Month: April 2022

On April 12, Christians will be celebrating Easter, the day on which the resurrection of Jesus is said to have taken place. The date of celebration changes from year to year.

Catholic League: Secularists Are ‘Doubting the Resurrection But Not Pregnant Men’

April 17, 2022April 16, 2022 Susan Berry, PhD

Reflecting on the meaning of Easter, the president of the nation’s largest Catholic civil rights organization, questions how secularists can possibly doubt the Resurrection of Jesus Christ, “but not pregnant men.”

While faith is central to all religions, the Catholic League’s Bill Donohue observes “it is not on faith alone that the account of Jesus’ resurrection is persuasive.”

Three-Fourths of Americans Say COVID No Longer a Crisis

An overwhelming majority of Americans now believe that the coronavirus crisis has all but passed and is now a much more manageable issue, according to a new poll.

Axios reports that in its latest poll, conducted with Ipsos, only 9 percent of Americans call the coronavirus pandemic “a serious crisis.” Conversely, 73 percent described it as “a problem, but manageable.” Another 17 percent say it is “not a problem at all.” Along party lines, only 3 percent of Republicans called it a “crisis,” in comparison to 16 percent of Democrats; 66 percent of Republicans called it “manageable,” while 81 percent of Democrats said the same. Just 3 percent of Democrats think it is no longer an issue, with 31 percent of Republicans giving the same answer.

Report: The EU Would Rather Buy Putin’s Oil Than See Le Pen Win France’s Presidency

The European Union has delayed its much-anticipated ban on Russian oil imports to give French President Emmanuel Macron a better chance of winning reelection, The New York Times reported.

The EU embargo, which leaders have reportedly debated behind closed doors for over a month and are currently drafting, is expected after April 24, the date of the second and final round of France’s presidential election, European officials told the NYT. European leaders want to ensure right-wing populist candidate Marine Le Pen isn’t given a polling advantage when gasoline prices rise following a ban announcement, the officials said.

Poll: Racial and Sexual Curricula in Schools Dividing Americans

According to a new poll, Americans are divided along party lines on the question of whether or not to actively teach about race and sexuality in public schools.

The Associated Press reports that the poll by the University of Chicago, AP, and the NORC Center for Public Affairs Research asked two questions of respondents: Do parents have too little, too much, or about the right amount of influence over what their children learn, and do teachers have too little, too much, or about the right amount of influence in the same area?

Commentary: Michigan and Pennsylvania Lockdowns Show the High Price of Government Overreach

April 17, 2022April 16, 2022 RealClearWire

It’s official, COVID-19 is no longer a crisis. According to a recent Axios poll, only nine percent of Americans believe COVID is a serious crisis. Yet the economic destruction caused by lockdowns lingers. Nowhere is that more obvious than in Michigan and Pennsylvania.

Gov. Gretchen Whitmer and Gov. Tom Wolf wielded immense emergency powers to shut down large parts of the economy, actions unprecedented in the 246-year history of the United States.

Commentary: The Dystopian Future Where Women—and Men—Just Don’t Want Children

Most of the baby strollers my family observed on vacation in Savannah, Georgia were not transporting babies. Instead, couples perambulated about the city with . . . dogs. By the end of our vacation, we had counted more than 200 different dogs in strollers across the city. Seeing an actual baby in a stroller proved to be the exception, not the rule.

The U.S. birthrate has fallen by about 20 percent since 2007, and shows no signs of recovering. Among childless adults, 44 percent of those under 50 say it is not too or not at all likely they will ever have children, up from 37 percent who said the same in 2018.

Carjackings Soar in Blue State After Democrats Tie Police Officers’ Hands

Carjackings in Washington have soared after Democrats endorsed a rule that limited police pursuits, according to a major police association, King 5 News reported.

Washington recorded an 88% increase in car thefts since 2021, according data compiled by the Washington Association of Sheriffs and Police Chiefs, King 5 reported. The state experienced 12,569 stolen vehicles between January and March 2022, compared to 6,692 thefts during the same time period in 2021.

Fairfax Schools Picks New Superintendent in Process that Frustrated Conservatives and Progressives

April 17, 2022April 16, 2022 Eric Burk

The Fairfax County Public School Board selected Dr. Michelle Reid to serve as the new superintendent, replacing Dr. Scott Brabrand.

“Dr. Reid is focused on academic achievement and outcomes for every student in our Fairfax community. She has previously demonstrated the highest professional standards when it comes to leading a school district and a proven track record of working to build a successful future for students,” Fairfax County School Board Chair and Sully District Representative Stella Pekarsky said in a Thursday press release.

Twitter Board Adopts So-Called ‘Poison Pill’ Plan to Block Musk from Taking Platform Private

Twitter’s board of directors on Friday unanimously adopted a plan to stop Tesla CEO Elon Musk’s plan to take private the social media company.

