Your First Look at Today's Top Stories

Having trouble viewing this email? View the web version.

Sponsored By

DaybreakInsider.com

Tuesday, November 21, 2023

Poll: 77 Percent of Democrats Favor Abortion

Wall Street Journal: New results from a Wall Street Journal-NORC poll show Americans’ support for abortion access is at one of the highest levels on record since nonpartisan researchers began tracking it in the 1970s. Some 55% of respondents say it should be possible for a pregnant woman to obtain a legal abortion if she wants it for any reason. Since the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade and ended the constitutional right to the procedure, abortion-rights groups have notched seven consecutive victories in state ballot initiatives. They include an Ohio measure earlier this month to protect abortion under the state constitution. Behind these successes is a decadeslong shift among Americans in support of access to the procedure. About 77% of Democrats in the new poll say they support access to abortion for any reason, up from 52% in 2016 (Wall Street Journal).

Footage Shows Hamas Operating Inside Hospital in Gaza

Katie Pavlich: New security camera footage from the Shifa hospital in the Gaza Strip shows Hamas terrorists moving civilian hostages into the building. The medical center also serves as a command center. There are currently 240 hostages being held by Hamas and other terrorist organizations after they were abducted in Israel on October 7, 2023. The hostages are from more than 30 countries (Townhall). Tamar Schwarzbard: In the video that the IDF released, take note of the blue scrubs worn by Shifa hospital medical professionals. Hamas terrorists have been openly operating in the Shifa hospital. The medical professionals there knew it, we knew it and now the world knows it (X).

NYU Announces Antisemitism Center as They Face Antisemitism Lawsuit from Jewish Students

Times of Israel: New York University says it will launch a center dedicated to studying and combating antisemitism, as US universities grapple with strident anti-Israel activities that Jewish students say often veers into discrimination. The Center for the Study of Antisemitism will research both “classical” anti-Jewish discrimination and “the ‘new antisemitism’ and its links to anti-Zionism,” NYU President Linda G. Mills said in a statement on Wednesday. NYU said the antisemitism center would investigate the ways antisemitism and other forms of discrimination feed into each other. In addition to research, the center will conduct training at the university and elsewhere to guard against antisemitism and other forms of hatred and will engage with non-academics including members of the media, law enforcement and government (Times of Israel). National Review: The announcement comes days after three Jewish students sued NYU for allegedly committing “egregious civil rights violations” and creating a “hostile educational environment” in which Jewish students were subject to “pervasive acts of hatred, discrimination, harassment, and intimidation” (National Review).

Elon Musk Follows Through with Lawsuit Against Media Matters for Defamation

Axios: Elon Musk’s X Corp. sued Media Matters for America for defamation on Monday after the left-leaning nonprofit released a report on ads on X running next to pro-Nazi content and helped trigger an advertiser exodus. Driving the news: The lawsuit, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas Fort Worth Division, alleged the organization’s tactics were manipulative and deceptive. X alleged that Media Matters “exploited” the platform have ads appear this way, which included “excessive scrolling” and curating its feed with “fringe” content (Axios). Author Alex Berenson: BOOM goes the dynamite! Elon Musk promised it, and now X has sued Media Matters (who are awful, no doubt about that) (X). Jesse Watters: Elon Musk and X are suing a left-wing smear machine. If Musk wins this lawsuit, it would constitute an enormous victory for free speech (X).

The Scourge of Fentanyl is Being Ignored by Everyone

Seth Leibsohn: For those who follow drug use trends, 1979 was known as the highwater mark of dangerous and illegal drug use, with 14.1 percent of our population regularly abusing drugs. While we surpassed our 1979 use record by nearly 20 percent, we are seeing a greater than 3,000 percent increase of drug poisoning deaths. And yet, despite these horrific milestones, you never hear about the fentanyl crisis, outside of an occasional story here and there on border policy debates. Recall how the AIDS crisis saturated our attention in the 1980s and 1990s. In the worst year of that tragedy—1995—50,000 Americans died, and we rightfully paid a huge amount of attention to it. High school and college students were fed a constant diet of warnings and information. News programs, theatrical plays, Hollywood, marches, fundraising walks, ribbons, and a national memorial quilt all deployed to educate on and give attention to the AIDS crisis. Now, for perspective, consider that we lost 110,000 Americans to drug poisonings last year, an increase from 106,000 the year before. That’s more than double the AIDS crisis at its height. We are losing more Americans to drug deaths than we ever did to AIDS, and it’s not even close. Or consider the COVID-19 pandemic: We shut down schools, we shut down after school programs, we enforced masking of children, we shamed. For COVID, we messaged everywhere to everyone, though the impact was mostly felt by our children. Yet, throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, we lost about four times more children to drug poisonings than COVID (Newsweek).

