight robbery," "My lower bound guess for how much fraud there is nationally is ~20% of the Federal budget, which would mean $1.5 trillion per year. Probably much higher," "Wow," "More than any the daily readership of all newspapers in America combined" Quote DogeDesigner @cb_doge "BREAKING: Nick Shirley’s Minnesota Somali fraud video just crossed 100 million views on X. You are the media now!" Elon Musk @elonmusk, "Just stop caring whether they call you racist or not. They do that to scare away inquiries. Doing so used to work, but not any more. Fraud is fraud and it doesn’t matter what race someone is," Quote Eric Daugherty @EricLDaugh, HOLY CRAP! Nick Shirley just DROPPED THE MIC on Tim Walz after he called anyone "racist" for pointing out Somali fraud "You're going to call a white person 'RACIST' for calling out FACTS?"

At Da Signal, Minnesota Fraud Controversy Shakes Capitol Hill. Austen Allred @Austen, "Kinda funny that the two stories dominating my X feed are: 1. Needing to take 5% of net worth from billionaires to prop up government spending 2. Fraudsters brazenly taking billions of dollars of taxpayer money with little being done to stop it." Christopher F. Rufo @christopherrufo, "We opened the discourse with the Somali fraud story. Now it's built into a massive social reaction. But the question is whether the Trump Administration will deliver results: investigations, arrests, mugshots, prosecutions. Ultimately, only action matters." Ace, More Somali Piracy: In Ohio, Somalis Are Defrauding the State Home Health Care System for $250,000 Per Year "Caring" for Phantom "Aged Parents." Ted Cruz @tedcruz, "Um, wut?" Quote Kristen Mag @kristenmag, "There are 539 childcare centers in Washington state that list Somali as the primary language. Most don’t even give a street address. I don’t know how many of these are submitting fraudulent claims for state grants and subsidies, but I have a strong hunch the number is not zero." Matthew Marsden @matthewdmarsden, "Um, what are you going to do about it?" At Insty, SOMEONE SHOULD LOOK INTO THIS: Katie Miller @KatieMiller, "BLS data confirms home health aides as the fastest-growing U.S. occupation with a 10% surge to over 500,000 in 2024. It's MOSTLY Medicaid-funded. 42% are foreign-born across the US. 78% are foreign-born in NYC where most home health aides are used. Want to guess where the fraud is?" Cathy Salgado at PJM reports Small Business Administration Cuts Off All Minnesota Grants Over Somali Fraud. It's a start. DataRepublican (small r) @DataRepublican "I'm glad this is all being flushed out, but can we please get some messaging on why it is so difficult to prosecute or deport fraudsters & accomplices? Like Keith Ellison and Ilhan Omar. Is it a state jurisdiction thing? Are you being slow-walked in the administration? So many questions..."

Bad Hombre @Badhombre "A YouTuber who started his career making prank videos in high school just gave a masterclass in journalism to all the entities on the right." Doug Ross has Nick Shirley's Exposé - The Infographic ""With 𝕏, _you_ are the media" proven correct, again." Tom Bevan @TomBevanRCP, "Still no coverage in NYT, WaPo, CNN, or Minneapolis Star-Tribune of massive fraud being uncovered in Minnesota. The media's willingness to ignore stories that hurt Democrats is truly astonishing." TMK @TheMagaKing2_0, "The New York Times and The Washington Post were rewarded with Pulitzer Prizes for the now-debunked Russia collusion hoax, built on fake intelligence and anonymous sources. Meanwhile, an independent YouTuber uses public records, real documents, firsthand investigation, and on-the-ground video to expose an $800 million daycare fraud scheme in Minnesota, and the mainstream media ignores it. That’s why they’re called fake news." At Twitchy, Un-EFFING-Believable: Drew Holden's LENGTHY Thread of Media Actively HIDING MN Somali Fraud a MUST-Read. Drew Holden @DrewHolden360 "THREAD The legacy media didn’t miss the Minnesota Somalian fraud story. They actively dismissed it as made up, racist, or xenophobic. Before the stories are quietly edited, I’ve got screenshots." TownHall's Matt Vespa asks What Do You Notice About All These Stories About Somali Fraud in the Press? Ace, YouTuber Exposes Another Huge Ring of Somali Pirate Fraud as Legacy "Journalists" Refuse to Investigate or Report Others' Investigations.