Commentary: Restrict Mail-In Voting to Restore Trust

April 16, 2022April 15, 2022 RealClearWire

The 2020 U.S. election was unique in many respects, but its chief distinguishing feature is that it occurred during a full-scale pandemic. One consequence was that the election operated under regulations that changed how Americans vote. Some states bent voting rules to expand access. Some resorted to mail-in voting to ensure that everyone who wanted to vote could do so. These actions were, to some extent, understandable, but the resulting conditions were extraordinary, and the dramatic increase in mail-in voting created a major political phenomenon: the blue shift, in which late-counted ballots turn voting outcomes toward the Democrats.

On election night, vote totals initially looked good for President Donald Trump. But as mail-in votes rolled in, central swing states moved into Joe Biden’s column, and Biden won the election. The phenomenon disrupted expectations – and sowed distrust. Many of my Republican family members said, “It didn’t seem right. I knew something was wrong.” Trump, attuned to the emotions of his base, made use of this sentiment. He stoked suspicion that Democrats stole the election. The nightmarish result was the Jan. 6 insurrection.

Goliad Sheriff: Cartels Are Preparing for Influx of People Never Seen Before in U.S. History

April 16, 2022April 15, 2022 The Center Square

Border Patrol agents and Texas law enforcement officers are bracing for as many as 500,000 illegal immigrants waiting in Mexico to enter Texas in the Rio Grande Valley Sector once Title 42 is lifted, Goliad County Sheriff Roy Boyd told The Center Square in an exclusive interview.

The Rio Grande Valley Sector, one of 20 U.S. Customs and Border Protection sectors, stretches from the Gulf of Mexico south of Brownsville west to the eastern tip of Falcon Lake in Starr County. RGV Sector Border Patrol agents are tasked with patrolling over 320 river miles, 250 coastal miles and 19 counties equating to more than 17,000 square miles in the busiest sector along the southern border.

‘This Has Gone Too Far’: Transgender Psychologist Reconsiders Work with Trans Youths

Erica Anderson, a transgender psychologist who works with transgender children, criticized the “gender affirming” model of care and said teens were “transitioning” because of peer influence in a Los Angeles Times article Tuesday.

Anderson, who claims to have helped hundreds of teenagers “transition,” has considered leaving the field of transgender child psychology for fear of being associated with the “affirmative approach,” according to the LA Times. The transgender psychologist said some medical practitioners are giving gender-confused children hormones and surgeries without thoroughly evaluating their mental health.

Biden Action on Gas Prices Will Only Affect 1.5 Percent of Gas Stations, Save Some Americans 10 Cents

President Joe Biden’s recent action to address record-high gasoline prices will have a bare minimum impact on consumers, saving some American families a few dollars a month.

Biden issued an emergency waiver Tuesday allowing gas stations nationwide to sell gasoline with 15% ethanol (E15), pausing a federal environmental regulation that prohibits the corn-based biofuel mixture during the summer months to limit smog. American consumers are currently facing record-high pump prices and soaring inflation at levels not seen since 1981.

Kentucky Lawmakers Override Dem Governor on Women’s Sports and Abortion

Kentucky legislators banned males from women’s sports and restricted abortions Wednesday, overriding the Democratic governor’s veto.

Lawmakers overrode Democratic Gov. Andy Beshear’s veto of Senate Bill 83, which bars males from participating in girls’ sports from elementary through secondary education. Beshear preferred a policy allowing males to compete in girls’ sports if they underwent certain medical sex change treatments rather than an outright ban, he explained in his April 7 veto letter.

Report: Major NBA Owner Tied to China’s Genocide

The owner of a top ten NBA team has ties to the ongoing genocide of Uyghurs and other ethnic minorities in China, according to an ESPN report Thursday.

Joe Tsai, the owner of the Brooklyn Nets, is also the executive vice chairman of Alibaba, a Chinese tech firm, with a significant financial stake in companies the U.S. government blacklisted for their role in supporting “a campaign of repression, mass arbitrary detention and high-tech surveillance,” according to the ESPN report.

Commentary: President Biden Sides Against Union Rank-and-File

April 16, 2022April 15, 2022 RealClearWire

While rank-and-file union members embraced President Trump, virtually every major union endorsed Joe Biden. A quietly issued Labor Department regulation helps explain this disconnect. President Biden has put union leaders first — even at the expense of union members.

Late last year, the Labor Department rescinded Trump Administration union transparency regulations. These regulations would have required union trust funds — like apprenticeship funds and strike funds — to disclose their receipts and expenditures.

Virginia Association of Chiefs of Police Says New Survey Shows Need for Mental Health Resources for First Responders

April 16, 2022April 15, 2022 Eric Burk

In preliminary results of a mental health survey of first responders released by the Virginia Association of Chiefs of Police (VACP), 21 percent of those who completed the survey indicated problems with alcohol, 20 percent had clinically significant scores for anxiety, and 19 percent had clinically significant scores for depression. VACP officials think that understates the scale of the problem.

“The Virginia results of the survey indicate the need for a wide variety of resources to assist in diagnosing and treating our officers who are struggling in silence from depression, anxiety, and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD),” a Thursday press release states.

