Gazans Parade Murdered Bibas Children in Depraved Display of Inhumanity

Eli David: Today thousands of bloodthirsty Palestinians gathered to celebrate the kidnapping and murder of this child (X). Bernard-Henri Lévy: Once, children were gassed as they descended from the trains. Hamas waited. Damn those who try to drag us into the false game of moral equivalency. These two breaths cut short, this double death of innocence, is Hamas’s abomination alone—and it is unforgivable (Wall Street Journal). Matti Friedman: No captives have focused public sentiment like the Bibas children, the youngest Israeli hostages. Footage from October 7 showed a terrified Shiri Bibas cradling a baby and a toddler as they were taken at gunpoint from their home. The two redheads quickly became symbols of the 250 Israelis taken hostage—icons not just of the inhumanity of the Palestinians who kidnapped and murdered civilians and celebrated this barbarism as a victory, but of the unthinkable weakness of the Israeli state that allowed this to happen (The Free Press). Seth Mandel: And it is impossible for the rest of us to pretend that we didn’t see a chunk of society, whether in person or online, rush to cross that line and cheer the people who kidnapped a baby (X).

The Body Returned of Murdered Mother—Shiri Bibas—Was Not Actually Her

The identities of the two children were confirmed. From the IDF: it was determined that the additional body received was not that of Shiri Bibas, and no match was found with any other hostage. The body remains unidentified. This constitutes a severe violation by the Hamas terrorist organization, which, according to the agreement, is obligated to return four murdered hostages (X). Ed Morrissey: Ghastly. Absolutely ghastly. In a violation of the current cease-fire and hostage-for-prisoner exchanges, Israeli investigators discovered that the body of Shiri Bibas was not returned as Hamas claimed. The casket contained an unknown person, not any of the known hostages…. It’s time to deal finally and forcefully with Hamas’ billionaire boys club in Doha. No more ‘safe zones,’ and no more cheap talk. These people run the Iranian proxy army that killed dozens of Americans on October 7 and kidnaped several more, using them as leverage against Israel and the US. The only message Hamas and all of the other Iranian toadies will understand is utter destruction. So let’s quit pussyfooting around and give them a demonstration that they will never forget (Hot Air).

Deaths Narrowly Averted in Massive Bus Bombing Terror Attack in Central Israel

Times of Israel: Three empty buses exploded in quick succession in parking lots in the Tel Aviv suburbs of Bat Yam and Holon on Thursday night in what police said was a suspected terror attack. There were no injuries reported in the incidents. Police said they neutralized two other unexploded devices on buses nearby. According to Hebrew media reports, those devices were discovered in Holon. Each of the devices contained 5 kilograms of explosives, Hebrew media reports said (Times of Israel). Israel Hayom: The Shin Bet estimates that the attackers intended for the explosive devices to detonate at 9:00 a.m. but mistakenly set them for the evening. Officials also suspect that the devices were designed with Iranian expertise and manufactured in laboratories in Tulkarm, in northern Samaria (Israel Hayom).

Confirmed: Kash Patel to Lead FBI

Wall Street Journal: The final vote was 51-49, with every Senate Democrat voting against Patel (Wall Street Journal). Kash Patel: I am honored to be confirmed as the ninth Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Thank you to President Trump and Attorney General Bondi for your unwavering confidence and support. The FBI has a storied legacy—from the “G-Men” to safeguarding our nation in the wake of 9/11. The American people deserve an FBI that is transparent, accountable, and committed to justice. The politicalization of our justice system has eroded public trust—but that ends today. My mission as Director is clear: let good cops be cops—and rebuild trust in the FBI (X). Ben Weingarten on why Patel is the man for the job: But perhaps most importantly, Patel was the exposer par excellence of the Russia-collusion hoax at its height while serving as a top investigator on the House Intelligence Committee. There, he helped lead the drafting of the “Nunes memo” that revealed the fraud perpetrated on the FISA court used to spy on the Trump campaign by way of adviser Carter Page — efforts he would later continue by working to declassify and release Russiagate documents under then-Acting Director of National Intelligence Ric Grenell. Little could better illustrate Patel’s courage and ability to take on a weaponized and hyper-politicized deep state (Federalist). Vince Coglianese: The victims are being handed the keys to the kingdom (X).

