MADURO FALL IS CRISIS FOR IRAN, HEZBOLLAH: Hezbollah, the Lebanon-based Islamic terrorist outfit funded and armed by Iran, has been active in Venezuela for years. But, as Richard Pollock explains, the fall of Maduro and President Donald Trump’s determination to free the Western Hemisphere from such malignant forces, represents a huge crisis for Hezbollah and Iran.

DON’T FORGET DRUG DEMAND: Family Research Council President Tony Perkins reserves judgement about the Maduro operation but reminds everybody that the drug problem is two-fold. Capturing Maduro strikes a blow on the supply side, but don’t forget the reality that there is a huge demand in the U.S.

NOT A WORD IN THE MSM ON THE IRAN PROTESTS: Richard Pollock, who knows the MSM from the inside as a former “Good Morning America” producer, notes the total silence of the Establishment “media” on the growing protests in Iran.

POWERLINE, OTHER INDIES REPORTED MINNESOTA SCANDAL YEARS AGO: When you dig into the past decade of coverage by independent media like the Powerline blog and multiple other Minnesota-based operations, it becomes clear the Mainstream Media purposely ignored the Somali benefits fraud scandal the costs of which are now estimated at $9 billion.

TRUMP  IS MR DEREGULATOR: Rod Martin turns over his Substack column space for a day to Americans for Tax Reform founder and chief Grover Norquist, who provides a comprehensive cataloguing of the many ways President Donald Trump is draining the regulatory swamp in Washington, D.C.

WILL AMERICA’S SPIRITUAL RENEWAL ENDURE: That’s one of the questions raised by the surge in 2025 in church attendance and interest in Jesus Christ, particularly among Gen Z males. It could prove to be historic if it follows the model of the Great Awakening’s role in fostering the American Revolution, or it could turn out as nothing more than another temporary fad.

TERRORISTS POSING AS JOURNALISTS: Richard Pollock exposes the hypocrisy of a recent award ceremony honoring “Gaza journalists” at the National Press Club in the nation’s capital.

STOP BLAMING REAGAN: That’s the title of a column on the American Spectator by Donald Devine regarding the factional eruptions on the Right. Devine, for whom I worked as a Reagan political appointee at the Office of Personnel Management, makes a VIP point about Reagan:

“But blaming today’s problems on Ronald Reagan, as many New Rightists do, does not make sense. This old academic agrees that Republicans and many conservative organizations became part of the problem. But for Reagan himself, his prosperity lasted well beyond his two terms so that a following Democratic president conceded that the ‘era of big government was over.’ This lasted 40 years, with Reagan-type conservative opposition remaining through this period. But it was not primarily by politicians but by popular media leaders like Rush Limbaugh and Robert Novak, in think tanks and activist organizations, and even by some intellectuals.”

The two Bush presidencies are the real villains in this story because there is a mostly straight line from them to Barack Obama, according to Devine:

“If a scapegoat is necessary, it is the presidents Bush. First, George H.W., who in accepting his presidential nomination, promised a government ‘more compassionate’ than his predecessor’s. Then George W. Bush, who responded to the Great Recession with a plan called ‘Market Stabilization’ and years of almost zero interest rates, rather than market capitalism. George W. also adopted a new entitlement program, waged losing wars, and domestic policies that led to Barack Obama, all of which led to the institutionalization of today’s failures.”

One element Devine doesn’t address is the rise of anti-semitism on the Right. Even so, Devine — who by the way is that rare person who combines proficiencies as a professor, campaign strategist and political manager of bureaucracy — is somebody who could serve effectively as a bridge among key factions, including perhaps those entirely unexpected murmurs of a revival of something like classical liberalism.

BYE-BYE JOHNSON AMENDMENT: If, as expected, a federal judge in Texas upholds a consent decree agreement among the National Religious Broadcasters, et. al. and the IRS, churches will no longer be barred from advising congregants of the Biblical perspective on issues and candidates in the public square. There is also a chance the case could end up in the Supreme Court, so definitely one to keep an eye on in 2026.

THIS WILL MAKE YOUR DAY: Doug Ross assembles a superb set of cartoons/graphics to illustrate how one young man with a laptop, cellphone camera, basic research and interview skills, and the assistance of a very capable “David” blew the roof off the biggest state-level fraud scandal in American history.

For those of us old enough to have been in the first generation of bloggers, what Nick Shirley has accomplished — exposing a scandal estimated to reach $9 billion with his self-produced 42-minute documentary that drew 120 million views in 48 hours — is yet more proof of what we’ve been saying about the power of citizen journalism since before 2004 when Instapundit’s Glenn Reynolds, Powerline’s John Hinderaker and Scott Johnson, and Charles Johnson of Little Green Footballs exposed CBS News Anchor Dan Rather’s reliance on fraudulent documents in a “60 Minutes” segment intended to help defeat President George W. Bush’s re-election.

Question: How do we encourage the two, three, many, many more Nick Shirleys that are out there even today? Odds are deep blue states like California, Illinois, New York are prime candidates for exposing similar and worse than what Shirley dug up in Minnesota.

THEY SPOKE THE LANGUAGE: When in Rome, do what the Romans do, including speaking to them in their language, right? So give a read to these two statements by Founders John Adams and Benjamin Rush, then ask yourself why do Leftist academics and other influencers keep insisting we were not a nation that spoke the language of (mainly) Protestant Christianity?

