[guest post by Dana]

Let’s go!

First news item

HHS nominee doesn’t refute claims that vaccines cause autism:

Chairman Bill Cassidy, R-La., a physician, pressed Kennedy repeatedly to refute his prior claims that vaccines cause autism.

“Convince me that you will become the public health advocate, but not just churn old information so that there’s never a conclusion,” Cassidy pleaded.

But Kennedy, an attorney who has made millions fighting vaccine companies, refused to do so, instead saying he would apologize to people he may have misled on the issue of vaccines and autism “if the data is there.”

“The data has been there a long time,” Cassidy retorted.

Second news item

About the air traffic controllers on that fateful night:

An air traffic control supervisor in the tower at Reagan Airport let a controller leave their shift early, a source familiar with the investigation confirmed to NBC News.

This detail. . . means that a single controller was atypically handling both plane and helicopter traffic in the area. Ideally, one controller is dedicated to helicopters while another controller handles planes, NBC News reported yesterday.

Third news item

Marco Rubio disappoints as he echoes Trump on war in Ukraine:

Both Russia and Ukraine “are going to have to give something up” in negotiations to end the war, Rubio said, adding that “both sides are paying a heavy price for this” and “both sides have incentive for this conflict to end.” Rubio said the war is “not going to end with the maximalist goals of either side, and there’s going to have to be a lot of hard work done. And I think only the United States, under the leadership of President Trump, can make that possible.”

This is more of that rewarding Russia and punishing Ukraine for a war that Russia started. Providing monetary aid and requested weaponry to Ukraine can help them defeat Russia and reclaim occupied territories, as well as put Putin on notice that Europe and America, freedom loving nations, will not tolerate his illegal invasions of sovereign nations. It would also tell the world that allied nations will continue to stand for freedom and democracy. Ukraine must be victorious and Russia must know that they have lost the war. Anything less will just provide an irresistible open door for Putin and his thugs to try the same thing again. Shame on Rubio.

Fourth news item

Too little, too late, Democrats:

As the Democratic National Committee prepares to elect a new chair, its departing leader says Democrats should have stuck with Joe Biden in the 2024 race.

In an interview with The Associated Press, Jaime Harrison reflected on why his party lost to Donald Trump and what might have happened had then-Vice President Kamala Harris had more time to campaign after Biden ended his reelection bid following a disastrous debate performance.

He also offered advice to his eventual successor, who will be chosen Saturday. The next DNC chair, Harrison said, needs to insist that the party not be a “rubber stamp” to its presidential candidate.

Fifth news item

Governor says no state jobs for J6 rioters:

Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker is blocking those who took part in the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol from working in state jobs, ignoring Trump’s attempt to offer them a clean slate last week in a sweeping set of pardons and commutations.

Late Thursday, Pritzker directed the state’s Department of Central Management Services, the state’s primary hiring authority, to restrict hiring those who took part in the attack on the Capitol, saying their “infamous and disgraceful conduct … is antithetical to the mission of the State.”

Sixth news item

Tariffs set to begin this weekend:

President Trump on Thursday said he plans to follow through on Saturday on his threat to impose 25 percent tariffs on goods from Mexico and Canada.

“We’ll be announcing the tariffs on Canada and Mexico for a number of reasons,” Trump told reporters in the Oval Office. He cited the influx of migrants at the southern border, the flow of fentanyl into the United States and the trade deficit the U.S. has with its neighbors.

The President also said they still have to decide whether to include oil in the tariffs.

Have a good weekend.

—Dana

[guest post by Dana]

What we know for sure:

An American Airlines regional jet went down in the Potomac River near Washington, D.C.’s Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport after colliding with a U.S. Army Black Hawk helicopter on Wednesday night, with no survivors expected amid the extremely cold and windy conditions.

Sixty-four people were on board the plane, which departed from Wichita, Kansas.

The collision happened around 9 p.m. when the PSA Airlines Bombardier CRJ700 regional jet was on approach to the airport.

There is speculation, of course, but we are cautioned to wait for an investigation:

I’m a hawk pilot. I’ve flown the NCR airspace. I’ve got about as much knowledge as you can have save for being one of the VIP fliers out there. Here’s me, not commenting, waiting for a proper investigation to be done. Take a hint. The world doesn’t need your uninformed aviation hot take.

