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This is Garrison Hardie with your CrossPolitic Daily News Brief for Thursday, September 14th, 2023. Fight Laugh Feast Magazine Our Fight Laugh Feast Magazine is a quarterly issue that packs a punch like a 21 year Balvenie, no ice. We don’t water down our scotch, why would we water down our theology? Order a yearly subscription for yourself and then send a couple yearly subscriptions to your friends who have been drinking luke-warm evangelical cool-aid. Every quarter we promise quality food for the soul, wine for the heart, and some Red Bull for turning over tables. Our magazine will include cultural commentary, a Psalm of the quarter, recipes for feasting, laughter sprinkled through out the glossy pages, and more. Sign up today, at fightlaughfeast.com. https://www.reuters.com/world/us/new-mexico-mayor-calls-legislative-debate-after-gun-ban-2023-09-13/ US judge freezes New Mexico governor's gun ban A federal judge in New Mexico on Wednesday issued a temporary restraining order against the state governor's ban on carrying guns in Albuquerque and its surrounding county, a move which threw the state into the center of the U.S. gun-rights debate. U.S. District Court Judge David Urias said Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham's 30-day suspension of concealed and open firearm carry rights went against a landmark U.S. Supreme Court ruling in June that people had a right to carry a gun outside their homes for self defense. “They just want the right to carry their guns,” Urias said of the several plaintiffs who requested restraining orders against Lujan Grisham's Sept. 8 emergency public health order. The Democratic governor issued the suspension on firearm carry laws to offer a "cooling-off period" in which authorities could address solutions to the state's high rates of gun crime after several children were fatally shot. Lujan Grisham's order outraged gun-rights advocates and drew backlash from fellow Democrats and law enforcement officials, also Democrats, who called it unconstitutional. Gun control campaigners called the move "courageous" and the Catholic Archbishop of Santa Fe feared more value was being given to gun rights than the life of an 11-year-old boy shot dead last week in an apparent Albuquerque road rage incident. Albuquerque's mayor and Bernalillo County's sheriff, both Democrats, have urged Lujan Grisham to call a special state legislative session on gun crime after the gun ban. Mayor Tim Keller said that, in order to fight gun crime, he needed legislation to fix a broken criminal justice system, regulate assault weapons and provide addiction and mental health services, among other measures. "Albuquerque families can't afford political debates that distract us from fighting violent crime," Keller wrote in a letter to the governor. Gun violence kills around 500 people a year in New Mexico, which ranks sixth among U.S. states for gun deaths per capita, according to gun violence prevention group Everytown for Gun Safety. Albuquerque is among the 10 most dangerous U.S. cities, based on FBI violent crime data. Lujan Grisham favors a ban on so-called semi-automatic assault weapons, among other gun control measures, and her office on Wednesday welcomed Keller's call for a special legislative session. https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/news/police-biden-energy-secretary-uses-car-reserve-ev Police called after Biden's energy secretary uses nonelectric car to reserve EV charger A Georgia family called the police on Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm after an electric vehicle charging station was blocked by a gas-powered car, which had been parked by a staff member of the Department of Energy. The event occurred during a four-day road trip that Granholm was taking to demonstrate the effectiveness of electric vehicles. During the trip, the group's caravan was going to charge up at a suburb of Augusta, Georgia, but due to a lack of charging stations needed for all of their vehicles, a staff member with the group parked a nonelectric vehicle by one of the chargers to reserve a spot. Shortly after, a family with a baby was planning to charge their vehicle but could not due to the nonelectric vehicle blocking the charger, leading to them calling the police. However, it is not illegal for nonelectric vehicles to park at EV charging stations in Georgia, meaning the police could not do anything about the situation. The Energy Department staff were eventually able to work things out after they sent other vehicles to slower chargers to allow the family to charge their vehicle. "It's just par for the course," said John Ryan, a driver of an electric BMW who was also waiting to charge his vehicle. "They'll get it together at some point." Granholm's road trip comes as the Biden administration pushes for electric vehicles in the auto industry, with the Energy Department announcing last month that it would be allocating $2 billion in grants and $10 billion in loans to support automakers and part suppliers. This allocation would be for automakers to retrofit their existing facilities and expand the production of electric vehicles and their components. In August, Ford CEO Jim Farley said he received a "reality check" when he tried to charge his electric vehicle during a road trip he took himself. When charging his vehicle, he said his car was only charged to 40% during the 40 minutes he charged it, according to a video he posted to X, formerly known as Twitter. https://twitter.com/i/status/1690858328606355456 - Play Video President Donald Trump, who is running for president again in 2024, has criticized the Biden administration's stance against gas-powered cars and appliances, saying voters want to have a "choice for buying cars and washing machines." He has encouraged auto industry workers to ask their leaders to vote for him in the next presidential election, stating he will "immediately" end the electric vehicle "madness." https://justthenews.com/nation/economy/income-dropped-poverty-soared-under-biden-census-bureau Income dropped, poverty soared under Biden: Census Bureau Despite the Biden administration's efforts to tout the alleged successes of "Bidenomics," a report from the United States Census Bureau has revealed that many Americans saw their economic situation deteriorate dramatically in the first half of Biden's term. While the official poverty rate hovered around 11.5% in both 2021 and 2022, according to the report, the Supplemental Poverty Measure (SPM) increased 4.6% in 2022 to reach 12.4%, marking the first overall increase in that metric since 2010. In total, 37.9 million Americans lived in poverty in 2022. The report partially attributed the increase to the expiration of tax credits and pandemic stimulus payments. Income, meanwhile, dropped across an array of metrics. Real median household income declined by 2.3% from $76,330 to $74,580, while real median earnings of all workers dropped 2.2%. The drop was less severe among full-time, year-round workers, who saw a 1.3% decline. Inflation soared 7.8% from 2021 to 2022, marking the largest single-year increase in cost of living since 1981. The Census Bureau statement follows some other bad economic news for the president. The unemployment rate in August rose from 3.5% to 3.8% while inflation ticked up to 3.2%, marking the first increase after a consistent, year-long decline. Biden has repeatedly insisted that economic conditions are improving in the United States and has consistently attributed the nominal upswing to his policies. Americans, however, appear skeptical of that assertion, with 37.8% approving of his handling of the economy in the RealClearPolitics polling average, compared to 58.9% who disapprove. https://www.foxnews.com/media/chicago-mayor-faces-pushback-local-leaders-plan-house-migrants-tents-help-your-people-first Chicago mayor faces pushback from local leaders for plan to house migrants in tents: ‘Help your people first' Democrat Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson is facing opposition from local leaders after he asked that "all 50 city council members" find space in their wards to help house "more than 200 migrants" in tents, according to a new report. But some aldermen are pushing back on Johnson’s plans. "I've looked in my ward. I just don't have any available space. I have one of the most dense wards in the city," Alderman Brian Hopkins said, according to ABC7 Chicago. Alderman David Moore of the 17th Ward called on Chicago to help its own community first. "I'm a believer in help your people first, help yourselves first, help your community first. Then reach out and help others," Moore said. But some aldermen have also voiced support for Johnson’s plan to house migrants. Johnson has announced that he wants to relocate the city’s nearly 1,600 asylum-seeking migrants, currently living in police stations, to winterized camps with big tents before cold weather hits. Each of the massive tents will be able to hold up to 1,000 migrants, the mayor said, and under his plan the camps will provide meals as well as recreational and educational programming. Currently, 16 shelters in the city house 13,500 migrants, and more arrive every day. The Chicago Sun-Times reported the cost to shelter the 13,500 migrants costs the city about $30 million per month. Johnson and his administration are working with the state of Illinois and Cook County to establish more shelters to take some of the pressure off Chicago, the mayor said. "These families are coming to the city of Chicago," Johnson said. "If we do not create an infrastructure where we’re able to support and, quite frankly, contain these individuals who have experienced a great deal of harm, individuals who are desperate … that type of desperation will lead to chaos." Johnson's office did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
This is TRT World's Daily News Brief for Wednesday, September 13th. *) Death toll from devastating Libya floods tops 5,000 in Derna alone The death toll from devastating floods in Libya's eastern city of Derna has risen to 5,300, the country's official news agency reported. Earlier the International Committee of the Red Cross said that more than 10,000 people have been reported missing following the devastating floods. Initial reports indicate that dozens of villages and towns were submerged by the deadly floods caused by Storm Daniel that struck eastern Libya on Sunday. *) North Korea fires ballistic missiles as Putin welcomes Kim Jong-un in Russia Russian President Vladimir Putin has met North Korean leader Kim Jong-un at a cosmodrome in Russia's Far East. Their meeting underscores how the two leaders' interests are aligning in the face of their separate, intensifying confrontations with the United States. Hours earlier, North Korea fired two ballistic missiles toward the sea, extending a highly provocative run in North Korean weapons testing since the start of 2022 *) Morocco's king visits earthquake survivors, donates blood Morocco's king has shown solidarity with his suffering nation as it counts the dead from a powerful earthquake. King Mohammed VI visited some of the injured at a hospital not far from the epicentre and rolled up a sleeve to donate his royal blood. The earthquake, with its epicentre in the Atlas Mountains, took the lives of more than 2,900 people and injured more than 2,000 others. *) Crimea's Sevastopol under Ukrainian attack — Russian official In the latest in the Ukraine war, Ukraine has carried out a missile attack on Sevastopol in Crimea, wounding at least 24 people. The Moscow-installed governor of the port city said that the missile attack caused a fire at a “non-civilian facility”. Russia annexed the Crimean Peninsula from Ukraine in a broadly condemned move in 2014. And finally… *) What's at stake as Republicans seek to open impeachment inquiry into Biden? US President Joe Biden is set to face an impeachment inquiry. The investigation, instigated by the Republicans, will focus on the business dealings of the president's son Hunter Biden. The White House has dismissed allegations of wrong-doing as baseless and accused the Republicans of “extreme politics at its worst”. And that's your daily news brief from TRT World. For more, head to trtworld.com
This is Garrison Hardie with your CrossPolitic Daily News Brief for Wednesday, September 13th, 2023. Accountable2You Jesus is Lord. In public and in private, every area of life must be subject to his Lordship—and our use of technology is no exception. What captures our attention on the screen either glorifies or dishonors our Lord. That’s why Accountable2You is committed to promoting biblical accountability in our families and churches. Their monitoring and reporting software makes transparency easy on all of your devices, so you can say with the Psalmist, “I will not set anything worthless before my eyes.” Guard against temptation with Accountable2You, and live for God’s glory! Learn more and try it for free at Accountable2You.com/FLF https://newsbusters.org/blogs/nb/tim-graham/2023/09/11/dehumanizing-msnbcs-jen-psaki-compares-unborn-babies-broccoli-lumps Dehumanizing! MSNBC's Jen Psaki Compares Unborn Babies to Broccoli, Lumps of Coal On Sunday’s edition of Inside with Jen Psaki, the former Biden press secretary mocked a Republican strategy session where pollsters suggested the term “pro-life” isn’t helping the GOP, so they suggested the term “pro-baby” instead. This spurred Psaki to compare babies to....broccoli and a lump of coal. And to think it’s terribly dehumanizing to call a biological male “he” and “his.” Apparently, comparing a baby to broccoli and lumps of coal is good, swaggering comedy. Democrats have suggested abortion is about a "choice," not a child. The act of abortion is far more dehumanizing than language. https://twitter.com/i/status/1700914367326269442 - Play Video "The branding isn’t the problem here! The policy is the problem, it is hard to roll out an effective rebrand for a product that customers hate.” … you heard that right. The "product" is saving babies from the Planned Parenthood slaughterhouse. Democrats get piles of money and logistical support from the slaughterhouse operators. Psaki was touting an NBCNews.com story which underlined Psaki was doing the usual DNC messaging. The headline was "Democrats say Republican effort to rebrand 'pro-life' won't persuade voters." This story, based on anonymous Senate Republicans, contained all the Democrat arguments that Psaki made in this segment. https://www.foxnews.com/politics/white-house-confirms-more-than-100b-in-taxpayer-resources-spent-on-ukraine White House confirms more than $100B spent on Ukraine war The White House confirmed the Biden administration has spent more than $100 billion on the war in Ukraine, according to documents obtained by Fox News Digital. The information came as a response from the White House’s Office of Management and Budget to Sen. JD Vance, R-Ohio and more than 30 Senate Republicans who demanded in January a "full crosscutting" report on security assistance provided to Ukraine. Fox News Digital obtained the OMB letter and spreadsheet responding to Vance more than 7 months later. OMB Director Shalanda Young penned a letter to Vance explaining the security assistance the United States has provided to Ukraine since Feb. 24, 2022. "With bipartisan Congressional support, the United States has provided security, economic, and humanitarian assistance to Ukraine as it continues to fight to defend its sovereignty following Russia’s brutal invasion," Young wrote. "This support has been critical to Ukraine’s success on the battlefield, as well as the ability of its people to endure under harsh conditions." Young stressed that President Biden "has made clear" that the United States "will not waver in our commitment to the Ukrainian people as they fight for their freedom and independence." Young told Vance that Biden administration officials "agree that transparency and accountability are paramount to ensuring American taxpayers can be confident in their assistance in helping the Ukrainians fight for their country against Russia’s aggression." Young provided Vance a "table that details supplemental funding provided in support of Ukraine in addition to current obligation levels, which OMB shared with Congress" in August. The table shows that a total of $101,198,000,000 has been obligated/executed by the Office of Management and Budget. In addition to the $101.2 billion already spent, the spreadsheet appears to outline plans to spend an additional $9.8 billion. The table breaks down the spending from the Department of Defense; Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative; State Department; and other federal agencies providing aid. Earlier this year, the Pentagon requested an additional $6 billion due to an accounting error at the Department of Defense. Vance and Sen. Josh Hawley introduced legislation soon after to prevent such mistakes from being repeated. In addition to the more than $100 billion already spent in Ukraine, the White House last month asked Congress to authorize an additional $24 billion. Biden's request comprises $13 billion for defense and $11 billion for economic and humanitarian aid in Ukraine. https://justthenews.com/accountability/whistleblowers/whistleblower-says-cia-officials-were-paid-change-view-covid Whistleblower says CIA officials were paid to change view that COVID originated in Wuhan lab Most officers on the CIA's COVID Discovery Team concluded that the coronavirus originated from a laboratory in Wuhan, China, but they changed their positions after receiving a monetary incentive, a senior-level CIA agent told Congress. The whistleblower informed Coronavirus Pandemic Subcommittee Chairman Rep. Brad Wenstrup and Intelligence Committee Chairman Rep. Mike Turner that at the end of the CIA's COVID review, "six of the seven members of the Team believed the intelligence and science were sufficient to make a low confidence assessment that COVID-19 originated from a laboratory in Wuhan, China," the Ohio Republicans wrote in a letter Tuesday to CIA Director William Burns. The team's seventh member, who was the most senior person, was the only person to believe that the virus originated from an animal, the lawmakers also said. "The whistleblower further contends that to come to the eventual public determination of uncertainty, the other six members were given a significant monetary incentive to change their position," the chairmen wrote. The allegations, which stemmed from a "seemingly credible source" require Congress to investigate how the CIA handled its investigation of COVID's origins, according to the lawmakers. The Republicans are demanding the CIA hand over information to their committees as part of their probe, and they threatened to use "additional tools and authorities to satisfy our legislative and oversight requirements" if the agency does not comply. https://news.usni.org/2023/09/09/u-s-canadian-warships-transit-taiwan-strait-2 U.S., Canadian Warships Transit Taiwan Strait An American guided-missile destroyer and a Royal Canadian Navy frigate sailed through the Taiwan Strait in a tandem Saturday transit, U.S. 7th Fleet announced. The Japan-based USS Ralph Johnson and HMCS Ottawa passed through the strait after drilling with Japanese ships in the East China Sea, near Okinawa, USNI News reported on Friday. “The ships transited through a corridor in the strait that is beyond the territorial sea of any coastal state,” reads the statement. “Ralph Johnson and Ottawa’s bilateral transit through the Taiwan Strait demonstrates the commitment of the United States and our allies and partners to a free and open Indo-Pacific.” During an exercise earlier this week, Ralph Johnson and Ottawa sailed with big deck helicopter carrier JS Izumo and destroyer JS Samidare as part of the trilateral exercise Noble Stingray that included anti-submarine warfare drills. A Canadian Broadcasting Corporation crew aboard Ottawa took footage of a People’s Liberation Army Navy guided-missile destroyer shadowing the formation. “The heavily armed Chinese destroyer, the Luyang, closely followed the convoy of ships in the East China Sea, calling out repeatedly to the Canadians on maritime radio, and coming within just over a kilometer of the allied ships,” reads the CBC report. It’s unclear if Hohhot followed Ralph Johnson and Ottawa during their transit. The last reported U.S. surface ship transit was by U.S. Coast Guard cutter Stratton in June. And lastly a little plug for myself! I’ve launched a podcast about my favorite topic, sports! It’s called Game Time with Garrison & Garrett… you can find us on Apple Podcasts, Itunes, Spotify, and Google podcasts! If you’d give it a listen, I’d greatly appreciate you.