BUREAUCRAT GAMES AT VA, FEHBP: Officials at the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) and the Federal Employees Health Benefits Program (FEHBP) used “novel” interpretations of law and regulation to get around long-standing bars on government funding of abortions.

It’s one thing for a President to countermand decisions percolating up from deep within the bureaucracy, but that’s a short-term solution to a problem that cries out for a long-term resolution. As it happens, Trump is actively countermanding, but, as I explain in a lengthy news analysis on The Washington Stand, he’s also pushing a permanent reform for which future chief executives will thank him.

MONROE CROSSED THE DELAWARE WITH WASHNGTON: Don Surber provides a wealth of fascinating detail about Gen. George Washington’s daring surprise attack on Christmas against the Hessians at Trenton.

Among those with Washington in that hugely significant operation was another future president, James Monroe, who was severely wounded and very nearly died but for the effective treatment of one Dr. Riker.

COLE/COLLINS SPENDING DEAL: Only they and their staffers know the specific numbers, but House Appropriations Committee Chairman Tom Cole (R-Okla.) and Senate Appropriations Committee Chairman Susan Collins (R-Maine) have agreed on spending totals for the remaining nine appropriations for Fiscal Year 2026. Could a return to “regular order” actually be in the offing?

THREE REASONS 2026 COULD BE HUGE TRUMP WIN: No President since FDR has approached the New Dealer’s massive 1934 mid-term congressional election triumph. But, as I explain in my latest PJMedia column (and first in several months, by the way), there are three solid reasons to expect Trump to have a similar win next November.

WHY YES, THIS IS TRUMP’S ECONOMY: Issues & Insights notes the new talking point among Democrats is “Trump owns the economy.” That talking point must have been conceived and distributed prior to Tuesday’s BEA GDP growth estimate for the third quarter at 4.3 percent. Next they’ll tell us that 4.3 percent growth rate must be because of Biden since Trump’s tax cuts haven’t yet taken effect?

CHRISTMAS IN A CCP JAIL: That’s the prospect for thousands of Chinese Christians, thanks to a massive wave of arrests, according to The Washington Stand’s Sam McCarthy.

ABOUT THAT UNIVERSITY RESEARCH ‘OVERHEAD:’ Billions of federal tax dollars go to universities for scientific research every year, but did you know every buck for research comes with another chunk of funds to cover “overhead costs.” You know, overhead like “designing museum exhibits, conducting middle school lab demonstrations, or developing podcasts, in the name of having a ‘broader impact’ beyond scientific discovery.” And don’t forget DEI! Such non-research activities are used to justify expanding administrative staffs.

Open the Books’ latest report examines how this process has worked over the years at the universities of Illinois, Virginia, Michigan, North Carolina, plus Rutgers.

A LITTLE CHRISTMAS INSPIRATION: Capitol Hill staff entrepreneur’s faith kept him going building a great business when his bank account couldn’t.

WHY CHARLIE BROWN GOT CHRISTMAS WRONG: Yes, when Charles M. Schultz designed what is perhaps the best-known Peanuts, Linus gets the true meaning of Christmas exactly right. But here’s what you may never have realized — Charlie Brown’s critique of commercialism missed the mark big-time, according to Rod Martin.

And after you take in Rod’s thought-provoker, check out this beautiful version by Casting Crowns of “I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day” on HillFaith. The youth choir in this one is simply splendid.

AMERICA FIRST IS NOT HATRED — IT’S STEWARDSHIP: From that title’s basic and most essential understanding, Virgil Walker’s Sola Veritas column includes much wisdom, including a warning to the churches — Protestant and Catholic alike — about their role in the American story:

“Today’s political disorder is downstream from theological failure.

“For years, the American Church avoided hard categories. Pastors replaced clarity with emotionalism. Stewardship was recast as selfishness. Prudence became fear. Borders became taboo.

“The result was not greater compassion, but moral confusion.

“Christians were taught how to feel, not how to think. How to sympathize, not how to steward. Loving your neighbor was weaponized against loving your nation, as if responsibility were a sin.

“It is not.

“Compassion without boundaries is reckless. Hospitality without expectation is destructive. A silent Church does not preserve a nation. It hastens its unraveling.”

MORE HOLIDAY TERRORIST ATTACKS COMING: Intel experts are still saying they see abundant evidence pointing to the likelihood that more terrorist attacks are coming in the U.S. over the holidays. Richard Pollock updates.

TRUMP’S HARANGUE: Donald Trump has repeatedly demonstrated in the past decade that he hears the American people more accurately than any other major national political figure. So how to explain that tone-deaf 17-minute Oval Office diatribe? Bob Maistros, one of the sharp pens at the Issues & Insights shop, offers some on-point suggestions.

UPDATE: For the record, people, my problem with Trump’s speech was definitely not the factual content, but rather the delivery. He’s had an extraordinary first year of a second term and my view is the roaring economy in 2026 will make the mid-terms a GOP win, contrary to the conventional wisdom.

UPDATE II: 🏳️🏳️🏳️! 

CHRISTMAS IS A PAGAN HOLIDAY? It’s that time of year when you hear such claims, but as the latest “What Would You Say?” video from the Colson Center on HillFaith, the historical facts just don’t add up to such a conclusion.

PUBLIC LIBRARY DECLINE: Roughly two of every three public libraries in America have major facility maintenance problems that Government Accountability Office (GAO) investigators say will cost beaucoup bucks to fix. And the most recent National Assessment of Education Progress (NAEP) — the nation’s Report Card on how its public schools are performing — produced the worst reading scores ever among graduating high school seniors.