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Friday, December 20, 2024

Alleged Murderer of CEO Extradited to New York

Townhall: Luigi Mangione, the individual suspected of fatally shooting UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson will be returning to New York City to face justice after he agreed to be extradited from Pennsylvania on Thursday where he was arrested days after the incident. The Manhattan District Attorney’s office indicted Mangione for first-degree murder and two counts of second-degree murder. One of the charges has been labeled “killing as an act of terrorism.” If convicted, Mangione faces a maximum penalty of life in prison without parole. The suspected shooter will also face federal charges from the Southern District of New York (Townhall). Breaking 911: Luigi Mangione has been transferred to NYPD custody and is now on his way from PA to a NYC jail (X).

Israel Attacks Houthis in Yemen After Terrorists Target Israeli School

Daily Wire: The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) launched airstrikes against targets belonging to Iranian-backed Houthi terrorists in Yemen during the early morning hours on Thursday after the group fired a missile into Israel that destroyed a school… Ramat Gan Mayor Carmel Shama-Hacohen said that the damage to the multistory Ramat Ef’al elementary school would need to be entirely rebuilt after sustaining millions of dollars in damage from the Houthi missile strike. No one was inside the building when it was hit (Daily Wire). Reporter Joe Truzman: A significant explosion following Israeli airstrikes earlier tonight in Yemen (X).

Supreme Court Takes Up Case Defunding Planned Parenthood

CBN: The U.S. Supreme Court agreed on Wednesday to hear a case that could decide whether pro-life states can direct Medicaid funds—which are intended to help low-income individuals obtain necessary medical assistance—away from abortion providers like Planned Parenthood. The case, known as Kerr v. Planned Parenthood South Atlantic, stems from South Carolina’s decision to designate Planned Parenthood and similar abortion providers as disqualified from receiving taxpayers’ Medicaid funds. Specifically, Governor Henry McMaster mandated the state’s Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) to make that decision and divert the same funds to women’s clinics that perform a wider range of medical services. Planned Parenthood and one of its patients, Julie Edwards, sued the Director of DHHS in federal court to force DHHS to restore taxpayer funding to the $2-billion-per-year abortion giant. They argued that cutting its funding violated a Medicaid Act provision that gives beneficiaries the right to choose their provider (CBN). Alliance Defending Freedom: Taxpayer dollars should never be used to fund facilities that make a profit off abortion. We look forward to litigating this case at the nation’s highest court (Alliance Defending Freedom).

Georgia Court of Appeals Boots Fani Willis from Trump’s RICO Case

Townhall: The Georgia Court of Appeals recently ruled against Willis, barring her from participating in the prosecution against Trump and his co-defendants in the 2020 election interference case. The ruling came about when the court identified a significant conflict of interest related to Willis’ undisclosed romantic affair with special prosecutor Nathan Wade, who she had appointed to the case. The three-judge panel argued that her conduct created an “appearance of impropriety” even though Wade later resigned after their affair was made public. Wade’s resignation “did nothing to address the appearance of impropriety that existed at times when DA Willis was exercising her broad pretrial discretion about who to prosecute and what charges to bring,” the court stated (Townhall). National Review: Willis’s disqualification should come as no surprise. As I explained back in March, it was not rational for Judge Scott McAfee, who is presiding in the trial court, to allow Willis and her office to remain on the case while disqualifying Nathan Wade, the prosecutor Willis recruited to investigate and prosecute Trump and his co-defendants… It seemed obvious to many of us that if one of them had to go, they both had to go — and that Willis’s office, whose prosecutors staunchly defended their boss’s conduct, should also be disqualified. But the judge dubiously split the baby (National Review).

Up To Eight Million Illegal Immigrants Reside in Sanctuary Cities, States

Daily Wire: An estimated 8 million illegal aliens live in so-called sanctuary cities and states across the United States that refuse to cooperate with federal immigration enforcement agents, an estimate from the Center for Immigration Studies (CIS) indicates. The estimate from CIS relies on a previous analysis from the center that approximated that the total illegal alien population present in the United States is roughly 14 million, with CIS positing that over half of the illegal alien population resides in sanctuary jurisdictions (Daily Wire).