This is Garrison Hardie with your CrossPolitic Daily News Brief for Wednesday, September 13th, 2023. Accountable2You Jesus is Lord. In public and in private, every area of life must be subject to his Lordship—and our use of technology is no exception. What captures our attention on the screen either glorifies or dishonors our Lord. That’s why Accountable2You is committed to promoting biblical accountability in our families and churches. Their monitoring and reporting software makes transparency easy on all of your devices, so you can say with the Psalmist, “I will not set anything worthless before my eyes.” Guard against temptation with Accountable2You, and live for God’s glory! Learn more and try it for free at Accountable2You.com/FLF https://newsbusters.org/blogs/nb/tim-graham/2023/09/11/dehumanizing-msnbcs-jen-psaki-compares-unborn-babies-broccoli-lumps Dehumanizing! MSNBC's Jen Psaki Compares Unborn Babies to Broccoli, Lumps of Coal On Sunday’s edition of Inside with Jen Psaki, the former Biden press secretary mocked a Republican strategy session where pollsters suggested the term “pro-life” isn’t helping the GOP, so they suggested the term “pro-baby” instead. This spurred Psaki to compare babies to....broccoli and a lump of coal. And to think it’s terribly dehumanizing to call a biological male “he” and “his.” Apparently, comparing a baby to broccoli and lumps of coal is good, swaggering comedy. Democrats have suggested abortion is about a "choice," not a child. The act of abortion is far more dehumanizing than language. https://twitter.com/i/status/1700914367326269442 - Play Video "The branding isn’t the problem here! The policy is the problem, it is hard to roll out an effective rebrand for a product that customers hate.” … you heard that right. The "product" is saving babies from the Planned Parenthood slaughterhouse. Democrats get piles of money and logistical support from the slaughterhouse operators. Psaki was touting an NBCNews.com story which underlined Psaki was doing the usual DNC messaging. The headline was "Democrats say Republican effort to rebrand 'pro-life' won't persuade voters." This story, based on anonymous Senate Republicans, contained all the Democrat arguments that Psaki made in this segment. https://www.foxnews.com/politics/white-house-confirms-more-than-100b-in-taxpayer-resources-spent-on-ukraine White House confirms more than $100B spent on Ukraine war The White House confirmed the Biden administration has spent more than $100 billion on the war in Ukraine, according to documents obtained by Fox News Digital. The information came as a response from the White House’s Office of Management and Budget to Sen. JD Vance, R-Ohio and more than 30 Senate Republicans who demanded in January a "full crosscutting" report on security assistance provided to Ukraine. Fox News Digital obtained the OMB letter and spreadsheet responding to Vance more than 7 months later. OMB Director Shalanda Young penned a letter to Vance explaining the security assistance the United States has provided to Ukraine since Feb. 24, 2022. "With bipartisan Congressional support, the United States has provided security, economic, and humanitarian assistance to Ukraine as it continues to fight to defend its sovereignty following Russia’s brutal invasion," Young wrote. "This support has been critical to Ukraine’s success on the battlefield, as well as the ability of its people to endure under harsh conditions." Young stressed that President Biden "has made clear" that the United States "will not waver in our commitment to the Ukrainian people as they fight for their freedom and independence." Young told Vance that Biden administration officials "agree that transparency and accountability are paramount to ensuring American taxpayers can be confident in their assistance in helping the Ukrainians fight for their country against Russia’s aggression." Young provided Vance a "table that details supplemental funding provided in support of Ukraine in addition to current obligation levels, which OMB shared with Congress" in August. The table shows that a total of $101,198,000,000 has been obligated/executed by the Office of Management and Budget. In addition to the $101.2 billion already spent, the spreadsheet appears to outline plans to spend an additional $9.8 billion. The table breaks down the spending from the Department of Defense; Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative; State Department; and other federal agencies providing aid. Earlier this year, the Pentagon requested an additional $6 billion due to an accounting error at the Department of Defense. Vance and Sen. Josh Hawley introduced legislation soon after to prevent such mistakes from being repeated. In addition to the more than $100 billion already spent in Ukraine, the White House last month asked Congress to authorize an additional $24 billion. Biden's request comprises $13 billion for defense and $11 billion for economic and humanitarian aid in Ukraine. https://justthenews.com/accountability/whistleblowers/whistleblower-says-cia-officials-were-paid-change-view-covid Whistleblower says CIA officials were paid to change view that COVID originated in Wuhan lab Most officers on the CIA's COVID Discovery Team concluded that the coronavirus originated from a laboratory in Wuhan, China, but they changed their positions after receiving a monetary incentive, a senior-level CIA agent told Congress. The whistleblower informed Coronavirus Pandemic Subcommittee Chairman Rep. Brad Wenstrup and Intelligence Committee Chairman Rep. Mike Turner that at the end of the CIA's COVID review, "six of the seven members of the Team believed the intelligence and science were sufficient to make a low confidence assessment that COVID-19 originated from a laboratory in Wuhan, China," the Ohio Republicans wrote in a letter Tuesday to CIA Director William Burns. The team's seventh member, who was the most senior person, was the only person to believe that the virus originated from an animal, the lawmakers also said. "The whistleblower further contends that to come to the eventual public determination of uncertainty, the other six members were given a significant monetary incentive to change their position," the chairmen wrote. The allegations, which stemmed from a "seemingly credible source" require Congress to investigate how the CIA handled its investigation of COVID's origins, according to the lawmakers. The Republicans are demanding the CIA hand over information to their committees as part of their probe, and they threatened to use "additional tools and authorities to satisfy our legislative and oversight requirements" if the agency does not comply. https://news.usni.org/2023/09/09/u-s-canadian-warships-transit-taiwan-strait-2 U.S., Canadian Warships Transit Taiwan Strait An American guided-missile destroyer and a Royal Canadian Navy frigate sailed through the Taiwan Strait in a tandem Saturday transit, U.S. 7th Fleet announced. The Japan-based USS Ralph Johnson and HMCS Ottawa passed through the strait after drilling with Japanese ships in the East China Sea, near Okinawa, USNI News reported on Friday. “The ships transited through a corridor in the strait that is beyond the territorial sea of any coastal state,” reads the statement. “Ralph Johnson and Ottawa’s bilateral transit through the Taiwan Strait demonstrates the commitment of the United States and our allies and partners to a free and open Indo-Pacific.” During an exercise earlier this week, Ralph Johnson and Ottawa sailed with big deck helicopter carrier JS Izumo and destroyer JS Samidare as part of the trilateral exercise Noble Stingray that included anti-submarine warfare drills. A Canadian Broadcasting Corporation crew aboard Ottawa took footage of a People’s Liberation Army Navy guided-missile destroyer shadowing the formation. “The heavily armed Chinese destroyer, the Luyang, closely followed the convoy of ships in the East China Sea, calling out repeatedly to the Canadians on maritime radio, and coming within just over a kilometer of the allied ships,” reads the CBC report. It’s unclear if Hohhot followed Ralph Johnson and Ottawa during their transit. The last reported U.S. surface ship transit was by U.S. Coast Guard cutter Stratton in June. And lastly a little plug for myself! I’ve launched a podcast about my favorite topic, sports! It’s called Game Time with Garrison & Garrett… you can find us on Apple Podcasts, Itunes, Spotify, and Google podcasts! If you’d give it a listen, I’d greatly appreciate you.
This is TRT World's Daily News Brief for Tuesday, September 12th. *) Thousands reportedly dead after devastating floods in eastern Libya The confirmed death toll from floods in the eastern Libyan city of Derna has risen above 2,000, local media reported. Thousands are believed to be missing after Storm Daniel swept several areas in eastern Libya, Libyan News Agency (LANA) reported. It also reported that entire residential blocks were erased after they were swept away by the floods in Derna. *) Over 100,000 children affected by powerful Morocco earthquake as toll mounts Over 100,000 children have been affected by the powerful earthquake that struck Morocco last Friday, the UN Children's Agency UNICEF has said. More than 300,000 people have been impacted in Marrakesh and in the High Atlas Mountains following the 6.8 magnitude earthquake, according to UN estimates. Over 2,800 people have been killed, including children, with thousands more injured, said the country's Interior Ministry. Authorities fear that these numbers are only likely to increase. *) Kim Jong-un in Russia for talks with Putin amid US warning on arms sale North Korea's Kim Jong-un is in Russia on a rare overseas trip ahead of a meeting with President Vladimir Putin. Kim has not travelled outside the North since the start of the coronavirus pandemic. But his last proper overseas trip was in 2019, which was also to Russia to meet Putin. The latest meeting has sparked warnings from Washington over a possible arms deal for Moscow's war in Ukraine. *) US mulls providing long-range missiles to Ukraine In the latest in the Ukraine war, the Biden administration is close to approving the shipment of longer-range missiles packed with cluster bombs to Ukraine. This would give Kiev the ability to cause significant damage deeper within Russian-controlled territory, according to US officials. Meanwhile, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and his allies urged Ukrainians to keep their focus squarely on the war effort 18 months into Russia's attacks. And finally… *) Nine small island nations take ocean protection case to UN court The UN maritime court will hear a landmark case brought by a group of small island states seeking protection from the climate crisis. The nine island states have turned to the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea to determine if carbon dioxide emissions absorbed by the oceans can be considered pollution. Ocean ecosystems create half the oxygen humans breathe and limit global warming by absorbing much of the carbon dioxide emitted by human activities. But increasing emissions can warm and acidify seawaters, harming marine life. And that's your daily news brief from TRT World. For more, head to trtworld.com
This is Garrison Hardie with your CrossPolitic Daily News Brief for Tuesday, September 12th, 2023. Fight Laugh Feast Conference - Ark Encounter This year, our Fight Laugh Feast Conference is at the Ark Encounter in Kentucky on The Politics of Six Day Creation. The politics of six day creation is the difference between a fixed standard of justice and a careening standard of justice, the difference between the corrosive relativism that creates mobs and anarchy and the freedom of objectivity, truth, and due process. The politics of six day creation establishes the authority and sufficiency of God’s Word for all of life: from what is a man or a woman, when does human life begin, and how is human society best organized? Come hear Ken Ham, Pastor Doug Wilson, Dr. Ben Merkle, Dr. Gordon Wilson, me and more, and of course a live CrossPolitic show! Mark your calendars for October 11th-14th, as we fight, laugh, and feast, with beer & psalms, our amazing lineup of speakers, our Rowdy Christian Merch, and a Sabbath Feast to wrap up the occasion. Maybe an infant baptism while we’re at it! Visit fightlaughfeast.com for more information! https://www.breitbart.com/europe/2023/09/10/estimated-300000-impacted-by-earthquake-in-morocco-with-at-least-2000-dead/ Estimated 300,000 Impacted by Earthquake in Morocco, with at Least 2,000 Dead A magnitude 3.9 aftershock rattled Moroccans on Sunday as they prayed for victims of the nation’s strongest earthquake in more than a century and worked to rescue survivors while soldiers and workers brought water and supplies to mountain villages in ruins. More than 2,000 people are dead – a number that is expected to rise. The United Nations estimated that 300,000 people were affected by Friday night’s magnitude 6.8 quake and some Moroccans complained on social networks that the government wasn’t allowing more help from outside. International aid crews were prepared to deploy, but remained in limbo waiting for the Morocco government to request their assistance. “We know there is a great urgency to save people and dig under the remains of buildings,” said the, founder of Rescuers Without Borders, who had a team stuck in Paris waiting for the green light. “There are people dying under the rubble, and we cannot do anything to save them.” Those left homeless – or fearing more aftershocks – from Friday night’s earthquake slept outside Saturday, in the streets of the ancient city of Marrakech or under makeshift canopies in Atlas Mountain towns like Moulay Brahim, which were among the hardest-hit. The worst destruction was in small, rural communities that are hard for rescuers to reach because of the mountainous terrain. Those same areas were shaken anew Sunday by a magnitude 3.9 quake, according to the U.S. Geological Survey. It wasn’t immediately clear if the temblor caused more damage or casualties, but it was likely strong enough to rattle nerves in areas where damage has left buildings unstable and people have spoken of their fears of aftershocks. The earthquake on Friday toppled buildings not built to withstand such a mighty quake, trapping people in the rubble and sending others fleeing in terror. A total of 2,012 people were confirmed dead and at least 2,059 more people were injured – 1,404 of them critically – Morocco’s Interior Ministry reported Saturday night. Flags were lowered across Morocco, as King Mohammed VI ordered three days of national mourning starting Sunday. The army mobilized specialized search and rescue teams, and the king ordered water, food rations and shelter to be provided to those who lost their homes. Aid offers have poured in from around the world and the U.N. said it had a team in Morocco coordinating with authorities about how international partners can provide support. About 100 teams made up of a total of 3,500 rescuers from around the world are registered with a U.N. platform and ready to deploy in Morocco when asked, Rescuers Without Borders said. In a sign that Morocco may be prepared to accept more help from outside, the Spanish military said it had sent an air force plane carrying an urban search and rescue team of 56 soldiers and four dogs to Marrakech to help. Foreign Minister José Manuel Albares said in a radio interview that the deployment was in response to a bilateral request for help from Moroccan authorities. Another rescue team from Nice, France, also was on its way. In France, home to many people with links to Morocco, towns and cities have offered more than 2 million euros ($2.1 million) in aid, and popular performers are rallying to collect donations. The Moroccan king ordered the opening of special bank accounts to allow donations to help those in need. https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-66771568 Kim Jong Un: North Korea leader's armoured train reportedly heading to meet Putin The armoured train that Mr Kim uses for foreign visits appears to have departed Pyongyang, South Korean media reported citing a government official. The meeting between the two leaders is expected to take place as early as Tuesday local time. The Kremlin has confirmed that Mr Kim will visit Russia "in the coming days". The Pentagon said it believes Mr Kim is travelling to Russia and it expects "some type of meeting", according to the BBC's US partner CBS News. If the summit with Mr Putin goes ahead, it will be the North Korean leader's first international trip in more than four years, and the first since the pandemic. The two leaders will likely discuss the possibility of North Korea providing Moscow with weapons to support its war in Ukraine, a US official earlier told CBS, the BBC's US partner. Mr Kim's last trip abroad was also to Vladivostok in 2019 for his first summit with Mr Putin after the collapse of North Korea's nuclear disarmament talks with then US President Donald Trump. It is rumoured to include at least 20 bulletproof cars, making it heavier than average trains and unable to go beyond 59 km/h (37mph). His journey to Vladivostok is expected to take an entire day. The possible meeting comes after the White House said it had new information that arms negotiations between the two countries were "actively advancing". National Security Council spokesman John Kirby earlier said Russia's Defence Minister, Sergei Shoigu, had tried to "convince Pyongyang to sell artillery ammunition" to Russia during a recent visit to North Korea. The summit comes at a time when both Russia and North Korea have things that the other country wants, according to Ankit Panda from the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. "What'll matter now is if both sides can find suitable prices they're willing to pay for the other's assistance," he told the BBC. Russia will likely ask North Korea for conventional arms, including artillery shells and rocket artillery munitions in exchange for food and raw materials, and continuing support at international forums like the United Nations, he said. "This could open up the possibility of North Korea transferring more sophisticated weaponry to Russia to allow Moscow to maintain and backfill its own stocks of conventional