Greitens: Karl Rove Exploits Our Family’s Pain to Block My Senate Run

April 15, 2022 Julie Carr

Neil W. McCabe, the national political editor of The Star News Network, interviewed Missouri GOP Senate hopeful Eric Greitens about Karl Rove’s role in his ex-wife’s accusations against him.

Greitens, a Navy SEAL combat veteran and former Missouri, said told The Star News Network, his ex-wife has admitted that she wrote her statements off a draft by Rove and that her accusations have been disproven.

Pacific Legal Foundation Files Lawsuit to End Right to Retrieve Dog Hunting Law

April 15, 2022April 14, 2022 Eric Burk

The Pacific Legal Foundation (PLF) is following up a 2021 property rights win in the U.S. Supreme Court with a lawsuit over right-to-retrieve law in Virginia, a key piece of dog hunting practice in the Commonwealth. The PLF says that allowing hunters to go onto private property to retrieve dogs can harm property owners’ privacy, safety, and business.

“A fundamental aspect of property rights is the ability to exclude trespassers from your property. The government cannot grant third-party access that violates your property rights and disturbs your use of your property even if that access is in the form of retrieving a hunting dog,” the PLF said in a Thursday announcement of the lawsuit. “The Supreme Court made this clear in PLF’s 2021 win in Cedar Point Nursery v. Hassid, which held that grants of access like this are uncompensated takings of property under the Fifth Amendment.”

U.S. Rep. Morgan Griffith: ‘Until We Get a Majority in the House, We Can’t Take Any Affirmative Action’

April 15, 2022April 14, 2022 Julie Carr

Wednesday morning on The John Fredericks Show, host Fredericks welcomed (R-VA-8) Morgan Griffith to the show to discuss the southern border crisis, inflation, and the Putin blame game.

States Preemptively Banning ESG Practices Pushed by Big Capital

April 15, 2022April 14, 2022 Peter D'Abrosca

States across the country are preemptively banning Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) scoring, which some say would lead to a massive consolidation of wealth among the most powerful investment companies in America.

“In an attempt to secure vast amounts of wealth and influence over society, corporations, bankers, and investors, working closely with key government officials, have launched a unified effort to impose environmental, social, and governance (ESG) standards on most of the industrialized global economy. (ESG standards are also referred to as ‘sustainable investment’ or ‘stakeholder capitalism.’),” Justin Haskins at The Heartland Institute said.

Bob Good Renomination Convention May 21st at Hampden-Sydney College to Offer High Level of Election Integrity, Voter Vetting

April 15, 2022April 14, 2022 Julie Carr

Wednesday morning on the John Fredericks Show, host Fredericks welcomed U.S. Representative in Virginia’s 5th congressional district Bob Good talks upcoming Republican convention and his renomination May 21st at Hampden-Sydney College.

Commentary: Frustrated and Angry Democrats Blame Joe Biden for Loss of Message

At the White House, a conundrum is taking place. Could the scenario look and sound like this?

15th Annual Easter Sunrise Celebration on Government Property at Chicago’s Daley Plaza

April 15, 2022April 14, 2022 Susan Berry, PhD

Sunday will mark the 15th annual celebration of Easter on Chicago’s Daley Plaza – government property – including a sunrise service on Easter Sunday itself, to honor the resurrection of Jesus Christ.

This sacred observance of Easter begins at Daley Plaza on Holy Thursday, 7:30 p.m. CDT, when a giant 19-foot-high cross is erected at 50 West Washington Street.

Republican National Committee Unanimously Decides to Withdraw from Commission on Presidential Debates

The Republican National Committee said Thursday the group has unanimous voted to withdraw from the Commission on Presidential Debates, the group that runs the series of General Election debates between the Democrat and Republican nominee every four years.

GOP Reps. Fitzgerald, Banks Introduce Bill to Repeal National Educational Association’s Charter

GOP Reps. Scott Fitzgerald and Jim Banks introduced a measure Thursday to repeal the century-old federal charter granted to the National Educational Association, arguing the group has shifted too far to the left.

Commentary: Pay Attention to These Supreme Court Races in Six States

April 15, 2022April 14, 2022 RealClearWire

Before the 2024 election, six swing states will have supreme court elections that could flip which party controls the state’s supreme court.

Rulings by state supreme courts on redistricting maps have led Cook Political to revise their projections on who redistricting favors, from favoring Republicans, to being a wash. This didn’t happen by Democrats’ good fortune. Former Attorney General Eric Holder and other Democrats have targeted state supreme court races over the last decade and are continuing to do so. In response, the Republican State Leadership Committee declared in a memorandum: “Democrats’ past spending on state court races paying off in redistricting fight.” Republicans believe they have a plan to fight back in future court races, but this round of redistricting will likely be done before any of those races are decided.

JPMorgan Stashing Away Hundreds of Millions in Fear of ‘Powerful Forces’ Shaking US Economy