House Passes Bill to End Shutdown

The longest shutdown in our nation’s history. The Hill: The House on Wednesday passed a sweeping spending package to reopen the government, setting the stage to end a marathon shutdown — the longest in U.S. history — that churned economic turmoil around the country and sparked an internal battle among Democrats over the future of the party and how best to take on President Trump. The vote in the lower chamber was 222-209, almost strictly along party lines. Only two Republicans opposed the measure, to protest deficit spending, while six Democrats hopped the aisle to support it, citing the importance of getting federal funding flowing again…. “I respect Chuck Schumer. I think he had a great, long-standing career. But I’m afraid that it may be time for the Senate Democrats to get a new leader,” Rep. Glenn Ivey (D-Md.) said this week (The Hill). Mike Johnson: The peaceful sunset outside my office window tonight is a reminder to me that God still has His hand of blessing over our nation. Thankfully, after 42 long days, we will soon get our vote to finally end the painful Democrat Shutdown — and get the American government open and operating again for the people (Johnson).

Another Marxist Mayor for a Major U.S. City; Seattle Elects Katie Wilson

It’s not an absolute done deal yet, but the socialist/Marxist Katie Wilson has a lead that was holding as they continued counting—a week after Election Day. Seattle Times: The race could ultimately prove to be the closest in Seattle’s history. If the two candidates remain within 0.5% after the results are certified later this month, an automatic machine recount will be triggered. The race is barely within that margin now. If they are within 150 votes, the contest will go to a hand recount. But with only 1,463 ballots remaining — plus however many challenged ballots are resolved — Wilson is now the clear favorite to be elected (Seattle Times). Jeff Charles at Townhall: Wilson supports the typical socialist policies favored by the likes of Zohran Mamdani and others. She wants publicly owned affordable homes and rent control. She is also an ardent advocate for public transit and wants to increase public funding for lower fares and policies that make public transit more accessible to residents. The candidate also wants to raise the minimum wage while strengthening unions. She supports measures to guarantee sick leave, fair scheduling, and safety protections. I don’t need to tell you she also favors universal childcare and health care, do I? You will also be less than shocked to find out Wilson supports hiking taxes on big business and wealthy individuals to fund these projects (Townhall).

Our Nation’s Largest Aircraft Carrier Group Now Sits Near Venezuela

And Maduro has to be nervous. Wall Street Journal: The U.S. Navy’s largest aircraft carrier arrived in waters near Latin America on Tuesday, expanding the American military’s buildup as the Trump administration seeks to ratchet up the pressure on Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro…. Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell said the carrier strike group “will enhance and augment existing capabilities to disrupt narcotics trafficking and degrade and dismantle Transnational Criminal Organizations.” The strike group’s firepower, however, goes beyond what is required to strike the small boats that the Trump administration says are being used to smuggle drugs (Wall Street Journal). The administration is dealing with drug cartels, yes. But they also have their eye on Maduro and the influence of China in our hemisphere. Fox News: As President Donald Trump warns of “zero tolerance” for narco-states in America’s backyard, China is tightening its grip on Venezuela — a high-risk economic and political bet that could soon collide with U.S. power…. Into this standoff, Beijing unveiled a “zero-tariff” trade agreement with Caracas at the Shanghai Expo 2025, announced by Deputy Minister for Foreign Trade Coromoto Godoy. Venezuelan officials said the accord covers roughly 400 tariff categories, removing duties on Chinese and Venezuelan goods…. “Maduro probably doesn’t have a choice,” [Gordon Chang] said. “He realizes he’s got a problem in the form of Donald J. Trump. There’s a U.S. aircraft carrier not far from his shores, and a lot of military assets bearing down on him. He needs a friend, and he’s desperate.” “For Maduro, the zero-tariff pact may offer temporary relief — but it only deepens dependence,” Chang added. “I don’t see this trade deal as strengthening Venezuela. I see it strengthening China’s stranglehold over Venezuela” (Fox News).