weapons," he said. It is thought that Russia might need 122mm and 152mm shells because its stocks are running low, but it is not easy to determine North Korea's full artillery inventory, given its secretive nature. Weapons on display at the meeting between Mr Kim and Mr Shoigu in July included the Hwasong intercontinental ballistic missile, believed to be the country's first ICBM to use solid propellants. It was the first time Mr Kim had opened the country's doors to foreign guests since the Covid pandemic. https://thepostmillennial.com/police-budget-cut-in-nyc-as-illegal-immigrant-crisis-forces-women-children-to-sleep-in-tents?utm_campaign=64487 Police budget cut in NYC as illegal immigrant crisis forces women, children to sleep in tents On Saturday, city officials announced that the New York Police Department's budget would be cut, with that money re-allocated to solving the migrant crisis. The move comes as New York City continues to deal with rampant crime and an unprecedented influx of illegal immigrants, many of whom, including women and children, may soon be forced out of shelters and into tents on the street. Budget Director Jacques Jiha revealed in a memo over the weekend explaining that Mayor Eric Adams, who recently said the migrant crisis could "destroy" the city, will soon "issue a directive to implement an overtime reduction initiative for our city's four uniformed agencies." These include the NYPD, the fire department, the corrections department, and the department of sanitation, all of whom provide vital services to the city and its residents. Jiha also asked the agencies to "track overtime spending and their progress in meeting the reduction target," and submit monthly reports to the city. The head of the Police Benevolent Association, Patrick Hendry, slammed the move as out of touch with reality. "It is going to be impossible for the NYPD to significantly reduce overtime unless it fixes its staffing crisis," he said. "We are still thousands of cops short, and we're struggling to drive crime back to pre-2020 levels without adequate personnel." As the Daily Mail reports, New York City is currently spending close to $10 million per day dealing with the surge of migrants, with no end to the crisis in sight. The massive cuts to the budgets of essential city services will only cover two-thirds of the projected costs. As more migrants arrive, shelters and other facilities have reached their breaking point. During an interview with PIX11 on Sunday, Adams said that those who had been given priority for indoor sleeping areas could lose that privilege. https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/news/fauci-federal-recommendations-possible-not-mandates-uptick-covid Fauci says federal mask 'recommendations' are possible amid uptick in COVID Former White House chief medical adviser Anthony Fauci predicted Sunday that federal recommendations for masking may be given as COVID-19 cases continue to rise, but not federal mandates. In an appearance on ABC's This Week, Fauci told Jon Karl he would be "extremely surprised" if a federal mask mandate were put in place. "I can see that if we get a significant uptick in cases that you may see the recommendation that masks be used under certain circumstances and indoor crowded settings, but I don't see there'd be certainly not federal mandates," he said. "There may be local organizations that may require masks, but I think what we're gonna see mostly are, if the cases go up that there might be recommendations, not mandates. There's a big difference there," Fauci continued. Karl also pressed the former National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases director at the National Institutes of Health on the efficacy of masking in retrospect. Asked about new studies indicating that the practice of masking may not have been effective in containing the COVID-19 virus, Fauci claimed some studies are being misconstrued. https://www.foxnews.com/sports/michigan-state-suspends-mel-tucker-without-pay-sexual-harassment-allegations Michigan State suspends Mel Tucker without pay amid sexual harassment allegations Michigan State suspended football coach Mel Tucker Sunday amid an investigation after he was accused of sexually harassing a rape survivor last year. Michigan State athletic director Alan Haller made the announcement following conflicting reports Tucker was going to be fired and/or suspended. He added that Tucker was suspended without pay. Tucker has been the head coach of the Spartans since 2020 and signed a 10-year, $95 million contract extension in November 2021. The allegations against Tucker surfaced earlier in the day in a USA Today report. According to ESPN, he was under investigation over the allegations. Michigan State secondary coach Harlon Barnett will serve as the interim head coach. Former coach Mark Dantonio is returning as an associate head coach. Brenda Tracy, a sexual assault prevention advocate who was gang raped by four college football players in 1998, filed the complaint against Tucker and alleged the coach had asked whether she would date him if he weren’t already married and gratified himself without her consent during a phone call, according to USA Today. Tucker claims all of this was consensual - stating: "Ms. Tracy’s distortion of our mutually consensual and intimate relationship into allegations of sexual exploitation has really affected me," Tucker wrote to the Title IX investigator in March, according to USA Today. "I am not proud of my judgment and I am having difficulty forgiving myself for getting into this situation, but I did not engage in misconduct by any definition."
This is Garrison Hardie with your CrossPolitic Daily News Brief for Tuesday, September 12th, 2023. Fight Laugh Feast Conference - Ark Encounter This year, our Fight Laugh Feast Conference is at the Ark Encounter in Kentucky on The Politics of Six Day Creation. The politics of six day creation is the difference between a fixed standard of justice and a careening standard of justice, the difference between the corrosive relativism that creates mobs and anarchy and the freedom of objectivity, truth, and due process. The politics of six day creation establishes the authority and sufficiency of God’s Word for all of life: from what is a man or a woman, when does human life begin, and how is human society best organized? Come hear Ken Ham, Pastor Doug Wilson, Dr. Ben Merkle, Dr. Gordon Wilson, me and more, and of course a live CrossPolitic show! Mark your calendars for October 11th-14th, as we fight, laugh, and feast, with beer & psalms, our amazing lineup of speakers, our Rowdy Christian Merch, and a Sabbath Feast to wrap up the occasion. Maybe an infant baptism while we’re at it! Visit fightlaughfeast.com for more information! https://www.breitbart.com/europe/2023/09/10/estimated-300000-impacted-by-earthquake-in-morocco-with-at-least-2000-dead/ Estimated 300,000 Impacted by Earthquake in Morocco, with at Least 2,000 Dead A magnitude 3.9 aftershock rattled Moroccans on Sunday as they prayed for victims of the nation’s strongest earthquake in more than a century and worked to rescue survivors while soldiers and workers brought water and supplies to mountain villages in ruins. More than 2,000 people are dead – a number that is expected to rise. The United Nations estimated that 300,000 people were affected by Friday night’s magnitude 6.8 quake and some Moroccans complained on social networks that the government wasn’t allowing more help from outside. International aid crews were prepared to deploy, but remained in limbo waiting for the Morocco government to request their assistance. “We know there is a great urgency to save people and dig under the remains of buildings,” said the, founder of Rescuers Without Borders, who had a team stuck in Paris waiting for the green light. “There are people dying under the rubble, and we cannot do anything to save them.” Those left homeless – or fearing more aftershocks – from Friday night’s earthquake slept outside Saturday, in the streets of the ancient city of Marrakech or under makeshift canopies in Atlas Mountain towns like Moulay Brahim, which were among the hardest-hit. The worst destruction was in small, rural communities that are hard for rescuers to reach because of the mountainous terrain. Those same areas were shaken anew Sunday by a magnitude 3.9 quake, according to the U.S. Geological Survey. It wasn’t immediately clear if the temblor caused more damage or casualties, but it was likely strong enough to rattle nerves in areas where damage has left buildings unstable and people have spoken of their fears of aftershocks. The earthquake on Friday toppled buildings not built to withstand such a mighty quake, trapping people in the rubble and sending others fleeing in terror. A total of 2,012 people were confirmed dead and at least 2,059 more people were injured – 1,404 of them critically – Morocco’s Interior Ministry reported Saturday night. Flags were lowered across Morocco, as King Mohammed VI ordered three days of national mourning starting Sunday. The army mobilized specialized search and rescue teams, and the king ordered water, food rations and shelter to be provided to those who lost their homes. Aid offers have poured in from around the world and the U.N. said it had a team in Morocco coordinating with authorities about how international partners can provide support. About 100 teams made up of a total of 3,500 rescuers from around the world are registered with a U.N. platform and ready to deploy in Morocco when asked, Rescuers Without Borders said. In a sign that Morocco may be prepared to accept more help from outside, the Spanish military said it had sent an air force plane carrying an urban search and rescue team of 56 soldiers and four dogs to Marrakech to help. Foreign Minister José Manuel Albares said in a radio interview that the deployment was in response to a bilateral request for help from Moroccan authorities. Another rescue team from Nice, France, also was on its way. In France, home to many people with links to Morocco, towns and cities have offered more than 2 million euros ($2.1 million) in aid, and popular performers are rallying to collect donations. The Moroccan king ordered the opening of special bank accounts to allow donations to help those in need. https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-66771568 Kim Jong Un: North Korea leader's armoured train reportedly heading to meet Putin The armoured train that Mr Kim uses for foreign visits appears to have departed Pyongyang, South Korean media reported citing a government official. The meeting between the two leaders is expected to take place as early as Tuesday local time. The Kremlin has confirmed that Mr Kim will visit Russia "in the coming days". The Pentagon said it believes Mr Kim is travelling to Russia and it expects "some type of meeting", according to the BBC's US partner CBS News. If the summit with Mr Putin goes ahead, it will be the North Korean leader's first international trip in more than four years, and the first since the pandemic. The two leaders will likely discuss the possibility of North Korea providing Moscow with weapons to support its war in Ukraine, a US official earlier told CBS, the BBC's US partner. Mr Kim's last trip abroad was also to Vladivostok in 2019 for his first summit with Mr Putin after the collapse of North Korea's nuclear disarmament talks with then US President Donald Trump. It is rumoured to include at least 20 bulletproof cars, making it heavier than average trains and unable to go beyond 59 km/h (37mph). His journey to Vladivostok is expected to take an entire day. The possible meeting comes after the White House said it had new information that arms negotiations between the two countries were "actively advancing". National Security Council spokesman John Kirby earlier said Russia's Defence Minister, Sergei Shoigu, had tried to "convince Pyongyang to sell artillery ammunition" to Russia during a recent visit to North Korea. The summit comes at a time when both Russia and North Korea have things that the other country wants, according to Ankit Panda from the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. "What'll matter now is if both sides can find suitable prices they're willing to pay for the other's assistance," he told the BBC. Russia will likely ask North Korea for conventional arms, including artillery shells and rocket artillery munitions in exchange for food and raw materials, and continuing support at international forums like the United Nations, he said. "This could open up the possibility of North Korea transferring more sophisticated weaponry to Russia to allow Moscow to maintain and backfill its own stocks of conventional weapons," he said. It is thought that Russia might need 122mm and 152mm shells because its stocks are running low, but it is not easy to determine North Korea's full artillery inventory, given its secretive nature. Weapons on display at the meeting between Mr Kim and Mr Shoigu in July included the Hwasong intercontinental ballistic missile, believed to be the country's first ICBM to use solid propellants. It was the first time Mr Kim had opened the country's doors to foreign guests since the Covid pandemic. https://thepostmillennial.com/police-budget-cut-in-nyc-as-illegal-immigrant-crisis-forces-women-children-to-sleep-in-tents?utm_campaign=64487 Police budget cut in NYC as illegal immigrant crisis forces women, children to sleep in tents On Saturday, city officials announced that the New York Police Department's budget would be cut, with that money re-allocated to solving the migrant crisis. The move comes as New York City continues to deal with rampant crime and an unprecedented influx of illegal immigrants, many of whom, including women and children, may soon be forced out of shelters and into tents on the street. Budget Director Jacques Jiha revealed in a memo over the weekend explaining that Mayor Eric Adams, who recently said the migrant crisis could "destroy" the city, will soon "issue a directive to implement an overtime reduction initiative for our city's four uniformed agencies." These include the NYPD, the fire department, the corrections department, and the department of sanitation, all of whom provide vital services to the city and its residents. Jiha also asked the agencies to "track overtime spending and their progress in meeting the reduction target," and submit monthly reports to the city. The head of the Police Benevolent Association, Patrick Hendry, slammed the move as out of touch with reality. "It is going to be impossible for the NYPD to significantly reduce overtime unless it fixes its staffing crisis," he said. "We are still thousands of cops short, and we're struggling to drive crime back to pre-2020 levels without adequate personnel." As the Daily Mail reports, New York City is currently spending close to $10 million per day dealing with the surge of migrants, with no end to the crisis in sight. The massive cuts to the budgets of essential city services will only cover two-thirds of the projected costs. As more migrants arrive, shelters and other facilities have reached their breaking point. During an interview with PIX11 on Sunday, Adams said that those who had been given priority for indoor sleeping areas could lose that privilege. https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/news/fauci-federal-recommendations-possible-not-mandates-uptick-covid Fauci says federal mask 'recommendations' are possible amid uptick in COVID Former White House chief medical adviser Anthony Fauci predicted Sunday that federal recommendations for masking may be given as COVID-19 cases continue to rise, but not federal mandates. In an appearance on ABC's This Week, Fauci told Jon Karl he would be "extremely surprised" if a federal mask mandate were put in place. "I can see that if we get a significant uptick in cases that you may see the recommendation that masks be used under certain circumstances and indoor crowded settings, but I don't see there'd be certainly not federal mandates," he said. "There may be local organizations that may require masks, but I think what we're gonna see mostly are, if the cases go up that there might be recommendations, not mandates. There's a big difference there," Fauci continued. Karl also pressed the former National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases director at the National Institutes of Health on the efficacy of masking in retrospect. Asked about new studies indicating that the practice of masking may not have been effective in containing the COVID-19 virus, Fauci claimed some studies are being misconstrued. https://www.foxnews.com/sports/michigan-state-suspends-mel-tucker-without-pay-sexual-harassment-allegations Michigan State suspends Mel Tucker without pay amid sexual harassment allegations Michigan State suspended football coach Mel Tucker Sunday amid an investigation after he was accused of sexually harassing a rape survivor last year. Michigan State athletic director Alan Haller made the announcement following conflicting reports Tucker was going to be fired and/or suspended. He added that Tucker was suspended without pay. Tucker has been the head coach of the Spartans since 2020 and signed a 10-year, $95 million contract extension in November 2021. The allegations against Tucker surfaced earlier in the day in a USA Today report. According to ESPN, he was under investigation over the allegations. Michigan State secondary coach Harlon Barnett will serve as the interim head coach. Former coach Mark Dantonio is returning as an associate head coach. Brenda Tracy, a sexual assault prevention advocate who was gang raped by four college football players in 1998, filed the complaint against Tucker and alleged the coach had asked whether she would date him if he weren’t already married and gratified himself without her consent during a phone call, according to USA Today. Tucker claims all of this was consensual - stating: "Ms. Tracy’s distortion of our mutually consensual and intimate relationship into allegations of sexual exploitation has really affected me," Tucker wrote to the Title IX investigator in March, according to USA Today. "I am not proud of my judgment and I am having difficulty forgiving myself for getting into this situation, but I did not engage in misconduct by any definition."