Vice President JD Vance: “We actually think God made male and female for a purpose”

Speaking at CPAC: “My message to young men is don’t allow this broken culture to send you a message that you’re a bad person because you’re a man, because you like to tell a joke, because you like to have a beer with your friends, or because you’re competitive. Our culture “wants to turn everybody, whether male or female, into androgynous idiots who think the same, talk the same, and act the same.” “We actually think God made male and female for a purpose, and we want you guys to thrive as young men, and as young women. And we’re going to help with our public policy to make it possible to do that” (X) Chris Stigall: I’ve been waiting years to hear a public figure speak to young men this way. God bless @VP for saying it today (X). The Vice President also gave a nice summary of the Christian Gospel (X). The full address: (C-SPAN).

Seventy Christians Beheaded in Church in Congo

Newsweek:  “Local sources suspect the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF), an Islamist group of Ugandan origin affiliated with the Islamic State, as well as local armed groups of being responsible for the massacre. These groups have maintained a climate of terror in the region for several months,” the agency said. It said the victims, who had been “tied up and decapitated with knives,” had been kidnapped on February 12.  American conservative anti-abortion activity Lila Rose posted on X: “Horrific. 70 Christians were brutally beheaded by an Islamist group inside a church in the Democratic Republic of Congo Where’s the media outrage? Pray for persecuted Christians” (Newsweek, X). Open Doors: Field sources report that, until yesterday (Tuesday 18 February), some families had not been able to bury their dead because of insecurity in the area. Many Christians have now fled the area for their safety. “We don’t know what to do or how to pray; we’ve had enough of massacres,” says an elder of the CECA20 church. “May God’s will alone be done” (Open Doors). Aleteia: Over the past month in the chiefdom of Baswagha, Lubero territory, more than 200 people have been killed, homes have been looted and burned, schools have been displaced, churches and health facilities have been closed, and several Christian villages have been abandoned (Aleteia).

Vice President Vance, SOS Rubio Defend Administration on Efforts to End War in Ukraine

Amidst criticism from—among others—Niall Ferguson. Vance: This is moralistic garbage, which is unfortunately the rhetorical currency of the globalists because they have nothing else to say. For three years, President Trump and I have made two simple arguments: first, the war wouldn’t have started if President Trump was in office; second, that neither Europe, nor the Biden administration, nor the Ukrainians had any pathway to victory. This was true three years ago, it was true two years ago, it was true last year, and it is true today … we must pursue peace, and we must pursue it now. President Trump ran on this, he won on this, and he is right about this. It is lazy, ahistorical nonsense to attack as “appeasement” every acknowledgment that America’s interest must account for the realities of the conflict (X). Secretary of State Rubio with Catherine Herridge (X).

All Eyes on Germany as Sunday’s Election Could Reshape Nation

AfD—The Alternate for Germany—is the widely-maligned party that has been gaining support and is seen by many as the only potential party to take seriously issues like unchecked immigration plaguing western Europe. AP:  Four candidates are running to be Germany’s next leader: incumbent Chancellor Olaf Scholz, of the center-left Social Democrats; Friedrich Merz, the candidate of the mainstream conservative Christian Democratic Union party; current Vice Chancellor Robert Habeck, of the environmentalist Greens; and Alice Weidel, of the far-right, anti-immigration Alternative for Germany, or AfD (AP). AfD leader Alice Weidel: “Within the first 100 days we will completely shut Germany’s borders, cancel the subsidies for asylum seekers, and carry out mass deportations!” (X). Musk has weighed in: Elon Musk urged Germans to vote for the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) in an upcoming national election during a broadcast he hosted with the party’s leader on his social media platform…. (Reuters).

California Rep. Kiley Partners With Sec. of Transportation Duffy to End California’s Boondoggle High Speed Rail Project

Kevin Kiley: Today I joined U.S. Secretary of Transportation Sean Duffy to announce an investigation into CA High-Speed Rail, which could claw back $4.3 billion in federal funds. Amusingly, a few protestors showed up in support of the boondoggle. The High-Speed Rail disaster is the worst public infrastructure failure in U.S. history. It is a blight on our landscape and an embarrassment to our state.   It is a symbol for the decline of modern California, showcasing political ineptitude on an epic scale….. We are turning the page in California. A coalition for common sense is ascendant (X). Also: We are going to investigate High-Speed Rail and figure out where all the money went. We’re going to reclaim the billions Biden gave the project on his way out. We’re going to cut off all further federal funding (X).

Latest Executive Order “Commencing the Reduction of the Federal Bureaucracy”

From the Executive Order:  It is the policy of my Administration to dramatically reduce the size of the Federal Government, while increasing its accountability to the American people.  This order commences a reduction in the elements of the Federal bureaucracy that the President has determined are unnecessary.  Reducing the size of the Federal Government will minimize Government waste and abuse, reduce inflation, and promote American freedom and innovation (White House).