PJM's Stephen Kruiser notes Mamdanigeddon Is Almost Here — Time to Take Bets on NYC's Survival. It'll survive. Rome survived the Goths, after all. Just barely. Althouse catches a modern puff piece, "The most new York couple is: very sweet man that everyone loves with a wife way out of his league that he’s obsessed with." "That's the top rated comment on this TikTok about Rama Duwaji, the wife of Zohran Mamdani:" At the Manhattan Contrarian, Doubling Down On The Worst Possible Public Policy ("Affordable Housing" In Manhattan).

At PJM VodkaPundit says Insert Completely Gobsmacked Pacific Palisades Fire Headline Here "An hour after midnight Jan. 1, as a small brush fire blazed across Topanga State Park, a California State Parks employee texted the Los Angeles Fire Department’s heavy equipment supervisor to find out if they were sending in bulldozers. “Heck no that area is full of endangered plants,” Capt. Richard Diede replied at 9:52 a.m, five hours after LAFD declared the fire contained. “I would be a real idiot to ever put a dozer in that area,” he wrote. “I’m so trained.”"

VodkaPundit at Insty thinks IT’S NICE TO SEE EUROPEAN NATO GETTING SERIOUS ABOUT ITS DEFENSE AGAIN: Russia vs. NATO Video Roundup. USNI News, Chinese Forces Fielding Intercontinental Anti-Ship Ballistic Missiles Capable of Reaching U.S. West Coast, Pentagon Says. Shouldn't that be the "left coast?" Sundance at CTH hosts U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer Giving a Strong Recap of President Trump Trade Policy. 

Atop Da Hill, California drops lawsuit over Trump pulling high-speed rail funding. "An authority spokesperson said in a statement that “the federal government is not a reliable, constructive, or trustworthy partner in advancing high-speed rail in California.”" Good. Hat Hair's Beege Welborn warns we may still be Possibly Looking at Bi-Coastal Energy Price Shocks for 2026.

From TNP, Far Left Embarks on Formal ‘Boycott’ of ‘Occupied’ Trump-Kennedy Center. Althouse, "The artists who have protested in recent weeks include Kristy Lee, a folk singer from Alabama, who announced she was pulling out from a free concert...." ""'I won’t lie to you, canceling shows hurts,' she said in a social media post. 'This is how I keep the lights on. But losing my integrity would cost me more than any paycheck.'" From "New Year’s Eve Concerts at Kennedy Center Are Canceled/The jazz drummer Billy Hart said the decision was 'evidently' connected to President Trump’s name being added to the arts center" (NYT). Art is not logic." Take the whole Kennedy Center and move it to a site along the Missouri River in Bismarck, ND. Why should the hinterlands pay tribute to DC so they can build themselves pleasure palaces? Clay Travis @ClayTravis, "Democrats have called Trump Hitler for a decade. Now he’s the most honored non-Israeli in most of our lives." Quote Fox News @FoxNews "BREAKING: Netanyahu announces Israel is awarding President Trump the Israel Prize. It is the country's highest cultural honor, and has not been won by a non-Israeli in nearly 80 years." Readers added context "This is incorrect as the last non-Israeli to win the award was Indian conductor Zubin Mehta in 1991." Roger Kimball at Am Great on The Pence Mirage: Why the Right Isn’t Leaving Trump, "The Heritage Foundation “mutiny” isn’t a conservative realignment so much as the latest anti-Trump mirage, with Mike Pence cast as a moral standard-bearer no one is following."

Matt Margolis at PJM sees The J6 Pipebomber Explains His Motive, and the Left Won’t Be Happy. From the Victory Girls, DOJ: J6 Pipe Bomber Hated BOTH Political Parties. Ace, J6 Pipebomber Says He Wanted to Hurt Both Parties. "I'm glad he isn't confirming the media's claim that he was animated to plant the bombs over Trump's completely-false claims of the election being rigged. Because if he did, he'd be eligible for an insanity plea, because we all know 2020 was the most secure and fraud-free election in history.

