TRUMP HAS WAY TO CAGE CHINA? Hans van Leeuwen, guest author on the Rod Martin space on Substack, makes the case that President Donald Trump has found an approach to trade negotiations with Asian nations that has the potential to surround Beijing in a manner most favorable to the U.S.

WELCOME TO D.C., MR. OPM DIRECTOR: Scott Kupor is a Silicon Valley venture capital giant who will be sworn-in Monday as President Donald Trump’s Director of the U.S. Office of Personnel Management (OPM). As I report in The Washington Stand today, Kupor is undertaking one of the most challenging but least heralded agency chief positions in the nation’s capital.

Because OPM manages the federal bureaucracy, people on the Right mostly just ignore it, which is a profoundly significant mistake. Recalcitrant federal bureaucrats have a thousand ways of slowing down, and outright subverting popular policies voters put a president in the Oval Office to carry out.

The career civil service is supposed to be professional, objective and non-partisan in carrying out presidential policies. When there’s a Democrat in the Oval Office, that’s what happens. And regardless who is president, 95 percent+ of the campaign contributions from unionized federal workers go to Democrats.

But put a Reagan, Bush or Trump there, and legions of costly, time-consuming and often nonsensical roadblocks suddenly appear out of nowhere. How Kupor performs at OPM will have a great bearing on how much success Trump has in reforming the federal government in the remainder of his second term.

WRONG SIDE OF HISTORY: People on the Right hear it frequently from those on the Left, but why is it they always think they are on the right side of history? What Would You Say?

CUTTING OFF MY NOSE TO SPITE MY FACE: That’s an apt description of congressional Republicans intent on slashing the Government Accountability Office’s (GAO) operating budget by half. The GAO is the investigative arm of the legislative branch and among the most important oversight tools available to the Senate and House.

Foundation for American Innovation Senior Fellow Dan Lips points out that former Comptroller-General (GAO’s top boss) David Walker, who commands respect in both political parties to this day after leading the investigative agency from 1998 to 2008, says the current budget reduction is like Congress “shooting itself in the head.” Lips makes a strong case for reforms instead of budget slashing.

Here’s my suggestion: Instead of slashing GAO’s budget by half, Hill GOPers should start cutting funding of the many executive branch agencies that have ignored or outright refused to implement literally thousands of solid cost-saving recommendations from GAO auditors and investigators. Congress should have been doing this decades ago, but it’s not yet too late to reinvigorate the “ultimate weapon” the Constitution assigns to Congress.

As the agency noted at the outset of a May report pointing to $100 billion in potential savings, “since 2011, implementation of GAO’s work in this area has led to $725 billion in savings for the federal government. This year’s report adds 148 new measures in 43 topic areas that Congress and federal agencies could take to reduce costs, improve programs, and boost revenues. Implementing our newest measures, in conjunction with our existing recommendations, could save over $100 billion for the American people.”

There is strong dissatisfaction among House GOPers with GAO because of several recent rulings that upset the Trump administration. With a new Comptroller-General coming soon to GAO, those on the Hill who are angry with the agency have an opportunity to set things straight in such regards.

WHAT A CONTRAST! Between the Right’s most determined conservatives in the House of Representatives responding to a big legislative setback and how Democrats did so. Can you guess which of the two parties’ responses would be cheered by the Federalist Papers authors?

HOPE IN HEBRON FOR MIDEAST PEACE: Did you know two separate assemblages of Palestinian Sheiks are pushing for “Emirates” status under the Abraham Accords, including official relations with Israel? Richard Pollock reports that these Sheiks represent more than half a million people now under the thumb of the uber-corrupt Palestinian Authority (PA).

Pollock also digs into recent reports that Hamas faces increasingly powerful opposition within the Gaza Strip and that collapse appears imminent for the vicious hate group behind the October 7 Massacre of more than a thousand Jews.

WHOA! RICHARD DAWKINS’ ‘RIGHT-HAND-MAN’ NOW A CHRISTIAN: His name is Josh Timonen. Christian-to-Atheist conversions like that of Josh Harris make the news. This Josh reverses that sequence but odds are you’ve never heard about it in the Mainstream Media. Check out his interview on HillFaith.

COURTS ARE INCREASINGLY STACKED AGAINST MEN: Wintery Knight (WK) launches a revealing piece on judicial prejudice against men with a story from Scotland in which judges there are reported to be disallowing admission of evidence that tends to establish male defendants’ innocence in cases brought against them by women.

But the same problem appears to be intensifying here in the states, judging by studies WK cites. For example, sentencing appears to result in harsher punishment for me in 63 percent of the cases, compared to women defendants.

And when WK broaches the issue with folks one might well expect to at least be attentive, here, too often, is the result: “Whenever I tell social conservatives about the effect that this bias against men is having on men’s willingness to engage with women (romantically, professionally, etc.), they go silent.”