Clearly some individuals didn’t want to wait for an investigation to be concluded (let alone barely begun), and have even decided that DEI policies were to blame for the crash:

President Trump Holds Press Briefing on Aviation Disaster https://t.co/uyYbkQJ9mp

— The White House (@WhiteHouse) January 30, 2025

—Dana

[guest post by Dana]

President Trump signs one more executive order:

President Trump said he is signing an executive order on Wednesday to prepare a massive facility at Guantánamo Bay to be used to house deported migrants.

The order will direct the Department of Defense and Department of Homeland Security to prepare a 30,000-person migrant facility at Guantánamo Bay. . .

“We have 30,000 beds in Guantánamo to detain the worst criminal illegal aliens threatening the American people,” Trump said during an event to sign the Laken Riley Act into law, stiffening the nation’s immigration laws.

“Some of them are so bad we don’t even trust the countries to hold them because we don’t want them coming back, so we’re going to send them out to Guantánamo,” Trump added. “This will double our capacity immediately. And tough, it’s a tough place to get out of.”

Trump says he's signing an order to build a migrant detention camp in Guantanamo Bay pic.twitter.com/VWQKCqCiE5

— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) January 29, 2025

Unfortunately, this administration really doesn’t seem to differentiate between actual criminal aliens who commit violent crimes and alien families who have settled here, pay taxes, own homes, and simply live their lives. The fear is that they will treat both groups the same, thus the latter group could possibly be sent to Guantánamo Bay along with violent criminals.

CNN: What protections does this law have in place to protect folks who may have entered the country illegally, but have since obtained permission to stay temporarily?

KRISTI NOEM: Well, this bill is all about those who commit crimes.

CNN: But you can simply be accused and then… pic.twitter.com/qFTfcmfOj8

— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) January 29, 2025

[guest post by Dana]

Just now:

Judge pauses parts of Trump aid freeze: A federal judge has temporarily blocked part of the Trump administration’s plans to freeze all federal aid. The White House budget office had ordered the pause on federal grants and loans Monday. The memo, which had been slated to take effect at 5 p.m. ET today, could have potentially impacted trillions in government spending and halted public programs that affect millions of Americans.

[It’s tough keeping up with all of the decisions Trump is making, as well as the fallout of them! By the time one has worked up thoughts about them, the situation has changed. . .]

—Dana

[guest post by Dana]

Today at the White House press conference, new press secretary Karoline Leavitt responded to questions about the Trump administration and birthright citizenship:

Q: . . .22 state attorney generals have said that this is unconstitutional. A federal judge has just agreed with their argument. What’s the administration’s argument for doing away with birthright citizenship?

A: The folks that you mention have a right to have that legal opinion, but it is in disagreement with the legal opinion of this administration. This administration believes that birthright citizenship is unconstitutional and that is why President Trump signed that order. Illegal immigrants who come to this country and have a child are not subject to the laws of this jurisdiction. That’s the opinion of this administration. We have already ruled, uh, appealed the lawsuit that was filed against this administration and we are prepared to fight this all the way to the Supreme Court, if we have to, because President Trump believes that this is a necessary step to secure our nation’s borders and protect our homeland.

Fourteenth Amendment, Section 1:

All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the State wherein they reside. No State shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States; nor shall any State deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws.

—Dana

[guest post by Dana]

President Trump wants an “Iron Dome” over the U.S.:

A new executive order from President Donald Trump calls for greater investments for a multilayered homeland air defense system, including a requirement for the development of space-based interceptors.

On the campaign trail in June, then-candidate Trump stated his desire to “build a great Iron Dome over our country, a dome like has never seen before, a state-of-the-art missile defense shield that will be entirely built in America.”

“We’re going to build the greatest dome of them all,” he said at the time.

On Monday night, Trump signed an executive order to that effect titled “The Iron Dome for America”.

Details:

. . .Trump signed an executive order to that effect titled “The Iron Dome for America”. The order gives Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth 60 days to develop a plan to defend the homeland against “ballistic, hypersonic, advanced cruise missiles, and other next-generation aerial attacks from peer, near-peer, and rogue adversaries.”

Read the whole thing.

—Dana

[guest post by Dana]

Let’s go!

First news item

This little one’s sweet face has not left my mind since I first saw his photo after having been taken hostage by Hamas on Oct. 7. So many prayers and so much hope that he and his 5-year old brother are still alive and will be released:

The youngest hostage still in captivity in Gaza, Kfir was just shy of 9 months old when he was kidnapped during the Hamas-led terrorist attack Oct.7, 2023. On Saturday, he turned 2, having never known a birthday outside captivity.