From Mediaite ‘Dangerous!’ CBS’s Jan Crawford Skewers Liberals Over Attacks on the Supreme Court. Shipwreckedcrew finds it amusing The Supreme Court Tells Pres. Trump He Can Only Use The Insurrection Act To Assist ICE In Enforcing Immigration Law. "The language of the statute relied upon is a historic anachronism that only Congress can fix, or it can watch as the Executive uses the only tools SCOTUS says he has -- the Army and Marines " and reports that Judge's Order To Release All ICE Detainees Is Stayed by Seventh Circuit Pending Appeal. "Biden Admin. entered into "consent decree" to not detain certain illegals scheduled for deportation hearing and Chicago Judge ordered enforcement of that agreement -- paused for now." Teri Christoph at RedState says More of This, Please: Utah GOP Refuses to Fold After Judge Forces Democrat-Friendly Map. From Front Page, Obama Judge Legalizes Assaulting ICE Personnel "The sanctuary state is becoming an insurrection."

At the College Fix, the Latest on the Brown shooting: Custodian warned about shooter, police chief put on leave.

WokeSpy hears Tom Homan Drops the Mic on Child Separation “It’s unfortunate families got separated, but it happens to American families every day. It’s going to happen in Albany today, that American family will be separated by law enforcement because the child can’t go to jail with a parent,” Homan said.. . . . Homan then shifted focus to child trafficking, stating that a large number of children were trafficked into the United States during Joe Biden’s tenure and that many remain unaccounted for. “We want to talk about family separation. A half a million children Joe Biden were trafficked in this country. They can’t find 300,000 of them. That’s a separation,” Homan said." Front Page wants you to Imagine America With Only 450,000 Immigrants a Year "Liberals are horrified at the idea."

Ace finds it As Predictable As the Setting Sun: After Conspiracy Theorist and Lunatic Marjorie Taylor Greene Turns on Trump, the NYT Offers Her a Puff-Piece with an Attempted Glamour Shot. From Twitchy, The Easiest Grift Flip from The Bulwark: MTG Bashes Trump, Jonathan V. Last Falls in Love.

Michael Patrick Leahy @michaelpleahy, "BREAKING: New Covenant killer documents released by the FBI confirm @TheTNStar reporting the killer bought guns with Pell Grant money." John Sexton at Hat Hair reads the Washington Post: It's Not Cheating If You Feel Like a Girl "Yesterday the Washington Post published a story which was clearly intended to paint a trans-female athlete in the most positive light possible. The story is titled "For young transgender runner, racing wasn’t the hardest thing." The hardest thing, the story argues, was poverty or maybe opposition to her competing as a girl and repeatedly beating out actual female competitors in various races." Yeah, we get the WaPoo. This story was a couple full pages and mores, all weepy about how hard it was when people booed him for still medals from the real girls. It almost filled up the news 'taint.

At RCP Chris Barnard celebrates The National Movement to Trim Higher Ed Bloat.

The Wombat has FMJRA 2.0: On An Even Keel up on time and under budget at The Other McCain.

Maryland, My Maryland

Maryland's Train to nowhere going nowhere. From the Bay Journal, Not so fast: Maryland high-speed train project hits skids.

One of the main selling points for constructing a $13 billion magnet-propelled train line between Washington, DC, and Baltimore is speed. Proponents envision levitating train cars going 300 mph and higher, reducing the travel time between the two cities to a mere 15 minutes.

But those go-fast ambitions have collided with the go-slow realities of acquiring state and federal permits. The mounting difficulties threaten to derail the high-profile project.

First came the Federal Railroad Administration’s decision in 2019 to pause the five-year, $28 million study of the project’s potential environmental impacts, citing the need for additional engineering and design details. After work on the study restarted, the FRA initiated a second pause in 2021 without finalizing a preferred route.

Nearly three years into the effort’s current suspension, an FRA spokeswoman told the Bay Journal in April that “there are no updates available.”. The study must be completed and federally approved for the project to move forward.

