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Thursday, July 13, 2023

Jim Jordan Questions FBI Director Chris Wray About FBI Targeting Americans

National Review: FBI director Christopher Wray appeared before the House Judiciary Committee on Wednesday morning to address allegations from House Republicans that the federal agency has been politicized and is disproportionately targeting conservative Americans. Representative Jim Jordan (R., Ohio), chairman of the committee, grilled Wray in his opening remarks, focusing particularly on a leaked FBI memo drafted by an unidentified agent targeting so-called “radical traditionalist Catholic ideology” as a hotbed of potentially violent extremism. CatholicVote, an organization advocating for religious freedoms and protections, revealed hours before Wray’s appearance that a freedom of information request submitted to the FBI led the agency to insist that “the public is ‘not entitled’ to the records” pertaining to the anti-Catholic memo (National Review). Daily Caller: Jim Jordan: “Did the FBI ask financial institutions to turn over their customers’ debit and credit card purchase history in the Washington DC area for January 5-6th, 2021?” WRAY: “I don’t know the answer.” JORDAN: “We do. Because Bank of America gave us this email from FBI to Bank of America.” The email goes on to show FBI was interested in the historical purchases of weapons by Bank of America customers as well (Twitter). Collin Rugg: Rep. Jim Jordan accuses the FBI of operating like Communist China by communicating with Big Tech companies to censor Americans. What a humiliating day for Christopher Wray (Twitter).

Kevin McCarthy Op-ed on DOJ’s Treatment of Hunter Biden: “Smells like a cover-up”

Just the News: House Speaker Kevin McCarthy on Wednesday said the Justice Department’s slow investigation of Hunter Biden followed by a plea deal to avoid prison time “smells like a cover-up” under Attorney General Merrick Garland. In an op-ed for Fox News titled, “On Biden’s watch, Lady Justice has been weaponized. But Merrick Garland can’t do this one thing,” McCarthy wrote that mounting evidence shows that the Justice Department under Joe Biden “enforces the law unequally by tilting the scales to favor friends and family while unleashing the FBI and prosecutors on President Biden’s political opponent” – former President Donald Trump. “After slow-walking this investigation for five years, the DOJ turned what the whistleblower described as a ‘slam dunk’ felony case against Hunter Biden into a sweetheart plea deal and possibly buried evidence of crimes that have sent other Americans to prison,” McCarthy also wrote. “When a prosecutor shields his boss’s son from investigators, it smells like a cover-up. Garland’s DOJ did not aggressively follow the money. Why? Are they afraid of where that trail ends” (Just the News)?

Ilhan Omar Angry Israel’s President Set to Visit Congress Next Week

Daily Wire: Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN) lashed out on Wednesday when she learned that Israel’s president will deliver a speech next week to the U.S. Congress. The Messenger asked Omar about the President Isaac Herzog’s upcoming speech on July 19th – to which she first expressed outrage before admitting that she had no idea he was even coming. Omar said that there was “no way in hell” that she would attend the speech, adding: “I didn’t even know he was coming” (Daily Wire). Steve Guest: REMINDER: Democrat Rep. Ilhan Omar has a long history of hateful anti-Israel rhetoric: She tweeted “Israel has hypnotized the world, may Allah awaken the people and help them see the evil doings of Israel.” She tweeted that US support for Israel was “all about the Benjamins” (Twitter). Ilhan Omar: WE SHOULD NOT BE INVITING THE PRESIDENT OF ISRAEL—A GOVERNMENT WHO UNDER ITS CURRENT PRIME MINISTER BARRED THE FIRST TWO MUSLIM WOMEN ELECTED TO CONGRESS FROM VISITING THE COUNTRY—TO GIVE A JOINT ADDRESS TO CONGRESS (Twitter).

CNN Correspondent Misgenders Dylan Mulvaney, Radical Leftists Enraged

Daily Wire: A CNN correspondent was accused of “misgendering” during a segment on the Bud Light/Dylan Mulvaney partnership, sparking outrage among leftists on social media. While reporting on Bud Light’s drop in sales following its partnership with the transgender influencer, CNN correspondent Ryan Young referred to Mulvaney as a “he,” using the pronoun that corresponds to his biological sex when the trans-identifying TikTok star has demanded to be referred to as a woman (Daily Wire). Ari Drennen: Unbelievably bad CNN segment. fails to interrogate where the Bud Light boycott came from. launders perspectives of people who think their grandchildren will be harmed by the knowledge that trans people exist. misgenders Dylan Mulvaney. This segment could’ve run on Fox News (Twitter)!

Media Attacks Film Exposing Child Trafficking

Newsweek: A number of TikTok users have claimed AMC Theatres and Regal Cinemas’ air-conditioning was not working at screenings across the country of the new movie Sound of Freedom. The movie, produced by and based on the life of anti-child trafficking campaigner Tim Ballard, opened to positive numbers, beating Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny at the box office when it was released on the Fourth of July. Sound of Freedom follows former Homeland Security special agent Ballard (played by Jim Caviezel) as he sets up Operation Underground Railroad (O.U.R.), an anti-child trafficking organization. The film made $14,242,063 on its first day in theaters (Newsweek). Ed Morrissey: The film “Sound of Freedom” depicts real-life events in combating actual child trafficking—and the elite media is attacking the film, primarily because conservatives have promoted it. CNN, the Guardian and others accused the film of playing up to QAnon conspiracists—despite that almost all of the film takes place outside the US and is based on actual events (Townhall Review).

