One hears—and large news outlets dutifully report—that there is a “tsunami” of legislation “restricting the right to vote,” that states reforming their mail-in voting laws as COVID retreats are engaged in “voter suppression,” and even that these actions represent “the new Jim Crow.”  These claims are preposterous. At best, they reveal a startling historical ignorance. The grandfather laws, absurd literacy tests, poll taxes, intimidation and terroristic violence of the Jim Crow era have nothing whatever to do with, say, Ohio’s restriction of early voting from 35 to 29 days, or with limiting same-day registration. Nor do they have anything to do with regulating absentee ballots, out-of-precinct voting, or voter ID requirements, all reasonable electoral integrity measures approved by the Carter-Baker Commission.

At worst, these statements reveal a startling cynicism, driven by a desire to inflame passions—and to raise funds.  Those who talk this way are being irresponsible.

Data, not pop culture nor hyperbole from those that oppose race-neutral election integrity laws, tells the true story of ballot access in America. To objectively evaluate whether racial minorities have an equal opportunity to participate in the electoral process, you must look at racial registration and turnout data. Looking at the most recent data, the opportunity to participate is exponentially better now than it was in 1965. Based on this data, it is hard to contend that Section 5 needs to be expanded as proposed in H.R. 4. Registration.

Current data shows that black registration has completely rebounded and, in some instances, exceeds White registration rates. In fact, the data shows that eight years after Shelby County, registration disparities in Texas, Florida, North Carolina, Louisiana, and Mississippi – all previously covered (in whole or part) by Section 5 – are all below the national average. In fact, black registration in Mississippi is 4.3% higher than White registration. Registration disparities in these former Section 5 states are lower than the disparities in California, New York, Connecticut, D.C., Delaware, and Virginia. In fact, the four biggest registration disparities, i.e., where White registration most exceeds black registration, are found in Massachusetts, Wisconsin, Oregon, and Colorado, all of which President Biden won in 2020.

Information has recently come to my attention from unsettled soldiers, cadets, and families that raises serious concerns about the U.S. Army’s introduction of elements of critical race theory into cadet instruction…In February this year, I understand the U.S. Military Academy under your leadership required cadets to attend a mandatory seminar on “Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion.” According to the schedule I received, cadets ‘MUST attend at least one of the seminars.

---

I was provided a presentation slide from one of the workshops with the title of ‘White Power at West Point’ and ‘Racist Dog Whistles at West Point.’ Additionally, another presentation slide shared with me depicted a lecture by Dr. Carol Anderson of Emory University with the title “Understanding Whiteness and White Rage.”

National U.S. data show that COVID-19 has disproportionately affected persons of color ... This is attributed to social injustices that create a higher disease burden and shorter lifespan in this population … attributed this partly to the concept of “weathering,” that lifelong exposure to the stresses of racial disparity and injustice manifests in greater physical and psychological disease burden and less ready access to quality health care and health-related resources. In addition, persons of color are more likely to work and live in settings with higher exposure to SARS-CoV-2. That is, merely being Black or Hispanic or Native American does not cause one to more easily contract SARS-CoV-2. Rather, the lifetime social disadvantages experienced by persons of color make them more likely to have health problems that predispose them to contract SARS-CoV-2and more often suffer serious or fatal outcomes. Thus, these individuals, along with others who are at risk for suffering serious or fatal illness due to the presence of comorbidities, will be prioritized for COVID-19 vaccine per the allocation plan as a consequence of risk factors.

The VA in a letter to us notes that “all COVID-19 vaccine reactions are reported to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the Center for Disease Control (CDC) via their FDA/CDC VAERS database. PBM advised that VAERS Data is available publicly on the Health and Human Services website at: VAERS - Data (hhs.gov). As the VAERS website notes:

When evaluating data from VAERS, it is important to note that for any reported event, no cause-and-effect relationship has been established. Reports of all possible associations between vaccines and adverse events (possible side effects) are filed in VAERS. Therefore, VAERS collects data on any adverse event following vaccination, be it coincidental or truly caused by a vaccine. The report of an adverse event to VAERS is not documentation that a vaccine caused the event.)