This is TRT World's Daily News Brief for Monday, September 11. *) Morocco welcomes limited international rescue teams as time runs out Rescue teams and residents have been scouring the rubble of buildings in the west of Morocco, as the death toll from Friday's earthquake continues to climb. The number of dead is now officially at 2,122 but that's expected to rise. The United Nations estimates 300,000 people have been affected by the earthquake. Three days of mourning began on Sunday, as the government announced it will begin accepting some international offers of help. *) Fresh clashes in Lebanon's Palestinian refugee camp leave many dead, injured Five people have been killed in renewed clashes between rival Palestinian groups in the Ein El Hilweh refugee camp in southern Lebanon, according to Lebanese media. Fifty-two other people were also injured in the violence that erupted between the Fatah movement and armed groups in the camp on Sunday, the National News Agency reported. Fighting between Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas's Fatah movement and other armed factions has rocked the El Hilweh refugee camp since Friday. *) Russia 'destroys' two Ukrainian drones over Belgorod region In the latest in the Ukraine war, Russia has said it destroyed two Ukrainian drones close to the border in the Belgorod region. No casualties were reported. The Ministry of Defence said the incident involved two unmanned aerial vehicles and took place early on Sunday. The Belgorod regional governor said the drones were "shot down" over the Yakovlevsky district, which lies to the north and west of the city. *) Thousands rally in Greece as anger mounts against biometric ID cards Thousands of Greeks have rallied in Athens against the impending introduction of biometric ID cards, denouncing what they see as a move towards a surveillance society. The Greek government announced last week that the procedure for obtaining new identity cards would begin on September 25, citing the country's obligation to comply with European regulations. All members of the European Union must issue new biometric cards by 2026 in line with a 2019 treaty. And finally… *) Spanish football chief Rubiales to step down after kiss row Suspended Spanish football federation president Luis Rubiales has said he will resign from his post because of a scandal caused by forcibly kissing a Women's World Cup player. Rubiales said he is going to resign in an interview with television show "Piers Morgan Uncensored". He sparked a worldwide backlash after forcibly kissing midfielder Jenni Hermoso during the medal ceremony following Spain's World Cup triumph in Sydney last month. And that's your daily news brief from TRT World. For more, head to trtworld.com
This is Garrison Hardie with your CrossPolitic Daily News Brief for Friday, September 8th, 2023. Armored Republic The Mission of Armored Republic is to Honor Christ by equipping Free Men with Tools of Liberty necessary to preserve God-given rights. In the Armored Republic there is no King but Christ. We are Free Craftsmen. Body Armor is a Tool of Liberty. We create Tools of Liberty. Free men must remain ever vigilant against tyranny wherever it appears. God has given us the tools of liberty needed to defend the rights He bestowed to us. Armored Republic is honored to offer you those Tools. Visit them, at ar500armor.com https://dailycaller.com/2023/09/07/health-insurance-costs-increase-decade/ Health Insurance Costs Projected To Have Highest Increase In Over a Decade Employer health insurance costs are expected to increase significantly in 2024, affecting both workers and businesses as hospital operating costs rise, according to data reported by The Wall Street Journal. Next year, the costs for health insurance coverage from employers are expected to increase by around 6.5%, which could be the biggest increase in more than a decade, according to survey data acquired by the WSJ. Driving the increase in health insurance costs are inflated labor costs for hospitals and a large demand for expensive new diabetes and obesity drugs, which are being passed down to insurance companies in new contracts with the hospitals. Individuals who do not receive insurance from their employer but rather through the Affordable Care Act will see their premium costs rise by about 6% next year, which is comparable to the increase this year, according to the WSJ. https://twitter.com/i/status/1696593061545906458 - Play Video Well at least Joe Biden feels your pain. Workers are likely to pay more out of pocket as employers shift some of the cost of inflation down to employees, according to the WSJ. Despite the shift, a tight labor market may push employers to shoulder a bigger share as hiring and retaining workers remain competitive. Unemployment ticked up in August but remained relatively low at 3.8%, up from 3.5% in July. The U.S. added 187,000 nonfarm payroll jobs in a sign of a slowing job market. In August, the Biden administration released a list of ten drugs that Medicare will negotiate prices with drug manufacturers over in an effort to reduce costs. The negotiations are set to begin later in 2023 but will not go into effect until 2026, with companies being threatened with up to a 95% tax if they do not cooperate. https://hotair.com/david-strom/2023/09/06/uk-you-may-soon-go-to-jail-if-you-dont-upgrade-your-energy-efficiency-n576157#google_vignette UK: you may soon go to jail if you don't upgrade your energy efficiency It is hardly an exaggeration to say that the Industrial Revolution began in the UK. It was the mastery of energy–replacing muscle power with fossil fuels that fundamentally transformed everything. We still describe an engine’s output as “horsepower” for a reason: for most of human history the fastest anything could travel was the speed of a horse. Unless, of course, you were falling off a cliff. Then you could go faster, but the ride was short. The UK–which is still led by the Tories only because Labour is even worse–is looking to undo the Industrial Revolution. In a ridiculous bid to save Gaia from an imagined threat, the government is proposing to create new criminal laws that would imprison and fine people for not complying with new energy efficiency standards. Soon they will make excessive energy use–and that will be energy use that rises above “Net Zero”–could be a criminal offense. No, I am not kidding. Property owners who fail to comply with new energy efficiency rules could face prison under government plans that have sparked a backlash from Tory MPs. Ministers want to grant themselves powers to create new criminal offences and increase civil penalties as part of efforts to hit net zero targets. Under the proposals, people who fall foul of regulations to reduce their energy consumption could face up to a year in prison and fines of up to £15,000. Tory backbenchers are set to rebel against the plans, which they fear would lead to the criminalisation of homeowners, landlords and businesses. The proposals are contained in the Government’s controversial Energy Bill, which is set to come before the Commons for the first time when MPs return from their summer break on Tuesday. It provides for “the creation of criminal offences” where there is “non-compliance with a requirement imposed by or under energy performance regulations”. People could also be prosecuted for “provision of false information” about energy efficiency or the “obstruction of… an enforcement authority”. Checking in on the Hollywood Strike… https://www.breitbart.com/entertainment/2023/09/06/report-striking-hollywood-workers-facing-evictions-some-living-in-their-cars/ Striking Hollywood Workers Facing Evictions, Some Living in Their Cars As the dual Hollywood strikes drag on with no end in sight, writers and actors are increasingly finding themselves in dire financial straits, with a growing number of striking workers reportedly facing evictions as they can no longer afford to pay rent. In certain cases, some have resorted to living in their cars. Several charitable organizations that have been supporting striking Hollywood workers with grants said they are seeing housing difficulties impact actors and writers as well as blue-collar crew members, according to an account from The Hollywood Reporter. Thousands of crew members ranging from lighting personnel to makeup artists have been forced into long-term unemployment due to the strikes. For many non-celebrity actors, the strikes have been financially ruinous. “The strike has had a massive impact on my housing situation. I worked one day in May, and since then all the work has stopped,” actor David Baach told The Hollywood Reporter. “I’ve almost depleted my entire savings, and I haven’t been able to pay my rent the last few months. My building manager and property owners extended me a grace period due to the good social credit I had built up by doing some gardening and landscaping in our building’s common area. However, in early August, I received an eviction notice from the building’s management company taped to my front door.” Leaders of two Hollywood charities — the Entertainment Community Fund and the Motion Picture & Television Fund — told the magazine that people are losing their homes due to the strikes. “People are becoming unhoused, they’re being evicted from their apartments and they’re not paying their mortgages so eventually they will lose their homes as well. We’re talking to people who are living in their cars, in some cases with their families,” MPTF president and CEO Bob Beitcher reportedly said. The MPTF is giving away $1,500 grants to striking workers but the amount doesn’t come close to covering monthly rent in a city as expensive as Los Angeles and its surroundings. The actors’ and writers’ strikes against Hollywood studios show no signs of ending as the warring sides continue to dig in their heels on key negotiating points regarding streaming compensation and A.I. has brought TV and movie production to a virtual halt around the country, putting thousands of people out of work and damaging local economies coast to coast. https://www.hollywoodintoto.com/sound-of-freedom-number-1-latin-america/ ‘Sound of Freedom’ Nabs No. 1 Slot in 18 Latin American Countries “Sound of Freedom” isn’t done quite yet. The summer’s indie sensation finally fell out of the top 10 box office results after earning north of $180 million at the U.S. box office. Those numbers are staggering and would be the summer’s biggest story if not for a certain one-two punch dubbed “Barbenheimer.” “Freedom,” which follows a Homeland Security agent (Jim Caviezel) tracking down a little girl abducted by sex traffickers, is now a global sensation. The film scored 18 number-one slots across Latin America over the weekend, according to Angel Studios. Mexico Guatemala Honduras El Salvador Nicaragua Costa Rica Panama Colombia Venezuela Ecuador Peru Bolivia Belize Paraguay Chile Uruguay Argentina Dominican Republic The film also performed respectively in other nations during its opening weekend: #1 in New Zealand #2 in Australia #2 in South Africa #4 in the United Kingdom Disney infamously acquired the film during its 2019 takeover of 20th Century Fox but didn’t know what to do with the property. So the Mouse House shelved it for five years before Angel Studios bought the rights to the film and released it independently. The mainstream media savaged the film in cruel and unprofessional ways. Reporters attacked Caviezel for his political views and suggested the film addressed an issue that’s based on conspiracy theory more than fact. The most absurd line of attack? Some outlets used one of the 6,000+ people who crowdfunded the movie’s marketing efforts against the project. The person in question is tied up in a child custody dispute framed as “child abduction.” The film’s global revenue is still dramatically lower than its domestic haul. So far, “Freedom” has earned more than $2 million outside the U.S.
