Stembridge News Digest

  • Who let California drive? 17 states challenge EV mandate in Supreme Court showdown Sat, 21 Dec 2024 15:00:00 +0000


    When it comes to car emissions standards, there's one big question: Who put California in charge?

    We may finally get an answer — courtesy of the United States Supreme Court.

    The drastic impacts of California’s EV mandates on consumers, national security and electricity reliability are major questions in need of immediate resolution.

    SCOTUS has agreed to hear a case that challenges whether the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency can let California impose emission standards that are stricter than those enforced by the federal government.

    The case is being brought by Ohio and 16 other Republican-led states, which claim the EPA allows California to operate as a “quasi-federal regulator” regarding global climate change.

    CARB cutting

    How did we get here, anyway?

    In a nutshell, it's all because California began regulating car emissions before the federal government — or any other state, for that matter.

    In an effort to combat the state's growing smog problem, in 1966, then-Gov. Ronald Reagan approved the establishment of the nation's first tailpipe emissions standards. A year later, the California Air Resources Board, was established to set and oversee air quality regulations.

    When the federal government enacted its own, more lenient emissions standards with the passage of the 1970 Clean Air Act, it allowed California to maintain its stricter regulations.

    Auto manufacturers balked, claiming it was prohibitively expensive to deal with unique emissions standards for each state.

    Waive bye-bye?

    The government offered a compromise, enabling states either to adhere to the federal standards or adopt their own emissions standards that were identical to those enforced in California. This was accomplished through a waiver system established by the EPA, which later became known as the "California Waiver."

    Since then, California has been granted some 100 waivers. Under the Obama administration, the EPA essentially adapted California greenhouse gas emissions standards as federal policy — along with the state's push for all new vehicles to be zero-emissions by 2035.

    In 2020, the Trump administration rolled back these regulations, only to have President Biden reinstate them.

    In addition to Ohio, the other states participating in the lawsuit include Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Texas, Utah, and West Virginia.

    Fuel for the fire

    Fuel producers are also challenging the waiver. In June, trade association American Fuel and Petrochemicals Manufacturers joined a coalition of 15 energy, agriculture, and biofuel groups to file a petition for a writ of certiorari with SCOTUS. The coalition argues that the Clean Air Act's "California Exemption" does not empower one state to restrict consumer access to internal-combustion vehicles.

    In a statement, AFPM CEO and President Chet Thompson said:

    We are very pleased that the United States Supreme Court has agreed to grant cert on this very important case. The drastic impacts of California’s EV mandates on consumers, national security, and electricity reliability are major questions in need of immediate resolution as California and the ... EPA continue to stretch and abuse the limits of Congress’ Clean Air Act waiver provision. Congress did not give California special authority to regulate greenhouse gases, mandate electric vehicles or ban new gas car sales — all of which the state is attempting to do through its intentional misreading of statute. We look forward to our day in court.

    California has been steering the nation's emissions policy for far too long. Let's hope SCOTUS can finally kick them out of the driver's seat.

  • Abolishing the Department of Education is not the answer Sat, 21 Dec 2024 14:00:00 +0000


    In the aftermath of Donald Trump’s election victory, many education reformers are saying that now is the time to eliminate the U.S. Department of Education. Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy, the presumptive leaders of the new Department of Government Efficiency, have been strongly hinting that eradicating the DOE outright is a real possibility.

    That’s an attractive goal — the DOE wastes a great deal of money and does a great deal of damage to American students. But eliminating it outright will be difficult. Education reformers need 60 votes in the Senate to abolish the Department of Education. Using budget reconciliation might allow that requirement to be sidestepped, but it’s doubtful that Congress will go along with that tactic. Additionally, the Trump voting coalition isn’t just made up of small-government conservatives — it includes voters who don’t mind big government so long as it isn’t woke.

    The way to achieve swift and substantial education reform is thoughtful, detailed work to simplify and reduce the Education Department.

    Also, “abolishing the Education Department” can mean less than meets the eye. Every single office and program can be transferred over to the Department of Health and Human Services — uncut, unreformed, and unchanged. Putative reformers could declare a hollow victory while supporters of the radical education establishment would then happily perform their outrage dance, secure in the knowledge that nothing really has changed.

    To get real reform, we reformers should instead perform radical surgery on the DOE. We should eliminate spending on dozens of useless or counterproductive small programs — and preserve in as simple a form as possible the big-ticket items that command massive popular support, including within the Trump coalition. We also should chop the Office for Civil Rights down to size so it can’t use “Dear Colleague letters” and case resolutions to play the enforcing thugs for America’s radical race and sex fanatics. When we’ve done this, we can establish real accountability over the Department of Education’s core functions and then determine whether further reform is necessary.

    The DOE mostly spends its money on Title I funds for disadvantaged K-12 students ($18 billion a year); special education funds for physically and mentally handicapped students ($14 billion a year); Pell Grants for disadvantaged postsecondary students ($29 billion a year); and direct student loans to postsecondary students ($106 billion a year). The Department of Education should say explicitly that it will preserve these four core functions — although with a gimlet eye toward eliminating waste, fraud, bureaucratic bloat, and grifters who cry poverty or handicap to grab a slice of federal money.

    These four core functions also should be radically simplified.

    • The four formula grants for Title I funds should be amalgamated into one formula grant, as close as possible in form either to a no-strings block grant to the states or portable aid given to individual families.
    • The Rehabilitation Services Administration ($4.4 billion a year, which is nearly a third of the special education budget) should be moved to HHS. Congress should revise the Individuals with Disabilities in Education Act so it doesn’t impose on states or school districts unfunded, undefined mandates for special education spending.
    • Every remaining college grant program should be amalgamated into Pell Grants; special programs such as college aid for veterans should be relocated to the Department of Veterans Affairs.
    • All college loan programs should be merged into the Federal Direct Student Loan Program. Ironclad congressional statutes should be passed to make it impossible for a future administration to repeat the Biden administration’s illegal “loan forgiveness.”