California Shuts Down Bipartisan Bill to Increase Penalty for Child Traffickers

Free Beacon: California Democrats on Tuesday killed a bipartisan bill to strengthen punishments for repeat traffickers of minors, continuing a years-long push to empty prisons. The legislation, Senate Bill 14, would classify trafficking of children and teenagers younger than 18 years old as a serious felony on par with murder, arson, and rape, which would bring longer prison terms and potential life sentences without a chance for a plea bargain. The six Democrats on the Assembly Public Safety Committee abstained from voting on the bill, preventing its advance for a vote by the full chamber. Both Republicans voted yes (Free Beacon). Washington Examiner: When you sell children into slavery, you have no idea where in the world they could end up or what the extent of their exploitation will be. Victims may be raped several times a day for years on end, used for sadistic sex abuse material, forced into labor, or have their organs harvested against their will. Starvation and beatings, sexually transmitted disease, and forced abortions are also common in the lives of trafficked individuals. Casting children into that criminal network authorizes whatever form of hell is unleashed on their life from that day onward. California’s attorney general has admitted that the Golden State is already a hotspot in the United States for human trafficking compared to most states. If officials insist on avoiding the death penalty for criminals, they should at least be comfortable with locking up the worst people on the planet for life (Washington Examiner).

Iowa Lawmakers Pass Heartbeat Bill, ACLU, Planned Parenthood Immediately Files Lawsuit

Daily Wire: Iowa lawmakers passed a bill on Tuesday banning most abortions when an unborn child’s heartbeat can be detected, usually around six weeks into the pregnancy. The bill was passed after Republican Governor Kim Reynolds called a special session to address abortion after the Iowa Supreme Court blocked the state’s 2018 Heartbeat Act last month. Reynold’s said she would sign the bill on Friday (Daily Wire). Life News: Because its so obsessed with making money from killing babies in abortions, Planned Parenthood is leading the way with a legal challenge to keep abortions legal. The challenge, filed by the ACLU of Iowa, Planned Parenthood North Central States and the Emma Goldman Clinic, a local abortion business, asks a district court judge to block the law from taking effect on Friday when Governor Reynolds signs it. If the judge disagrees, babies will be protected immediately (Life News).

Biden, Zelenskyy Meet at the NATO Summit

Katie Pavlich: President Joe Biden held a meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Wednesday during the 79th annual NATO Summit in Lithuania. While reporters looked on, Zelenskyy thanked the American people for funding billions in weapons transfers to the country in an effort to push back the Russians. President Biden then responded with remarks of his own (Townhall). Townhall: ZELENSKY: “I want to thank all Americans…I understand that it’s all your money, but you have to know that you spend this money for not just for fighting. You spend this money for our lives” (Twitter).

Media Smears Lorie Smith After Supreme Court Case

Wall Street Journal: The permanent political campaign against the Supreme Court has expanded to target successful litigants. Last month the justices ruled in favor of our client Lorie Smith in 303 Creative v. Elenis, a landmark victory for free speech. Although this ruling benefits people across the ideological spectrum, some on the left—including many in the press—have responded with a disinformation effort against Ms. Smith. On June 29, the day before the ruling, the New Republic published a piece with the nefarious-sounding headline “The Mysterious Case of the Fake Gay Marriage Website, the Real Straight Man, and the Supreme Court.” The media pounced. The Associated Press spread the story around the world in a dispatch headlined “Legitimacy of ‘customer’ in Supreme Court gay rights case raises ethical, legal flags.” Neal Katyal, a former acting U.S. solicitor general, opined on MSNBC that 303 Creative was a “fake case” because there was “no controversy” and urged the state to petition the high court “to seek rehearing and to get this decision stricken from the books.” This is nonsense, and Mr. Katyal should know better. It’s undisputed and electronic records confirm that Ms. Smith received the request from a third party in September 2016—the day after she filed her lawsuit (Wall Street Journal).

10.

Remote Work Could Cost Office Buildings $800 Billion

Bloomberg: Remote work risks wiping $800 billion from the value of office buildings in major cities, highlighting the potential losses that landlords are facing from post-pandemic changes in employment trends. Covid-19’s push toward hybrid work has driven the need for office space down with vacancy rates rising, McKinsey Global Institute said Thursday in a report that modeled the impact on valuations by 2030 in nine cities globally. The estimate for $800 billion in valuation losses represents a 26% decline compared to levels in 2019, with the blow at risk of deepening to as much as 42%, the consultancy firm said (Bloomberg). Forbes: The staying power of hybrid work—as well as a worsening economy—is clearly having an impact, and McKinsey’s report suggests it could be decades before office space demand returns to pre-pandemic levels (Forbes).