Along with his 5-year-old brother, Ariel, and his parents, Yarden and Shiri Bibas, Kfir is among the 33 hostages expected to be freed during the first phase of the ceasefire deal, according to the Israeli government. But it is unclear if the toddler is still alive.

If they are no longer alive, with all my heart I hope that they passed quickly and painlessly.

With that, we await next release of hostages scheduled for Saturday.

Second news item

Hard pass:

Congressman Andy Ogles introduced a House Joint Resolution to amend the Constitution of the United States to allow a President to be elected for up to but no more than three terms. The language of the proposed amendment reads as follows:

‘‘No person shall be elected to the office of the President more than three times, nor be elected to any additional term after being elected to two consecutive terms, and no person who has held the office of President, or acted as President, for more than two years of a term to which some other person was elected President shall be elected to the office of the President more than twice.’’

“President Trump’s decisive leadership stands in stark contrast to the chaos, suffering, and economic decline Americans have endured over the past four years. He has proven himself to be the only figure in modern history capable of reversing our nation’s decay and restoring America to greatness, and he must be given the time necessary to accomplish that goal. To that end, I am proposing an amendment to the Constitution to revise the limitations imposed by the 22nd Amendment on presidential terms. This amendment would allow President Trump to serve three terms, ensuring that we can sustain the bold leadership our nation so desperately needs,” said Congressman Ogles.

Third news item

Trump still demonstrating his cluelessness about the war in Ukraine, or perhaps, demonstrating his allegiance to Putin:

Zelenskyy, I will say, he wants to settle now. He’s had enough. He shouldn’t have allowed this to happen either. He’s no angel. He shouldn’t have allowed this war to happen.

Good grief, this is so absurd. Obviously, Putin began this war by illegally invading a sovereign nation. Additionally, and most ridiculously of all, there was no way for Zelensky to stop the invasion from happening. The President sounds stupid.

Fourth news item

The best laid plans. . . :

A federal judge in Seattle on Thursday signed a temporary restraining order blocking President Donald Trump’s executive order on birthright citizenship.

U.S. District Judge John Coughenour heard a request by four Democratic-led states to issue a temporary restraining order against the executive order signed by Trump that purports to limit birthright citizenship — long guaranteed by the 14th Amendment — to people who have at least one parent who is a United States citizen or permanent resident.

“I have been on the bench for over four decades,” said Judge Coughenour, who was nominated to the bench by President Ronald Reagan in 1981. “I can’t remember another case where the question presented is as clear as it is here. This is a blatantly unconstitutional order.”

Fifth news item

Um, wut?:

Mississippi state Sen. Bradford Blackmon, a Democrat, introduced a bill this week that would seemingly ban men from masturbating or engaging in other sexual acts when they have no “intent to fertilize an embryo.”

The bill, titled the “Contraception Begins at Erection Act,” would make it unlawful for “a person to discharge genetic material without the intent to fertilize an embryo.” It includes exceptions for sperm donation and using contraception to prevent fertilization.

. . .Blackmon referred to the high number of state legislative bills introduced in recent years that target women’s access to reproductive health care, specifically abortion and contraception.

“All across the country, especially here in Mississippi, the vast majority of bills relating to contraception and/or abortion focus on the woman’s role when men are fifty percent of the equation,” he wrote. “This bill highlights that fact and brings the man’s role into the conversation. People can get up in arms and call it absurd but I can’t say that bothers me.”

[Addition by JVW]
Sixth news item
The great Bill Melugin, probably the best media source on immigration and border issues and an enviably handsome son-of-a-gun to boot, went on a ride-along with the Boston office of Immigration and Customs Enforcement. His report can be found in this Tweet:

EXCLUSIVE: We were given exclusive access to ICE’s elite Boston team as they went into sanctuary jurisdictions and targeted the “worst of the worst” criminal illegal aliens, including a combative Haitian man who said he won’t go back & screamed “F**k Trump, Biden forever!”. Other… pic.twitter.com/wQ43sv5MBf

— Bill Melugin (@BillMelugin_) January 23, 2025

I’ve been noticing how relatively circumspect the mainstream media has been with respect to kvetching about these ICE round-ups. Clearly at some level they realize the folly of taking the side of rapists, thieves, and gangbangers just to placate the open borders crew. At most they are engaging in mild handwringing over the idea that actual citizens might temporarily be detained in the excitement. If I am the RNC I am creating an advertising campaign based upon the Haitian criminal singing the praises of Joe Biden and Barack Obama, presumably for supporting sanctuary cities and lax immigration policies, and I would be running it in every market which is home to a sanctuary city or state.

—Dana

[guest post by Dana]

Maybe. . .

