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Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas., was quick to dismiss a reporter's request that he wear a mask during a Senate presser on Wednesday. Cruz stepped up to the microphones, but was stopped before he could speak by the unidentified reporter asking, "Would you mind putting on a mask for us?" "Yeah, when I’m talking to the TV camera, I’m not going to wear a mask," Cruz responded. "All of us have been immunized, so..." "It’d make us feel better," the reporter is heard replying. "You’re welcome to step away if you’d like," Cruz said before chuckling. "The whole point of the...

Hagerty demands details on efforts to provide Tehran with sanctions relief A Republican member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee is demanding the Biden administration inform Congress about its efforts to negotiate a revamped nuclear deal with Iran, including details about any plans to provide Tehran with potentially billions of dollars in sanctions relief. Sen. Bill Hagerty (R., Tenn.) wants the Biden administration to provide guarantees that it will consult with Congress before reentering the 2015 nuclear accord, which former president Donald Trump abandoned in 2018. The State Department has yet to provide lawmakers with an in-depth briefing about its...

And it's going to use that weapon not on foreign enemies, but rather on us. Since the creation of the United States income tax, government and taxpayers have wrangled over definitions of what constitutes "income," how it is to be calculated, and when it is to be "recognized" — that is, subjected to tax. A recent New York initiative (predictably backed by Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez) would tax appreciated assets held by wealthy taxpayers before they were sold. This hideous tax policy hints at the temptation for government to shift its tax base to rapidly-appreciating assets when magnifying inflation through reckless debt...

March 25 2021 THE ANNUNCIATION OF THE LORD Grotto of the Basilica of the Annunciation, Jerusalem, IsraelBy Berthold Werner - Own work, Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=5512531 Lectionary 254First readingIsaiah 7:10-14,8:10 ©The maiden is with childThe Lord spoke to Ahaz and said, ‘Ask the Lord your God for a sign for yourself coming either from the depths of Sheol or from the heights above.’ ‘No,’ Ahaz answered ‘I will not put the Lord to the test.’ Then Isaiah said:‘Listen now, House of David:are you not satisfied with trying the patience of menwithout trying the patience of my God, too?The Lord himself, therefore,will...

The tenth anniversary of the conflict in Syria that began on March 5, 2011 was greeted with deafening silence in Washington, D.C. Though the Biden administration would favor a political settlement of the conflict and is conscious of humanitarian problems of displaced civilians in the area of Idlib, it has not settled on any policy on Syria, which appears to rank relatively low on its list of global and regional priorities. At present, it has no intention of drawing another "red line" as the Obama administration did. In contrast, it comes as no surprise that the Russian Wagner Group, a...

HARRISBURG — The Wolf administration is refusing to disclose details of wasted coronavirus vaccine doses, including how many have been discarded by each provider, citing a decades-old law that it has frequently used to shield the public from scrutinizing its pandemic response. The state Department of Health recently denied a public records request by Spotlight PA seeking documentation of vaccine doses that providers did not administer because of expiration, damage, or other factors. The request did not seek any patient information. Providers are required to self-report to state health officials whenever a dose of vaccine is “compromised,” and explain why....

Rep. Jim Jordan (R-OH) released a scathing letter to House Judiciary chief Jerry Nadler denouncing the Biden administration's handling of the border crisis. "The humanitarian and security crisis on our southern border is the direct result of President Biden's abrupt reversal of President Trump's successful immigration policy," Jordan's letter begins. "The Judiciary Committee... cannot ignore this crisis. "Because Democrats refuse to act, we write to notify you that Committee Republicans intend to travel to the southern border in the coming weeks to hear directly from individuals affected by the Biden border crisis." Explaining why Republicans will be traveling to the...

There was another time in U.S. history when a president was incapable of serving. His name was Woodrow Wilson, and he had had a stroke, a debilitating one. He never recovered. For about 18 months, the nation was without a president. World War I was over, and the country was on the cusp of the Roaring 20s, so perhaps having a leader wasn’t as imperative. Politico remembered Wilson’s October 1919 stroke in this October 2019 article. For a time, it was one of greatest cover-ups in the annals of the American presidency. (Many more years would pass before ratification of...

At less than 100 days in, Trump-haters have imposed growing disasters on the country. Trump-hating voters cared about one thing and it wasn’t the success of Operation Warp Speed, a strong economy, or peace in the Mideast. Bad Orange Man must go, the country, our kids’ and grandkids’ futures be damned. And we reap what we sow. The 46th President of the United States Joseph Robinette Biden began by signing an unprecedented number of executive orders designed to bypass the legislative process (including job killers and open borders). He signed the hyper-partisan “Covid relief package” proving that he has no...

