Newly Released: Findings on Investigation of Hillary Clinton Email Usage

Senate Judiciary Committee Chair Chuck Grassley has released the findings of the Office of the Inspector General (OIG): “This document shows an extreme lack of effort and due diligence in the FBI’s investigation of former Secretary Clinton’s email usage and mishandling of highly classified information,” Grassley said. “Under Comey’s leadership, the FBI failed to perform fundamental investigative work and left key pieces of evidence on the cutting room floor. The Comey FBI’s negligent approach and perhaps intentional lack of effort in the Clinton investigation is a stark contrast to its full-throated investigation of the Trump-Russia collusion hoax, which was based on the uncorroborated and now discredited Steele dossier. Comey’s decision-making process smacks of political infection.” … The thumb drives were never reviewed as part of the Clinton investigation, contrary to the recommendation of a draft FBI memorandum. The DOJ OIG report also shows the drives should have been immediately reviewed for foreign intelligence purposes, but were not. The FBI also obtained intelligence reports discussing purported communications between Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-Fla.), who was chairwoman of the Democratic National Convention (DNC) at the time, and two different individuals who worked for the Soros Open Society Foundations. The intelligence reports alleged that the Obama administration took efforts to scuttle the investigation into Clinton and protect her candidacy. The DOJ OIG Clinton annex shows Comey, McCabe and Strzok, among others, did not make serious investigative efforts to determine the veracity, or lack thereof, regarding the intelligence reports. On July 5, 2016, Comey exonerated Clinton in a public statement regarding the investigation and recommended DOJ take no legal action to hold her accountable. Grassley’s oversight revealed Comey planned to exonerate Clinton even before interviewing her (Judiciary).

Treasury Secretary Bessent Calls for Review of Federal Reserve

Bessent explains: Today in a CNBC interview, I called for a review of the Federal Reserve. It is my belief that the central bank should conduct an exhaustive internal review of its non-monetary policy operations. Significant mission creep and institutional growth have taken the Fed into areas that potentially jeopardize the independence of its core monetary policy mission. As I have said many times, the Fed’s conduct of monetary policy “is a jewel box” that should be walled off to preserve its independence. This independence is a cornerstone of continued U.S. economic growth and stability. However, this autonomy is threatened by persistent mandate creep into areas beyond its core mission, provoking justifiable criticism that unnecessarily casts a cloud over the Fed’s valuable independence on monetary policy…. The Fed does regular reviews of its monetary policy framework. I would urge Fed leadership to similarly undertake, publish and implement a comprehensive institutional review across its entire mission to buttress its credibility. It will go a long way towards strengthening the Fed’s credibility with the American people on its core mission of guiding our nation’s monetary policy (Bessent). The CNBC interview: (CNBC).

Bessent Speaks at Federal Reserve Capital Conference: “We will center financial regulation on Main Street, not Wall Street”

People are watching Bessent not just because of his key role as Treasury Secretary, but because he has been rumored to be a potential replacement for Chairman Powell whose term ends on May 15, 2026 (Federal Reserve). Secretary Bessent: I have made clear that we need a fundamental reset of financial regulation. And the Treasury Department is committed to playing an active role in this effort. That’s why earlier this year, I laid out guiding principles to build a financial system that delivers for both Wall Street and Main Street….  Despite bank regulators’ significant influence on our economy, up until now, financial regulation has not been nested in a broader strategic vision for the financial system. Instead, we have seen regulation by reflex. Rather than preempting crises, regulators all too often react to them after the fact. They play the role of a hazmat cleanup team instead of preventing dangerous spillovers in the first place. This is especially true in the case of supervisory failures, where regulators often overcompensate by piling rule on top of rule, based on an incomplete understanding of the larger costs and benefits to society. This reactionary approach can generate regulations at odds with our domestic and international priorities…. the bank regulators must continue to carry out their statutory mandates—maintaining safety and soundness, protecting consumers, and mitigating risks to financial stability. Rationalizing and tailoring regulation does not have to amount to regulatory weakening. But in parallel, Treasury will convene interagency consultations to define a strategic policy direction. To that end, Treasury will encourage bank regulators to consider how proposed rules will impact growth. We will center financial regulation on Main Street, not Wall Street. We will protect the viability of our community banks. We will be vigilant against debanking of customers based on religious or political views on either side of the aisle. We will reject international standard setting that does not advance America’s interests. We will support innovation both within and outside the financial system. We will drive alignment between our illicit finance program and our national security priorities (Treasury).

