PrairiePundit

 Corpus Christi Caller-Times: In raw political terms, Gov. Greg Abbott can easily afford to lose the legal fight brought by the U.S. Justice Department against him and the state of Texas. President Joe Biden cannot. In fact, an argument can be made that Biden can ill afford to win. Let's look at how the immigration issue has played out through a political lens since Biden replaced former President Donald Trump in 2021 and changed the national approach to dealing with people crossing without legal authorization into the United States in general − and into Texas in particular. Abbott seized the initiative right out of the gate. Units of the Texas National Guard were deployed to the border. So were scores of state troopers. Billions of tax dollars are still showering down on the governor's Operation Lone Star. Biden, on the other hand, announced he was tasking Vice President Kamala Harris with seeking a solution to the root causes of illegal immigration. Harris has resisted the in...

 Fox News: A large bipartisan coalition in the House is introducing legislation Friday that would reverse a provision in the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) targeting oil and gas producers. The Promoting Domestic Energy Production Act — authored by Reps. Mike Carey, R-Ohio, and Vicente Gonzalez, D-Texas, and joined by more than a dozen fellow members — would aim to ensure the oil and gas industry is able to enjoy the same tax benefits as other capital-intensive industries. Specifically, it allows companies to receive tax deductions on intangible drilling costs (IDC). "American energy independence is neither a right nor left issue, but one that should unite us all," Carey told Fox News Digital in a statement. "Our bipartisan legislation fixes a provision within the Inflation Reduction Act that unfairly penalizes America’s energy producers." "At a time of sky-high inflation, the American people need any help they can get when it comes to lowering the cost of ener...

 Business Insider: Russia is working to cement ties with its African allies, with President Vladimir Putin promising free grain to six African countries this week. Russia will ship 25,000-50,000 tons of grain each to Burkina Faso, Central African Republic, Eritrea, Mali, Somalia, and Zimbabwe, Putin said at the St. Petersburg Russia-Africa summit on Thursday. The proposed donations appear to be a reward for Russia's close African allies, particularly as wheat prices rise. Most nations on the receiving end of shipments are on good terms with Moscow, as many have held back from criticizing Russia's invasion of Ukraine. Zimbabwe president Emmerson Mnangagwa said the nation was grateful for the gift, though he noted Zimbabwe is "not in any grain deficit at all," Reuters reported. Meanwhile, African countries that are currently experiencing a food crisis, such as Sudan and Chad, were excluded from Russia's list of recipients. Russia's gifts come amid a surge in wh...

 Jonathon Turley: For her entire life, four-year-old Navy Joan Roberts has been "she who must not be named." There is no evidence that her father has ever visited her, let alone held her. Her grandparents repeatedly denied her existence and said that they had only "four granddaughters." They even gave their dogs stockings at Christmas rather than Navy, who never even bit one let alone a score of Secret Service agents. As even Democrats began to voice their own shock at the cruelty of the First Couple shunning this child, the Bidens finally relented and recognized her existence, but only barely so. Pressed by Fox News, the White House issued this statement: "Our son Hunter and Navy’s mother, Lunden, are working together to foster a relationship that is in the best interests of their daughter, preserving her privacy as much as possible going forward. This is not a political issue, it’s a family matter. Jill and I only want what is best for all of our grandchild...

 Miranda Devine: What a coincidence! On the eve of Devon Archer’s bombshell testimony to the House Oversight Committee, the Department of Justice tried to put him in jail. If you don’t suspect that’s an attempt to intimidate Hunter Biden’s former best friend before he reveals damaging secrets about the president, then I have a bridge in Brooklyn to sell you. It’s another example of a DOJ gone astray. Coming hot on the heels of the first son’s dubious plea deal in Delaware collapsing last week , and amid allegations from senior IRS whistleblowers of political favoritism by prosecutors to protect Joe Biden, you have to wonder how far a weaponized, all-powerful, unaccountable justice system can go. Two more examples from the past week tell you the sky’s the limit — and they’re not even bothering to hide it anymore. On Wednesday, federal prosecutors dropped campaign-finance violation charges against cryptocurrency billionaire Sam Bankman-Fried , who just so happens to have been Biden’s...

 Jim Geraghty: ... And outside the political system, there are significant but hardly discussed signs of a cultural and political pendulum swinging back. Many conservatives believe that progressive forces calling for “diversity, equity, and inclusion” — that define human beings entirely through their race, gender, or sexual orientation — are marching relentlessly though every institution in America, turning every human-resources department into a tool of ideological and political indoctrination. The Wall Street Journal recently reported that in the past year, the DEI trend hit a metaphorical brick wall and is staggering backward. Companies including Netflix, Disney, and Warner Bros. Discovery have recently said that high-profile diversity, equity, and inclusion executives will be leaving their jobs. Thousands of diversity-focused workers have been laid off since last year, and some companies are scaling back racial-justice commitments… New analysis from employment data provider Li...