With Democrats now in control of the House, Senate, and White House, many of the most significant policy battles of the next two years will be determined by intraparty fights within the Democratic Party's various factions. Although not a moderate in any meaningful sense, President Joe Biden has always positioned himself strategically at the center of his party. Nevertheless, his defeat of the party's left-wing in the last presidential primary won't be the end of a populist insurgence. Sadly, one fight will be between those, such as Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, who want to raise taxes significantly, and those who,...

Maintaining one’s alertness involves keeping an eye on not only what’s happening, but also on any person or object that appears to be out of place. In personal-defense classes, we talk to the students about awareness. Some instructors love to use the term “keep your head on a swivel.” Then, there is Col. Cooper’s color code that many people don’t understand, and others distort. But, most of those classes are about shooting and little time is spent talking about how to keep from shooting. Knowing what is going on around you—and seeing potential problems while time and distance are in...

Source: Photo via Gage SkidmoreWashington -- Tucker Carlson, the Fox News commentator, now has the entire Pentagon against him and our president, who fell up the stairs to Air Force One last week. Our First Amendment rights, by the way, are imperiled, but more on that later. I say President Joe Biden fell up the stairs of Air Force One last week because he did. I watched it all on television. Halfway up the stairs to Air Force One, our commander in chief stumbled and then righted himself. Shortly thereafter, he stumbled again as he continued his perilous journey ever...

Moderate Democratic candidates outperformed their liberal counterparts in key 2020 U.S. House elections, according to a new analysis from a center-left think tank, coming closer to matching President Joe Biden’s performance in swing districts as many progressive favorites lagged much further behind. Officials from the think tank Third Way who analyzed the data said the findings should serve as a lesson for Democrats that strongly liberal candidates make for weaker nominees in the most important congressional races, and that the best option for the party in the 2022 midterm elections is to closely embrace Biden and his political agenda. “Republicans...

Dr. Anthony Fauci wants former President Donald Trump to tell his supporters to take the COVID-19 vaccine. It is true that a March 2021 NPR/PBS NewsHour/Marist poll found that 47% of Trump 2020 supporters said they would not get vaccinated. It is also true that Trump has urged Americans to take the vaccine. He called it safe and said that he and Melania have been vaccinated. But after attacking Trump as a lying incompetent who makes outlandish statements, why should anyone on the left be surprised by skepticism about the vaccine? On May 15, then-President Trump announced Operation Warp Speed,...

House Bill 175 is a deeply flawed bill that requires “ammunition vendors” to conduct a federal NICS background check on prospective recipients of ammunition. “Ammunition vendor” is vaguely defined in the legislation and could potentially mean that private individuals cannot sell or give ammunition to friends, family, fellow hunters, range buddies, etc. Federal law only allows Federal Firearms Licensees (FFL) and state authorities to run NICS checks, and they may do so only for firearms. Businesses selling ammunition are not required to hold an FFL. Many small businesses such as sporting goods stores, hardware stores, and antique shops sell ammunition...

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It’s hard to admit this. When mass shootings occur in our country, it’s difficult for me to even pause for a moment. There’s no time to reflect, feel sad, mourn, or be still. Because I know the inevitable is coming. Garbage American news media and their favorite officeholders – the Democrats – won’t wait an hour to take full advantage of a horror to advance their political agenda. This means the rest of us have to spring into a defensive posture to protect our liberties and simply correct the record before the victims’ bodies are removed from the scene. Like...

John Thune could eventually succeed Mitch McConnell as Senate GOP leader. But first the second-ranked Senate Republican has to decide whether to run for reelection — with Donald Trump prepared to stand in his way. As fellow GOP senators like Jerry Moran of Kansas or John Boozman of Arkansas announce their 2022 campaigns, usually with the backing of the former president, Thune is taking his time. “In this day and age, these campaigns are so long. And I think they start way too early,” the South Dakota Republican said in an interview on Wednesday, noting he usually waits until the...

There’s a lot of room between sitting on your hands doing nothing and setting everything on fire. Things that used to get done used to get done in that space, and not much outside it. Outside it is apathy or insanity, which are not places you want to live. But life has gone from having a dimmer switch to two settings – off and blowing circuits. It’s fun to watch, I guess, but it’s not particularly helpful if you want to get things done. And I, for one, would like to get things done. I get how people are disappointed...

+1,405 DEAD +66,538 NEW CASES ***558,422** TOTAL DEAD