Trump’s Address Was Not About Wars Abroad, But About Progress at Home

Most of the speculation about Trump’s Wednesday night address was that he would be announcing a war on Venezuela, but when the president spoke to Americans it was about his efforts to fix things at home. It’s almost as if he was focused on making America great again, and his critics wanted the focus put elsewhere. Along with the speech, the White House put out their talking points covering the issues. White House: President Donald J. Trump took office on a promise to defeat inflation and bring down costs — and 11 months later, he has made substantial progress in reversing the inflation and cost-of-living disaster he inherited. Inflation has been cut by more than half, gas prices have fallen sharply, real wages are growing again, and key household expenses are finally heading in the right direction. President Trump tamed Biden’s inflation crisis — and is working to bring it down further. Democrats caused it. Under Biden, inflation averaged nearly 5% and hit 9.1% amid the worst inflation crisis in decades — fueled by the Radical Left’s obsession with spending. President Trump is fixing it. In President Trump’s second term, inflation has dropped to an average of just 2.7% — the critical first step in reversing Democrats’ cost-of-living disaster. In fact, under President Trump, Americans have even seen the first overall price decline since 2020. Core inflation — often called the best measure of inflation — is now lower than it was at any time during the last three years of the Biden Administration. (White House) Much more at the link.

Governor Kathy Hochul Will Sign Bill Approving Medical Murder

The fight over whether New York will approve doctors killing patients appears to be resolved. Unsurprisingly, the state is moving forward. CBS News: “New York has long been a beacon of freedom, and now it is time we extend that freedom to terminally ill New Yorkers who want the right to die comfortably and on their own terms,” Hochul said. “My mother died of ALS, and I am all too familiar with the pain of seeing someone you love suffer and being powerless to stop it. Although this was an incredibly difficult decision, I ultimately determined that with the additional guardrails agreed upon with the Legislature, this bill would allow New Yorkers to suffer less — to shorten not their lives, but their deaths.” State Sen. Brad Hoylman-Sigal called the agreement historic.  “This agreement on Medical Aid in Dying is a monumental victory for every New Yorker who has wished to peacefully end their suffering from a terminal illness,” Hoylman-Sigal said. (CBS News) Medical assistance in dying has worked so well for Canada, so why not bring it here, too?

FBI Deputy Director Dan Bongino to Resign

FBI Deputy Director Dan Bongino—probably the first Deputy Director whom many Americans could name—has announced his decision to leave his position, effective January. Bongino left his popular podcast to do a stint in Washington and was expected to serve no more than a year. Washington Post: FBI Deputy Director Dan Bongino announced Wednesday that he will leave his job next month, after a tumultuous tenure in which he helped oversee major shifts in the bureau’s resources and dramatic dismissals of experienced agents. “I want to thank you, my fellow Americans, for the privilege to serve you,” he said in a social media post announcing his departure. President Donald Trump commended Bongino on his service and suggested that he would be returning to his job as a conservative podcaster. “Dan did a great job. I think he wants to go back to his show,” Trump told reporters Wednesday afternoon, shortly before Bongino’s announcement. Bongino — the second most powerful person in the FBI — left Washington for the year more than a week ago and said he would not be returning to the agency’s headquarters, according to two people who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss a personnel issue they were not authorized to talk about publicly. He had previously told colleagues that his last official day at the bureau would be in January, according to the two people. In his social media post, Bongino thanked Trump, Attorney General Pam Bondi and FBI Director Kash Patel “for the opportunity to serve with purpose.” He added, “God bless America, and all those who defend Her.” (Washington Post)

Democrats Still Upset That People Fly George Washington’s Naval Flag

Massachusetts Senator Ed Markey is the latest Democrat to express outrage that the “Appeal to Heaven” flag has been seen in federal office buildings. Senator Markey: I’ve previously called out the Small Business Administration for flying the Appeal to Heaven flag–a symbol of white Christian nationalism favored by January 6 insurrectionists. Now, a high-ranking Department of Education official has it outside his office. Unacceptable. Take it down. (X) The flag, commissioned by General George Washington to fly on United States Navy ships in 1775 should be as uncontroversial as the Betsy Ross flag. Unfortunately, the Betsy Ross flag has also been attacked as a symbol of white supremacy, so one supposes it is.