    In addition, the OCR should be reduced from 633 employees to no more than 175, so that their ratio to the population they serve is at most in proportion to that of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. The OCR then should be incorporated into Justice and its enforcement powers constrained to litigation, with no ability to issue “Dear Colleague letters” or conduct case resolutions.

    For now, the Department of Education should keep a few programs, such as those that support charter schools, gifted education, English language acquisition, historically black colleges and universities (for which the U.S. has historical commitments that can be honored by institutional support without resorting to discrimination among citizens), and state assessments. These are good goals, and though these aren’t core functions, the DOE could be reformed to support them properly.

    Everything else should go at once — the discretionary grant programs, the race discrimination programs that seek “equity,” the miniature welfare states disguised as education programs, the political propaganda camouflaged as “social and emotional learning” and “mental health.” Some of these programs should be relocated to better homes, such as the State Department (international education; money for Pacific Island nations); the Interior Department (Indian education); the Defense Department (foreign language programs); the Justice Department (prison education); the Labor Department (vocational education); or the National Endowment for the Arts (arts education). Every office or program that discriminates among American citizens, such as the Hispanic-Serving Institutions Division, should be eliminated immediately.

    The OCR also should formally rescind every legal reinterpretation that:

    • justifies quotas;
    • uses disparate impact theory;
    • redefines sex to include gender, gender identity, or gender expression;
    • redefines sex discrimination to include sexual harassment and sexual violence;
    • and abridges due process and First Amendment rights within educational institutions.

    The OCR also should rescind every policy, requirement, document, case resolution, and investigation that draws upon these legal reinterpretations and state as an explicit principle that the Department of Education requires every educational institution that receives federal money to champion due process and the First Amendment — period. Oh, and any education institution that tolerates or facilitates Jew-hating intimidation by campus mobs will get its money cut off at once.

    When the Department of Education has been reduced to four key functions and is largely shorn of all discretionary grant programs, policymakers and the public can then begin to demand true accountability regarding its remaining functions. They can achieve that by:

    • creating efficiency measures in every office, which gage how well the ED’s own bureaucrats perform;
    • creating return-on-investment measures for every DOE program, which estimate how much educational improvement the taxpayer gets;
    • and eliminating fake accountability measures such as: 1) money disbursed without measuring whether it was worthwhile; 2) student achievement scores without investigating their connection to federal dollars spent; 3) numbers of teachers trained without any sense of whether it helps student achievement; or 4) “qualitative” measures of success that are just an academic way of saying, “My gut tells me this was a pretty good way to spend your money.”

    If all these reforms are carried out, education reformers will be in a better position to make a simple and clear case to the public that the remaining core functions of the Department of Education should be relocated, reformed, or ended. Or they may decide that a slimmed-down DOE does, in fact, serve the public good. In either case, the practicable way to achieve swift and substantial education reform is thoughtful, detailed work to simplify and reduce the DOE. Do that first, and then consider whether it should be eliminated.

    Editor’s note: A version of this article appeared originally at the American Mind.
  • Align's ultimate last-minute Christmas gift guide Sat, 21 Dec 2024 02:30:00 +0000


    Did someone say "last-minute gifts"? You've come to the right place. Below we've curated a delightful array of products we've featured in Align over the past year. And remember: No matter what the MAINSTREAM MEDIA tells you, real Christmas enjoyers know the season extends well into January.

    1. An American flag set from Allegiance Flag Supply

    There's no better gift for the patriot near and dear to your heart than a “beautiful American flag,” to quote our once and future president. But how to make sure you're buying an Old Glory made here at home and not some Chinese knock-off? The good folks at Charleston, South Carolina-based Allegiance Flag Supply have you covered. Since 2018, they've been keeping it "American Sewn, American Flown."

    2. A "You Are What You Eat" print from Stacy Tabb

    Dan and Stacy Tabb live in Alabama on a former hay farm, which they're busy turning into Ironspring Orchard and Farm. They're also both artists. Dan, a disabled Navy veteran, sculpts in stone. Stacy makes (among other things) beautiful, folk-art inspired prints of animals that whimsically celebrate the food chain. Support a local artist — and bring a bit of the great outdoors inside.

    3. Classic tales to thrill from Passage Publishing

    Do men read books anymore? Step inside the typical bookstore — with display tables groaning under the weight of pastel-colored chick-lit 2.0 tomes — and you'd certainly think not. Jonathan Keeperman's upstart Passage Publishing knows otherwise. In addition to providing a home for heterodox writers like Curtis Yarvin and Steve Sailer, Passage has also reissued work by pulp legend Robert E. Howard and singular master of horror H.P Lovecraft in handsome new editions. And let's not forgot F.W. Dixon's "Hardy Boys" series, restored to their original texts after various edits to protect delicate modern sensibilities.

    4. A pair of Anderson Bean boots

    There are better-known brands out there, but one name comes up when you ask around about the best boot in the biz: Anderson Bean. Zeferino Rios and his family began making fine, handcrafted boots in Mexico in 1953. Fifty years later or so, the operation moved to Mercedes, Texas, where it continues to this day.

    5. A .22 lever-action rifle from Henry Repeating Arms

    Without the Second Amendment, there would be no First Amendment, and arguably none of the rest, either. You can support both our right to bear arms and American manufacturing ingenuity with a fine firearm from Brooklyn-based Henry Repeating Arms — a brand that goes all the way back to the Civil War.

