KRUISER’S MORNING BRIEFING: Dems Make a Case for One-Party Republican Rule, At Least for a While. “Watching the Democrats proudly display their delusion and denial during the confirmation hearings this week has brought me to a place where I can easily advocate for the Republicans being in charge for quite some time. Bear in mind, I always find problems with the way Republicans do things; I’m just saying that the worst Republican in Congress is exponentially better than the best Democrat.”
Author Archive: Stephen Green
January 16, 2025
BIDEN’S PARTING GIFTS: Biden exempted nearly 7000 foreign nationals from terror-related entry restrictions into the US.
The report doesn’t break down the number by country but the Biden previously increased the refugee cap from 18,000 set in the last year of the Trump administration to 125,000.
According to DHS reports, the number is much higher than the 2,085 in FY 2023. That year was higher than the 603 waivers distributed in FY 2022, 191 in FY 2021, and 361 in FY 2020.
Foreign nationals can be deemed inadmissible from entry into the US and for immigration benefits if they have associated with, supported, or worked with terrorist organizations, but the DHS secretary can exempt certain foreign nationals if they provided support under duress, provided medical care, or meet other standards for exemptions.
You’d either have to be a fool to trust the Biden administration’s vetting process or a bigger fool not to take advantage of it.
WHILE YOU WERE SLEEPING:
Second stage engine cutoff confirmed. New Glenn’s second stage and payload are now in orbit. Another burn coming up…
— Blue Origin (@blueorigin) January 16, 2025
New Glenn safely reached its intended orbit during today's NG-1 mission, accomplishing our primary objective. The second stage is in its final orbit following two successful burns of the BE-3U engines. The Blue Ring Pathfinder is receiving data and performing well.
We lost the… pic.twitter.com/MmDlCb6AVj
— Blue Origin (@blueorigin) January 16, 2025
“It took SpaceX 8 attempts to nail their first landing.”
Bravo to all involved, no matter what novelty shirts they might have been wearing.
AND YET IT STILL SUCKED: Your Favorite Moment of the Biden Presidency Has Finally Arrived! “The same steely-eyed leader who still insists he could deftly serve another four years (and surely would’ve bested Trump!) struggled through his speech, mangling words and swallowing syllables with Hawk Tuah-level proficiency. Even the 2017 Atlanta Falcons were like, ‘Bro, that’s a weak way to finish.'”
CIVIL RIGHTS UPDATE: Legal Victory Secured for Young Adults in Pennsylvania Open Carry Case.
Writing for the majority, Circuit Judge Kent A. Jordan stated, “It is undisputed that 18-to-20-year-olds are among ‘the people’ for other constitutional rights such as the right to vote, freedom of speech, the freedom to peaceably assemble, and the right against unreasonable searches and seizures. We therefore reiterate our holding that 18-to-20-year-olds are, like other subsets of the American public, presumptively among ‘the people’ to whom Second Amendment rights extend.”
Judge Jordan, a George W. Bush appointee, was joined by Judge D. Brooks Smith, another Bush appointee, while Judge L. Felipe Restrepo, an Obama appointee, dissented.
Previously: Appeals court says Colorado ban on gun sales to those under 21 can take effect.
Win some, lose some — but I might have purchased a pistol or two (for myself, of course) that are more in line with my 19-year-old’s tastes.
CONFIRMATION HEARINGS: Sen. Schmitt EXPLODES Hypocritical Dem Self-Righteousness on Rule of Law. “The Democrats spent the Senate Judiciary Committee hearing for Trump’s attorney general nominee Pam Bondi repeatedly asking her to commit to not engaging in any of the legal and constitutional violations the Biden Justice Department has committed over the last four years. And one senator raked his leftist colleagues over the coals for their utter hypocrisy.”
January 15, 2025
LINCOLN BROWN READ IT SO YOU DON’T HAVE TO: Don’t Let the Door Hit You Where the Good Lord Split You: Biden’s Farewell Letter.
ABOUT TIME: New obesity definition sidelines BMI to focus on health. “The group’s revised definition, published in The Lancet Diabetes & Endocrinology1 on 14 January, focuses on how excess body fat, a measure called adiposity, affects the body, rather than relying only on body mass index (BMI), which links a person’s weight to their height. They propose two categories: preclinical obesity, when a person has extra body fat but their organs work normally, and clinical obesity, when excess fat harms the body’s organs and tissues.”
NOTHING TO SEE HERE, MOVE ALONG:
NYT, breaking: “A nonprofit founded by Stacey Abrams, a Georgia Democrat, admitted on Wednesday that it had violated state law by concealing the fact that it had campaigned for her during her 2018 run for governor.
At the time of that campaign, the group was led by Raphael…
— Josh Kraushaar (@JoshKraushaar) January 15, 2025
Full story here.
THE 60-MINUTE LAUNCH WINDOW FOR STARSHIP FLIGHT TEST 7 OPENS AT 5 PM EASTERN and you can watch here.
BIDEN’S PARTING GIFTS: Republican congressional members outraged over Biden plan to remove Cuba from State Sponsor of Terrorism list. “A high-level source U.S. government source with direct knowledge about Cuba confirmed to ADN Cuba that the Biden administration will remove the communist regime from the State Sponsors of Terrorism (SSOT) list. The source also stated that the decision came directly from the Democratic administration at the White House, not the State Department.”
CHANGE: Starbucks reverses open bathroom policy.