WaPo: Tyler Robinson Killed Charlie Kirk Over Trans Issues, But It Wasn’t Political…

Tyler Robinson shot Charlie Kirk because he had been radicalized by his transgender boyfriend, and despite a lot of hemming and hawing and dancing around, the Post kinda-sorta had to admit it. Hot Air: The Washington Post published a deep dive on Tyler Robinson’s life and political views prior to the shooting of Charlie Kirk. What they found is that Robinson seemed to have a fairly bland a pox on both their houses view of the two political parties for quite a while. That changed when he started dating his roommate, who was very vocal about trans rights and his disgust at the re-election of President Trump. But because this is the Post, the story is framed as a rebuttal to Trump and Republicans. “This examination draws on interviews with 21 people who knew Robinson, as well as hundreds of messages he exchanged online over the past five years. President Donald Trump and his inner circle have claimed that Robinson was radicalized by left-wing extremists. Prosecutors allege Robinson targeted Kirk for his “political expression,” but there is no publicly known videotaped statement or lengthy missive to better understand the high-profile killing.” Having denied the obvious, the story then goes into detail which demonstrates that Robinson was in fact radicalized by a left-wing extremist, his boyfriend. “Some people said they noticed changes in Robinson over roughly the past year. His mother told police that he had become more “more pro-gay and trans-rights oriented” and had started dating a roommate who was undergoing a gender transition. Friends confirmed the pair’s romantic involvement and said the roommate was distressed about anti-trans sentiment. After the presidential election, according to one person who was close to him at the time, Robinson began to voice concern for the rights of transgender people and to express disapproval of the new administration, though the person said he was not strident in those views.” (Hot Air) (Washington Post)

Nancy Pelosi’s Performance in the Stock Market Makes Warren Buffett Look Pathetic

As Nancy Pelosi exits stage left, so to speak, it is now OK for people in the media to notice that she was the #1 advocate for Congressional members to be allowed to do insider trading as Members of Congress. A recent study showed that, compared to The Maestro Warren Buffett, Nancy Pelosi is a stock trading genius. 24/7 Wall Street: From 2019 through 2024, Pelosi’s disclosed trades (executed by her husband and venture capitalist Paul Pelosi) crushed the market by more than 3-to-1. A widely cited analysis by Unusual Whales showed her portfolio gained roughly 65% in 2023 alone when the S&P 500 rose 24%. In 2024 the gap widened again to +71% versus the market’s +25% return. According to The New York Post, Pelosi’s record during her 37-year tenure in Congress served up cumulative returns of 16,930% compared to just 2,300% by the index. That’s not just beating the market; that’s thrashing it.  When Pelosi entered the House in 1987, her net worth was an estimated $2 million to $3 million; today it stands between $250 million and $280 million, a more than 9,000% gain over nearly four decades. With a little more than a year to go before she officially steps down, there is plenty of time to pad her lead. (24/7 Wall Street) To see a video comparison between Pelosi’s performance and Buffett’s: (X)

House Passes Modest Health Care Reforms Without Extending Subsidies

In 2021, as part of a COVID relief bill, Biden and the Democrats voted for “temporary” subsidies for purchases on Obamacare policies for wealthier purchasers of policies. Those subsidies are about to expire, but in the meantime, policy prices have skyrocketed, and as usual politicians want to keep the spending going. POLITICO: The House Republican health care bill would allow small businesses to offer their own health plans, crack down on drug intermediaries known as pharmacy benefit managers and fund another kind of subsidy designed to reduce out-of-pocket expenses for Obamacare enrollees. GOP centrists had been embroiled in discussions for weeks with members of leadership over the contours of that framework. And when it became clear the package would not extend the expiring enhanced tax credits, there was a tentative understanding that moderates could receive a floor vote on an amendment that might do so on a limited basis. But those members could not reach a satisfactory compromise with Johnson, who was torn between representing the interests of moderates and ceding to the demands of hard-liners. Frustration finally boiled over Wednesday morning, when four House Republicans signed on to a Democratic-led “discharge petition” to circumvent leadership and force a floor vote on a bill that would extend the ACA subsidies for three years. (POLITICO) Prediction: nobody will be happy because the system remains broken, and prices will continue to go up for most people because Congress won’t take on the big issues.