Ceasefire Protesters Crash Democrat Convention in California

Daily Wire: Yet another arm of the Democratic Party got rattled by nearly 1,000 anti-Israel protesters at a convention held in Sacramento, California, on Saturday. Demonstrators “barged” into the SAFE Credit Union Convention Center and opened doors to let in more people, a security breach that prompted officials to clamp down and nix some events scheduled for the evening. Protesters reportedly marched around the convention center with “Free Palestine” signs, chanting for a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip and criticizing President Joe Biden over his administration’s support of Israel in its fight against Hamas after terrorist attacks on Israeli soil last month. Demonstrators reportedly blocked delegates from entering and exiting the building (Daily Wire). Reporter Eytan Wallace: Demonstrators have taken to the lobby of the downtown Sacramento Convention Center at the CA Dem Convention to demand a ceasefire in the Israel-Hamas war. One organizer tells me they will be here as long as they can while the CA Democratic Party convention is underway (X). Gen-Z for Change: California Democrats just shut down Adam Schiff’s speech to demand a #CEASEFIRENOW. If you haven’t already, call your representatives and demand their support for a CEASEFIRE NOW (X). Just the News: The chairman of the California Democratic Party has vowed to hold any delegate accountable if they actively aided the pro-Palestinian protest for a ceasefire at his state’s convention this weekend in Sacramento. “Any delegates who actively participated in or aided the furtherance of those activities or events in violation of our party’s code of conduct will be held accountable,” Chairman Rusty Hicks told party members who were gathered for the convention (Just the News).

Media Tries to Downplay Effects of Shoplifting

Fox News: Shoplifting has had an “outsized impact” on discussions about crime that has been exploited by justice reform opponents, one professor argued on Friday. Brooklyn College sociology professor Alex Vitale was one of multiple professors and researchers who discussed with CNN growing concerns over the rise in retail theft as more stores have closed or moved out of large cities. However, Vitale insisted that the concern is usually overblown. “Historically, shoplifting has always had this outsized impact on public discourse,” Vitale said. He added, “We see examples on video of behaving badly and it gets invested with all this extra meaning about the collapse of social order.” The National Retail Federation (NRF) found that retails across the nation lost $112.1 billion in revenue due to theft in 2022 with Los Angeles, San Francisco and New York City being among the most affected cities. In addition, major store brands such as Target and Walmart have shuttered multiple stores, citing retail crime and annual losses as a factor (Fox News). End Wokeness: These people no longer feel the need to hide their faces… because they know there are zero consequences (X). Jeremy Redfern: “Shoplifting panic.” It’s just a “panic” guys. Don’t believe your lying eyes (X).

Biden Uses Wartime Powers to Rush Green Energy Production

Fox News: President Biden invoked a Cold War-era law in a surprising move Friday to pour taxpayer funds into domestic manufacturing of electric heat pumps, an alternative to gas-powered residential furnaces. In a joint announcement with the White House, the Department of Energy (DOE) said the federal government would award a “historic” $169 million for nine projects across 15 sites nationwide in an effort to accelerate electric heat pump manufacturing. The significant level of funding was made possible after Biden utilized the 1950 Defense Production Act (DPA) to increase domestic production of green energy technologies. The action Friday comes less than two months after the DOE issued new regulations targeting traditional home gas-powered furnaces as part of its climate agenda and broad effort to curb greenhouse gas emissions (Fox News). HotAir: The last time Biden used the DPA, it was to boost lithium mining and production in the United States and relax tariffs on Chinese solar panels. Those were also completely illegitimate actions. The DPA was written to allow the President to “influence domestic industry in the interest of national defense.” But this White House has effectively declared climate change to be a national emergency and they are tipping the scales in favor of green energy using every bit of leverage they can manage (HotAir).

Iowa Board of Regents Eliminates DEI Initiatives in Higher Education

Daily Caller: The Iowa Board of Regents recommended Thursday to eliminate diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) programs at the state universities, except for DEI programs that are necessary for federal compliance. Republican Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds signed a bill in June to initiate a “comprehensive study and review of the diversity, equity and inclusion programs and efforts of each institution of higher learning,” according to the state legislature’s website. Board of Regents President Michael Richards appointed a group to review DEI programs in March, and the Iowa Board of Regents last week recommended to “eliminate any DEI functions that are not necessary” (Daily Caller). Christopher Rufo: The Iowa Board of Regents has voted to abolish DEI in all state universities (X). National Review: Notably, the steps the Board of Regents have adopted also include ensuring that employees, students, applicants, and campus visitors are not required to submit DEI statements or “be evaluated based on participation in DEI initiatives” unless the position is one required for “DEI-related compliance or accreditation.” The new rules also prohibit Iowa’s public universities from requiring that employees, students, applicants, or campus visitors provide their preferred pronouns (National Review).

10.

White House Touts Thanksgiving Dinner Prices Lower Than Last Year’s All-Time High

Daily Wire: The White House claimed on Monday that Thanksgiving meal costs were down — and while the average cost of a turkey, typical side dishes, and desserts have come down slightly from 2022’s record high, they are still well above pre-pandemic levels (Daily Wire). Farm Bureau Federation: As Americans prepare for Thanksgiving, they’ll see some relief in food prices for their Thanksgiving dinner. In the American Farm Bureau Federation’s 38th annual Thanksgiving dinner survey, we find that this year’s classic Thanksgiving feast for 10 will be $61.17, or approximately $6.12 per guest. This represents a 4.5% decline from historically high prices last year, driven by a decline in the price of the Thanksgiving dinner centerpiece – the turkey. Despite the year-over-year relief, the cost is still 25% higher compared to 2019, prior to the COVID-19 pandemic (Farm Bureau Federation).