    6. A copy of 'On the Incarnation,' by Saint Athanasius

    Nothing helps keep your mind on the reason for season than a little time with the fathers of the church. The Christmas Day homily St. John Chrysostom delivered at Antioch in 386 invites us to "behold a new and wondrous mystery" — and is always worth a read. There's also Saint Athanasius' "On the Incarnation," a theologically profound yet simply expressed musing on Advent and the foundational Christian belief. This edition comes with an excellent introduction by C.S. Lewis.

    7. A basic emergency kit from Kruschiki Supply Company

    Got someone on your gift list who loves spending time in nature? Kruschiki Supply Company's wide range of hardy and hard-to-find surplus gear and supplies have you covered. Tell them "Merry Christmas" and "I hope you survive the apocalypse" at the same time with KSC founder's personally selected budget bug-out kit.

    8. Classic full-zip hoodie from American Giant

    This gift of the "greatest hoodie ever made" can help your loved-one stay warm and cozy while also signaling his or her support of American manufacturing. Almost 15 years ago, Bayard Winthrop had a crazy idea: What if we could make a hooded sweatshirt in America and entirely out of American materials? He pulled it off, and American Giant was born.

    Editor's note: American Giant is a sponsor of BlazeTV's "The Glenn Beck Program."

    9. A charitable donation to the Gary Sinise Foundation

    What about the proverbial person who has everything? They'll certainly appreciate a donation made in their name to support the Gary Sinise Foundation's indefatigable and life-changing efforts on behalf of veterans and first-responders.

    10. A Subscription to Blaze News or Frontier

    Not to toot our own horn, but do you know the expression "the gift that keeps on giving"? That's what a subscription to Blaze News is all about. The political commentary and reporting you've come to trust — as well as our new, expanded lifestyle and tech offerings. And if you like the tangible feel of glossy magazine pages, check out our new magazine, Frontier — a wonderful surprise to put in anyone's mailbox.

    Please note that the product recommendations that Align publishes are meant solely to inform and edify our subscribers; unless explicitly labeled as such, they are neither paid promotions or endorsements.

    Even in cases in which a company is a paid sponsor of Blaze Media, Align editorial content is created independent of any commercial relationships.

  • Writing God out of the Bible: The United Nations' occult origins and bid for religious power Sat, 21 Dec 2024 02:00:00 +0000


    This is the second part of a three-part investigation into the United Nations' origins and plans for the future of the world. You can read part one here.

    The United Nations is a spiritual cult that draws its inspiration from a diverse set of influences, including Alice Bailey’s theosophy. Her teachings provided the foundations of the spiritual beliefs of the United Nations. Another strong influence was the “deeply spiritual” Robert Muller, who “from his vantage point of a top level global states-person [saw] a strong connection between spirituality and the political/cultural scene.” While Robert Muller’s and Alice Bailey’s beliefs may both generally be called theosophical, it is important to understand Robert Muller's material and spiritual impact on the United Nations: His contributions were and are a crucial guide for the United Nations in practice.

    Robert Muller, born in Belgium in 1923 and raised in the Alsace-Lorraine region of France, grew up to experience “the horrors of World War II, of being a refugee, of Nazi occupation, and imprisonment.” He was a part of the French Resistance and later earned a doctorate of law from the University of Strasbourg. Clearly, his upbringing in the wake of these conflicts between countries shaped his worldview and politics.

    Then, interestingly, “In 1948 he entered and won an essay contest on how to govern the world, the prize of which was an internship at the newly created United Nations.” Evidently, Muller was a life-long believer and advocate of alternate modes of governance, which he clearly believed the United Nations represented. He climbed the ranks of the United Nations all the way to the status of assistant secretary-general of the United Nations, a position he held for over 30 years. He dedicated himself to his writings, earning himself the moniker of the “philosopher” and even the “Prophet of Hope” of the United Nations. He also had several more concrete achievements, such as his work in education.

    World core curriculum: creating global citizens

    Bettmann/Getty Images

    One of the fruits of Robert Muller’s long career was the University for Peace in Costa Rica, which he called “this magnificent dream being implemented in Costa Rica, a totally disarmed heaven of peace in a region still troubled by conflict.” He went on to explain that schools like the University for Peace would make students realize their “cosmic function” of becoming “instruments for peace”: “I hope that the University for Peace will establish a global peace strategy which would reach from outer-space to the atom, encompassing all aspects of our planetary home, the atmosphere, the seas and oceans, the polar caps, the continents, nations, regions, cities and villages; and from the whole human family to the individual, encompassing races, peoples, cultures, religions, generations, professions, institutions, firms, the family and all groups and associations created by the human race to attain a greater level of happiness and fulfilment.” After his retirement at the U.N., he served as Chancellor Emeritus at the University for Peace until his death in 2010.

    Robert Muller invented the World Core Curriculum, for which he won the UNESCO Peace Education Prize in 1989. He believed that the world, moving into the 21st century, could not go on without a new education. One of his inspirations for designing the WCC was his “spiritual master,” U Thant, the third secretary-general of the U.N.: "Robert, there will be no peace on Earth, if there is not a new education." It will become clear that the adoption of the World Core Curriculum and the expansion of the United Nations’ power is mutually reinforcing.

    What would this new education entail? Muller was convinced that we are now in the “global age” of human evolution, which meant that any conception of education that was not holistic in scope and global in its reach is necessarily insufficient. He also criticized the “[n]ationalistic mis-educations of France, Germany, and the United States.” Therefore, the scope of the United Nations is expansive and universal: “Our next great evolutionary task will be to ascertain what this cosmic or divine pattern means and to prepare for it the right institutions, people, values, guidelines, laws, philosophy, politics, and ethics. This immense, unprecedented task is dawning upon us everywhere, piercing the core of our earlier beliefs, values, and institutions.”

