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Zombie Marxism – This December we celebrate the dissolution of the Soviet Union, the communist superpower Ronald Reagan rightly named the “Evil Empire.” Yet everywhere today, Marxism still stalks humanity. Indeed, today we can paraphrase Karl Marx and write that its specter haunts not just Europe, but the entire world. We must understand this as a global threat. Since its birth in the 1848 Communist Manifesto by Marx and Friedrich Engels, communism has been a call to arms that knows no borders. But we must also understand—as the Kremlin in its time certainly did—that the big fight is over the United States. Once Marxists seize that most elusive jewel in the crown, they have the world. Heritage Expert: Mike Gonzalez 

 

Federal report shows open borders bring increased crimes and costs for taxpayers – According to a new report from the U.S. Justice Department, almost half of all criminals prosecuted in federal courts in 2018 were undocumented migrants, charged with crimes ranging from drug trafficking to murder to kidnapping. While a small number of over 41,000 criminals were legally in this country, the vast majority — 38,000 — were illegal aliens. Compare this to 1998, when only a little over 18,000 illegal immigrants were prosecuted in federal courts. In addition to the horrendous human costs of their crimes, when you consider the costs of law enforcement related to their arrest, prosecution and incarceration, these migrants are also costing U.S. taxpayers a tremendous amount of money. Heritage Expert: Hans von Spakovsky 

 

Here Are the Facts About Spikes in Crime That Sen. Dick Durbin Didn’t Want Me to Share – Despite seeing record low homicide rates between 2004 and 2015, Chicago residents are now experiencing violent crime at levels unseen in decades—including truly horrific surges in gun violence during 2020 and 2021.  One important factor driving this violence is the failed leadership of Chicago’s mayor and city council, particularly their general lack of support for the Chicago Police Department. Chicago’s progressive prosecutors have exacerbated this problem by routinely allowing violent offenders to run amok without any meaningful consequences. And yet, when I attempted to diagnose this problem at a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on gun violence in Chicago held earlier this week, Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., twice interrupted my testimony. Heritage Expert: Amy Swearer

 

The US Navy Needs To Bring Back The First Fleet For The South China Sea – In the South China Sea, skirmishes amongst fishing fleets and coast guards near a contested shoal are commonplace. But there is a bigger fight coming. China is undermining and challenging U.S. interests and alliances in the region setting the stage for a major showdown with the U.S. To deter a larger conflict, the U.S. must stand up to this now. Doing so will require more naval exercises and deployments – placing a premium on forward naval presence in the South China Sea. Heritage Expert: Brent Sadler 

 

Next NATO Secretary General? – Jens Stoltenberg's term as NATO Secretary General expires next September. Who will replace him? With back-to-back crises on NATO’s frontier in Belarus and Ukraine, that question looms especially large now. And the challenges won’t get any easier. China is becoming a much bigger issue for the alliance. For instance, Beijing is trying to drum up a European boycott to punish NATO-member Lithuania for policies the Chinese Communist Party doesn’t like. Heritage Expert: James Carafano  

Team DeSantis Wages War on Liberal Media in the Wake of Trump – Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis’ press secretary has repeatedly called out the press for “bad-faith coverage” and “skewed” or biased reporting, such as when the Associated Press implied in August that DeSantis was promoting monoclonal antibody treatment for COVID-19 cases out of his own financial interests. “They’re afraid of the governor,” Pushaw said in an interview with The Daily Signal, pointing to national media focusing their attention on Florida news. “The left-wing elites, the establishment, and the corporate media are very much afraid of him. And it shows that he’s a good leader, and that he’s doing a good job. Heritage Expert:  Mary Margaret Olohan