1) The Best and Worst Forms of Energy for America's Future
America is going to need to roughly double our electricity production to meet our economic and lifestyle needs over the next several decades.
That's why we love this new report by Timothy G. Nash, director of the McNair Center for the Advancement of Free Enterprise at Northwood University. Titled "Grading the Grid: A National Energy Report Card," the report grades eight electricity sources based on capacity, reliability, environmental/human impact, technology/innovation, and market feasibility. Those are all vital factors in choosing the right energy mix for America.
The following were each fuel's final grades:
Regular HOTLINE readers know we call natural gas the fuel of the future, so we agree with its grade of an A. Wind is by far the least productive way to produce reliable electricity – and solar is a close second to the worst. We would quibble that hydro is at last an A- energy source, as it is inexhaustible and totally clean and cheap, but these ratings are otherwise about right.
The study notes that many blue states, including Michigan and California, "are moving toward a grid that primarily relies on wind and solar." In a few decades, they will be riding the equivalent of bicycles while the rest of the nation will be traveling in rocket ships.
Kudos to Kentucky GOP Sen. Rand Paul for forcing a vote Wednesday to cut federal spending - just before Congress punted the CR to December 20, likely setting up another monstrous Christmas omnibus.
A few years ago, Senator Paul developed a budget that achieved balance in five years just holding spending flat. Now it would require cuts – across-the-board cuts of 6 percent per year over the next five years, to achieve balance.
Here are the 39 heroes who voted for Paul's budget:
3) Why Does Everyone in Washington Hate Credit Cards?
It’s ironic, isn’t it, that the place that has the biggest credit card in the world (Washington), doesn’t want anyone else to have one.
One day the Senate wants to impose credit card controls, the next day Trump jumps on the populist train. And now, the Biden administration is suing Visa for price gouging and monopoly behavior.
Here’s the announcement of DOJ's suit against Visa:
“We allege that Visa has unlawfully amassed the power to extract fees that far exceed what it could charge in a competitive market,” said Attorney General Merrick B. Garland. “Merchants and banks pass along those costs to consumers, either by raising prices or reducing quality or service. As a result, Visa’s unlawful conduct affects not just the price of one thing – but the price of nearly everything.”
Wait – are the Biden people now blaming Bidenflation on the credit card companies?
It is true that debit and credit cards are ubiquitous with $10 trillion of transactions each year, and it is true that Visa has half the market. But monopoly? This New York Times headline borders on the absurd:
The payment card industry is fiercely competitive. Just ask MasterCard, American Express, Discover, JCB, China UnionPay, STAR, NYCE, Pulse, and Plus. Dozens of retailers issue their own credit cards and some stores give cash discounts. Payment cards have been a bonanza for retailers as they increase consumer spending, and avoid cash register theft.
Here’s a simple question for that economic genius Merrick Garland: if payment cards are ripping off consumers, how come everyone wants them?
Argentina President Javier Milei delivered his first speech to the United Nations in his characteristic style, saying the UN "has transformed into a Leviathan with multiple tentacles that intends to decide not only what each nation-state should do, but also how all the citizens of the world should live" and calling for "the establishment of a new agenda for this noble institution that is the agenda for freedom."
Maybe Biden and Harris might want to study what is happening in Argentina to control housing costs. The Wall Street Journal reports that since Milei repealed rent control, not only has rental supply in Buenos Aires jumped by over 170%, but rents are now dropping in real terms with a 40% decrease since last October.
It turns out that attempts to rig elections aren’t new at all. A tipster sent us this account from historian James Banner on the political tactics of the James Buchanan administration. Some of it may sound familiar to the modern reader.
The Democrats made startlingly effective use of their control of the federal government...
Some of the money at least was used to buy votes in Indiana and Pennsylvania. Thousands of aliens, moreover, were illegally naturalized and marched to the polls by the Democrats. Elsewhere the Democratic machine transported immigrant voters to crucial states, where they were not legal residents. Before the important congressional elections in October 1856, Buchanan's henchman in Philadelphia, John Forney, wrote him, "We have naturalized a vast mass of men and assessed many of the native-born citizens. The Opposition are appalled. They cry fraud. Our most experienced men say all is well." ...
After the election, Virginia fire-eater Edmund Ruffin heard in Washington "that enormous sums of money were sent from the city of New York and a good deal also from the Democrats of New England to buy votes in Pennsylvania and which turned the vote in that state."