This is Garrison Hardie with your CrossPolitic Daily News Brief for Friday, September 8th, 2023. Armored Republic The Mission of Armored Republic is to Honor Christ by equipping Free Men with Tools of Liberty necessary to preserve God-given rights. In the Armored Republic there is no King but Christ. We are Free Craftsmen. Body Armor is a Tool of Liberty. We create Tools of Liberty. Free men must remain ever vigilant against tyranny wherever it appears. God has given us the tools of liberty needed to defend the rights He bestowed to us. Armored Republic is honored to offer you those Tools. Visit them, at ar500armor.com https://dailycaller.com/2023/09/07/health-insurance-costs-increase-decade/ Health Insurance Costs Projected To Have Highest Increase In Over a Decade Employer health insurance costs are expected to increase significantly in 2024, affecting both workers and businesses as hospital operating costs rise, according to data reported by The Wall Street Journal. Next year, the costs for health insurance coverage from employers are expected to increase by around 6.5%, which could be the biggest increase in more than a decade, according to survey data acquired by the WSJ. Driving the increase in health insurance costs are inflated labor costs for hospitals and a large demand for expensive new diabetes and obesity drugs, which are being passed down to insurance companies in new contracts with the hospitals. Individuals who do not receive insurance from their employer but rather through the Affordable Care Act will see their premium costs rise by about 6% next year, which is comparable to the increase this year, according to the WSJ. https://twitter.com/i/status/1696593061545906458 - Play Video Well at least Joe Biden feels your pain. Workers are likely to pay more out of pocket as employers shift some of the cost of inflation down to employees, according to the WSJ. Despite the shift, a tight labor market may push employers to shoulder a bigger share as hiring and retaining workers remain competitive. Unemployment ticked up in August but remained relatively low at 3.8%, up from 3.5% in July. The U.S. added 187,000 nonfarm payroll jobs in a sign of a slowing job market. In August, the Biden administration released a list of ten drugs that Medicare will negotiate prices with drug manufacturers over in an effort to reduce costs. The negotiations are set to begin later in 2023 but will not go into effect until 2026, with companies being threatened with up to a 95% tax if they do not cooperate. https://hotair.com/david-strom/2023/09/06/uk-you-may-soon-go-to-jail-if-you-dont-upgrade-your-energy-efficiency-n576157#google_vignette UK: you may soon go to jail if you don't upgrade your energy efficiency It is hardly an exaggeration to say that the Industrial Revolution began in the UK. It was the mastery of energy–replacing muscle power with fossil fuels that fundamentally transformed everything. We still describe an engine’s output as “horsepower” for a reason: for most of human history the fastest anything could travel was the speed of a horse. Unless, of course, you were falling off a cliff. Then you could go faster, but the ride was short. The UK–which is still led by the Tories only because Labour is even worse–is looking to undo the Industrial Revolution. In a ridiculous bid to save Gaia from an imagined threat, the government is proposing to create new criminal laws that would imprison and fine people for not complying with new energy efficiency standards. Soon they will make excessive energy use–and that will be energy use that rises above “Net Zero”–could be a criminal offense. No, I am not kidding. Property owners who fail to comply with new energy efficiency rules could face prison under government plans that have sparked a backlash from Tory MPs. Ministers want to grant themselves powers to create new criminal offences and increase civil penalties as part of efforts to hit net zero targets. Under the proposals, people who fall foul of regulations to reduce their energy consumption could face up to a year in prison and fines of up to £15,000. Tory backbenchers are set to rebel against the plans, which they fear would lead to the criminalisation of homeowners, landlords and businesses. The proposals are contained in the Government’s controversial Energy Bill, which is set to come before the Commons for the first time when MPs return from their summer break on Tuesday. It provides for “the creation of criminal offences” where there is “non-compliance with a requirement imposed by or under energy performance regulations”. People could also be prosecuted for “provision of false information” about energy efficiency or the “obstruction of… an enforcement authority”. Checking in on the Hollywood Strike… https://www.breitbart.com/entertainment/2023/09/06/report-striking-hollywood-workers-facing-evictions-some-living-in-their-cars/ Striking Hollywood Workers Facing Evictions, Some Living in Their Cars As the dual Hollywood strikes drag on with no end in sight, writers and actors are increasingly finding themselves in dire financial straits, with a growing number of striking workers reportedly facing evictions as they can no longer afford to pay rent. In certain cases, some have resorted to living in their cars. Several charitable organizations that have been supporting striking Hollywood workers with grants said they are seeing housing difficulties impact actors and writers as well as blue-collar crew members, according to an account from The Hollywood Reporter. Thousands of crew members ranging from lighting personnel to makeup artists have been forced into long-term unemployment due to the strikes. For many non-celebrity actors, the strikes have been financially ruinous. “The strike has had a massive impact on my housing situation. I worked one day in May, and since then all the work has stopped,” actor David Baach told The Hollywood Reporter. “I’ve almost depleted my entire savings, and I haven’t been able to pay my rent the last few months. My building manager and property owners extended me a grace period due to the good social credit I had built up by doing some gardening and landscaping in our building’s common area. However, in early August, I received an eviction notice from the building’s management company taped to my front door.” Leaders of two Hollywood charities — the Entertainment Community Fund and the Motion Picture & Television Fund — told the magazine that people are losing their homes due to the strikes. “People are becoming unhoused, they’re being evicted from their apartments and they’re not paying their mortgages so eventually they will lose their homes as well. We’re talking to people who are living in their cars, in some cases with their families,” MPTF president and CEO Bob Beitcher reportedly said. The MPTF is giving away $1,500 grants to striking workers but the amount doesn’t come close to covering monthly rent in a city as expensive as Los Angeles and its surroundings. The actors’ and writers’ strikes against Hollywood studios show no signs of ending as the warring sides continue to dig in their heels on key negotiating points regarding streaming compensation and A.I. has brought TV and movie production to a virtual halt around the country, putting thousands of people out of work and damaging local economies coast to coast. https://www.hollywoodintoto.com/sound-of-freedom-number-1-latin-america/ ‘Sound of Freedom’ Nabs No. 1 Slot in 18 Latin American Countries “Sound of Freedom” isn’t done quite yet. The summer’s indie sensation finally fell out of the top 10 box office results after earning north of $180 million at the U.S. box office. Those numbers are staggering and would be the summer’s biggest story if not for a certain one-two punch dubbed “Barbenheimer.” “Freedom,” which follows a Homeland Security agent (Jim Caviezel) tracking down a little girl abducted by sex traffickers, is now a global sensation. The film scored 18 number-one slots across Latin America over the weekend, according to Angel Studios. Mexico Guatemala Honduras El Salvador Nicaragua Costa Rica Panama Colombia Venezuela Ecuador Peru Bolivia Belize Paraguay Chile Uruguay Argentina Dominican Republic The film also performed respectively in other nations during its opening weekend: #1 in New Zealand #2 in Australia #2 in South Africa #4 in the United Kingdom Disney infamously acquired the film during its 2019 takeover of 20th Century Fox but didn’t know what to do with the property. So the Mouse House shelved it for five years before Angel Studios bought the rights to the film and released it independently. The mainstream media savaged the film in cruel and unprofessional ways. Reporters attacked Caviezel for his political views and suggested the film addressed an issue that’s based on conspiracy theory more than fact. The most absurd line of attack? Some outlets used one of the 6,000+ people who crowdfunded the movie’s marketing efforts against the project. The person in question is tied up in a child custody dispute framed as “child abduction.” The film’s global revenue is still dramatically lower than its domestic haul. So far, “Freedom” has earned more than $2 million outside the U.S.
Give us about fifteen minutes a day, and we will give you all the local news, local sports, local weather, and local events you can handle. SPONSORS: Many thanks to our sponsors... Annapolis Subaru, the SPCA of Anne Arundel County, Solar Energy Services, Alpha Engineering, Scout & Molly's, and Hospice of the Chesapeake! Today... Snow day news from AACPS. Election news from Annapolis. The Boss postpones his September shows including tomorrow's one at Camden Yards. We dropped a binus pod on the 2nd Annual Annapolis Songhwriters Festival and I am excited! A few events for the weekend--mostly free! And, of course, we have some pod news, canines and crosstreks, and more! DAILY NEWSLETTER LINK: https://forms.aweber.com/form/87/493412887.htm And like we do every Friday, Annapolis Subaru and I met up with some animals from the SPCA of Anne Arundel County. In this week's Canines & Crosstreks, we meet Louie! And as usual, George from DCMDVA Weather is here with your local weather forecast! Please download their app to keep on top of the local weather scene! The Eye On Annapolis Daily News Brief is produced every Monday through Friday at 6:00 am and available wherever you get your podcasts and also on our social media platforms--All Annapolis and Eye On Annapolis (FB) and @eyeonannapolis (TW) NOTE: For hearing impaired subscribers, a full transcript is available on Eye On Annapolis
This is Garrison Hardie with your CrossPolitic Daily News Brief for Thursday, September 7th, 2023. Olive Tree Biblical Software: Discover why more than a million people use the free Olive Tree Bible App as their go-to for reading, studying, and listening to the God’s Word. Start by downloading one of many free Bibles and start taking notes, highlighting verses, and bookmarking your favorite passages. You can read at your own pace, or choose from a large selection of Reading Plans, including the Bible Reading Challenge. When you are ready to go deeper into your studies, Olive Tree is right there with a large selection of study Bibles, commentaries, and other helpful study resources available for purchase. There’s also an extensive bookstore allows you to build your digital library one book at a time and Olive Tree’s sync technology lets you pick up where you left off on your tablet, pc or phone and get right to studying on another supported device. Now here's the best part – You can start with the Olive Tree Essentials Bundle for FREE. Visit www.olivetree.com/FLF and download it today! https://www.foxbusiness.com/economy/us-federal-budget-deficit-projected-double-year US federal budget deficit projected to double this year The U.S. federal deficit is projected to nearly double this year as a result of higher interest rates and lower tax revenue. The gap between what the government spends and what it collects is expected to grow from about $1 trillion last year to $2 trillion for the 2023 fiscal year that ends Sept. 30, according to the latest projections from the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget (CRFB), a nonpartisan group that advocates for reducing the federal deficit. "This would be the highest deficit we’ve ever had outside of a recession or national emergency," Marc Goldwein, a senior policy director at CRFB, told FOX Business. The sizable increase stems from a number of factors, including high inflation, more expensive interest payments and a drop in tax receipts. It comes on the heels of a record drop in the budget shortfall last year, as the deficit dropped from close to $3 trillion to roughly $1 trillion after the government's record spending during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 and 2021. In 2022, the government enjoyed a surge in capital gains revenue after Americans capitalized on the booming market the previous year, sold more stock and recorded large gains. The market has not fared as well since then, leading to a sharp drop in capital gains tax revenue compared with last year. The Treasury Department likewise benefited from a spike in general tax collection, because surging inflation essentially pushed up nominal income for millions of households. Although the IRS indexes the tax code to inflation, it does so on a lag. Higher federal income tax brackets and standard deductions took effect at the beginning of 2023, essentially allowing more Americans to shield their income from the IRS. Social Security and Medicare are also indexed to inflation, meaning the government is spending more money on those programs than it did in fiscal year 2022. "But mostly what’s happening is it’s coming to the new normal, from an unusually low 2022 deficit," Goldwein said. "That’s pretty scary, because normal before the pandemic was $1 trillion. And in 2015, it was $500 billion. So we went from $500 billion is the normal, to $1 trillion is the normal, to $2 trillion is the normal in less than a decade." The figures exclude President Biden's $400 billion student loan cancellation plan, which was counted in the official 2022 deficit numbers but never implemented because the Supreme Court struck the policy down. Such massive spending imbalances highlight the toll that high and rising debt can take on everyday Americans. High deficits can fuel inflation, and high debt can push up interest rates. "Mortgage rates are as high as they’ve been since well before the financial crisis," Goldwein said. "Car loan rates, student loan rates, credit card rates, they’re all really high." The deficit surge comes as lawmakers rush to avert a government shutdown. The White House has urged Congress to pass a short-term funding measure, known as a continuing resolution, in order to keep the government solvent while lawmakers continue negotiations over longer-term funding bills. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., and House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., have both said they want to pass a short-term deal to keep the government running. However, a group of House Republicans — the House Freedom Caucus — is demanding a number of concessions as part of the continuing resolution, raising the risk of more down-to-the-wire drama on Capitol Hill. https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/news/white-house/biden-mask-indoors-jill-biden-covid Biden to wear mask indoors after COVID-19 exposure President Joe Biden will don a mask indoors after he was exposed to COVID-19 through his wife, first lady Jill Biden, according to the White House. https://twitter.com/i/status/1699269260260823345 - Play Video Now, Studies have repeatedly shown masks don't prevent Covid transmission and might even have health consequences to wearers. - But I digress. Biden, who awarded the Medal of Honor to Army Capt. Larry Taylor for conspicuous gallantry on Tuesday, is expected to depart Thursday for India and the Group of 20 leaders summit. During the Medal of Honor ceremony, Biden took off his mask for his remarks and did not put it back on to hang the trinket around Taylor's neck or to leave the East Room. National security adviser Jake Sullivan downplayed the prospect that a presidential COVID-19 diagnosis would disrupt his foreign trip based on leaders' past experience social distancing during the pandemic. https://www.theblaze.com/news/75000-sia-illegal-border-crossings 75,000 illegal immigrants flagged as having possible ties to terrorism in the last year, according to CBP data U.S. Customs and Border Protection flagged approximately 75,000 illegal immigrants as being possible national security threats or having terroristic ties in the previous 10 months leading up to August 2023, the Daily Caller reported. CBP data showed that between October 2022 and August 2023, 74,904 illegal aliens were labeled as "SIA Encounters," which stands for "Special Interest Alien." According to a Department of Homeland Security article, an SIA is a "non-U.S. person" who potentially "poses a national security risk to the United States or its interests." "Often such individuals or groups are employing travel patterns known or evaluated to possibly have a nexus to terrorism. DHS analysis includes an examination of travel patterns, points of origin, and/or travel segments that are tied to current assessments of national and international threat environments," the DHS stated. "This does not mean that all SIAs are 'terrorists,'" the government report added. However, the travel and behavior of certain individuals "indicates a possible nexus to nefarious activity (including terrorism) and, at a minimum, provides indicators that necessitate heightened screening and further investigation." The unearthed numbers were a massive increase from the reported 25,627 special interest encounters from fiscal year 2022, and the comparably miniscule 3,675 from fiscal year 2021. Illegal immigrants can automatically be deemed SIAs based on their country of origin, such as Turkey or Uzbekistan, due to such countries' status as a "source and transit country." DHS didn’t respond to a request for comment from the Daily Caller regarding the SIA figures. CBP and the DHS are under heightened scrutiny as a result of the shocking increase in border crossing encounters under the Biden administration. A former immigration judge claimed in late August 2023 that the DHS was deliberately not disclosing the number of illegal immigrants who have been released into the United States each month. "The only reason why ICE and OFO [Office of Field Operations] would refuse to disclose that information is to hide the fact that it is releasing more than 100,000 aliens per month into the United States and to conceal the effects of those migrant releases on communities across the United States," Andrew Arthur said. Border encounters in fiscal year 2023 are on pace to match the near 2.4 million that were seen in 2022. There were just over 1.7 million encounters in 2021, while in 2020, President Trump's administration saw a little more than 450,000. https://townhall.com/tipsheet/leahbarkoukis/2023/09/05/ev-florida-n2627949#google_vignette Electric Vehicles Are Causing Issues After Hurricane Idalia Electric vehicles are catching on fire after Hurricane Idalia made landfall in Florida last week. According to local reports, at least two Tesla EVs ignited after saltwater from the storm surge damaged their batteries and other electrical components. One vehicle lit up in Pinellas Park and another car fire occurred in Palm Harbor. “Carfax says owners need to understand the fire risk doesn’t go away after their EV dries out,” ABC Actions News told viewers. “The salt water that is flooding can get into the battery and dry there and once it dries it creates what federal safety officials call bridges between cells and that can lead to fires and those fires can come anywhere from days to weeks later and once an EV catches fire it is incredible difficult to put it out,” said Patrick Olsen of Carfax. After Hurricane Ian, 21 electric vehicles caught fire in the state, prompting officials to warn residents ahead of Idalia's approach. “We saw a number of fires associated with EVs from Hurricane Ian. We know that the saltwater from storm surge can compromise these batteries, causing fires which cannot be easily suppressed,” Florida Chief Financial Officer Jimmy Patronis said at the time. “The best fire teams can do is keep water on the battery until the fuel burns out. If you’re evacuating and leaving an EV, or other lithium ion powered devices like scooters or golf carts in your garage, you’re creating a real fire threat for your home, your communities, and first responders," he added. "Take this threat seriously. If there’s even a small risk of your EV being impacted by storm surge, move it to higher ground before it’s too late.” One home that managed to survive Ian ended up burning to the ground because of a saltwater-damaged EV. EV vehicle owners are being advised to park affected cars at least 50 feet away from any structures that could catch fire.