Now comes another big wrench in the works: Northeast Maglev, the private company leading the project, withdrew its application in late December for a water-quality certification from the Maryland Department of the Environment. The move came after MDE indicated it was poised to reject the request, pointing to a bevy of missing details, such as finalized design plans and stormwater discharge totals.

Northeast Maglev didn’t make a representative available to comment for this report. But the company has notified MDE that it intends to reapply after it acquires more engineering and design information.

Some environmental groups, including the Chesapeake Climate Action Network, have thrown their support behind the project. They say the high-speed train will result in a net win for the environment by removing millions of polluting car trips from area roadways, leading to improved air quality.

But many conservationists remain opposed. Among them: the Anacostia Watershed Community Advisory Committee, Sierra Club’s Maryland chapter, Beaverdam Creek Watershed Watch, the Maryland Ornithological Society and the Friends of Patuxent Research Reserve. They greeted the permit withdrawal announcement with cautious relief.

“We were very excited,” said Rhonda Kranz, president of the Maryland Coalition for Responsible Transit, an anti-maglev community group. “We spent so much time going to hearings and writing a 600-page report. They can still come back with this, but I think it was a real win.”

Critics have raised myriad objections to the project.

Although the train itself doesn’t directly emit greenhouse gases, opponents contend it would still need enormous amounts of electricity derived from fossil fuels. They also take issue with Northeast Maglev’s preferred route, which would slice through several federal properties, including portions of the Patuxent Research Reserve. And with an expected average fare price of $60, they say it would be a viable option only for the wealthiest commuters.

“At its core, our big concern with the maglev project is it requires extensive amounts of new infrastructure to do basically the same thing that MARC [Maryland Area Regional Commuter] and Amtrak are currently doing,” said Kyle Hart, Mid-Atlantic program manager for the National Parks Conservation Association.

The train’s special U-shaped guideway would run mostly through tunnels bored up to 320 feet below the surface. About 70% of the 40-mile route would be underground, but it would emerge above ground as much as 150 feet overhead along “viaducts” perched on concrete piers. The service would operate between dedicated new stations at Mount Vernon Square in DC and the Cherry Hill neighborhood in Baltimore, with a single stop at Baltimore-Washington International Airport.

That's a lot of boring. 

Japan, which pioneered maglev technology in the 1970s, has pledged $5 billion toward the U.S. construction project. Backers hope to eventually extend the route to New York City. A full trip between there and DC, roughly 200 miles, would take just an hour, they say.

Maryland’s water-quality certification process is triggered whenever a new project is expected to discharge polluted stormwater into waterways protected by the federal Clean Water Act. Northeast Maglev’s permit application identifies seven Chesapeake Bay tributaries to be affected, including the Anacostia, Little Patuxent and Severn rivers.

The project would require about 450 acres of trees to be cleared. About 22 acres of wetlands and nearly 13,000 linear feet of streams would be impacted. Northeast Maglev told MDE it would use state-approved treatment practices during construction and in the installation of stormwater facilities to ensure that the discharges meet water-quality standards.

In a Dec. 22 letter to Northeast Maglev, Danielle Spendiff, head of MDE’s regulatory division, wrote that even after receiving additional details from Northeast Maglev, the agency still “does not have a reasonable assurance that this project will comply with water quality standards.”

She pointed to several flaws in the developer’s request. Those included that the project’s layout remains conceptual, efforts to address floodwaters with underground storage may be “challenging or infeasible,” and there are scant details on how sensitive species, such as freshwater mussels, will be impacted.

Less than a week later, Northeast Maglev notified the agency that it was pulling the application but would “reapply when the project documents are detailed enough to address MDE’s comments.”

Spendiff replied that “it is strongly recommended (although not required)” that Northeast Maglev wait until the federal environmental impact study resumes and there is more certainty surrounding the preferred route.

“I read that as, ‘Please don’t waste our resources,’” said Dan Woomer, a past president of the Coalition for Responsible Transit. His organization, he added, supports enhancements to MARC, Amtrak and other public transportation options to help relieve the region’s congestion.