Newsom Takes His Presidential Campaign to Brazil—Positioning Himself as a ‘stand-in for the U.S.’

If the LA Times admits it, you know the California governor is continuing his cartoonish 2028 presidential campaign in any way possible. Brazil is hosting the U.N.’s climate summit, complete with all the usual hypocrisy of the climate catastrophists. Los Angeles Times: “I’m here because I don’t want the United States of America to be a footnote at this conference,” Newsom said when he reached a packed news conference on his first day at the United Nations climate policy summit known as COP30…. “Absolutely,” he said when asked whether the state is in effect standing in for the United States at climate talks. “And I think the world sees us in that light, as a stable partner, a historic partner … in the absence of American leadership. And not just absence of leadership, the doubling down of stupid in terms of global leadership on clean energy.” On his way to Brazil, he celebrated the victory with a swing through Houston, where a rally featuring Texas Democrats looked more like a presidential campaign stop than a policy event — one of several moments in recent months that have invited speculation about a White House run that he insists he hasn’t launched (Los Angeles Times).

The Nation Should Not Be Fooled by Newsom: He Ruins Everything He Touches

The only thing the California governor has going for him is that he presents well. It’s a sad statement about 21^st century America that looking good on camera—in and of itself—makes him a formidable candidate. Derek Parker looks at a book on California titled “Fools Gold” by Susan Crabree and Jeff McFatter: These days, California is bleeding residents, and the exodus shows no sign of abating. Crabtree and McFatter track the myriad causes: spiraling lawlessness, soaring costs, blackouts and brownouts, collapsing infrastructure, crippling regulations, ever-escalating taxes, pervasive corruption, and a failing court system. The state that was once hailed as a model for the rest of America has become a place where nothing works—except the government’s PR machine…. “Every problem he encounters, Newsom addresses in typical performative progressive fashion,” the authors write. “Convene a commission, appoint a czar, hold a press conference, and ultimately, just throw more money at it. The result of his reign in California has been abject failure.” … “Everyone knows that Gavin Newsom is a self-promoting political shape-shifter who has run California into the ground,” McFatter told me, via email. “No amount of re-branding can change the facts. Newsom is so self-absorbed that he helped fund a monument to himself. Worse than that, he sold out his state to Chinese communists, cronies, and thieves.” … “There’s no doubt that Newsom is seeking the Democratic nomination in 2028 and/or 2032,” Crabtree wrote in an email. “Because he’s such a slick politician who believes his own lies and because the Democrats are in such disarray, I think he has a good chance of winning the nomination and a real shot at the White House” (Chronicles).

Newsom’s Former Chief of Staff Arrested in 23-Count Federal Conspiracy, Fraud Case

Jennifer Van Laar at Red State: Dana Williamson, former chief of staff to California Gov. Gavin Newsom, was arrested Wednesday morning, charged in a 23-count federal indictment with conspiracy to commit bank and wire fraud, bank fraud, wire fraud, conspiracy to defraud the United States and obstruct justice, subscribing to false tax returns, and making false statements. The charges are related to an alleged scheme between Williamson and at least three other prominent California Democrat political operatives “to divert approximately $225,000 in funds from a dormant political campaign to an associate’s personal use.” The investigation began under the Biden administration, and are the result of a nearly three-year investigation (Red State).

Looking Past Pelosi: Don’t Look Now, But Scott Weiner Is a Favorite to Win the Pelosi Seat