    This may raise some eyebrows, but then he went on to explain the practical purpose of the new education, which is essentially to create more U.N. bureaucrats and global citizens: “This gives the teachers of this world a marvelous opportunity to teach children and people a sense of participation and responsibility in the building and management of the Earth, of becoming artisans of the will of God and of our further human ascent. A new world morality and world ethics will thus evolve, and teachers will be able to prepare responsible citizens, workers, scientists, geneticists, physicists, and scores of other professionals, including a new one which is badly needed–good world managers and caretakers.”

    He then put a sharper point on the role of the United Nations in this new education: “The United Nations and its specialized agencies offer the first examples at global management in all these fields and must therefore occupy a cardinal place in the world’s curricula. The earlier we do this, the better it will be for our survival, fulfillment, and happiness.” The U.N. has been building credibility for itself by posing as the authority in all aspects of life in the post-war era. It does not claim to run the world now, but it would be “better for our survival” if it was in charge. Therefore, the adoption of a new, global education system would implicitly cede a huge amount of authority to the U.N., which is one avenue for it to achieve its goal of evolving the human race.

    Preaching a global religion

    Mike Rosiana/Getty Images

    Robert Muller’s ideas cannot be understood without first understanding that he believed that the human race has been evolving, and that this evolution expands to the spiritual level in the global age. Hence the inclusion of a spiritual aspect in his curriculum: “Spiritual exercises of interiority, meditation, prayer and communion with the universe and eternity or God.” Note the nonchalance of his attitude toward pantheism versus monotheism since the "highest principle" can either be “the universe or God” for Muller. Spirituality and human (spiritual) evolution pervade much of his other writings as well, which is where we will turn now.

    Robert Muller wrote a book called "New Genesis: Shaping a Global Spirituality." A cursory glance at the table of contents will dispel any lingering doubts that Robert Muller shared many beliefs with the Lucis Trust and theosophy.

    Two of his most important claims in the book are that all the religions of the world need to learn from each other and blend their beliefs in order to achieve a higher truth and that the United Nations is “the place of convergence of all human problems, dreams, aspirations and exertions,” that is, it is in a position to develop this collaboration: “The answers, of course, have varied greatly during human history: thousands of religions, (with or without God or gods, e.g., Buddhism, Jainism, and Sikhism), philosophies and spiritual practices have offered humans their manifold insights and beliefs. Most of them thought that they had the ultimate, total truth or universal principle, and they were all too often prone to fight each other to assert their belief.”

    As an aside, compare this to the explanation of the “Second Object” of the Theosophical Society: “Different world cultures have different approaches to intellectual and spiritual activities, and all such cultural differences are worth paying attention to, because reality is richer and more complex than any one culture can fully comprehend.” This is called syncretism. Much more could be said about syncretism, but this is not the place for it. For now, see the horrific seal of the Theosophical Society to get an idea of what it stands for. (Hint: If you are open to anything and everything, you stand for nothing).

    Muller was clearly interested in making spirituality a greater focus for the United Nations. In fact, he seemed to think that spirituality is central in many ways to the work of the U.N.: “When it comes to the United Nations proper, one can obviously not say that it is a spiritual organization. How could it be otherwise? ... Nevertheless, prayer and spirituality play an important role in the United Nations.” It is interesting that he made these two statements in the same breath, as it were. One way of reading what Muller said is that the United Nations has concerns other than spiritual ones, but those concerns are guided by a spiritual awareness and purpose.

    He highlighted this in a strange footnote in the book in which he says, “It is symbolic that the new Secretary-General, Mr. Javier Perez de Cuellar, on the first day of his term in January, 1982, visited the U.N. Meditation Room before proceeding to his office.” Symbolic of what, exactly? Recall that the U.N. Meditation Room is utterly devoid of religious symbols yet represents the spirituality that the U.N. pursues and encourages. Mr. Cuellar’s homage to the Meditation Room, then, suggests two things: First, the new secretary-general understands the importance of the spiritual component of the United Nations; second, the spirituality that led to the creation of the Meditation Room continued at the highest levels of the U.N. for the first 30 years of its existence, at least. His visit merely reaffirms the broader commitment of the U.N. It seems that his visit to the U.N. Meditation Room is “symbolic” of the way in which he intends to conduct the U.N. under his leadership.

    Lucifer rears his head once again

    Image courtesy of the United Nations

    Robert Muller was a self-proclaimed Catholic, so one might assume that he privileged Catholicism in his religious thought. This is clearly a false assumption based on his writings, however. It is difficult to choose which example to use since there are so many instances where he blasphemes his own purported religious beliefs. I will let this quote speak for itself: “There is a famous painting and poster which shows Christ knocking at the tall United Nations building, wanting to enter it. I often visualize in my mind another even more accurate painting: that of a United Nations which would be the body of Christ.”

    How could Muller say these things about Christ if he called himself a faithful Catholic? The Lucis Trust offers a compelling answer that resolves this contradiction. He was talking about a different figure, The Christ: “The Christ has no religious barriers in His consciousness. It matters not to Him of what faith a man may call himself.” For theosophists, The Christ is known as Lord Maitreya, but he takes on the different forms from all of the world religions. Jesus of Nazareth is, according to them, one instance of The Christ in world history. People need to be aware of this double-speak because Muller and many other figures in the cult of spiritual evolution appropriate different world religions to advance their religious beliefs in the guise of familiarity.

    The best example of this comes at the end of "New Genesis." Muller boldly (i.e. blasphemously) rewrote the Genesis story with the United Nations as the new focus and with God nodding his approval: “And God saw that all the nations of the earth, black and white, poor and rich, from North and South, from East and West, and of all creeds were sending their emissaries to a tall glass house on the shores of the River of the Rising Sun, on the island of Manhattan, to study together, to think together, and to care together for the world and all its people. And God said: ‘That is good.’ And it was the first day of the New Age of the earth.” Remember what Muller wanted as the new body of Christ? He was talking about the same United Nations headquarters building in Manhattan, New York.