This is Garrison Hardie with your CrossPolitic Daily News Brief for Thursday, September 7th, 2023. Olive Tree Biblical Software: Discover why more than a million people use the free Olive Tree Bible App as their go-to for reading, studying, and listening to the God’s Word. Start by downloading one of many free Bibles and start taking notes, highlighting verses, and bookmarking your favorite passages. You can read at your own pace, or choose from a large selection of Reading Plans, including the Bible Reading Challenge. When you are ready to go deeper into your studies, Olive Tree is right there with a large selection of study Bibles, commentaries, and other helpful study resources available for purchase. There’s also an extensive bookstore allows you to build your digital library one book at a time and Olive Tree’s sync technology lets you pick up where you left off on your tablet, pc or phone and get right to studying on another supported device. Now here's the best part – You can start with the Olive Tree Essentials Bundle for FREE. Visit www.olivetree.com/FLF and download it today! https://www.foxbusiness.com/economy/us-federal-budget-deficit-projected-double-year US federal budget deficit projected to double this year The U.S. federal deficit is projected to nearly double this year as a result of higher interest rates and lower tax revenue. The gap between what the government spends and what it collects is expected to grow from about $1 trillion last year to $2 trillion for the 2023 fiscal year that ends Sept. 30, according to the latest projections from the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget (CRFB), a nonpartisan group that advocates for reducing the federal deficit. "This would be the highest deficit we’ve ever had outside of a recession or national emergency," Marc Goldwein, a senior policy director at CRFB, told FOX Business. The sizable increase stems from a number of factors, including high inflation, more expensive interest payments and a drop in tax receipts. It comes on the heels of a record drop in the budget shortfall last year, as the deficit dropped from close to $3 trillion to roughly $1 trillion after the government's record spending during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 and 2021. In 2022, the government enjoyed a surge in capital gains revenue after Americans capitalized on the booming market the previous year, sold more stock and recorded large gains. The market has not fared as well since then, leading to a sharp drop in capital gains tax revenue compared with last year. The Treasury Department likewise benefited from a spike in general tax collection, because surging inflation essentially pushed up nominal income for millions of households. Although the IRS indexes the tax code to inflation, it does so on a lag. Higher federal income tax brackets and standard deductions took effect at the beginning of 2023, essentially allowing more Americans to shield their income from the IRS. Social Security and Medicare are also indexed to inflation, meaning the government is spending more money on those programs than it did in fiscal year 2022. "But mostly what’s happening is it’s coming to the new normal, from an unusually low 2022 deficit," Goldwein said. "That’s pretty scary, because normal before the pandemic was $1 trillion. And in 2015, it was $500 billion. So we went from $500 billion is the normal, to $1 trillion is the normal, to $2 trillion is the normal in less than a decade." The figures exclude President Biden's $400 billion student loan cancellation plan, which was counted in the official 2022 deficit numbers but never implemented because the Supreme Court struck the policy down. Such massive spending imbalances highlight the toll that high and rising debt can take on everyday Americans. High deficits can fuel inflation, and high debt can push up interest rates. "Mortgage rates are as high as they’ve been since well before the financial crisis," Goldwein said. "Car loan rates, student loan rates, credit card rates, they’re all really high." The deficit surge comes as lawmakers rush to avert a government shutdown. The White House has urged Congress to pass a short-term funding measure, known as a continuing resolution, in order to keep the government solvent while lawmakers continue negotiations over longer-term funding bills. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., and House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., have both said they want to pass a short-term deal to keep the government running. However, a group of House Republicans — the House Freedom Caucus — is demanding a number of concessions as part of the continuing resolution, raising the risk of more down-to-the-wire drama on Capitol Hill. https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/news/white-house/biden-mask-indoors-jill-biden-covid Biden to wear mask indoors after COVID-19 exposure President Joe Biden will don a mask indoors after he was exposed to COVID-19 through his wife, first lady Jill Biden, according to the White House. https://twitter.com/i/status/1699269260260823345 - Play Video Now, Studies have repeatedly shown masks don't prevent Covid transmission and might even have health consequences to wearers. - But I digress. Biden, who awarded the Medal of Honor to Army Capt. Larry Taylor for conspicuous gallantry on Tuesday, is expected to depart Thursday for India and the Group of 20 leaders summit. During the Medal of Honor ceremony, Biden took off his mask for his remarks and did not put it back on to hang the trinket around Taylor's neck or to leave the East Room. National security adviser Jake Sullivan downplayed the prospect that a presidential COVID-19 diagnosis would disrupt his foreign trip based on leaders' past experience social distancing during the pandemic. https://www.theblaze.com/news/75000-sia-illegal-border-crossings 75,000 illegal immigrants flagged as having possible ties to terrorism in the last year, according to CBP data U.S. Customs and Border Protection flagged approximately 75,000 illegal immigrants as being possible national security threats or having terroristic ties in the previous 10 months leading up to August 2023, the Daily Caller reported. CBP data showed that between October 2022 and August 2023, 74,904 illegal aliens were labeled as "SIA Encounters," which stands for "Special Interest Alien." According to a Department of Homeland Security article, an SIA is a "non-U.S. person" who potentially "poses a national security risk to the United States or its interests." "Often such individuals or groups are employing travel patterns known or evaluated to possibly have a nexus to terrorism. DHS analysis includes an examination of travel patterns, points of origin, and/or travel segments that are tied to current assessments of national and international threat environments," the DHS stated. "This does not mean that all SIAs are 'terrorists,'" the government report added. However, the travel and behavior of certain individuals "indicates a possible nexus to nefarious activity (including terrorism) and, at a minimum, provides indicators that necessitate heightened screening and further investigation." The unearthed numbers were a massive increase from the reported 25,627 special interest encounters from fiscal year 2022, and the comparably miniscule 3,675 from fiscal year 2021. Illegal immigrants can automatically be deemed SIAs based on their country of origin, such as Turkey or Uzbekistan, due to such countries' status as a "source and transit country." DHS didn’t respond to a request for comment from the Daily Caller regarding the SIA figures. CBP and the DHS are under heightened scrutiny as a result of the shocking increase in border crossing encounters under the Biden administration. A former immigration judge claimed in late August 2023 that the DHS was deliberately not disclosing the number of illegal immigrants who have been released into the United States each month. "The only reason why ICE and OFO [Office of Field Operations] would refuse to disclose that information is to hide the fact that it is releasing more than 100,000 aliens per month into the United States and to conceal the effects of those migrant releases on communities across the United States," Andrew Arthur said. Border encounters in fiscal year 2023 are on pace to match the near 2.4 million that were seen in 2022. There were just over 1.7 million encounters in 2021, while in 2020, President Trump's administration saw a little more than 450,000. https://townhall.com/tipsheet/leahbarkoukis/2023/09/05/ev-florida-n2627949#google_vignette Electric Vehicles Are Causing Issues After Hurricane Idalia Electric vehicles are catching on fire after Hurricane Idalia made landfall in Florida last week. According to local reports, at least two Tesla EVs ignited after saltwater from the storm surge damaged their batteries and other electrical components. One vehicle lit up in Pinellas Park and another car fire occurred in Palm Harbor. “Carfax says owners need to understand the fire risk doesn’t go away after their EV dries out,” ABC Actions News told viewers. “The salt water that is flooding can get into the battery and dry there and once it dries it creates what federal safety officials call bridges between cells and that can lead to fires and those fires can come anywhere from days to weeks later and once an EV catches fire it is incredible difficult to put it out,” said Patrick Olsen of Carfax. After Hurricane Ian, 21 electric vehicles caught fire in the state, prompting officials to warn residents ahead of Idalia's approach. “We saw a number of fires associated with EVs from Hurricane Ian. We know that the saltwater from storm surge can compromise these batteries, causing fires which cannot be easily suppressed,” Florida Chief Financial Officer Jimmy Patronis said at the time. “The best fire teams can do is keep water on the battery until the fuel burns out. If you’re evacuating and leaving an EV, or other lithium ion powered devices like scooters or golf carts in your garage, you’re creating a real fire threat for your home, your communities, and first responders," he added. "Take this threat seriously. If there’s even a small risk of your EV being impacted by storm surge, move it to higher ground before it’s too late.” One home that managed to survive Ian ended up burning to the ground because of a saltwater-damaged EV. EV vehicle owners are being advised to park affected cars at least 50 feet away from any structures that could catch fire.
Give us about fifteen minutes a day and we will give you all the local news, local sports, local weather, and local events you can handle. SPONSORS: Many thanks to our sponsors… Annapolis Subaru, the SPCA of Anne Arundel County, Solar Energy Services, Hospice of the Chesapeake, Scout & Molly's, and Alpha Engineering. Today... Redevelopment of Crownsville Hospital is underway with new committee. US News and World Report lists the best schools in the US and Anne Arundel County did OK. K&B True Value has launcghed their annual Cash For Schools promotion and we joined in to help out! If you like to paddle--the Bay Bridge Paddle is on the 23rd. Profs and Pints is having a brainy discussion on the 26th at the Tropohy Room. A heads up abouyt some Songwriter's Festival tickets, and some pod news too! Link to daily news recap newsletter: https://forms.aweber.com/form/87/493412887.htm And as usual, George from DCMDVA Weather is here with your local weather forecast! Please download their app to keep on top of the local weather scene! DAILY NEWSLETTER LINK: https://forms.aweber.com/form/87/493412887.htm The Eye On Annapolis Daily News Brief is produced every Monday through Friday at 6:00 am and available wherever you get your podcasts and also on our social media platforms--All Annapolis and Eye On Annapolis (FB) and @eyeonannapolis (TW) NOTE: For hearing impaired subscribers, a full transcript is available on Eye On Annapolis
This is Garrison Hardie with your CrossPolitic Daily News Brief for Wednesday, September 6th, 2023. PUB MEMBERSHIP PLUG: Summer has been great here at CrossPolitic, and we want you to join us on this ride… First, we’re no longer calling it the Fight Laugh Feast club… it’s now called the Pub! Second, we are launching a new line of content, focused on family entertainment. We will have our new show “This America” and our exciting new “Rowdy Christian Guides” highlighting the practical guides to fun and godly life! Additionally, we will have the live streaming of our conferences, and our past conference talks, all bundled within our new polished Fight Laugh Feast App. Sign up today! Head on over to fightlaughfeast.com, and join the Pub! that’s fightlaughfeast.com. https://www.newsmax.com/newsfront/putin-turkey-grain-deal/2023/09/04/id/1133111/ Putin Won't Renew Grain Deal Until the West Meets His Demands Russian President Vladimir Putin said Monday that a landmark deal allowing Ukraine to export grain safely through the Black Sea amid the war won’t be restored until the West meets Moscow's demands on its own agricultural exports. Ukraine and its Western allies have dismissed the Kremlin’s demands as a ploy to advance its own interests. Still, Putin's remarks dashed hopes that his talks with the Turkish President could revive an agreement seen as vital for global food supplies, especially in Africa, the Middle East and Asia. Russia refused to extend the deal in July, complaining that a parallel agreement promising to remove obstacles to Russian exports of food and fertilizer hadn’t been honored. It said restrictions on shipping and insurance hampered its agricultural trade, though it has shipped record amounts of wheat since last year. Putin reiterated those complaints Monday, while also telling reporters that if those commitments were honored, Russia could return to the deal “within days.” The Turkish President also expressed hope that a breakthrough could come soon. He said Turkey and the U.N. — which both brokered the original deal — have put together a new package of proposals to unblock the issue. “I believe that we will reach a solution that will meet the expectations in a short time,” Erdogan said at the news conference held with Putin in the Russian resort of Sochi. Earlier, a German Foreign Minister lashed out, saying Putin's “game with the grain agreement is cynical.” A lot is riding on the negotiation. Ukraine and Russia are major suppliers of wheat, barley, sunflower oil and other goods that developing nations rely on. Data from the Joint Coordination Center in Istanbul, which organized shipments under the deal, show that 57% of the grain from Ukraine went to developing nations, with the top destination being China. Grain prices shot up after Russia pulled out of the deal but have since fallen back, indicating that there isn't a big crunch in the market for the moment. But failure to revive the agreement will have “drastic impacts” in countries such as Somalia and Egypt that rely heavily on Black Sea grain, according to Galip Dalay, an associate fellow at the Chatham House think tank in London. Russia may be hoping it can use its power over Ukraine’s Black Sea exports as a bargaining chip to reduce Western economic sanctions. https://dailycaller.com/2023/09/04/university-michigan-students-hotel-rooms-covid-19/ Major University will Kick Students out of Dorms if they Gev Covid-19 The University of Michigan (UM) is asking students who test positive for COVID-19 to get a hotel room in order to quarantine for five days, according to the university’s website. The university reminded students on Sept. 1 of the school’s rules surrounding COVID-19, suggesting if they are sick stay home, wear masks and get tested, according to the website. The university also asked students to create an “isolation plan” in case they contract COVID-19, noting that no students are allowed in the residence halls if they test positive. “This could include relocating to your permanent residence, staying with a nearby relative or friend, or finding a hotel space. Students in Michigan Housing must leave their residence halls during isolation, even if they are in a single room,” the website reads. The UM Department of Environment, Health & Safety (EHS) is supposed to get in touch with the students within 24 hours to discuss the “care and isolation options,” according to the website. If a student must pay for a hotel room, the university did not clarify on the website whether or not they will compensate the student. https://www.cnbc.com/2023/09/05/oil-prices-mixed-on-receding-support-from-chinas-steps-to-recovery.html Oil prices settle at 10-month high as Saudi, Russia extend supply cuts Oil prices rose a dollar a barrel on Tuesday to their highest since November, after Saudi Arabia and Russia extended their voluntary supply cuts to the end of the year, worrying investors about potential shortages during peak winter demand. Brent crude futures rose by $1.04, or 1.2%, to settle at $90.04 a barrel, closing above the $90 mark for the first time since November 16, 2022. U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude October futures gained $1.14, or 1.3%, to settle at $86.69 a barrel, also a 10-month high. Investors had expected Saudi Arabia and Russia to extend voluntary cuts into October, but the three-month extension was unexpected. Both Saudi Arabia and Russia said they would review the supply cuts monthly, and could modify them depending on market conditions. “With the production cut extended, we anticipate a market deficit of more than 1.5 million barrels per day in 4Q23,” UBS analyst Giovanni Staunovo wrote in a note to clients. UBS now expects Brent crude to rise to $95 a barrel by year-end. Reflecting concerns about the short-term market supply, front month Brent and WTI contracts were also trading at their steepest premium since November to later-dated prices. This structure, called backwardation, indicates tightening supply for prompt deliveries. Also supporting oil prices on Tuesday, Goldman Sachs said it now sees the probability of a U.S. recession starting in the next 12 months at 15%, down from an earlier forecast of 20%. Along with the Saudi supply cuts, which began in July, prospects of the U.S. economy avoiding a hard recession have helped lift oil demand and prices in recent months. Both Brent and WTI futures have gained more than 20% since the end of June. In other news… have you guys been noticing Mcconell lately and his freezing episodes? https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/news/senate/mcconnell-physician-says-no-evidence-seizures-stroke-second-freezing-episode McConnell physician says ‘no evidence’ of seizures or stroke after second freezing episode The attending physician of the Capitol is ruling out a seizure, stroke, or other movement disorder after Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) had difficulty speaking during a press conference in Kentucky last week. “My examination of you following your August 30, 2023 brief episode included several medical evaluations: brain MRI imaging, EEG study and consultations with several neurologists for a comprehensive neurology assessment,” Dr. Brian P. Monahan said in a new letter released by McConnell's office. “There is no evidence that you have a seizure disorder or that you experienced a stroke, TIA or movement disorder such as Parkinson’s disease.” The incident occurred last Wednesday when a reporter in Covington, Kentucky, asked him about his political plans when his term is up in 2026. At first, the Senate Republican leader acknowledged the question but trailed off and stopped speaking. An aide stepped in and asked if he had heard the question. McConnell responded "yes" but continued to freeze. This prompted the aide to say, "We're going to need a minute." The senator appeared to regain his composure and then briefly answered two additional questions after aides stepped in to repeat questions from reporters and then led him away. In late July, the minority leader was briefly escorted from the Senate Republicans' weekly press conference after he froze in front of the cameras, the first such public incident. McConnell, 81, was hospitalized earlier this year after suffering a fall that required him to complete physical therapy. He experienced a concussion and a minor rib fracture that sidelined him from the Senate for nearly six weeks. Monahan last week attributed the most recent freezing episode to dehydration and lightheadedness related to his concussion but said he was "medically clear" to continue his duties as usual. The Republican leader's office also had attributed the two freezing moments to “lightheadedness." McConnell was previously hospitalized in 2019 after fracturing his shoulder from a fall on his patio at home. McConnell and the rest of the Senate returns to Washington Tuesday afternoon.