  Telegraph: Russia’s defence minister is in North Korea to secure weapons, Anthony Blinken, the US secretary of state has said. Sergei Shoigu was this week given a personal tour of Pyongyang’s weaponry by Kim Jong-un in the first trip by Moscow’s top defence official since the break-up of the Soviet Union. The rare visit to celebrate the 70th anniversary of the Korean war armistice saw Mr Shoigu pledge to boost military ties, as he praised the North Korean military as the “most powerful” in the world. In reference to Mr Shoigu’s visit, Mr Blinken said: “I strongly doubt he’s there on holiday,” adding, “we’re seeing Russia desperately looking for support, for weapons, wherever it can find them to continue to prosecute its aggression against Ukraine.” “We see that in North Korea, we see that as well with Iran, which has provided many drones to Russia that it’s using to destroy civilian infrastructure and kill civilians in Ukraine.” ... Iran has also been supplying Ukraine .  A...

 Clarice Feldman: It has been a week of scandalous doings on Attorney General Merrick Garland’s watch.   Congress seems paralyzed to intervene with more than hearings, and so far, only federal district court Judge Maryellen Noreika has tried. As I explain, it’s questionable whether her conduct will prevent the Justice Department from exonerating Hunter Biden from laundering what may be as much as $50 million in bribes from countries, including China, Ukraine, and Romania, into his family’s pockets. Through Jack Smith, it has corralled President Trump’s valet and the Mar-a-Largo maintenance worker into the ridiculous documents case. Finally, it dropped another case against crypto scammer Sam Bankman-Fried, who contributed as much as $90 million dollars of ill-gotten funds almost entirely to Democrat candidates and their action committees. Hunter Biden and the No-good, Dirty Deal Ferried to the courthouse by a substantial (obviously taxpayer-paid) motorcade, ...

 Fox News: New York and California experienced the largest loss of tax income from migration of any states in the country as residents fled the deep-blue havens in droves, according to a new study that also found that Texas and Florida got the biggest IRS tax benefits from people moving in. MyEListing.com, an online real estate portal, conducted a study of IRS migration data and found that California lost more than $340 million in 2021 IRS tax revenue due to residents moving. "Despite its numerous attractions, from the booming tech industry and world-class universities to beautiful landscapes and cultural richness, California's high personal income tax rates seem discouraging for many high-wealth individuals," MyEListing wrote in its analysis. "This, coupled with the state's high cost of living, will likely fuel a wealth migration out of California ." From January 2020 to July 2022, the state lost well over half a million people, with the number of resident...

 AP: 'The Few, the Proud' aren't so few: Marines recruiting surges while other services struggle  I remember when I visited the Marine Corps Officer Selection Officer when I was a senior in college he looked like he had stepped out of a recruiting poster.  He was nearly a foot taller than me and built like a well-toned athlete.   When I got into OCS I found that there were several candidates who were my size or smaller.  I also found that I was in better physical shape than many of the candidates who were bigger.  When we were practicing bayonet combat with pugal sticks I was paired with a much bigger guy who I quickly took down and he had to be carted to the medical team.  I also wound up with the second fastest time in the battalion in a five-mile run in full battle gear.

Gateway Pundit: ... James Comer also revealed that six major banks, including JP Morgan, Bank of America, and Wells Fargo, had submitted over 170 suspicious activity reports (SARs) to the Treasury Department, all concerning alleged criminal behavior by the Biden crime family. Fox News host Jesse Watters said sources confirmed to “Primetime” that whistleblowers have proof the Bidens have offshore bank accounts. “Primetime” has just discovered the Biden family, possibly Joe Biden himself, has offshore bank accounts….Let that sink in. IRS whistleblowers have indicated that they have documents suggesting that the Biden family, possibly Joe Biden himself, are hiding money offshore,” Jesse Watters said. “These IRS whistleblowers have been asked to produce the documents relating to Biden’s offshore bank accounts relating to the House Ways and Means Committee,” Watters said. “Now, these documents can’t go to Comer. They have to go to House Ways and Means because they’re the only committee perm...