It is unclear when or if the federal environmental impact study will restart. The effort has run out of federal funding, and any further work would require additional outlays, said Nora Corasaniti of the Maryland Department of Transportation in a September 2023 email to state Democratic Del. Nicole A. Williams of Prince George’s County, who had requested an update on the project.

I find it somewhat ironic that the project seems to be stalled by environmental concerns. 

Nurdle Spill Bedevils Anacostia

A sample of nurdles spilled from derailed
 train cars in Hyattsville, MD,

Chesapeake Bay Mag, Train Derailment Sends Tiny Plastic Pellets Into Anacostia River, Fueling New Pollution Concern

A train that derailed in the Anacostia River watershed on Sept. 23 introduced local officials to a source of pollution no one was quite prepared to handle: nurdles.

These tiny plastic pellets, each about the size of a lentil, are transported around the world as the raw materials of plastic production. At 1 a.m. on Sept. 23, during a tropical storm, a CSX train derailed, spilling an unknown quantity of the pellets from some of its 16 railcars.

The spill occurred in the stretch of tracks that crosses alternate U.S. Route 1 (Baltimore Avenue) on the south side of Hyattsville, Maryland, just outside the District of Columbia and less than a half-mile from the Northeast Branch of the Anacostia River. The nurdles were made of recycled plastic and were on their way to be turned into new products. A CSX spokesperson did not answer a question about where the shipment was headed or how frequently nurdles are transported through the area.

“This is the first time in the recent memory of our staff for dealing with a train derailment,” said Cindy Zork, communications manager for Hyattsville.

There were no reported injuries and, other than a small amount of diesel fuel, “no hazardous materials” released in the spill. The city closed the busy thoroughfare to traffic for two weeks, frustrating local drivers.

But, Zork said, residents were equally concerned about the tiny white nurdles that covered the ground nearby.

Most state and local governments do not yet have rules in place for monitoring, preventing or cleaning up nurdle spills, according to The Great Nurdle Hunt, a project of the Finland-based nonprofit Fidra that aims to end nurdle pollution worldwide.

“A spill is often an occasion of great confusion as local and state environmental agencies try to figure out who might be responsible for managing it,” the Nurdle Hunt website says.

California is the only state in the U.S. with a strong law regulating nurdles and marine plastics as a specific source of pollution, the website states. Other states have varied approaches to handling this emerging source of pollution. Many are developed on the fly after a spill occurs.

The Clean Water Act does provide some means for the federal government, under the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, to address nurdle pollution in waterways. But a legal overview published after the Hyattsville spill pointed out that nurdles aren’t federally classified as pollutants or hazardous materials, so no federal agency is expressly responsible for preventing or cleaning up the spills. Legislation that would require the EPA to prohibit the discharge of plastic pellets into waterways or during transport was introduced as recently as July but has not yet passed.

Most nurdle pollution is found on beaches, where the pellets wash in on the tide from faraway plastic production plants or ships that have spilled them.

I don't see a problem that can't be solved with some shovels and containers, and maybe a large vacuum cleaner couldn't fix. In the grand scale of Anacostia problems, this one is pretty minor. 

Forget It Jake, It's Baltimore

Bay Bulletin, Baltimore Blocks Ohio Train Derailment’s Toxic Waste From Being Treated, Released Into Baltimore’s Back River

When the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) went looking for wastewater treatment sites to treat and discharge the contaminated water from the Ohio derailment cleanup site, they picked one in Baltimore. Under the proposed plan, Clean Harbors of Baltimore, Inc. would treat the polluted water and it would be discharged from the Back River Wastewater Treatment Plant, which just suffered an explosion and has had repeated pollution violations in recent years.

In a letter to the City of Baltimore, Clean Harbors of Baltimore, Inc. wrote that it was determined that Clean Harbors was “an optimal wastewater treatment site to treat and discharge the wastewater collected from rainwater, collected water, and stream water above and below the cleanup site of the Norfolk Southern Railroad derailment in East Palestine, Ohio that occurred February 3, 2023.”

The letter went on to explain that the main substance of concern in the 675,000 gallons of wastewater is vinyl chloride. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, vinyl chloride can irritate the eyes, mucous membranes and respiratory tract. Chronic exposure can cause permanent liver damage and cancer, as well as neurologic symptoms.

