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Monday, July 1, 2024

U.S. Military Bases on High Alert for Terror Attack

Fox News: U.S. military bases throughout Europe have been put on heightened alert status due to a potential terrorist attack, Fox News Digital has confirmed. “There is credible intel pointing to an attack against U.S. bases over the next week or so,” a U.S. defense official told Fox News’ Lucas Tomlinson….

The U.S. bases have raised the status of the alert level to, “Force Protection Charlie,” which means the Pentagon has received credible intelligence indicating some form of a terrorist attack is in the works.

The new alert applies to all U.S. military facilities and personnel in Europe, including facilities in Germany, Italy, Romanian and Bulgaria, per reporting from Stars and Stripes (Fox News). Stars and Stripes: The Charlie threat level “applies when an incident occurs or intelligence is received indicating some form of terrorist action or targeting against personnel or facilities is likely,” according to the Army’s website. Service members and others should anticipate significant delays at gate entry points because of increased security, according to the alerts. U.S. Army garrison in Stuttgart referred questions about the change in force protection to EUCOM (Stripes).

Widespread Speculation as Biden Family Meets at Camp David; Panic Worsening

All coming on the heels of the 81-year old president’s disastrous performance in last week’s debate: Joe Biden’s entire family has gathered at Camp David to discuss the president’s future after his shockingly bad debate against Donald Trump.The White House and campaign blame a ‘cold’ for Biden’s low and, at times, hard-to-understand speaking voice. Others say this is what the President is like on a day-to-day basis now and it has even Democrats wondering if Biden needs to be replaced in time for November, as his poll numbers slide further behind Trump (Daily Mail). This while key Democratic National Committee leaders hold a call in the wake Biden’s faceplant: DNC Chairman Jaime Harrison and Biden campaign manager Julie Chavez Rodriguez held a Saturday afternoon call with dozens of committee members across the country, a group of some of the most influential members of the party. They largely ignored Biden’s weak showing Thursday night or the avalanche of criticism that followed. Multiple committee members on the call, most granted anonymity to talk about the private discussion, described feeling like they were being gaslighted — that they were being asked to ignore the dire nature of the party’s predicament. The call, they said, may have worsened a widespread sense of panic among elected officials, donors and other stakeholders (AP).

The Death of Chevron Deference: A Blow to the Administrative State

The court’s decision is the most significant blow to the administrative state from the court this term: Chevron deference, Roberts explained in his opinion for the court on Friday, is inconsistent with the Administrative Procedure Act, a federal law that sets out the procedures that federal agencies must follow as well as instructions for courts to review actions by those agencies (SCOTUS Blog). Ilya: Good for the Court to recognize that its 40-year-old experiment in rebalancing the relationship between administration and judicial review has failed (City Journal). Ed Morrissey: the court ruled 6-3 that courts should no longer give deference to regulators’ interpretations on ambiguous rules, ending 40-plus years of enforcement uncertainties. Chief Justice John Roberts made it explicit in his majority opinion: “Chevron is overruled” (Hot Air).

Conservative “National Front” Dominates First Round of French Election

The National Front: …made historic progress in the first round of France’s snap legislative elections on Sunday, June 30, in a vote marked by a high increase in turnout. With 33.5% of the vote together with its allies, according to initial estimates, the party led by Marine Le Pen and Jordan Bardella almost doubled its score from the 2022 elections, as it hopes to conquer power for the first time…. The shape of the new Assemblée Nationale will only become clear after the second round on July 7, but Sunday’s results show the RN is closer than ever to reaching its goal (Le Monde). The left wing—joined by Islamists—are rioting: Mass Demonstrations and Riots by Far-Left Groups alongside Islamists are ongoing tonight in the French Capital of Paris as well as several other Cities around the Country, in Response to today’s Election Results which saw the Right-Wing Populist Party, National Rally led by Marine Le Pen make Major Gains in the French Parliament. Notice how out all of the Flags being waved by these Demonstrators, none are the French Flag (X).

Nigel Farage and Reform UK Surging as Britain Approaches Election

Tunku Varadarajan: The leader of the Reform UK party … is leading what he calls a “revolt against a political elite that has failed the British people.” His stated aims in next Thursday’s national election are to make the ruling Conservative Party “defunct” and to “become the voice of opposition” in a Parliament that’s expected to have a massive Labour majority. He’s convinced he can do both. Polls show Reform UK—founded in 2018 as the Brexit Party—neck-and-neck with the Conservatives at roughly 20% support (Wall Street Journal). Farage addresses the UK’s immigration issue: The BBC assembled the most biased, left-wing, unrepresentative audience possible, and this woman thought she could embarrass Nigel Farage… It backfires spectacularly (X). Polling: Labor party still looks to dominate this week’s election: Labour has been comfortably ahead in the polls ever since Ms Truss left Number 10, and currently enjoys a lead of around 20 points. The gap shows no signs of closing (Telegraph).