The Party of ‘family values’ at work:

Mike Johnson’s office urged Republicans against subpoenaing a key Jan. 6 Committee witness so “sexually explicit” texts GOP lawmakers sent her would remain under wraps, a report alleged Thursday.

…The witness in question is Cassidy Hutchinson, a 28-year-old former White House aide from Donald Trump’s first term who gave explosive testimony to the committee about his actions leading up to Jan. 6, 2021.

Rep. Barry Loudermilk, a Republican from Georgia, floated the idea of issuing a subpoena to Hutchinson seeking digital communications that might implicate Trump rivals like former Rep. Liz Cheney of wrongdoing.

Loudermilk was dissuaded from doing this after he was told such a subpoena would reveal “sexual texts from members who were trying to engage in sexual favors” with Hutchinson and other “embarrassing information,” The Washington Post reported.

Firstly, Loudermilk is still pursuing the subpoena. Good for him. Let’s see all the text messages. Let’s make the names public. Voters deserve to know. Also, if the report is true, this is a stain on the Republican Party just more of the Republican’s view that sexual harassment is the woman’s fault, and men are simply (sleazy) victims of short skirts. But seriously, one only has to look at the history of President Trump’s sexual harassment allegations and court findings (per Judge Kaplan: the jury had actually found that Trump had raped Carroll according to the common definition of the word) to understand that many, not all, but far too many a) men in powerful political positions will always deny their guilt; b) men in powerful political positions will pay off accusers in a ‘do whatever it takes to make it go away’ move; c) men in powerful political positions believe that they actually have a right to sexually harass subordinates, because, what harm does it really do??

And even today, we see that the Senate advanced Pete Hegseth’s nomination, despite it being made public that in 2017, he paid off a woman who accused him of sexual assault:

Pete Hegseth, President Donald Trump’s nominee for defense secretary, paid $50,000 to the woman who accused him of sexual assault in 2017, according to answers he provided to a senator during his confirmation process that The Associated Press has obtained.

The answers were provided to Massachusetts Democratic Sen. Elizabeth Warren in response to additional questions she had for Hegseth as part of the vetting process.

…

[T]he $50,000 payment was made years after the woman told police that Hegseth sexually assaulted her in a California hotel room in 2017 after he took her phone, blocked the door and refused to let her leave, according to an investigative report released in November.

Hegseth told police at the time that the encounter had been consensual and denied any wrongdoing.

The report does not say that police found the allegations were false. Police recommended the case report be forwarded to the Monterey County District Attorney’s Office for review.

Monterey County District Attorney Jeannine M. Pacioni said her office declined to file charges in January 2018 because it didn’t have “proof beyond a reasonable doubt.”

I’m just saying that decent, hardworking men who have integrity and are focused on their families do not typically find themselves in jams like these. In fact, I would guess that the vast majority of men are not lowlife sleazes who behave this way. But the intoxication of power and money does something awful to a man’s sense of self (or just illuminates what’s already there, waiting for the opportunity and position to present itself…) and it becomes overblown and entirely self-focused, and couched in a belief that they are above the law and punishment.

If these allegations about dirty Congressmen tweeting sexual stuff to a mid-20’s employee who’s just trying to do her job are found to be true, then the Republican Party will have firmly set itself as the Republican Party of Raunch. Enough is enough.

P.S. It’s funny, these are the same people who howled at Bill Clinton for his sexual improprieties. Now, we’re seeing the same kind of men being elected for POTUS, and possibly the Secretary of Defense. This, despite knowing what they’re made of and what they’ve done.

–Dana

[guest post by Dana]

Sean Hannity asked President Trump about his pardoning of the Jan. 6 rioters, specifically those who committed violent acts:

HANNITY:
“So you did run on a platform, you were very straightforward. You said you would pardon these people that were sentenced for January 6th. You did,” noted Hannity during an interview with Trump. “The only criticism or pushback I’ve seen is about people that were convicted or involved in incidents where they were violent with police. Why did they get a pardon?”

TRUMP:
A number of reasons. Number one, they were in there for three-and-a-half years, a long time, and many in solitary confinement, treated like nobody’s ever been treated. Treated so badly. They were treated like the worst criminals in history, and you know what they were there for? They were protesting the vote because they knew the election was rigged and they were protesting the vote, and they should be allowed to protest the vote. You should be allowed to.

Here is an overview of the pardons and who received them:

The proclamation Trump signed grants a “full, complete and unconditional pardon” to virtually everyone who was convicted of January 6-related crimes.