    This is progress. This is spiritual evolution. This is what Robert Muller hoped and believed would happen in humanity’s future. This is what the United Nations aims to achieve.

    Reflecting on his life achievements and contributions, Robert Muller depicted himself in a conversation with God himself. God asked him what he thought was his most important idea that he ever had, and Muller responded: “THE UNITED NATIONS MUST BE VASTLY STRENGTHENED TO RESOLVE THE MAJOR GLOBAL PROBLEMS HENCEFORTH INCREASINGLY CONFRONTING HUMANITY AND THE EARTH. IT MUST BE EMPOWERED TO ADOPT AND ENFORCE WORLD LAWS AND REGULATIONS.” Of all of his 7000 Ideas for a better future, Muller ranked this as his most crucial insight. Robert Muller truly dedicated his entire life to creating a New World Order under the United Nations’ rule.

    One thing stands in the way of this New Age of human evolution coming into being: The United States and the rest of the free world. Muller, however, was assured that the U.S. will be unable to stand against the force of progress for long. Writing in May 2000, Muller said: “And now, as I look to the future and further progress, I am told that proper Earth government is impossible! I make this prediction: within twenty years we will have a proper government and administration of planet Earth and of humanity… It is inevitable. The salvation of this planet and survival of the human species depend on it. No one can for long go against evolution. Nation-states must adapt or they will disintegrate, even the biggest one, the United States. Unknown forces will force them to.”

    We must remember these words next time we are told that there is a global crisis in the world that needs managing. If we don’t, we will almost certainly find ourselves living in Robert Muller’s world.

  • At least 2 dead, 60 injured in mass attack at Christmas market in Germany; suspect is doctor originally from Saudi Arabia Sat, 21 Dec 2024 01:45:00 +0000


    German law enforcement officials say the suspect in the mass attack on revelers at a Christmas market is a doctor who had moved to Germany from Saudi Arabia over a decade ago.

    The 50-year-old suspect was detained after he plowed his dark-colored BMW into crowds at the outdoor market in Magdeburg on Friday at about 7 p.m.

    Video captured the attack and appeared to show the car being driven at top speed without braking into the crowd.

    “As things stand, he is a lone perpetrator, so that as far as we know there is no further danger to the city,” said Reiner Haseloff, the governor of Saxony-Anhalt.

    Officials said at least 15 victims were seriously hurt. Haseloff said the fatalities were a toddler and an adult but added that there may be more fatalities as the seriously injured are treated.

    “It is really one of the worst things one can imagine, particularly in connection with what a Christmas market should bring,” Haseloff added.

    The suspect moved to Germany in 2006, according to officials. He is a consultant for psychiatry and psychotherapy. He reportedly rented the car just before the attack. He had been recognized as a refugee in 2016, but officials said they did not have any knowledge of his having been radicalized before the attack.

    “The images are terrible. According to my knowledge, the car drove into the crowds of visitors," said Michael Reif, a spokesperson for the city, "but from what direction and how far it went, I can’t say.”

    Some noted that the attack occurred only one day after the eighth anniversary of the heinous terror attack on a Christmas market in Berlin that took the lives of 12 Germans.

    Magdeburg is a city of about 240,000 residents two hours west of Berlin in Eastern Germany.

    Scenes from the attack can be viewed on a news report from DW News on YouTube.

    Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!

  • 'President Musk!' Democratic congresswoman unleashes rant on House floor over funding bill failure Sat, 21 Dec 2024 01:15:00 +0000


    Democratic U.S. Rep. Rosa DeLauro of Connecticut unleashed a headline-grabbing rant Thursday on the floor of the House of Representatives over the failure of a funding bill that would have kept the government running — and she took particular aim at X CEO Elon Musk.

    “And you know what? They got scared because President Musk told them, President Musk said, ‘Don’t do it! Don’t do it! Shut the government down!'” DeLauro yelled on the House floor.

    'Are his employees furloughed? Hell, no! Is he furloughed? No!'

    President-elect Donald Trump backed Speaker Mike Johnson's new 116-page continuing resolution Thursday, but 38 House Republicans voted to block it.

    DeLauro — who's 81, sports a bit of purple hair and got her first tattoo last year — took further aim at Musk.

    “Imagine! What does he know about what people go through when the government shuts down? Are his employees furloughed? Hell, no! Is he furloughed? No!" DeLauro added. "And when you shut the government down, people don't get paid! And maybe if none of us got paid if the government shut down, some people on the other side of the aisle would feel differently about where we're going and this effort."

    You can view video here of her rant.

    In a Thursday X post, DeLauro stated that "there was an agreement between Republicans and Democrats in the House and Senate — until Elon Musk ordered Republicans to break it. Congress must not yield to out-of-touch billionaires. Hardworking Americans depend on us to govern."

    In a Friday X post, DeLauro referred to Musk as a "swamp creature." Musk on Friday stated on X that DeLauro "was a Skeksis in Dark Crystal!" He added that "once you see it, you can’t unsee it."

    Republican leadership on Friday put forth a plan C funding bill in a last-ditch effort to avoid a government shutdown.

    Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!

  • Dems join forces with GOP to pass Johnson's funding bill, averting a Christmas shutdown Sat, 21 Dec 2024 01:00:00 +0000


    The House passed Speaker Mike Johnson's funding bill on Friday just hours before the government was set to shut down at midnight.

    Johnson's latest continuing resolution passed the House in a 366-34 vote, with 170 Republicans and 196 Democrats voting to pass the bill while 34 Republicans voted against the bill.

    Like his two previous attempts, Johnson was facing an uphill battle with this CR, working to pass the bill in the 11th hour.