 Jeff Childers: ... Surely you’ve seen all the climate hysteria lately, and probably seen lots of counter argument. But there are some things they haven’t been telling us, that are in themselves complete explanations for any increased world temperatures we might be living through this summer. It’s not carbon dioxide, as crypto-marxist, faux protest group “Extinction Rebellion” wants you to think.... ... Ready to learn something? Let’s meet the historic, record-shattering Hunga Tonga volcanic eruption of 2022, which I bet you never heard of. Back in January 2022, you were probably distracted by covid mandates or maybe by Biden calling himself “Senator” again. The short version is an underwater Pacific Ocean volcano named Hunga Tonga-Hunga Ha’apai, 490 feet under the waves, massively erupted, bigger than any other modern eruption, even bigger than Mount Pinatubo. You never heard about it since it was underwater and nobody died. But the erupting lava instantly vaporized fantastic, un...

 Fox News: Residents of a Chicago-area neighborhood frustrated by the disruptive behaviors of illegal migrants at a local shelter sounded off to city leaders this week. Neighbors said they "no longer [had] any tolerance" for migrants who were loitering, engaging in late-night partying, prostitution, littering and even fighting with community members, CBS2 Chicago reported . Distraught residents told city officials in attendance that the migrants' behavior made them feel unsafe. "I would ask you all to go out there — go out there at night, in the middle of the night — and see what goes on," one emotional resident said. Another woman vented, "They disrespect us, they rob us, they harass us." One local man threatened that if they didn't address the issue, neighbors would take it into their own hands. "Let me say this — they've got one more time to deal with it, because otherwise, next time they deal with it, they're going to deal with it...

 Jordon Boyd: In the months leading up to the 2020 election, President Joe Biden denied on multiple occasions that he ever discussed business with his son. One of Joe’s most infamous and specific lies was, “My son has not made money in terms of this thing about — what are you talking about — China,” which he delivered from the stage during the second presidential debate in October 2020. Five days before the debate, the  New York Post reported  on emails from Hunter’s abandoned laptop detailing how the younger Biden pursued business deals with one of China’s largest energy companies in an attempt to cash in “for me and my family.” The Post also uncovered evidence that some of these arrangements involve a “ big guy ” who sounded an awful lot like then-Vice President Joe. Hunter was going to get this mysterious man to exchange political favors for millions of dollars, a fact which was  later corroborated  by a highly credible confidential human source. When former ...

 Matt Taibi: ... In one damning email, an unnamed Facebook executive wrote to Mark Zuckerberg and Cheryl Sandberg: We are facing continued pressure from external stakeholders, including the White House and the press, to remove more Covid-19 vaccine discouraging content. We see repeatedly in internal communications not only in the email above, but in the Twitter Files, in the exhibits of the Missouri v Biden lawsuit, and even in the Freedom of Information request results beginning to trickle in here at Racket, that the news media has for some time been working in concert with civil society organizations, government, and tech platforms, as part of the censorship apparatus. In the summer of 2021, the White House and Joe Biden were in the middle of a major factual faceplant. They were not only telling people the Covid-19 vaccine was a sure bet — “ You’re not going to get Covid if you have these vaccinations ” is how Biden put it — but that those who questioned its efficacy were “killin...

  Athena Thorne: As red states continue to pass common-sense, pro-freedom laws, their quality of life improves in countless ways. Accordingly, they’ve become prime destinations for Americans seeking freedom to prosper, create, worship, and raise children in a wholesome environment. But conservative laws are also producing a secondary benefit: disgruntled Leftists are packing their stuff and self-deporting to bluer pastures. Naturally, a prime example of this splendid secondary effect is Florida. The Sunshine State has become the friendliest possible territory for common-sense conservatives. Its stalwart conservative governor and proactive state legislature have been working hand-in-glove to eradicate the worst aspects of progressivism and nullify the effects of radical-Left federal diktats. Obamacare authorizes tax dollars to be spent on sex-change body modifications? Okay, whatever — Florida has banned the use of Medicaid to pay for it (currently tied up in court) and outlawed suc...

 Headline USA: Seven Republican U.S. senators, led by Sen. John Cornyn , R-Texas, introduced a joint resolution to condemn a federal policy created by the Biden administration through a federal agency rule-making process called the Circumvention of Lawful Pathways Rule. They did so as the Biden administration has held fast to its plan to facilitate the migration of and release into the U.S. of as many people as possible from all over the world. Biden spoke of the plan in January, which was devised in cooperation with other world leaders and publicly announced two years ago. The rule created additional ways to funnel illegal immigrants “into unlawful parole programs that the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has set up without Congress’ consent,” the senators said in a joint statement . It went into effect May 11, the same day the public health authority Title 42 ended. Joining Cornyn are Sens. Marsha Blackburn of Tennessee, Katie Britt and Tommy Tuberville of Alabama, ...