The expectation of absolute fairness and impartiality in the courtroom is not a new thing. As WK notes, Leviticus 19:15 set a high standard for ancient Israel: “You shall do no injustice in court. You shall not be partial to the poor or defer to the great, but in righteousness shall you judge your neighbor.”

JOIN THE LA ‘PAYWATCH’ LIFEGUARDS AND MAKE A FORTUNE: Open the Books updates its 2021 report on the highly lucrative work of lifeguards working the beaches of Los Angeles County. The update today shows things just keep getting worse. It’s my latest PJ Media column.

THEN THERE IS THE INFORMATION ENIGMA: Atoms/Electrons/Neutrons/Photons are not the most foundational units of the universe, it’s the preceding information that defines and shapes them that is the starting point.

So where does that information come from, how does it “happen”? Check out “The Information Enigma” on HillFaith. It’s a 21 minute exploration of the possible answers to that question, as produced by the Discovery Institute, with superb production quality, probing questions and engaging graphics. And not a speck of preaching.

Yes, it’s a bit long, but I promise you it will spark some serious reflection and challenging conversation as you, your family and friends lounge on the beach, cast your lines into the lake or stream, fire up the grill and enjoy the fireworks as we collectively celebrate the 249th year of the greatest nation on God’s green Earth.

IT’S EVEN WORSE IN IRAN THAN YOU THINK: The essence of totalitarianism is its unquestionable claim to direct every aspect of every individual’s life. That is exactly the nature of the radical Islamic regime in Iran, which demands and enforces loyalty from the day of birth of every Iranian.

But, as Marziyeh Amirizadeh explained earlier this week on The Washington Stand’s “Outstanding” podcoast, hope is dawning for a new day in Iran. A major factor in the growing underground of resistance to the Mullahs is the remarkable and largely unreported upsurge in Christian converts in this Shia Muslim nation.

And, just as the Nazis built concentration camps for Jews and everybody else who dissented from National Socialism, the Soviet’s sent millions of dissidents against communism to the Gulag and Mao’s Cultural Revolution targeted the Four Olds for destruction, the Mullahs employ intimidation, torture, and extreme brutality against brave people like Marzi. The Washington Stand’s Casey Harper reports.

INSTAPUNDIT READERS ARE THE BEST: My thanks to Drew Foerster in the LA area and multiple others for pointing out that I incorrectly described Iran’s regime as Sunni Muslim when in fact it is of the Shia brand. And the Best Correction Award goes to TeaPartyLee, for noting that at least I didn’t refer to them as Subaru Muslims!

And BTW, check out that 1966 Charlton Heston movie in which he portrayed the Brit General Gordon of Khartoum. I think (but am not sure) that the Madhi in that one was thought by his followers to be the Shia savior.  

ABORTION POLLUTES WATER SUPPLY, TOO: Bet ya didn’t know that America’s water supply systems may being polluted thanks to the abortion pill Mifepristone. The Washington Stand’s Ben Johnson has the details.

And this ought to raise all kinds of extremely uncomfortable but essential questions: “Sanitation officials have found fully formed fetuses inside waste water facilities in South Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, and Mississippi.”

CHINA NOT SUBJECT TO NUKE LIMITS: Russia, the U.S. and other nuclear nations — Britain, India, Pakistan, etc. — are signers of the Reagan-era inspired New START treaty. That puts a ceiling on the total of warheads and launchers a signer can deploy.

But China has never signed on to the treaty, which means, according to Rod Martin and his guest author, Antonia Graceffo, that the CCP’s current nuke buildup can go as far as Beijing can afford.

That fundamentally changes the nuclear calculus that has obtained since the 1980s, including most immediately the need for the U.S. to deploy that “Star Wars” missile defense system Reagan called for decades ago.

It may well prove to be that Reagan’s greatest contribution was not winning the Cold War and bringing about the Soviet Union’s demise, as historically important as that was, but rather his defying the near-unanimous reaction among the “expert” class that it would be impossible to intercept an incoming ballistic missile. America has THAAD and Patriot anti-missile missile systems today because Reagan ignored the experts.

IS SOCIAL MEDIA A NET NEGATIVE? You are not going to believe the results on this question among congressional aides.

ONE THING THE UN GOT RIGHT: It was 80 years ago today that the UN Charter was signed in San Francisco. What followed has been for the most part either laughable or destructive of world peace. But, as Rod Martin explains on Substack, the international body has succeeded on one vitally important point.

BITCOIN AND YOUNG GUYS: There is a hugely important reason why young men are displaying great enthusiasm for Bitcoin. Cygnal Polling’s Ryan Shucard explains:

“Voters who own Bitcoin are younger, much more male, more educated, more Republican, and higher income than likely general election voters as a whole. They are equally diverse (almost exactly tracking the racial breakdown of voters) but are also lower-propensity voters.”