After the plan was made public, environmental groups and Baltimore City leaders quickly pushed back. The city’s waterway watchdog group, Blue Water Baltimore, put out a strongly worded statement, saying in part:

“The area surrounding Clean Harbors already suffers environmental injustices related to lead paint exposure, air toxics and cancer risk, hazardous waste proximity, and more. It is unclear why the U.S. EPA chose this already-overburdened community to accept even more toxic contamination, and we demand to know why they believe it is appropriate to send the toxic waste that is too dangerous for East Palestine to the shores of Baltimore.”

Pointing out that a critical facility at the wastewater treatment plant is still damaged from last week’s explosion and fire, Blue Water Baltimore writes, “It is entirely inappropriate to further stress-test this facility by adding even more toxic contaminants to the waste-stream from wastewater produced outside of the watershed.”

After expressing his own concerns, Baltimore Mayor Brandon Scott moved to modify Clean Harbors’ discharge permit, denying them their request to treat and discharge the train derailment’s wastewater into Back River, which flows into the Chesapeake Bay.

So I look up Clean Harbors Inc, and found:

This facility serves Maryland and the Mid-Atlantic United States as a treatment facility for a variety of industrial wastewater and as a transfer station for other industrial waste including flammables, oxidizers, poisons and reactives. The facility also provides a unique liquid/liquid extraction system for treating organic contaminated wastewater. Waste not treated on-site is processed at other Company-owned sites or approved ultimate disposal sites.

Sounds like the perfect site to perform the work, and it might even help support some badly needed jobs in Baltimore. There's no real evidence provided that the material from Ohio is worse than what the company already treats and releases, or whether significant pollution will be released. The seems like a knee jerk reaction to a perfectly normal commercial transaction in the name of "environmental justice". I would think Clean Harbors Inc. might have a cause of action against the city.

I was also reminded of a passage from Alice's Restaurant Massacree:

We got up there, we found all the garbage in there, and we decided it'd be a friendly gesture for us to take the garbage down to the city dump. So We took the half a ton of garbage, put it in the back of a red VW Microbus, took shovels and rakes and implements of destruction and headed On toward the city dump.

Well we got there and there was a big sign and a chain across across the Dump saying, "Closed on Thanksgiving." And we had never heard of a dump Closed on Thanksgiving before, and with tears in our eyes we drove off Into the sunset looking for another place to put the garbage.

We didn't find one. Until we came to a side road, and off the side of the Side road there was another fifteen foot cliff and at the bottom of the Cliff there was another pile of garbage. And we decided that one big pile is better than two little piles, and rather than bring that one up we decided to throw our's down.

Flotsam and Jetsam - DIY Thursday

Yep. It's one of these again. Provide your own snark.

Bank Failures, Economy

In The Mailbox: 03.15.23 (Evening Edition) - The Other McCain
In The Mailbox: 03.15.23 (Morning Edition) - The Other McCain
Asian Stock Markets Tumble in Wake of SVB Collapse
First Thing We Do, Let’s Blame ‘Deregulation’ – Issues & Insights
Former Treasury Official Says US Banks On Verge Of ‘Nationalization’ - The Daily Caller
Israeli Banks Transferred $1 Billion Out of SVB Before Collapse – Summit News
Don't Call It a 'Bailout': No One Is Buying the White House Spin on Silicon Valley Bank
Altman: Biden Is Effectively Nationalizing The Deposit Base Of The Entire U.S. Financial System | Video - RealClearPolitics
Meet The SVB Board: Trump ‘Shock’ Prayers, Dem Donors, And Improv - The Daily Wire
SVB Pledged Nearly $74 Million To Black Lives Matter Causes
Can Silicon Valley Remake Itself? - City Journal
Ace of Spades HQ Sillicon Valley Bank Paid Out $73 Million to BLM and BLM-Associated Causes Update: Gavin Newsom Lobbied For Bailout of Bank's Depositors, Without Revealing He Was One of the Bank's Depositors
Ace of Spades HQ Brace Yourselves For a Disorienting Shock: Silicon Valley Bank Routinely Donated to Gavin Newsom's Bagman Wife Before Gavin Newsome Selflessly Lobbied for Biden to Fill It With More Government Money
SVB And Other Thoughts – The Laughing Wolf
Biden killed SVB. We're next. - Don Surber
Silicon Valley Bank collapse may not be the last. Blackrock CEO warns of 'slow rolling crisis'
Inflation: Everything is 6% Higher From a Year Ago and Rent is Up 8.2%, the Highest Ever
New Data Shows Prices Ticking Up and Inflation Not Going Away