Election in Iran Goes to Second Round; Election Marked by Low Voter Turnout

Take everything from Iran with the understanding that all candidates are pre-approved by the Mullahs: No candidate received the majority of votes needed to win the Iranian presidential election on June 28. Iran will hold a runoff election between the two most popular candidates—ultraconservative Saeed Jalili and reformist Masoud Pezeshkian—on July 5. Jalili will likely win the runoff vote and become the next Iranian president (ISW). Background: Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi and the country’s foreign minister were killed in a helicopter crash in May (AP). New York Times: Iranian voters signaled their disenchantment with Iran’s system of clerical rule in the country’s presidential election on Friday, going to the polls in record-low numbers to help two establishment candidates limp to a runoff (New York Times).

Iran Threatens Israel With “Obliterating War” if Israel Escalates With Hezbollah

New York Times: Iran has threatened an “obliterating war” if Israel launches a full-scale attack in Lebanon, as diplomats work to prevent tensions between Israel and the Lebanese militia Hezbollah, which is backed by Tehran, from escalating into an all-out conflict. In a post on X late Friday, Iran’s mission to the United Nations said that “all options,” including the involvement of Iran-backed armed groups across the Middle East, “are on the table.” Chief among those groups is Hezbollah, a powerful militia that dominates southern Lebanon (New York Times). Yossi Yehoshua: In recent weeks, Iran has significantly ramped up its smuggling of weapons to Hezbollah, as reported by Ynet. Among the smuggled items are crucial air defense systems, which Hezbollah needs to counter Israeli Air Force strikes in southern Lebanon. Over the past few months, the terror organization has attempted—and occasionally succeeded—in targeting IDF drones. In response, the Israeli Air Force has struck either the intercepting systems or their parent units, according to the war’s established frameworks (YNet).

How Did Iran Become a Major World Power?

Analysis from the Wall Street Journal: Today, Tehran poses a greater threat to American allies and interests in the Middle East than at any point since the Islamic Republic was founded in 1979. Iran’s military footprint reaches wider and deeper than ever. Iranian-backed armed groups have hit Saudi oil facilities with missiles and paralyzed global shipping in the Red Sea. They have dominated politics in Iraq, Lebanon, Yemen and Syria, and launched the most devastating strike on Israel in decades, when Hamas attacked in October. Iran launched its first direct military attack from its soil on Israel in April. It has also orchestrated attacks on opponents in Europe and beyond, Western officials say … For more than two decades, Western policy on Iran has vacillated. American presidents repeatedly shifted the balance between diplomacy and force, outreach and attempted isolation (WSJ).

Seven Weeks Into Their Operation in Rafah, IDF Still Baffled Over Extent of Tunnel Network—And Unclear as to How Long it Will Take to Destroy Them

Jerusalem Post: The estimate for finding and completely destroying all of the cross-border tunnels is likely at minimum six months, but could easily be longer than that. So far, multiple IDF sources have estimated to the Jerusalem Post that there are at least 25 cross-border tunnels, but these are just initial estimates. Of all of the tunnel battles the IDF has taken on in Gaza, this is the most important by far because the Philadelphi Corridor is “Hamas’s oxygen” for receiving arms from the outside world, especially from Iran. October 7 could not have happened without the arms and intelligence training Hamas received through the Philadelphi Corridor (Jerusalem Post). Latest: A 500-Meter Hamas Tunnel Network which attached to a School operated by the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) within the City of Rafah in Southern Gaza, was Destroyed earlier today by Combat Engineers of the IDF’s 12th Brigade. At the same time a Tunnel consisting of roughly 9 Underground-Rocket Launch Sites was also Discovered nearby and subsequently Destroyed (X).

10.

With November Election Nearing, Odds Improve for Republicans Retaining Control of House

Henry Olsen: November’s election looks to be a nail-biter at all levels, but not all close races are created equal. The race for House control could still go either way — but it tilted clearly toward the Republicans before Biden’s debate debacle. That’s the consensus view of the top election analysts, at least. Three I look at the most — Cook Political Report with Amy Walter, Inside Elections with Nathan Gonzales, and University of Virginia professor Larry Sabato’s Crystal Ball — each have more seats listed as leaning to safe for the GOP than for the Democrats. Their range isn’t that different either, going from 210 Republican seats (Cook) to 216 (Inside Elections). Each publication gives the GOP between a five- and seven-seat advantage over the Democrats…. So, hold on to your hats, the race for the House looks to be going to the wire. But nonetheless, it’s GOP ahead by half a length as the horses go into the back turn. And Biden’s stumble out of the gate may mean the lead will grow a lot on the back stretch (National Review).