Much more in the Cygnal results that should be encouraging to friends of freedom.

5 REASONS TRUMP SHOULD TELL NOBEL WHERE TO SHOVE IT: Yes, Trump has done wonders on the foreign policy scene in recent months, brokering ceasefires between India and Pakistan, as well as Iran and Israel. And so it’s no surprise he’s nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize.

But here are four reasons, according to Issues & Insights, Trump should withdraw his nomination: Al Gore, Jimmy Carter, Yasser Arafat and Rigobertha Menchu. And here’s the fifth:

“But more embarrassing than all of these (as well as other dubious winners such as Le Duc Tho, Henry Kissinger, the European Union, Mikhail Gorbachev – not Reagan – etc.) is that Trump would be accepting a prize that was given to Barack Obama nine months into his presidency on the basis of …. absolutely nothing.”

PROPOSAL TO PUT CONGRESS ON A DAVE RAMSEY BUDGET PLAN: And if either Congress or the President screw it up, it’s no more tax-paid junkets for you! It’s my latest for The Washington Stand.

EXPERTS WARN OF POTENTIAL DANGER OF BETTING FIRM WITH TRUMP TIES: If you’ve never heard of Kalshi, Inc., you likely will be soon because it’s unlike any other betting enterprise ever. Kalshi makes it possible to bet on any “event” that happens or may happen. In other words, it makes it possible to bet on everything.

But here’s what really makes Kalshi interesting: One of its board members, Brian Quintenz, was nominated by President Donald Trump to the Commodities Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) in February, a month after Donald Trump Jr. was signed on as a consultant.

In an exclusive report today, The Washington Stand’s S.A. McCarthy lays out the details of what could easily become a major scandal in Trump’s second term, including the fact that “economists, attorneys, and both advocates and opponents of predatory gambling are sounding the alarm over Kalshi’s potential to radically destabilize the U.S. economy if one of its board members is placed on the commission that’s supposed to regulate the betting company.”

BIDEN TELEWORK ABUSES CONFIRMED: A new analysis by the Inspector-General (IG) at the U.S. Office of Personnel Management (OPM) confirms serious teleworking abuses by more than half of the employees at the federal government’s central human resource agency.

NOW WE MAY KNOW HOW MANY SLEEPER CELLS BIDEN ENABLED: Now that President Donald Trump has obliterated Iran’s nuclear bomb-making facilities, we may well find out in coming days just how many terrorist sleeper cells were able to enter this country during the Biden era. It’s my hurriedly posted PJMedia column.

EIGHT VIP CHARACTERISTICS: J. Warner Wallace is one of the most successful cold-case homicide detectives ever. For years, he was featured on NBC’s “Dateline” explaining how he solved a particular old and challenging case. He knows good and bad evidence when he sees it.

Thanks to that ability to assess the value of evidence, Wallace has also become one of the best-known Christian apologists in the world. On HillFaith today, Wallace discusses eight characteristics of evidence he has found that indicate purposefulness rather than random chance.

Fortunately, Instapundit has a wonderfully intelligent readership that can offer reasonable arguments for and against a multitude of thoughtful views, including Wallace’s eight characteristics. That, rather than ad hominem for or against, is what I seek in posting this link.

SHOW YOUR WORK, CHILDREN: Apparently, somebody at the Washington Post thinks their readers don’t need to know the demographic details of respondents to a survey that purports to show 2-1 public opposition to Trump’s Big Beautiful Bill.

The Washington Stand talks to an international pollster who says showing your work in the details of your sample is essential to being credible. And no surprise, a spokesman for the Post could not be reached.

IF CBO KEEPS GETTING IT WRONG: Then, doesn’t it make sense to change how CBO does its work? That’s what a bunch of folks on Capitol Hill are saying, including especially House Budget Committee Chairman Jodey Arrington (R-Texas).

NO, SLAVES DID NOT BUILD AMERICA’S WEALTH: Today is Juneteenth, the day that commemorates the moment slaves in Texas first got word of Lincoln’s signing the Emancipation Proclamation. But the Left has taken what was before a celebration of freedom and corrupted it into a key part of the Great Lie about America.

That would be the lie that America is irretrievably evil because the Founders accepted slavery and in the decades thereafter it was slaves in the American South who built what has become the richest, most prosperous nation in human history.

Much has been written over the years about this lie, but nothing that this writer has ever read even begins to match the razor’s edge of fact and truth displayed in Rod Martin’s Substack column today, entitled “Juneteenth: No, America’s Wealth Was Not Built by Slaves – Slavery Held Us Back.”