That covers approximately 1,250 people, the vast majority of whom pleaded guilty and admitted in court that they broke the law.

There was no differentiation between people convicted of violent felonies versus nonviolent misdemeanors, as Trump’s allies have signaled in recent weeks. Instead, the blanket pardon covers hundreds of felony rioters who were guilty of assaulting police officers, attacking members of the media, obstructing police during a riot, and destroying government property.

Stunningly, the pardon includes Enrique Tarrio, the leader of the far-right Proud Boys, who was convicted of seditious conspiracy and sentenced to 22 years in prison.

Among the other pardon recipients: Devlyn Thompson, who hit a police officer with a metal baton, and Robert Palmer, a Florida man who attacked police with a fire extinguisher, a wooden plank and a pole.

So now we know: With these pardons, President Trump informed Americans that, if one commits an act of violence on his behalf, they’ll be relieved of efforts of legal accountability, including jail time. This, even if you admit that you’ve broken the law and plead guilty in a courtroom. What a message to send. So exactly how much thought did the President put into such an enormous decision of releasing Jan. 6 offenders (including those who committed violence)? About what you would expect:

Trump vacillated during an internal debate over targeted clemency vs. a blanket decision according to two insiders.

But as Trump’s team wrestled with the issue, and planned a shock-and-awe batch of executive orders Day 1, “Trump just said: ‘F -k it: Release ’em all,'” an adviser familiar with the discussions said.

MUST-WATCH: Daniel Hodges, the Capitol police officer who was crushed by the Jan 6 rioters who pinned him against a wall, came back this week to ensure safety at Trump's inauguration and just spoke at the Capitol addressing the pardons.

Daniel, America failed you. 💔 pic.twitter.com/SAL3yVWJ4o

— CALL TO ACTIVISM (@CalltoActivism) January 23, 2025

Four more years. . .

—Dana

[guest post by Dana]

President Trump issued his first official “warning” to Putin regarding the war in Ukraine:

I’m not looking to hurt Russia. I love the Russian people, and always had a very good relationship with President Putin – and this despite the Radical Left’s Russia, Russia, Russia HOAX. We must never forget that Russia helped us win the Second World War, losing almost 60,000,000 lives in the process. All of that being said, I’m going to do Russia, whose Economy is failing, and President Putin, a very big FAVOR. Settle now, and STOP this ridiculous War! IT’S ONLY GOING TO GET WORSE. If we don’t make a “deal,” and soon, I have no other choice but to put high levels of Taxes, Tariffs, and Sanctions on anything being sold by Russia to the United States, and various other participating countries. Let’s get this war, which never would have started if I were President, over with! We can do it the easy way, or the hard way – and the easy way is always better. It’s time to “MAKE A DEAL.” NO MORE LIVES SHOULD BE LOST!!!

While Putin is shaking in his boots laughing his ass off, there is really only one way that this war can end with the best interests of freedom-loving countries being met: Ukraine must be provided with the weapons and monetary aide that their experts have deemed necessary for Ukraine to completely push out Russian troops. This must be done with such a show of power that it will be a very, very long time before Putin tries to start an unprovoked war again with Ukraine. He must know, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that illegally attacking Ukraine inside of its borders, with a goal of subsuming the sovereign nation, is an absolute non-starter because Western allies stand united against such aggression, not just in word, but also in unified action to eliminate the invaders. One hopes that Ukraine will be admitted to NATO, sooner rather than later, which would ensure that Putin would have second thoughts about his dreams of domination.

I hope President Trump has more in his toolbox to aid Ukraine than just words that sound like they’re from an old black and white mobster movie. I hope that those with whom he has charged to oversee all matters concerning Ukraine are on the ball. We already know, from previous administrations, that appeasing the enemy and incremental steps in aiding Ukraine aren’t the answer. So why try. Why make idle threats, or threats about tariffs, taxes, and sanctions when we already know that those actions won’t end the war. Let’s hope something substantive and effective is put into place. Such as, “pushing for $300bn. . . of frozen Russian assets to be used to fund Kyiv’s military,” and “promising more made in USA weapons and aid until Russia leaves.” Because the fact of the matter is: “looking for common ground with a war criminal leading a terrorist regime invading Europe,” Will. Not. Work. Fortunately, what we do know about Trump, is that he doesn’t want to look like a squishy loser, appear faint of heart, or as if he is afraid to pull the trigger. So there’s that. Ultimately, though, I just really hope that President Trump actually wants Ukraine to win this war. Western Europe as well.

—Dana