Search For Brown University Shooter Is a Train Wreck

It’s early days, and Americans tend to expect quick results, so it is perhaps unfair to expect an immediate arrest in the horrific case of the Brown University assassin case. Still, by any standard, it’s hard to say that the investigation has inspired confidence. It’s been five days, and nobody involved has covered themselves in glory. Information has been withheld, the FBI jumped the gun on announcing a potential arrest, and many of the witnesses haven’t yet been interviewed. NBC News: Authorities have been combing through the 200 credible tips they have received, he said Tuesday. Complicating the ongoing search is the fact that many students, faculty and staff left campus after the school canceled the remaining week of its fall semester. Authorities shared images this week of the person of interest, which show a man they say is about 5 feet, 8 inches tall and has a stocky build. The FBI, in coordination with Providence police and Rhode Island state police, released a video timeline Tuesday showing the man wearing a dark hat, a two-tone zippered jacket, black pants and a dark medical mask covering most of his face. The timeline of stitched-up security video from the neighborhood surrounding the university campus shows the man walking around the area, about a block away from campus, at 2 p.m. ET — two hours before the shooting Saturday. There is also video of him walking in front of the building where the shooting happened and of him walking away from campus after the shooting. There is no video showing the person of interest entering the Barus and Holley engineering building, where the shooter opened fire. (NBC News) Speculation is running rampant online because so little information has been shared with the public. Confidence would skyrocket if more facts were laid on the table, including what the shooter shouted as he opened fire.

Fani Willis Surprisingly Accuses Her Critics of Racism

Fani Willis covered herself in glory as she testified before the Georgia State Senate today. Faced with tough questions, she fired back in the best way she knows how: shouting “Racism!” when asked about her payments to her lover for legal services. Townhall: Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis went before the Georgia state Senate this week to answer questions about her relationship with Nathan Wade and the witch hunt against President Trump. Judging by this video, it seems things aren’t going well for Willis. When Willis was presented with documents showing how much money her office paid to Wade, Willis melted down. “I don’t review those documents, so you’re asking me to look at documents that I haven’t for the first time,” Willis said. She sounded very agitated. “What I can tell you is I allowed Mr. Wade to bill 160 hours a week, and then Mr. Wade would be the first one in the office making sure that my staff arrived. He corrected their behavior. They thought that 8:30 meant 8:30; he taught them that 8:30 meant 7:45,” Willis said. That doesn’t reflect well on her management style, of course. As the DA and head of her office, Willis should’ve imparted those lessons to her staff. Willis continued, “He got there before them. He left after them. He taught them how to do this case, and he was a leader of that team and a public servant. And for that, he, like me, has been threatened thousands of times. You want something to investigate as a legislature? Investigate how many times they’ve called me the n-word. Why don’t you investigate that?” (Townhall)

Remembering Norman Podhoretz

A giant of the conservative movement has passed on to his eternal reward, and he will be missed greatly. Tom Cotton: Not many men truly change the course of history. Those who do usually do it through their actions, like General U.S. Grant’s brilliant military campaigns in the Civil War. Fewer still do it with a combination of words and actions, like Abraham Lincoln. Perhaps rarest of all are men like Norman Podhoretz, who change history with mere words. And what words they were. Norman was not only the long-time legendary editor and soul of COMMENTARY, but also a prolific author of a dozen books, hundreds of essays, articles, and columns, and no telling how many speeches. He could turn out 10,000 words of elegant, sparkling, cogent prose seemingly at a moment’s notice while identifying for his readers the deeper meaning of the day’s news. Norman was also an original neoconservative, and proud to be so. These days, some historically illiterate podcasters and so-called influencers use the term “neocon” as an all-purpose slur for anything they don’t like. But the neocons were just that—new conservatives—a collection of anti-communist liberals between World War II and the Vietnam War who were, as the saying goes, mugged by reality, in this case the reality of the New Left’s turn against America. (Tom Cotton in Commentary)