Conservatives have good reason to be fatigued with congresswoman and former Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi. After all, she was a factor in pushing her party three or four steps to the left. But what comes next may be much, much worse. California State Senator Scott Weiner is running for Pelosi’s seat—and he’s a clear favorite (CalMatters). It really is difficult to sum up how bad Weiner is. David Strom: He is a one-stop shop for legalizing and normalizing exploitation and degeneracy…. On alphabet issues, Scott Weiner basically runs California. He is the driving force for everything from lowering penalties for trafficking children to making it almost impossible to save them. He helped create the regime where sex offenders are housed in women’s prisons, and of course led the charge to make California a “transgender sanctuary state,” which mandates that California protect non-custodial parents who kidnap children for the purpose of sterilizing and mutilating them (Hot Air). Daily Wire: Like Zohran Mamdani, Scott Wiener is the frightening face of a new Democratic Party, in which letting children get transgender surgeries is just the tip of the iceberg. From letting the state take gay kids away from their parents to legalizing pedophilia, Wiener makes even the most radical member of Congress look like a moderate (Daily Wire).

Trump Makes Formal Request for Pardon of Netanyahu

The parallels between Trump and Israel’s Prime Minister are limited, but both men have been subjected to lawfare. Politico: Israeli President Isaac Herzog received a letter from President Donald Trump urging him to grant a full pardon for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in his long-standing corruption case, his office said Wednesday. Netanyahu has faced multiple charges for the past five years, including fraud and bribery, and has pleaded not guilty. In the letter released by Herzog’s office on Wednesday, Trump urged the Israeli president to “fully pardon” the “formidable and decisive War Time Prime Minister,” citing the pair’s ongoing work to implement lasting peace in the Middle East (Politico). From Trump’s letter: While I absolutely respect the independence of the Israeli Justice System, and its requirements, I believe that this “case” against Bibi, who has fought alongside me for a long time, including against the very tough adversary of Israel, Iran, is a political, unjustified prosecution. Isaac, we have established a great relationship, one that I am very thankful for and honored by, and we agreed as soon as I was inaugurated in January that the focus had to be centered on finally bringing the hostages home and getting the peace agreement done. Now that we have achieved these unprecedented successes, and are keeping Hamas in check, it is time to let Bibi unite Israel by pardoning him, and ending that lawfare once and for all. Thank you for your attention to this matter (Jerusalem Post).

Harvard Crimson Publishes Piece: ‘Should I Let Go of My Zionist Friends?

It was a letter to the “Amateur Ethicist.” The answer is chilling: If what you are asking is whether you are justified in letting go of your Zionist friends, then the matter is simple. The answer is yes. Remember: Because friendship is volitional by definition, we are never obligated to be friends with someone. Friendship depends on active choices, and we are always entitled to choose to end a friendship (Crimson). JNS: Rabbi Jason Rubenstein, executive director of Harvard Hillel, said he was “shocked” …. “This is exactly the kind of shunning, ostracization, demonization” of “Zionist Jews and Israelis that we’ve been speaking out against, working against for the last two years,” Rubenstein said…. Rubenstein said the op-ed reflects a broader trend nationwide. A 2024 report funded by the Jim Joseph Foundation found that one in five non-Jewish respondents did not want to be friends with a Zionist (JNS).

Anti-Semitic Voices and MAGA

Lee Smith—author of “The Plot Against the President” on Trump—looks at the Buchananite resurrection via a cadre of young Republican activists, i.e.—the resurgent influence of Pat Buchanan. Smith: The rising Buchananites are betting that antisemitism doesn’t have a ceiling. Their strategy is premised on the idea that in a historical moment when young voters have more than enough reason to distrust the experts, officials, industries, and institutions ostensibly undergirding our peace and prosperity, Jew hate functions something like a magnet that enthralls splintered spirits, further enchanted by conspiracy theories weaponized to amplify despair and leave its audiences wondering what, if anything, they were told about America is true, and if anything about her is good or beautiful. From this perspective, what held Buchanan back wasn’t that antisemitism failed to appeal to the masses, but that he hadn’t built out the infrastructure that would transform America’s political arena wholly…. The bad news—at least for Trump supporters—is that after Trump made MAGA mainstream, the Buchananites, as Podhoretz wrote of the same faction at a different time, are likely to drag it back “into a marginal sectarian status with very little appeal to anyone outside its own fever swamps” (Tablet).