    Because the vote took place under suspension, the CR needed two-thirds of the vote to successfully pass the House, requiring Democrats to cooperate with Republicans.

    Like the other two bills Johnson had proposed earlier in the week, the latest CR would extend government funding through March 14 and includes aid for farmers as well as hurricane victims. In contrast to Thursday night's bill, this CR does not include any provisions regarding the suspension of the debt ceiling like Trump originally demanded.

    This CR was one of two potential paths Republican leadership was considering early Friday. In addition to the clean, three-month CR that was eventually passed, Republicans were also weighing a three-pronged approach under a rule that would require the CR, farm bill, and disaster aid to be voted on separately and passed with a simple majority.

    Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images

    Like his two previous attempts, Johnson was facing an uphill battle with this CR, working to pass the bill in the 11th hour.

    Johnson unveiled his first CR on Tuesday night after days of ongoing negotiations and delays. The original 1,547-page CR was met with intense scrutiny from Republican lawmakers, MAGA allies, and President-elect Donald Trump himself.

    As a result of this overwhelming pressure campaign, Johnson's first bill never even made it to the floor. Within 24 hours, Johnson was negotiating a new CR.

    Johnson produced a drastically smaller 116-page CR on Thursday, which earned Trump's stamp of approval. The House quickly moved to a vote later that evening. Although 172 Republicans and two Democrats voted in favor of the bill, 38 Republicans joined 197 Democrats to block it.

    After Johnson's third bill was drafted, negotiated, and eventually passed, the government successfully avoided a shutdown before Christmas.

    Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!

  • NFL fines quarterback Jalen Hurts $5,628 for wearing wrong color shoes Sat, 21 Dec 2024 00:45:00 +0000


    The NFL was mocked by many fans after it was reported that it fined a football player for wearing the wrong color shoes.

    Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts led his team to defeat the Pittsburgh Steelers 27-13 on Sunday, but he was punished for wearing cleats that were two different shades of green.

    “We’re paying the fine. ... You can’t ban greatness.”

    NFL rules require that players wear cleats that match the team's colors.

    The NFL has been notorious for being overly strict and severe, leading some to nickname it the "No Fun League."

    Making matters worse, online sleuths found that the league had actually promoted Hurts' double-colored cleats on its social media account before fining him. That tweet has since been deleted.

    Hurts makes about $51 million per year on average before bonuses, so the fine amounts to 0.01% of his salary. However, he's not gonna miss that money because the Nike shoe company says it will pay the fine for him.

    “We’re paying the fine,” said the Jordan brand of the company. “You can’t ban greatness.”

    In November, the NFL was mocked and ridiculed after it fined Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Pat Mahomes $14,069 for making a gesture that included finger-guns after scoring a touchdown. Despite the violent intimidation of his finger-guns, Mahomes and the Chiefs lost that game 31-20 to the Buffalo Bills.

    If Hurts is nefarious enough to stain the reputation of the league again with his distasteful, chaotically-colored cleats, the NFL rules say he can be fined $16,883.

    Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!

  • Trump prepares to axe EV tax credits — and even Elon Musk agrees Sat, 21 Dec 2024 00:30:00 +0000

  • Eric Adams' ex-top aide indicted on bribery charges in latest corruption case involving mayor's circle Sat, 21 Dec 2024 00:15:00 +0000


    New York City Mayor Eric Adams' (D) former chief adviser, Ingrid Lewis-Martin, was indicted Thursday on bribery, money laundering, and conspiracy charges.

    In anticipation of the impending indictment, Lewis-Martin resigned from her position on Sunday.

    'Twisting facts.'

    Arthur Aidala, Lewis-Martin's lawyer, told the Associated Press over the weekend, "Pieces of puzzles are going to be put together to make it look as horrible as possible."

    "But we know the truth, and the truth is Ingrid Lewis-Martin never broke the law," he stated.

    On Sunday, Lewis-Martin declared she was being "falsely accused of something," adding that she was not yet aware of the specifics of the charges.

    "And during my tenure, I have never taken any gifts, money, anything," she declared. "I have not made any arrangements in advance to take any gifts or money, or to have any gifts or money given to a family member or friend in order for me to do my job."

    Prosecutors claimed Lewis-Martin "abused her position and sold her influence to enrich herself and her family."

    Lewis-Martin's son, Glenn D. Martin II, and real estate investors are also facing charges.

    Martin II allegedly received $100,000 in exchange for Lewis-Martin's expediting city approvals for the two investors. The funds were reportedly deposited into an account he shared with his mother.

    Regarding the expedited approvals, Aidala stated that Lewis-Martin "was just moving things along."

    Aidala called the prosecution's allegations "preposterous."

    "So Ingrid is going to do a favor for a bribe, get a check made out and put it in her own bank account," he stated. "Really?!"

    Michael Cibella, an attorney for Martin II, told the AP that the prosecution was "twisting facts." Cibella said Martin II had only "developed a friendship with successful, hard working businessmen."

    All parties have pleaded not guilty.

    According to Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg, Adams is not a target of the investigation against Lewis-Martin. However, Adams is facing his own bribery charges in a separate probe.

    The mayor was accused of accepting luxury travel perks and illegal campaign donations from a Turkish official. Adams pleaded not guilty. His trial is slated for April.

    On Monday, President-elect Donald Trump said he would consider issuing Adams a pardon.

    "I think that he was treated pretty unfairly," Trump told reporters.

    He speculated that Adams was targeted after he "made some pretty strong statements" about the Biden administration's immigration failures.

    "I haven't seen the gravity of it all, but it seems like being upgraded on an airplane many years ago," Trump said, referring to charges.

    Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!

  • Incubator program preps tomorrow’s right-leaning filmmakers Sat, 21 Dec 2024 00:00:00 +0000


    Thomas Pack has documentary filmmaking in his blood.