 Daily Beast: Explosions Rock Moscow in Brazen Early-Morning Drone Attack Several explosions rocked Moscow early Sunday morning in a drone attack that damaged a skyscraper, left at least one person injured, and shut down local airspace, according to local reports. The Moscow City business center took a direct hit in the attack, with footage from the scene showing debris and smoke apparently pouring from the building. Local outlet 112 reported that a security guard was injured in the strike, though Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin said no injuries had been reported. “Ukrainian drones attacked tonight. The facades on two [Moscow] City office towers were slightly damaged,” Sobyanin wrote on Telegram. Residents reported hearing multiple explosions just before 3:30 a.m. local time, as air defenses were activated to shoot down the drones. Witnesses told local media at least one of the drones appeared to tear through a floor in the Moscow City skyscraper, blowing out nearby windows in the pro...

 Motorious: In an alarming incident near the Dutch island of Ameland, a cargo ship, the Fremantle Highway, has been engulfed in flames, and experts predict it is at risk of sinking. The vessel , carrying approximately 3,000 vehicles, including 25 electric vehicles (EVs), was en route from Bremerhaven, Germany to Port Said, Egypt when a massive fire broke out on board. The ship, owned by K-Line, a Tokyo-based shipping company , is currently floating unmanned in the waters of the North Sea after the crew was forced to abandon it due to the uncontrollable blaze. The fire reportedly started early this morning and quickly spread throughout the ship. The cause of the fire remains unknown at this point. ... One of the primary concerns is the potential environmental impact, particularly due to the 25 electric vehicles on board. The lithium-ion batteries in these EVs could cause additional fires and explosions, making the situation even more hazardous. If the ship were to sink, these batter...

 Catherine Selgado: Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) just released what he called “smoking-gun” evidence on how the Biden White House pressured Facebook into censoring Americans’ free speech. Unfortunately, the House Judiciary — which Jordan chairs — also just “scrapped” a Thursday meeting to consider holding Meta (Facebook) CEO Mark Zuckerberg in contempt of Congress. “Never-before-released internal documents subpoenaed by the Judiciary Committee PROVE that Facebook and Instagram censored posts and changed their content moderation policies because of unconstitutional pressure from the Biden White House,” Jordan  tweeted  on July 27. The first half of 2021, Jordan’s tweet thread  continued , brought “tremendous pressure from the Biden White House” for tech platforms to censor whatever the Biden administration considered to be “misinformation.” As an  example , Jordan shared a screenshot of an email to Zuckerberg and then-Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg, noting “continued p...

 Daily Mail: Republicans react with fury to 'brazen' timing of bombshell new Trump indictment and claim charges were filed to distract from Biden family scandals after First Son's sweetheart deal collapsed ... 'The DOJ's decision to pursue additional charges against President Trump is further evidence of the politicization of our nation's top prosecutorial agency,' Sen. Marsha Blackburn, a Republican from Tennessee, tweeted Thursday night. 'Amid AG [Merrick] Garland's dismissal of wrongdoing by Hunter Biden and Hillary Clinton, Tennesseans are tired of two tiers of justice.' In an interview with FOX News, Sen. Josh Hawley also said it was no coincidence that the charges were announced after Hunter Biden's deal fell through. 'Is it any coincidence that the DOJ rushes to add these new indictments today after the Hunter debacle, after their own self-dealing and two-timing is exposed, after they tried to hide from us the true extent of this p...

 Breitbart: House Oversight Committee Chair James Comer (R-KY) raised concerns that the Biden family could be involved in racketeering, the act of operating a business with illegally derived income through money laundering. Speaking on the Verdict with Ted Cruz podcast this week, Comer revealed the Biden family business caused six banks to flag over 170 “large” amounts of money in Suspicious Activity Reports (SARs) to the treasury for review, 20 more than previously known. SARs “often contain evidence of potential criminal activities, such as money laundering and fraud,” according to a 2020 Senate report . Comer, who is a former bank board member of ten years, said from his experience that just two SARs would make it difficult for an average citizen to open a bank account. SARs occur very seldom, Comer explained. “How many [SARs] were issued concerning Hunter Biden and Joe Biden, the Biden family?” Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) asked Comer. “Over 170,” he replied. “You were on a bank [boa...

 AP: Switzerland, Finland and Sweden are considering joining the U.S. National Guard's security partnership program in a further expansion of American military ties across Europe after Russia's invasion of Ukraine. The chief of the National Guard, Gen. Dan Hokanson , announced the discussions with each country, which had not previously been reported, in remarks at the National Press Club on Thursday. Interest by the three countries in the program is the latest indication of how Russia’s war has led each of those nations to take steps that consider ending long-standing policies of military nonalignment. ... Finland and Sweden were the most recent countries to seek NATO membership; Finland joined in April and Sweden is waiting for approval. Longtime-neutral Switzerland began considering easing export controls on sending weapons to active war zones earlier this year. The National Guard's State Partnership Program is a lesser-known but key military instrument for U.S. troops t...