Customs and Border Patrol Officer Shot by Illegal Immigrants in New York

Reportedly he is in stable condition after being shot in the face and in the arm. CNN: Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem blamed New York officials and “sanctuary city policies” for the shooting of an off-duty US Customs and Border Protection officer in an apparent robbery gone wrong over the weekend. The 42-year-old officer is in stable condition and expected to survive, officials said Monday. There is no indication he was targeted because of his employment, New York City Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch said Sunday. The officer, who was not in uniform, was sitting with a woman in Riverside Park, beneath the George Washington Bridge, when two men approached on a moped before midnight Sunday. One of the men approached the officer, who realized he was being robbed and drew his service weapon, Tisch said. They both fired their weapons, and the officer was shot in the face and arm, officials said Sunday. The perpetrator was wounded before he got back on the moped and drove away, police said (CNN). Zohran Mamdani—the Democrats’ nominee for Mayor in New York City—has been silent in the wake of the attack: In a statement to Fox News Digital, acting ICE Director Todd Lyons said, “The silence from Zohran Mamdani is not just deafening, it’s deliberate, disturbing, and sadly predictable.” Lyons went on to say that Mamdani’s “reckless anti-law enforcement policy positions would endanger legal, law-abiding New Yorkers. His silence in the face of this brutal attack speaks volumes about where his priorities lie, and it’s not with public safety and the American people,” said Lyons (Fox News).

Border Czar Tom Homan Doubles Down on Enforcement in Sanctuary Cities; Federal Officers will “flood the zone”

“Sanctuary cities are sanctuaries for criminals.” Daily Signal: Homan is pledging to send more federal immigration officers to “sanctuary cities,” he explained, because arresting an illegal alien already in custody is much safer for law enforcement, the community, and the illegal immigrants themselves. “Sanctuary cities get exactly what they don’t want—more agents in the community (and) more agents in the worksite(s),” he said. “Sanctuary cities are now our priority,” the border czar said, adding that “sanctuary cities are sanctuaries for criminals. President (Donald) Trump is not going to tolerate it, and I’ll work every day with (Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem) to make sure we get as many bad guys, illegal aliens, out of this country that we can.” If sanctuary cities such as New York refuse to cooperate and continue to release criminal illegal aliens onto the streets of the city, Homan says, federal officers will “flood the zone” (Daily Signal).

Over $100 Million Was Donated to California Fire Victims, Victims Received Nothing

Yes, nothing. Circling the news: The devastating aftermath of the Palisades and Eaton fires made national and worldwide news with more than 2,000 homes/businesses destroyed and 30 killed. click here. Two FireAid concerts with live streams were held at the Intuit Dome and the Kia Forum on January 30 in Los Angeles. An A-list of performers donated their time to raise money for fire victims. More than $100 million came through donations. This editor reached out to the Annenberg Foundation, which was tasked with distributing funds, in April to find out how fire victims could receive direct financial help. The answer was the money was intended for nonprofits, no individual could receive money even though it was intended for fire victims (Circling the News). California GOP: Fire victims lost everything, but not a single dollar from the $100 MILLION raised ever reached them. California Democrats funneled it to nonprofits instead. This is what corruption looks like. Thank you @FOXLA, @MarlaTellez, and Sue Pascoe for exposing it (California GOP).

What Makes President Obama Unique?

He is the one president in the contemporary era who never left DC. There will continue to be debate about the degree of significance of the newly declassified materials, but there is no question about this: President Obama did what he could to sabotage his successor in the wake of 2016’s election and then get Biden elected in 2020. Former Federal Prosecutor Brett Tolman: “In our lifetime, there’s only been one president who didn’t leave Washington, D.C., after they were done serving their eight years. That was president Obama. He stayed there and then his people were ready. They put Joe Biden in knowing they could accomplish what they wanted, which was to keep quiet some of the things they had done while in power. When Joe Biden came in, it was easy to see that they put in Obama’s people into key positions in order to continue the ability to cover what Obama had done” (X).