    Pack’s father, Michael Pack, directed the 2020 film “Created Equal: Clarence Thomas in His Own Words” in addition to titles for PBS affiliates nationwide. Thomas' mother, Gina Cappo Pack, has worked in film development and promotion and serves as president of Manifold Productions.

  • DC lawmakers on the naughty list after proposing INSANE spending bill Sat, 21 Dec 2024 00:00:00 +0000


    Speaker Mike Johnson attempted to cram a bill containing funds for censorship and COVID mandates through Congress before Christmas — but the plan was thwarted by multiple lawmakers and even Elon Musk, who successfully tanked the bill.

    “Everyone on D.C. might be going on the naughty list because we’ve seen over 1,500 pages of the CR that the House put forth, and it’s filled with things like a congressional pay raise and an Obamacare exemption for elected officials,” Jill Savage of “Blaze News Tonight” comments.

    “We’ve seen an incredible amount of blowback to this bill online, and it’s not just from lawmakers. Elon Musk is getting into this fight. So is the pressure now from the public square enough to make Mike Johnson go back to the drawing board for the CR?” Savage asks Blaze News senior politics editor Christopher Bedford.


    “Oh, yeah, I think this is dead on arrival; and I have not seen this really happen in the 20 years I’ve been in D.C. or the years I’ve been covering this — that the uniparty gets this kind of blowback,” Bedford says.

    “They didn’t even bother bringing conservatives to the table,” he continues. “They needed to hand out basically Christmas gifts to Hakeem [Jeffries] and Chuck Schumer and his friends, and the response has just been exploding since it’s finally dropped.”

    Elon Musk, Donald Trump, and JD Vance have all taken turns coming out against the bill, which has had a massive impact.

    “I don’t see a world where Mike Johnson tells Donald Trump, JD Vance, and Elon Musk to take a hike on this,” Bedford says.

    Want more from 'Blaze News Tonight'?

    To enjoy more provocative opinions, expert analysis, and breaking stories you won’t see anywhere else, subscribe to BlazeTV — the largest multi-platform network of voices who love America, defend the Constitution, and live the American dream.

  • Man mauled to death by his own 3 dogs in front of his 4-year-old son Fri, 20 Dec 2024 23:45:00 +0000


    A man was mauled to death by his three dogs during a walk with his 4-year-old son, according to California police.

    26-year-old Pedro Ortega was walking the dogs with his son at the Mesa Viking Neighborhood Park near their home in Mira Mesa on Dec. 13 when the dogs attacked for unknown reasons. Bystanders in the park tried to help the man fight the dogs and were able to save the child.

    A neighbor in the area caught video of one of the dogs wandering into his garage and covered in blood with Taser darts in him.

    When police arrived, they used an electric stun gun to disperse the dogs. Ortega was transported to Scripps Memorial Hospital Emergency Department, where he was later declared dead.

    The San Diego Humane Society said a bystander who tried to stop the attack was also treated for serious bite wounds.

    The dogs were captured and euthanized with the consent of Ortega's family. Police said they were bullmastiff dogs and that they were unleashed at the time of the attack.

    A neighbor in the area caught video of one of the dogs wandering into his garage. He told KFMB-TV that the dog was covered in blood and had taser dart in him.

    Another resident told KFMB that they had seen the owner walking with the dogs at the park the day before the attack, and he was surrounded by young children.

    Ortega's son was uninjured.

    The Humane Society said they had no prior record of an attack by the dogs. The Centers for Disease Control says that about 43 people are killed per year by dog attacks on average.

    The surveillance video of one of the dogs can be viewed in the news report from KFMB on its YouTube channel.

    Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!

  • From 'Homestead' to the decision that nearly destroyed his career — Neal McDonough spills all in Glenn Beck interview Fri, 20 Dec 2024 23:32:16 +0000


    Committed husband, father of five, devoted Christian, political conservative, and famous actor Neal McDonough is “a unicorn in our culture,” says Glenn Beck, who recently sat down for a lengthy interview with the actor/producer extraordinaire.

    The pair talked about several of McDonough’s films and series, including “Yellowstone” and “Band of Brothers,” but a large portion of their conversation centered around Angel Studios’ latest film, “Homestead," which McDonough both starred in and produced.

    Set in the remote mountains of Utah following the detonation of a nuclear bomb in Los Angeles, “Homestead” follows Ian Ross (McDonough’s character), an eccentric prepper, as he is forced to make incredibly difficult decisions as more and more people beg for refuge at his homestead.

    McDonough told Glenn that he loves starring in films like this because it forces him to think about his own character.

    “What happens to [Ross’] friends outside the gate? What happens to other people who are around him? ... As a man who professes to be a man of faith, how does he deal with that? How does he deal with having so much when people outside the gate have so little?” he said of his character.

    The film “really brings us to question ourselves and our integrity. We call ourselves people of faith. Well, when push comes to shove, are we really? And that's what I love about this film,” he added.

    On the subject of faith put to the test, Glenn then asked McDonough about the decision that nearly ended his career.

    In 2010, McDonough, out of respect and love for his wife Ruve, refused to perform a sex scene with his co-star on the show “Scoundrels” and was fired as a result.

    Glenn played an old clip of McDonough reflecting on this time of hardship: “I was blackballed for two years. I couldn't get a job, and because of that, I lost my big, beautiful house in Los Angeles, my shiny Mercedes, all my stuff, and my swagger. And as you can imagine, at the time, I was really crushed. They thought that I was some religious zealot, but to me it was just that I didn't think it was the right thing to do, and also I really love my wife.”

    The bold decision, despite its initial consequences, proved to be one of the best things to ever happen to McDonough. His marriage is thriving, his career is booming, and his faith, having been put to the fire, is stronger than ever.