White House Aides Detail How They Propped Up Biden During His Presidency

Wall Street Journal: During the 2020 presidential primary, Jill Biden campaigned so extensively across Iowa that she held events in more counties than her husband—a fact her press secretary at the time, Michael LaRosa, touted to a local reporter. His superior in the Biden campaign quickly chided him… Her energetic schedule only highlighted her husband’s more plodding pace, LaRosa recalls being told. The message from Biden’s team was clear. “The more you talk her up, the more you make him look bad,” LaRosa said (Wall Street Journal). Daily Caller: Biden, who was often prone to gaffes and having an unsteady gait, was typically trailed by aides, Annie Tomasini and Ashley Williams, while participating in events. Those aides tried to stay within ear shot or eye distance of the president over the years, often giving him “basic instructions” like when to leave and exit the stage in an event, the outlet reported. Aides also adjusted the president’s schedule to start his meetings later in the day as the 82-year-old was typically not his sharpest in the morning. Sometimes, the meetings were reportedly scrapped all together if Biden was having an “off day…” Over the years, some lawmakers saw aides and senior advisers acquire roles that they believed the president should’ve been handling. Some cabinet officials, according to the outlet, said they frequently dealt with the president’s advisers rather than the 82-year-old himself (Daily Caller).

ACLU Sues Washington Prison to Move Trans Inmate Back Into Female Prison After He Was Removed for Having Sex With Cell Mate

National Review: A transgender-identifying male felon who murdered his parents sued the Washington State Department of Corrections on Tuesday for moving him back to a men’s prison after he was caught in a prohibited sexual encounter with a female inmate while being housed in the state’s women’s prison. The ACLU filed a discrimination lawsuit on Bryan Kim’s behalf, asking a Washington court to either return him to the Washington Corrections Center for Women (WCCW) or release him entirely. The court petition claimed that Kim’s transfer to the Monroe Correctional Facility qualified as cruel punishment, forbidden by the Washington Constitution, by exposing Kim to an imminent danger of violence, sexual assault, and harassment (National Review). Attorney Leigh Ann O’Neill: Yes, you read that correctly- the ACLU is claiming trans discrimination and its requested relief is either: 1) subject a facility full of females to a convicted male murderer; or 2) release him into society (X).

Gov. Kathy Hochul Wants to Cancel Electoral College

New York Post: Gov. Kathy Hochul called for the Electoral College to be abolished despite Donald Trump’s popular vote win — as she presided Tuesday over New York’s vote for Kamala Harris’ doomed candidacy… The Constitution — which Hochul referred to as a “living document” — should be changed to eliminate the convoluted system of dispersing 538 presidential votes across the states based on population, the governor argued (New York Post). America: New York Governor Kathy Hochul calls for the abolition of the Electoral College: “It’s time to amend the Constitution and relegate the institution of the Electoral College to the history books” (X).

Biden Administration Placed 2,000 Additional Troops in Syria Just Before Assad Downfall

Hill: The U.S. for months has had more than 2,000 troops inside Syria, more than double the 900 troops the Defense Department previously said are on the ground there, the Pentagon’s top spokesperson revealed Thursday. The increased force presence has “been going on for a while,” with press secretary Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder estimating that the troops have been there “at a minimum, months.” But he stressed the extra troops are supporting the counter-ISIS mission and were unrelated to the fall of Syrian dictator Bashar Assad’s regime two weeks ago (Hill). RNC Research: Biden Pentagon spokesman Pat Ryder says he “recently learned” there are actually 2,000+ U.S. troops deployed in Syria — far more than the 900 they had previously announced (X). Hold on… they just learned we had 2,000 troops in Syria? The same people telling us Pete Hegseth is unqualified to run the DOD.

10.

FAA Bans Drones in Parts of New Jersey Airspace

New York Post: The Federal Aviation Administration has temporarily banned drone operations over parts of New Jersey until mid-January and warned that the government may respond with “deadly force” against drones that pose a threat. Beginning on Wednesday and through Jan. 17, unmanned aircraft are barred from flying within a nautical mile of specified airspace outlined in an FAA Notice to Airmen, or NOTAM. The government may use “deadly force” against the drones if they present an “imminent security threat,” the NOTAM said (New York Post). CNBC: The FBI and DHS said last week that they had seen “no evidence” that the drone sightings “pose a national security or public safety threat.” They added that they had no evidence of a “foreign nexus” to the drones. On Saturday, the agencies said they had found “many of the reported drone sightings are, in fact, manned aircraft being misidentified as drones” (CNBC).