In its short tenure, the Biden administration has extended a special reprieve for five different groups of illegal immigrants living in the U.S. The most recent was renewed a few days ago for thousands of people from Yemen, the Middle Eastern Islamic nation well known as an Al Qaeda breeding ground. Officially, the provisional amnesty is known as Temporary Protected Status (TPS), a humanitarian measure designed to shield undocumented aliens from deportation during emergencies. It is supposed to be a short-term solution for foreign nationals that do not qualify as refugees but cannot immediately return home because of difficulties caused by factors such as violence, natural disasters, or political and economic instability. TPS, which is typically granted in 18-month increments, not only protects foreign nationals from deportation it also allows them to work in the U.S.

The Obama administration went crazy with TPS, renewing it for tens of thousands of Hondurans and Nicaraguans more than a decade and a half after a hurricane hit the Central American nations, prolonging it for Africans two years after originally issuing it due to Ebola, and repeatedly restoring it for tens of thousands of Haitians years after an earthquake struck the island. During its two terms, the Obama administration never missed an opportunity to offer illegal immigrants reprieve, using inclement weather in the U.S., a virus, natural disasters and tainted water in an American city to extend the perk. Nationals of Yemen have been protected by both Democrats and Republicans, receiving TPS over “ongoing armed conflict” under Obama and two extensions under Trump.

A few days ago, the Biden administration renewed the TPS for Yemenis yet again, protecting approximately 2,180 people. “Yemen continues to experience worsening humanitarian and economic conditions that prevent individuals from safely returning to their homes,” said Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas in a statement announcing the “re-designation.” He added that the administration “will continue to protect and offer these individuals a place of residency temporarily in the United States.” The measure will protect Yemenis who previously benefitted from TPS through March 2023 and will allow about 480 additional Yemenis to qualify. It marks the fifth TPS extension issued by the Biden administration since taking office this year. In January TPS was extended for 6,700 Syrians and 1,800 additional Syrians were allowed to file applications for the 18-month reprieve. In early March 320,000 Venezuelans received TPS for 18 months and in mid-March, Burmese nationals got it for the same period after a military coup and security forces’ violence against civilians. Later in March, the administration extended TPS yet again for more than 100,000 Haitians over the economic crisis that persists more than a decade after the earthquake that provoked the original TPS.

Yemen was first designated for TPS by the Obama administration in 2015 after a northern opposition group called Houthis initiated a violent, territorial expansion across the country and forced Yemeni government leaders to exile in Saudi Arabia. When it expired, the Obama administration extended it another 18 months on the “dual bases of ongoing armed conflict and extraordinary and temporary conditions.” When that second extension expired, the Trump administration renewed it twice, first under Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen in 2018 and again under acting Secretary Chad Wolf. The latest extension is warranted because, although it is in its seventh year, the protracted conflict has shown no sign of abating and fighting between Houthi and government forces continues, according to a Federal Register announcement issued this month.

Yemen is a hotbed of terrorism that serves as the headquarters of Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP). Nevertheless, shortly after getting elected President Biden revoked the terrorist designation of a Yemen-based militant group, a move that was followed by a fat “humanitarian assistance” check from American taxpayers. The Federal register bulletin announcing the group’s (Ansarallah, also known as Partisans of God) terrorist classification says it has committed or has attempted to commit, or poses a significant risk of committing, or has participated in training to commit, acts of terrorism that threaten the of U.S. nationals or the national security, foreign policy, or economy of the United States. The international community strongly opposed classifying Ansarallah as a terrorist entity, asserting it would come with repercussions for humanitarian operations. Days after rescinding the terrorist designation, the Biden administration gave Yemen $191 million in assistance. 