    “It took going through being crucified to really understand what life is about,” he said. “Looking back at it, it was the second greatest thing that ever happened to me, other than meeting Ruve, and I'm really blessed to be in this position right now.”

    To hear more of Glenn and McDonough’s conversation, including their shared struggles with alcoholism, McDonough’s perspective on how Hollywood is changing, what it’s like to work with legends like Sylvester Stallone and Kevin Costner, and how to live well when “fame and fortune are battery acid to the soul,” watch the episode above.

    Want more from Glenn Beck?

    To enjoy more of Glenn’s masterful storytelling, thought-provoking analysis, and uncanny ability to make sense of the chaos, subscribe to BlazeTV — the largest multi-platform network of voices who love America, defend the Constitution, and live the American dream.

  • 'That's f***ing fascist': Tim Pool blasts leftist into stunned silence for condemning Trump's promised Jan. 6 pardons Fri, 20 Dec 2024 23:16:52 +0000


    Podcaster Tim Pool tore into leftist political commentator Luke Beasley on the latest episode of the "Timcast IRL" podcast for making blanket condemnations of Jan. 6 protesters and for pre-emptively criticizing their pardoning by President-elect Donald Trump from a place of apparent ignorance about the specifics of their cases.

    Early in the episode, Pool and Beasley discussed leftists' celebration of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson's alleged assassin, Luigi Mangione. When pressed for comment about his fellow leftists' apparent justifications for Thompson's killing, Sen. Elizabeth Warren's (D-Mass.) recent remarks in particular, Beasley tried changing the subject.

    "She's not advocating for Biden to pardon Luigi," said the former Harris booster. "You know who is going to pardon violent people? Did Trump say he was going to pardon violent [Jan. 6 protesters]?"

    Beasley appeared desperate to equate efforts by leftists to excuse an alleged targeted murder with Trump's promised pardons for some of the roughly 1,500 individuals charged and hundreds convicted in connection with the Jan. 6, 2021, protests at the U.S. Capitol.

    Blaze News previously reported that according to the Department of Justice, nearly 1,000 people have pleaded guilty to Jan. 6 charges, 68% for misdemeanors and 32% for felonies. Of those who pleaded guilty to felonies, 53% were for supposedly assaulting law enforcement officers.

    'How long should they be in prison for?'

    Trump suggested to "Meet the Press" in a Dec. 8 interview that whereas those involved in the deadly BLM riots, which inflicted billions of dollars of damage on the nation, largely got out legally unscathed, Jan. 6 protesters were alternatively rounded up and treated "unfair[ly]."

    After Trump indicated that he would initiate pardons for Jan. 6 protesters on Day One, NBC News' Kristen Welker asked the president-elect whether he would consider also pardoning violent protesters. Trump insinuated that some of the convictions for violent crimes were bogus and said, "I'm going to look at everything. We're going to look at individual cases."

    Pool seized upon Beasley's intimation that the pardons, particularly for supposedly violent Jan. 6 rioters, were necessarily condemnable, asking, "If someone attacks a cop, how long should they go to jail for?"

    "I don't know," responded the leftist. "A while. ... Totally depends on the details of the assault."

    Pool noted that some of the Jan. 6 protesters who Trump might pardon have been rotting in prison for roughly three years, then pressed the issue once again: "How long should they be in prison for?"

    Beasley suggested that he would have to consider each of the cases one-by-one, prompting Pool to conclude that the need for such an individualized review should be grounds for avoiding a blanket condemnation of Trump's proposed pardons.

    'You've taken a tribal position and people are suffering because of it.'

    "No, because I think that the prosecutors who brought these cases then brought them in front of a jury and got convictions should be respected," said Beasley. "I think that those outcomes should be respected."

    Pool became audibly frustrated after it became clear that Beasley's stance on the pardons hinged on a blind trust in the politically-charged prosecutions before juries drawn from an area where over 90% of voters cast ballots for the Democratic candidate in the last two presidential elections.

    "If you've got someone on a misdemeanor charge who has been held without trial, a pardon makes perfect sense unless you're a fascist," said Pool. "You've taken the Otto Von Bismarck approach of it is better that 10 innocent people suffer than one guilty person escape."

    "You don't know anything about these January 6 cases. You don't [know] why these people are in jail," continued Pool. "And when Donald Trump says these people have been held for too long, you say, 'No. Trump is wrong. Keep them locked up.' That's f***ing fascist, dude. You have been sitting here with no knowledge of the specifics of some of these cases."

    Blaze News investigative reporter Joe Hanneman noted last week that Jalise and Mark Middleton of Forestburg, Texas, were among those convicted of assault, resisting, or impeding police officers. The couple, married for 34 years with no criminal history, claimed they were praying together when shoved into the police line on Jan. 6. Jalise Middleton alleged on X that her husband tried protecting her when police attacked her.

    Pool got progressively angrier as he began reflecting on how leftists have alternatively been given a relative pass.

    "On May 29, 2020, when thousands of far-leftists firebombed the White House grounds, and set fire to St. John's Church, and injured 100 police officers, how many f***ing people went to prison for three years? How many of them who never showed up on that day are in prison for 20 years?" said Pool. "You don't care what the facts are. You don't care if this is unjust. You only care that the machine state has decreed, 'You are now to be locked up.'"

    Midway through Pool's over three-minute rant — during which Beasley sat in stunned silence — the host noted, "You don't know. You don't care. You've taken a tribal position, and people are suffering because of it. Now you say that Donald Trump saying the injustice that we've seen warrants commutatio[n] pardons, you say that means it's advocating for violence. This is the ultimate problem."

    Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!

News Web Sites

Columnist/Blog Web Sites


This page has been visited 81 times today and 59,282 times since May 11, 2015.