In a letter directed to store managers and above, which the company provided to Fox News Digital, Starbucks executive vice president and president of Starbucks North America Sara Trilling noted, “we are establishing a new code of conduct that will be displayed in every store. This is common practice, and makes clear that our spaces, including our cafes, patios and restrooms, are for use by paying customers and our partners.”
The coffee company’s move to limit the use of its facilities to paying customers represents an about-face from its previous policy.
In 2018, the company declared, “Any customer is welcome to use Starbucks spaces, including our restrooms, cafes and patios, regardless of whether they make a purchase.”
It’s a tribute to human stubbornness that the 2018 policy lasted as long as it did.
IT’S HARD TO BELIEVE THERE’S ROOM FOR ANY MORE INCOMPETENCE AT THE TOP OF LAFD, AND YET THERE IT IS: Bombshell Report Exposes More LAFD Incompetence in Responding to Wildfires.
BOTTOM STORY OF THE DAY: Michelle Obama signals she’s done with Trump.
CUE THE WORLD’S SMALLEST VIOLIN: Expect Big Changes in the White Press Room As Trump Will All But Sideline Legacy Media.
I KEPT TELLING YOU THERE’S PLENTY MORE BIDENFLATION BAKED INTO THE SYSTEM: Consumer price growth rose in December, a sign Trump will inherit stubborn inflation as he takes office.
Consumer price growth ticked up in December, a sign President-elect Donald Trump will inherit the inflation issues that dogged the Biden administration as he re-takes the White House next week.
The Bureau of Labor Statistics reported Wednesday that the annual inflation rate — which is calculated based on prices compared to a year ago — climbed to 2.9% from 2.7% in November.
On a monthly basis, the rate rose to 0.4%, up from 0.3% a month prior and above expectations.
Even as the broader inflation index picked up, a measure that strips out volatile food and gas items climbed less than expected. That so-called “core” reading is closely watched by investors.
That’s not all Trump inherits on January 20:
This is the worst start to a fiscal year EVER:
– Spending is up 10.9%
– Receipts are down 2.2%
– FYTD deficit up 39.4% at $711 billion
They're handing Trump a ticking time bomb… pic.twitter.com/q1DYC1Ep5q— E.J. Antoni, Ph.D. (@RealEJAntoni) January 15, 2025
But, hey, at least Milton Friedman hasn’t been “running the show.”
MEANWHILE, OVER AT VODKAPUNDIT: Here We Go Again: Deep State Shadow Coup II. “Presidentish Joe Biden might be partly incapacitated and on his way out the White House door, but his administration is “playing dirty during the transition period,” former Trump 45 Undersecretary of Defense Ezra Cohen told the Daily Mail today. But there’s much more to ‘Shadow Coup II’ than is detailed in the Daily Mail report.”
BEEGE WELBORN: ‘Why Did DeSantis Do This To Us?’ Duval Teachers’ Union Ex-Prez & VP Right Now, Probably.
It seems like it’s been ages since I had a chance to rattle on about the country’s GREATEST FRICKIN’ GOVERNOR – that would be Ron DeSantis. I can’t believe I’ve neglected our Free State of Florida for so long, but I do have to admit things nationally have been pretty exciting.
That’s my excuse, and I’m sticking to it.
Today, however, my girlfriend Amy found such a hilariously wicked karma story that I couldn’t help but snicker and share it with you all.
So lemme set the stage (or bury the lede ‘better than anybody,’ as Mischief tells me all the time): it all starts back in January of 2023.
Fresh off his historic November shellacking of both Charlie Crist and his running mate, Miami-Dade teachers’ union president Karla Hernandez-Mats, and the Miami-Dade teachers’ union (United Teachers of Dade) itself…
Once again, Beege is having way too much fun with a twisty story that deserves more national attention.
THE LEFT’S WAR ON WOMEN (CONT’D): When It Comes to Protecting Women’s Sports, Democrats Just Failed Their First Test.
DECOUPLING: US probe finds China unfairly dominates shipbuilding, paving way for penalties, sources say.
U.S. President Joe Biden’s administration has concluded China uses unfair policies and practices to dominate the global maritime, logistics and shipbuilding sectors, three sources familiar with the results of a months-long trade investigation told Reuters.
U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) Katherine Tai launched the probe in April 2024 at the request of the United Steelworkers and four other U.S. unions under Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974, which allows the U.S. to penalize foreign countries that engage in acts that are “unjustifiable” or “unreasonable,” or burden U.S. commerce.
Investigators concluded that China targeted the shipbuilding and maritime industry for dominance, using financial support, barriers for foreign firms, forced technology transfer and intellectual property theft and procurement policies to give its shipbuilding and maritime industry an advantage, said one of the sources who was not authorized to speak publicly.
Beijing also “severely and artificially suppressed China’s labor costs in the maritime, shipbuilding and logistics sectors,” that person added, citing excerpts of the report.
None of this comes as a huge surprise and all of it was probably inevitable the moment the West welcomed a Communist regime with a billion people into an international economic system meant for free countries.
KRUISER’S MORNING BRIEFING: Nancy Mace Understands the Republicans’ Assignment for 2025. “Present-day Democrats in Washington are awful people, and feigned tolerance for their antics in vomit-inducing at this point. In addition to being a paste-eating idiot, Jasmine Crockett is a perennially shrieking confrontation monger; Nancy Mace’s response to her was perfect.”