Trump Planning Now for Midterm Elections

As he should. Axios: President Trump is already fixated behind the scenes on next year’s midterm elections for the House and Senate — unleashing his billion-dollar political operation and personally burrowing into the minutiae of races…. Trump’s biggest asset could be his enormously well-heeled political operation, for which he continues to aggressively raise money. Trump has told congressional Republicans he plans to spend heavily on their races. The game plan: 1) Money muscle 2) Recruit aggressively 3) Early redistricting 4) Keep selling Trump’s big bill 5) Stave off retirements 6) Endorse—and attack—in primaries. Trump plans to use his dominance over the GOP to shape primaries — either to ensure the party nominates who he sees as the most electable candidates for the general election, or to punish Republicans who’ve crossed him…. “The president understands that good politics makes even better policy and has embarked on … a multidimensional effort aimed at expanding the House and Senate majorities,” said Chris LaCivita, a senior Trump political adviser (Axios). Rasmussen sees Democrats with an advantage: Democrats are on track to win in ’26.  It’s going to take big things to prevent that (Mark Mitchell).

In Defense of Writing: Nature Journal Defends Writing as Thinking

The context here is the rise of AI and large-language models (LLMs) which can do the scientific writing on behalf of the researchers. The applicability, however, goes well beyond that space. Nature Reviews: Writing compels us to think — not in the chaotic, non-linear way our minds typically wander, but in a structured, intentional manner. By writing it down, we can sort years of research, data and analysis into an actual story, thereby identifying our main message and the influence of our work. This is not merely a philosophical observation; it is backed by scientific evidence. For example, handwriting can lead to widespread brain connectivity1 and has positive effects on learning and memory. This is a call to continue recognizing the importance of human-generated scientific writing. This call may seem anachronistic in the age of large-language models (LLMs), which, with the right prompts, can create entire scientific articles (and peer-review reports) in a few minutes, seemingly saving time and effort in getting results out once the hard research work is done. However, LLMs are not considered authors as they lack accountability, and thus, we would not consider publishing manuscripts written entirely by LLMs (using LLMs for copy-editing is allowed but should be declared). Importantly, if writing is thinking, are we not then reading the ‘thoughts’ of the LLM rather than those of the researchers behind the paper? … Nevertheless, outsourcing the entire writing process to LLMs may deprive us of the opportunity to reflect on our field and engage in the creative, essential task of shaping research findings into a compelling narrative — a skill that is certainly important beyond scholarly writing and publishing (Nature).

The Parable of the Kiss Cam Episode

Albert Mohler looks at what our sense of outrage reveals about us: When a middle-aged couple at a Coldplay concert goes up on “Kiss Cam” while in a rather physical embrace, only to separate, hide faces, and dive for cover, there are, shall we say, few likely explanations….  isn’t it interesting that even in our age of self-declared sexual and moral liberation, we still find it interesting that a couple appears to be caught on camera in an illicit embrace, only to try to undo that embrace—in a way sure to invite interest and moral judgment? Furthermore, isn’t it interesting that our culture is still capable of coming to the quick moral judgment that adultery is wrong? The prophets of moral relativism want that Kiss Cam video to be unremarkable—just two autonomous human beings doing what autonomous human beings, one male and one female, can do. But it just isn’t possible to look at that video without moral judgment, even in this age of supposed sexual non-judgmentalism…. The attempt to insist that modern corporate ethics have nothing to do with that older moral knowledge rooted in creation order and Holy Scripture doesn’t work. It turns out that marriage vows are of essential moral importance in themselves…. Those few seconds may have destroyed more than one marriage, more than one family. That video revealed an attempted subversion of the entire moral universe. That’s why the video became a cultural obsession. It will be gone tomorrow, but the moral damage will continue. There will be yet another video scandal in short order. Of that you can be certain  (World).