Give us about fifteen minutes a day, and we will give you all the local news, sports, weather, and events you can handle. SPONSORS: Many thanks to our sponsors... Annapolis Subaru, the SPCA of Anne Arundel County, Solar Energy Services, Alpha Engineering, Scout & Molly's, and the Hospice of the Chesapeake. Today... A man was assaulted at gunpoint in Eastport. Robbers nab ATM from Linthicum cannabis dispensary. Wild Kid Acres did it, and their new barn is open, and programs are expanding. The Tawes Garden is a hidden gem of Annapolis and they are having a Native Plant Fest. There's a Spanish-language used bookstore coming to the Mitchell Art Museum at St. John's. Canary, a wonderful documentary, is being screened next week by the Annapolis Film Society. There's a shred fest at Arundel Federal Savings Bank this weekend. The Boatyard Beach Bash is sold out--told you so! And on the Local Business Spotlight this Saturday we are talking to Dr. Carrie Muller from Hoffmann Animal Hospital. DAILY NEWS RECAP LINK: https://forms.aweber.com/form/87/493412887.htm Back with her weekly Annapolis After Dark is BeeprBuzz. She'll keep you up to speed on all of the fantastic live music we have in the area! And as usual, George from DCMDVA Weather is here with your local weather forecast! Please download their APP so you can keep on top of the local weather scene! The Eye On Annapolis Daily News Brief is produced every Monday through Friday at 6:00 am and available wherever you get your podcasts and also on our social media platforms--All Annapolis and Eye On Annapolis (FB) and @eyeonannapolis (TW) NOTE: For hearing impaired subscribers, a full transcript is available on Eye On Annapolis
This is TRT World's Daily News Brief for Wednesday, September 6th. *) Top court to deliver verdict on abaya ban in French schools The highest French court will deliver its verdict in the next hours on an appeal against the government's abaya dress ban in schools. A lawyer for the Muslim Rights Action filed an appeal with the Council of State to seek the suspension of the ban on the abaya — a loose-fitting, full-length robe worn by some Muslim students at school. The lawyer said barring students from entering schools because of the abaya is a violation of privacy and personal freedom. *) Ex-Proud Boys chief Enrique Tarrio gets 22 years in jail for Capitol riots Former Proud Boys leader, Enrique Tarrio, has been sentenced to 22 years in prison, the longest sentence yet in the Capitol rampage, on January 6, 2021. Tarrio's sentence is one among more than 1,100 Capitol riot cases. It comes as the Justice Department prepares to put former president Donald Trump on trial at the same courthouse in Washington, on charges that the then-president illegally schemed to cling on to power. *) Saudi, Iran exchange envoys as part of China-brokered deal Saudi Arabia's ambassador to Iran has arrived in Iran, and his counterpart landed in Riyadh, cementing a restoration of ties between the Gulf rivals after a seven-year rupture mended by China. Saudi Arabia's leadership recognises the “importance of strengthening ties, increasing engagement ... and taking the [relationship] to broader horizons,” The Saudi ambassador said upon his arrival in Tehran. Also, Iran's ambassador to Saudi Arabia arrived in the capital Riyadh, where he was received by Foreign Ministry officials and embassy staff. *) DPRK to ‘pay a price' if it supplies Russia weaponry: US The White House has warned that North Korea would “pay a price” if it supplies Russia with weaponry for its war in Ukraine, with Kim Jong-un and Vladimir Putin expected to hold talks on the issue. US President Joe Biden's national security advisor said Pyongyang and Moscow were eyeing “leader-level discussions, perhaps even in person” on Russia's arms needs. The Kremlin said on Tuesday it was unable to confirm a summit between Putin and Kim. And finally… *) Deforestation in Brazil's Amazon falls 66% in August Deforestation in the Brazilian Amazon fell by 66 percent in August versus the same month last year, the government said, calling it a sign its environmental policies are working. That followed a similar year-on-year drop of 66 percent in July — both crucial months in the Amazon, where deforestation typically surges this time of year with the onset of drier weather. Ex-president Bolsonaro, an ally of the powerful agribusiness industry blamed for driving the destruction, presided over a sharp increase in deforestation in the Amazon from 2019 to 2022. And that's your daily news brief from TRT World. For more, head to trtworld.com
This is Garrison Hardie with your CrossPolitic Daily News Brief for Wednesday, September 6th, 2023. PUB MEMBERSHIP PLUG: Summer has been great here at CrossPolitic, and we want you to join us on this ride… First, we’re no longer calling it the Fight Laugh Feast club… it’s now called the Pub! Second, we are launching a new line of content, focused on family entertainment. We will have our new show “This America” and our exciting new “Rowdy Christian Guides” highlighting the practical guides to fun and godly life! Additionally, we will have the live streaming of our conferences, and our past conference talks, all bundled within our new polished Fight Laugh Feast App. Sign up today! Head on over to fightlaughfeast.com, and join the Pub! that’s fightlaughfeast.com. https://www.newsmax.com/newsfront/putin-turkey-grain-deal/2023/09/04/id/1133111/ Putin Won't Renew Grain Deal Until the West Meets His Demands Russian President Vladimir Putin said Monday that a landmark deal allowing Ukraine to export grain safely through the Black Sea amid the war won’t be restored until the West meets Moscow's demands on its own agricultural exports. Ukraine and its Western allies have dismissed the Kremlin’s demands as a ploy to advance its own interests. Still, Putin's remarks dashed hopes that his talks with the Turkish President could revive an agreement seen as vital for global food supplies, especially in Africa, the Middle East and Asia. Russia refused to extend the deal in July, complaining that a parallel agreement promising to remove obstacles to Russian exports of food and fertilizer hadn’t been honored. It said restrictions on shipping and insurance hampered its agricultural trade, though it has shipped record amounts of wheat since last year. Putin reiterated those complaints Monday, while also telling reporters that if those commitments were honored, Russia could return to the deal “within days.” The Turkish President also expressed hope that a breakthrough could come soon. He said Turkey and the U.N. — which both brokered the original deal — have put together a new package of proposals to unblock the issue. “I believe that we will reach a solution that will meet the expectations in a short time,” Erdogan said at the news conference held with Putin in the Russian resort of Sochi. Earlier, a German Foreign Minister lashed out, saying Putin's “game with the grain agreement is cynical.” A lot is riding on the negotiation. Ukraine and Russia are major suppliers of wheat, barley, sunflower oil and other goods that developing nations rely on. Data from the Joint Coordination Center in Istanbul, which organized shipments under the deal, show that 57% of the grain from Ukraine went to developing nations, with the top destination being China. Grain prices shot up after Russia pulled out of the deal but have since fallen back, indicating that there isn't a big crunch in the market for the moment. But failure to revive the agreement will have “drastic impacts” in countries such as Somalia and Egypt that rely heavily on Black Sea grain, according to Galip Dalay, an associate fellow at the Chatham House think tank in London. Russia may be hoping it can use its power over Ukraine’s Black Sea exports as a bargaining chip to reduce Western economic sanctions. https://dailycaller.com/2023/09/04/university-michigan-students-hotel-rooms-covid-19/ Major University will Kick Students out of Dorms if they Gev Covid-19 The University of Michigan (UM) is asking students who test positive for COVID-19 to get a hotel room in order to quarantine for five days, according to the university’s website. The university reminded students on Sept. 1 of the school’s rules surrounding COVID-19, suggesting if they are sick stay home, wear masks and get tested, according to the website. The university also asked students to create an “isolation plan” in case they contract COVID-19, noting that no students are allowed in the residence halls if they test positive. “This could include relocating to your permanent residence, staying with a nearby relative or friend, or finding a hotel space. Students in Michigan Housing must leave their residence halls during isolation, even if they are in a single room,” the website reads. The UM Department of Environment, Health & Safety (EHS) is supposed to get in touch with the students within 24 hours to discuss the “care and isolation options,” according to the website. If a student must pay for a hotel room, the university did not clarify on the website whether or not they will compensate the student. https://www.cnbc.com/2023/09/05/oil-prices-mixed-on-receding-support-from-chinas-steps-to-recovery.html Oil prices settle at 10-month high as Saudi, Russia extend supply cuts Oil prices rose a dollar a barrel on Tuesday to their highest since November, after Saudi Arabia and Russia extended their voluntary supply cuts to the end of the year, worrying investors about potential shortages during peak winter demand. Brent crude futures rose by $1.04, or 1.2%, to settle at $90.04 a barrel, closing above the $90 mark for the first time since November 16, 2022. U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude October futures gained $1.14, or 1.3%, to settle at $86.69 a barrel, also a 10-month high. Investors had expected Saudi Arabia and Russia to extend voluntary cuts into October, but the three-month extension was unexpected. Both Saudi Arabia and Russia said they would review the supply cuts monthly, and could modify them depending on market conditions. “With the production cut extended, we anticipate a market deficit of more than 1.5 million barrels per day in 4Q23,” UBS analyst Giovanni Staunovo wrote in a note to clients. UBS now expects Brent crude to rise to $95 a barrel by year-end. Reflecting concerns about the short-term market supply, front month Brent and WTI contracts were also trading at their steepest premium since November to later-dated prices. This structure, called backwardation, indicates tightening supply for prompt deliveries. Also supporting oil prices on Tuesday, Goldman Sachs said it now sees the probability of a U.S. recession starting in the next 12 months at 15%, down from an earlier forecast of 20%. Along with the Saudi supply cuts, which began in July, prospects of the U.S. economy avoiding a hard recession have helped lift oil demand and prices in recent months. Both Brent and WTI futures have gained more than 20% since the end of June. In other news… have you guys been noticing Mcconell lately and his freezing episodes? https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/news/senate/mcconnell-physician-says-no-evidence-seizures-stroke-second-freezing-episode McConnell physician says ‘no evidence’ of seizures or stroke after second freezing episode The attending physician of the Capitol is ruling out a seizure, stroke, or other movement disorder after Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) had difficulty speaking during a press conference in Kentucky last week. “My examination of you following your August 30, 2023 brief episode included several medical evaluations: brain MRI imaging, EEG study and consultations with several neurologists for a comprehensive neurology assessment,” Dr. Brian P. Monahan said in a new letter released by McConnell's office. “There is no evidence that you have a seizure disorder or that you experienced a stroke, TIA or movement disorder such as Parkinson’s disease.” The incident occurred last Wednesday when a reporter in Covington, Kentucky, asked him about his political plans when his term is up in 2026. At first, the Senate Republican leader acknowledged the question but trailed off and stopped speaking. An aide stepped in and asked if he had heard the question. McConnell responded "yes" but continued to freeze. This prompted the aide to say, "We're going to need a minute." The senator appeared to regain his composure and then briefly answered two additional questions after aides stepped in to repeat questions from reporters and then led him away. In late July, the minority leader was briefly escorted from the Senate Republicans' weekly press conference after he froze in front of the cameras, the first such public incident. McConnell, 81, was hospitalized earlier this year after suffering a fall that required him to complete physical therapy. He experienced a concussion and a minor rib fracture that sidelined him from the Senate for nearly six weeks. Monahan last week attributed the most recent freezing episode to dehydration and lightheadedness related to his concussion but said he was "medically clear" to continue his duties as usual. The Republican leader's office also had attributed the two freezing moments to “lightheadedness." McConnell was previously hospitalized in 2019 after fracturing his shoulder from a fall on his patio at home. McConnell and the rest of the Senate returns to Washington Tuesday afternoon.