Politics as Usual

Biden Admits How Unpopular He Is, and Response of Vegas Audience Confirms It – RedState
Exclusive — Speaker McCarthy: Administration ‘Fighting Every Step of the Way’ Against Biden Family Business Investigations
‘A New Name Has Emerged’: Rep. Comer Says Another Biden Member Tied Up In Hunter Scheme | The Daily Caller
Comer: Bidens Were Paid 'Massive Amounts' from China – PJ Media
'Treasury Department Caves': Oversight Committee Chairman Has an Update About Its Biden Family Probe
Kamala Harris Reportedly Snubbing Elizabeth Warren Over Recent Comments Questioning Her as VP in 2024
Kamala Harris To Make First Visit To Iowa As Vice President - The Daily Wire
Like things weren't scary enough - Stacy Abrams is coming for your gas stove – HotAir
Stacey Abrams gets a new job after election loss, joins environmental group trying to eliminate gas stoves - Fox News
The urban doom loop could be bad news for Democrats – HotAir
Ace of Spades HQ Arizona Democrat Senator Mark Kelly Wastes No Time At All and Immediately Starts Demanding That Social Media Begin Censoring Information About the Silicon Valley Bank Debacle
On Ukraine, DeSantis' nuance demands elaboration, explanation – HotAir
MSNBC: DeSantis Loves Putin's Russia Because 'There Are No Gay People' - Newsbusters
Ron DeSantis: 'It Is Not Sinful to Prohibit the Mutilation of Minors'
Desperate Trump-supporting super PAC files ethics complaint against DeSantis in Florida – HotAir
Mike Pence Pandering To D.C. Media Is Pathetic And Disqualifying
Vivek Ramaswamy Isn’t Always Right, But He’s Usually Interesting - The American Spectator | USA News and Politics
George Santos's Role in Sale of $19 Million Yacht Attracts F.B.I. Interest – HotAir
Embattled GOP Rep. George Santos Files Paperwork For Re-Election - The Daily Wire
Seriously? Santos files reelection papers – HotAir
Koch-Linked Groups, Including One Funded by Norfolk Southern, Line Up Against J.D. Vance's Rail Safety Reforms
Leftist Groups Tapping $1 Billion to Vastly Expand the Private Financing of Public Elections - RealClearInvestigations

Social Media and Censorship and the WuFlu

NewsGuard Is Just As Bad As The Global Disinformation Index
DeSantis Says Deborah Birx Conducted COVID-19 Lockdowns As ‘Science Experiment’ - The Daily Caller
University Asks Judge To Block Release Of Documents Related To Dangerous Coronavirus Research - The Daily Caller
Inversion Blender - American Greatness

Jan 6 and Lawfare

The J6 Committee’s Obstruction of Justice - American Thinker
Exclusive— Trump on McCarthy Release J6 Surveillance Footage: ‘I Think It’s a Brave Thing He Did’
The Democrat-Media Insurrection Myth - American Thinker
Stormy Daniels speaks to New York prosecutors as possible Trump indictment looms - POLITICO

Education and the Culture War

The Stanford Law School Culture, Not The Diversity Dean, Is The Problem (but I repeat myself)
David Lat released the full audio of Judge Duncan's (attempted) speech at Stanford Law – HotAir
The Stanford Law students who protested a judge are privileged brats - The Washington Post
Woke colleges are literally driving students mad
‘Queer, Non-Binary,' Sharia-Adherent State Rep Hid Trans Activist Who Assaulted Cop - Frontpage Mag