As if enough drugs and illegal immigrants are not already being trafficked into the U.S. through Mexico, a federal agent has been arrested and charged after helping smugglers pass cocaine and an undocumented alien through a Texas border crossing. His name is Oberlin Cortez Peña, and he works for the U.S. Border Patrol (BP), the frontline Homeland Security agency charged with keeping terrorists and their weapons out of the U.S., protecting the American people, and safeguarding our borders. On two separate occasions, Peña took $1,000 in exchange for helping a vehicle carrying at least five kilograms of cocaine through the checkpoint in Falfurrias, Texas, federal prosecutors say. The crossing is situated in an area north of the Rio Grande River that federal authorities say is the nation’s busiest for “alien and narcotic traffic” Peña “utilized his knowledge as a BP agent in acting as a scout and providing information about the inspection lanes and which one to utilize,” according to a statement issued by the Department of Justice (DOJ) this month.

The disgraced federal agent, who is 22 years old, also gave smugglers detailed instructions on how to conceal the drugs in a motor vehicle and tactics to distract the BP canine unit at the checkpoint. Authorities launched an investigation in the middle of June after receiving information that a BP agent was involved in human smuggling, according to a federal complaint. The feds set up a sting operation and had an informant contact Peña, who agreed to take money to provide the informant with advice. Peña said he would drive ahead on his way to work and communicate which checkpoint lane to smuggle the illegal immigrant, referred to as IA in the complaint, which was filed in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas over the weekend. “PENA provided detailed instruction on when the smuggling had a highest rate of success, and instructions on how to conceal the IA,” the complaint states. Authorities say that the meeting occurred on June 21.

The following day, the agent met the cooperator at a mall in McAllen, Texas to discuss smuggling arrangements. The informant said he had five kilograms of cocaine to smuggle through the BP Falfurrias checkpoint and the corrupt agent agreed to be paid $1,000 for conducting countersurveillance, federal prosecutors write in the complaint. Peña also agreed to check the BP schedule to see which agents would be working on Friday, June 25, 2021, at 6:30 p.m. The agent “was willing to transport the 5 kilograms of cocaine if there were rookie agents working at the time,” the federal complaint states. He also told the cooperator to relay what type of compartment the cocaine would be in and the license plates of the load vehicle so that he could check the plates for any alerts. Peña received a photo of a Magellan backpack cooler where the cocaine would be hidden and advised that the drugs be hidden inside the cooler walls with the insulation.

Here is another scary tidbit involving this story. After checking the BP schedule Peña discouraged the operation on the originally planned date because the agents working that day “were good.” He suggested moving the smuggling to another day when the BP team on duty “sucks” and all the agents are “rookies.” After the cocaine passed through the checkpoint, the government source met Peña at a La Joya, Texas eatery and paid him $1,000. The men coordinated another cocaine shipment for later in the week and, once again, Peña agreed to check the BP work schedule, conduct surveillance, and find out if the vehicle’s license plate had been flagged. After that drug shipment made it through, the crooked federal agent met the informant at a gas station in Falfurrias and the informant paid him $1,000. Peña is charged with attempting to aid and abet possession with intent to distribute five or more kilos of cocaine and faces up to a decade in prison. Earlier in the year, Peña was arrested for driving under the influence, according to a local news report.

Between the start of the 2021 fiscal year in October and May Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has seized an astounding 92,000 pounds of drugs from vehicles at the Mexican border, according to agency figures cited in a national news article. Another piece reveals federal agents have seen a “staggering 4,000 percent increase in fentanyl seizures over the last three years,” but not at ports of entry. The fentanyl is being smuggled by brazen smugglers through the desert. A chief BP agent is quoted saying that “cartels are very creative” and that they ‘intimidate migrants and find ways to illegally have them transport that narcotic into the United States.” The last thing we need is an American federal agent like Peña helping them.