The Eye On Annapolis #DNB for 08/29 is out! Give us about fifteen minutes a day and we will give you all the local news, local sports, local weather, and local events you can handle. SPONSORS: Many thanks to our sponsors... Annapolis Subaru, the SPCA of Anne Arundel County, Solar Energy Services, Hospice of the Chesapeake, Scout & Molly's, and Alpha Engineering. Today... A former State official is facing a sexual solicitation of a minor charge. There is mold in HACA's new apartments and four have been condemned. Make your voice know about the Annapolis elections tomorrow in City Hall. Homestead Gardens is bringing back the Fall Fest! Maryland Hall has an amazing film screening and orchestra performance coming up. September is Hunger Action Month and the Anne Arundel County Food Bank knows how you can help. Wendi Winters is still saving lives even after her death five years ago--give blood this weekend! Some tickets to two shows at Rams Head On Stage and a big thanks. to our new subscribers to the Daily New Recap Newsletter! Daily Newsletter Subscription Link: https://forms.aweber.com/form/87/493412887.htm And Scott MacMullan from Scott MacMullan Law is here with a legal brief! And as usual, George from DCMDVA Weather is here with your local weather forecast! Please download their app to keep on top of the local weather scene! The Eye On Annapolis Daily News Brief is produced every Monday through Friday at 6:00 am and available wherever you get your podcasts and also on our social media platforms--All Annapolis and Eye On Annapolis (FB) and @eyeonannapolis (TW) NOTE: For hearing impaired subscribers, a full transcript is available on Eye On Annapolis
Give us about fifteen minutes a day, and we will give you all the local news, local sports, local weather, and local events you can handle. SPONSORS: Many thanks to our sponsors... Annapolis Subaru, the SPCA of Anne Arundel County, Solar Energy Services, Alpha Engineering, Scout & Molly's, and Hospice of the Chesapeake! Today... Oral Rabies Vaccine Program is underway in Anne Arundel County. A new chart high school is coming to the Annapolis Mall. Giant Food to lay off 362 people at Hanover warehouse. And Marylanders apparently feel that Powerball is a confusing game! A few events for the long weekend--mostly free! And, of course, we have some pod news, canines and crosstreks, and more! DAILY NEWSLETTER LINK: https://forms.aweber.com/form/87/493412887.htm And like we do every Friday, Annapolis Subaru and I met up with some animals from the SPCA of Anne Arundel County. In this week's Canines & Crosstreks, we meet Louie! And as usual, George from DCMDVA Weather is here with your local weather forecast! Please download their app to keep on top of the local weather scene! The Eye On Annapolis Daily News Brief is produced every Monday through Friday at 6:00 am and available wherever you get your podcasts and also on our social media platforms--All Annapolis and Eye On Annapolis (FB) and @eyeonannapolis (TW) NOTE: For hearing impaired subscribers, a full transcript is available on Eye On Annapolis
This is Garrison Hardie with your CrossPolitic Daily News Brief for Friday, September1st, 2023. Olive Tree Biblical Software: Discover why more than a million people use the free Olive Tree Bible App as their go-to for reading, studying, and listening to the God’s Word. Start by downloading one of many free Bibles and start taking notes, highlighting verses, and bookmarking your favorite passages. You can read at your own pace, or choose from a large selection of Reading Plans, including the Bible Reading Challenge. When you are ready to go deeper into your studies, Olive Tree is right there with a large selection of study Bibles, commentaries, and other helpful study resources available for purchase. There’s also an extensive bookstore that allows you to build your digital library one book at a time and Olive Tree’s sync technology lets you pick up where you left off on your tablet, pc or phone and get right to studying on another supported device. Now here's the best part – You can start with the Olive Tree Essentials Bundle for FREE. Visit www.olivetree.com/FLF and download it today! https://dailycaller.com/2023/08/31/biden-admin-new-york-migrants-work/ America Last: Biden Admin Pledges Mass Campaign To Give Work Permits To Migrants The Biden administration committed to working with the state of New York on Wednesday to help fill job vacancies with migrants who are straining the city’s social safety net, according to a press release. Democratic New York Gov. Kathy Hochul asked the Biden administration on Aug. 24 to expedite work permits for immigrants who are flooding New York City, provide more funds to build shelters and reimburse the state for the cost of deploying National Guard troops in response to the migrant crisis. Senior Biden administration officials met with Hochul on Wednesday, pledging to launch a campaign that will help migrants within the state apply for employment authorization. “First, following the deployment of a Department of Homeland Security assessment team, the Administration highlighted data indicating that substantial number of recent migrants who arrived in New York City are currently work eligible but have not yet applied to get a work permit,” the press release states. “For example, nationwide, only around 16% of working-age CBP One entrants have applied for work authorization. To date, roughly 20% of the noncitizens indicating New York, New Jersey or Pennsylvania as their intended destination this year were paroled in following an appointment scheduled through CBP One and are eligible to work immediately, if they apply.” The Biden administration and the New York state government will use text messages and email beginning in September to provide migrants who are “work eligible” with information on how to apply for employment authorization, the press release states. New York will also receive support from the federal departments of Health and Human Services, Education, Housing and Urban Development and the Interior to assist with the migrant surge. Since Republican governors began busing migrants to New York City, the state has had to care for about 100,000 migrants, despite not having enough shelter and resources. The Biden administration was previously apprehensive about allowing Democrat-run cities to grant migrants work permits, fearing that the move could lead to more border crossings. Leaders previously requested that the Biden administration temporarily waive the 180-day required waiting period before migrants can receive work authorization. https://redstate.com/beckynoble/2023/08/30/parental-rights-win-as-mom-settles-with-school-district-that-transitioned-daughter-without-consent-n2163236#google_vignette Parental Rights Win as Mom Settles With School District That 'Transitioned' Daughter Without Consent The transgender mob has made no bones about exactly what their agenda is, and they are quick to brand anyone who speaks out about it a bigot or a transphobe. Much of their indoctrination is taking place in the nation's public schools. They love to claim that they are just helping kids to be their "true selves" or some such nonsense. But if what they are doing is so great, why don't they feel the need to involve parents, or in many cases, even tell them? One California mom fought back against the trans agenda, and the case could be a landmark victory for the rights of parents of public school children all over the country. https://twitter.com/i/status/1696636080924303577 - Play Video Jessica Konen's 11-year-old daughter, Alicia, is a student in the Spreckels Union School District in Monterey County, California. Alicia was told at school that she might be "upset" because "she didn't know who she 'truly was inside.'" Was she displaying signs of being "upset," such as failing grades or acting out in class? How did the school conclude she was upset about anything? The school then began socially transitioning Alicia's gender. She was allowed to use the boys' restroom and use male pronouns. All of this going on without Konen's knowledge or consent. When Jessica Konen found out about this, she sued the school district. Konen was represented by the Center for American Liberty and obtained a settlement from the school district for $100,000. Thankfully, Jessica Konen's daughter continues to be her daughter. But Konen says the fight is far from over. Even though the school district settled with Konen, they did not admit any fault. It would have been surprising if they had. The Spreckels Union School District is just one of several school districts in liberal Democrat-run California where parents have had enough of being told they have no say in their children's education. Keeping parents out of the gender loop is a problem that is not going away. Roughly 168 school districts overseeing 5,904 schools around the nation have guidance that prevents parents from knowing if their child identifies as a gender other than their birth gender at school. Faculty and staff cannot disclose this information without the student's permission. These numbers shake out to approximately 3.2 million public school students. https://www.breitbart.com/latin-america/2023/08/30/argentine-presidential-front-runner-javier-milei-biden-threat-western-values/ Argentine Presidential Front-Runner Javier Milei: Biden a ‘Threat to Western Values’ Argentina’s presidential front-runner Javier Milei described socialists as “garbage” and “human excrement” during a radio interview, to which Colombia’s far-left President Gustavo Petro, a former member of a Marxist guerrilla group, responded Tuesday by comparing Milei to Adolf Hitler. Petro, a former member of the Marxist M19 guerrilla and Colombia’s first-ever leftist president, made the outrageous comparison on his Twitter account hours after Colombia’s RCN radio published an exclusive interview with Milei on Tuesday. During the interview, Milei suggested socialism was the greatest threat to his country. “What is a socialist on the inside? He is garbage, he is human excrement,” Milei railed. Elsewhere in the interview, Milei listed leftist values as “envy, hatred, resentment, unequal treatment before the law, theft and murder” and branded American President Joe Biden a “threat to Western values.” “Biden is a left-wing president,” Milei said. “So it is not surprising that he is also putting the world’s leading power in check. Biden himself is a threat to Western values.” Milei’s remarks garnered condemnation from Petro. “This is what Hitler said,” Petro wrote. Milei has not publicly responded to Petro’s comparison as of press time. Milei, a lawmaker and anti-establishment presidential candidate for the (“Liberty Advances”) coalition, is known for his outspoken and no-holds-barred contempt for communism, denouncing it as a “murderous system” and socialism as a “disease of the soul.” Milei is a far-right candidate who describes himself as libertarian and anarcho-capitalist. Milei emerged as the most voted candidate in Argentina’s Open Primary election process this month, leading to October’s general election, with roughly 30 percent of the votes. During the open primary, all individuals who wish to be presidential candidates appear on the ballot; those who receive over 1.5 percent of the vote appear formally on the official ballot. Milei continued his explanation by giving his hypothesis on the expansion of leftism in Latin America following the fall of the Berlin Wall, the dissolution of the Soviet Union, and the rise of the Sao Paulo Forum. “After the fall of the Berlin Wall, here in 1989 the Sao Paulo Forum was set up and the intention of the Sao Paulo Forum was to create the Latin American Soviet Union,” Milei said. “This is a very concrete plan, there are three parts. In the first part, 90 percent of the battle is cultural and 10 percent is how to obtain resources,” Milei continued his explanation. “The second stage is 50 percent cultural and 50 percent advancing in regulation and attacking companies. Perhaps the last part is the expropriation part.” The Sao Paulo Forum is a coalition of Latin American and Caribbean leftist governments and political parties established in 1990 by the Brazilian Worker’s Party (PT) — a political party founded by Brazil’s radical leftist President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva. The Forum was established to help leftists in Latin America coordinate messaging, ideology, and policy execution across the region. “What is, deep down, a socialist? He is garbage, he is human excrement, [someone] who basically, because he does not want to support the brilliance of another human being, is willing for everyone to be in misery,” Milei asserted. “To be a socialist, deep down, is a sickness of the spirit, a sickness of the soul. They are bad people, that is the reality.” “The values of socialism are envy, hate, resentment, unequal treatment before the law, theft, and murder,” he asserted. https://www.outkick.com/video-released-of-nebraska-te-arik-gilbert-after-breaking-into-vape-shop-stealing-1-6k-in-products/ VIDEO RELEASED OF NEBRASKA TE ARIK GILBERT AFTER BREAKING INTO VAPE SHOP, STEALING $1.6K IN PRODUCTS Now for my favorite topic, sports! Nebraska tight end Arik Gilbert is in a world of trouble. Gilbert, 21, was arrested early Tuesday on suspicion of burglary after breaking into SJ’s Liquor and Vape Shop in Lincoln. Gilbert allegedly stole $1,672 worth of products, including cigars and vapes. Authorities booked Gilbert at Lancaster County Jail. Bond was set at $5,000. A security video circulating on social media shows a shirtless Gilbert, hiding behind a makeshift mask made from his shirt, using cement from the store’s parking lot to break through the initial glass door. Once inside, Gilbert attempts to kick down another door. Gilbert joined LSU in 2020 before leaving for Georgia ahead of his second year. The former top TE prospect posted 35 catches for 368 yards and two touchdowns in eight games with LSU. Gilbert also flirted with going to Florida before joining the Bulldogs. Buried in Georgia’s offense, Gilbert transferred to Nebraska this offseason but awaits eligibility from the NCAA for his second transfer. Nebraska head coach Matt Rhule reacted to news of the arrest, as relayed by KETV7, and spoke on the ongoing struggles for Gilbert this offseason. Rhule said in a press conference: “We’re going to help him through some of the issues he’s dealing with in his life, have been really proud of the job he had done in the spring and summer. But to be honest, during camp, he said he’s had some struggles, he’s working overcome them.”
This is Garrison Hardie with your CrossPolitic Daily News Brief for Friday, September1st, 2023. Olive Tree Biblical Software: Discover why more than a million people use the free Olive Tree Bible App as their go-to for reading, studying, and listening to the God’s Word. Start by downloading one of many free Bibles and start taking notes, highlighting verses, and bookmarking your favorite passages. You can read at your own pace, or choose from a large selection of Reading Plans, including the Bible Reading Challenge. When you are ready to go deeper into your studies, Olive Tree is right there with a large selection of study Bibles, commentaries, and other helpful study resources available for purchase. There’s also an extensive bookstore that allows you to build your digital library one book at a time and Olive Tree’s sync technology lets you pick up where you left off on your tablet, pc or phone and get right to studying on another supported device. Now here's the best part – You can start with the Olive Tree Essentials Bundle for FREE. Visit www.olivetree.com/FLF and download it today! https://dailycaller.com/2023/08/31/biden-admin-new-york-migrants-work/ America Last: Biden Admin Pledges Mass Campaign To Give Work Permits To Migrants The Biden administration committed to working with the state of New York on Wednesday to help fill job vacancies with migrants who are straining the city’s social safety net, according to a press release. Democratic New York Gov. Kathy Hochul asked the Biden administration on Aug. 24 to expedite work permits for immigrants who are flooding New York City, provide more funds to build shelters and reimburse the state for the cost of deploying National Guard troops in response to the migrant crisis. Senior Biden administration officials met with Hochul on Wednesday, pledging to launch a campaign that will help migrants within the state apply for employment authorization. “First, following the deployment of a Department of Homeland Security assessment team, the Administration highlighted data indicating that substantial number of recent migrants who arrived in New York City are currently work eligible but have not yet applied to get a work permit,” the press release states. “For example, nationwide, only around 16% of working-age CBP One entrants have applied for work authorization. To date, roughly 20% of the noncitizens indicating New York, New Jersey or Pennsylvania as their intended destination this year were paroled in following an appointment scheduled through CBP One and are eligible to work immediately, if they apply.” The Biden administration and the New York state government will use text messages and email beginning in September to provide migrants who are “work eligible” with information on how to apply for employment authorization, the press release states. New York will also receive support from the federal departments of Health and Human Services, Education, Housing and Urban Development and the Interior to assist with the migrant surge. Since Republican governors began busing migrants to New York City, the state has had to care for about 100,000 migrants, despite not having enough shelter and resources. The Biden administration was previously apprehensive about allowing Democrat-run cities to grant migrants work permits, fearing that the move could lead to more border crossings. Leaders previously requested that the Biden administration temporarily waive the 180-day required waiting period before migrants can receive work authorization. https://redstate.com/beckynoble/2023/08/30/parental-rights-win-as-mom-settles-with-school-district-that-transitioned-daughter-without-consent-n2163236#google_vignette Parental Rights Win as Mom Settles With School District That 'Transitioned' Daughter Without Consent The transgender mob has made no bones about exactly what their agenda is, and they are quick to brand anyone who speaks out about it a bigot or a transphobe. Much of their indoctrination is taking place in the nation's public schools. They love to claim that they are just helping kids to be their "true selves" or some such nonsense. But if what they are doing is so great, why don't they feel the need to involve parents, or in many cases, even tell them? One California mom fought back against the trans agenda, and the case could be a landmark victory for the rights of parents of public school children all over the country. https://twitter.com/i/status/1696636080924303577 - Play Video Jessica Konen's 11-year-old daughter, Alicia, is a stu