South Carolina House Republicans Plan Clean ‘Constitutional Carry’ Measure

The South Carolina House Republicans plan to introduce a clean “Constitutional Carry” measure after declining to proceed with an amended version the state Senate passed, exposing a rift within Republican ranks over one of the party’s top priorities.

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Biden Classified Memos Report Re-Ignites Debates About Dual Justice, ‘Diminished’ President

Biden Speaking

Special Counsel Robert Hur’s final report on Joe Biden’s willful retention and dissemination of highly classified information is rocking Washington, re-igniting concerns of a dual system of justice while putting the full weight of the government behind the notion that America is currently being served by a president with “diminished faculties.”

Hur’s 388-page report released Thursday may have spared Biden the spectacle of a criminal prosecution similar to that his Justice Department imposed on Donald Trump, but it delivered a devastating blow to the 46th president’s re-election hopes by going out of its way to explain criminal charges weren’t levied in part because jurors might see Biden as a dottering, forgetful old man incapable of criminal intent.

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Jack Smith Makes Another Push to Keep Documents Under Seal

Jack Smith

Special Counsel Jack Smith asked Judge Aileen Cannon on Thursday to reconsider her decision to unseal certain documents prosecutors wanted to keep from the public docket.

Cannon, who is overseeing the classified documents case against former President Donald Trump in Florida, ruled Tuesday that certain discovery material Smith wanted to keep under seal because it could impact the safety of potential witnesses would be disclosed out of the “strong presumption of public access in criminal proceedings.” Smith urged Cannon to reconsider her decision, arguing that she “applied the wrong legal standard and issued orders that, in practice, will expose witnesses and others to intolerable and needless risks.”

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Data Center Bill Dies in Virginia House

Josh Thomas

A Virginia House of Delegates subcommittee tabled a bill Thursday that would have restricted data centers from being constructed within a half mile of state and national parks statewide.

Just before the committee voted on the bill, its patron, Del. Joshua Thomas, D-Prince William, made an impassioned plea in a last-ditch effort to move it forward — to no avail.

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Commentary: Special Counsel Hur Says Biden ‘Elderly Man with Poor Memory’

Biden Meeting

The same week Joe Biden publicly confused two European leaders with their deceased predecessors and passed on the traditional softball Super Bowl Sunday interview, a new report from Special Counsel Robert Hur described the president as “a sympathetic, well-meaning, elderly man with a poor memory.”

The confluence of events raised further questions about the mental acuity of the 81-year-old executive, doubts that Biden did little to dispel in a defiant session with the press at the White House Thursday evening. Biden took particular umbrage with what he described as “extraneous commentary” contained in the report.

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China’s Real Estate Collapse Infecting Troubled American Sectors

China Real Estate

The crumbling Chinese real estate sector is starting to put properties around the world on the market at deep discounts, threatening debt-laden American commercial developers and the U.S. banks holding the loans, according to Bloomberg.

In a bid to pay off massive debts, Chinese real estate developers are having to offload a huge number of properties onto the global market, depressing prices even further for a sector that already has had borrowing cost hikes, causing a loss of $1 trillion in office property values, according to Bloomberg. The drop in property values hits American commercial real estate particularly hard due to the huge amount of debt the sector holds and the dwindling U.S. demand, with banks that hold the debt also fearing they may lose out on their investment.

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Commentary: Good News for Trump, Bad News for Biden

Trump Biden White House

Three recent polls signal hope for Republicans and disaster for Democrats.

Democrats enjoyed a moment of optimism when Quinnipiac reported on a Jan. 25-26 survey that President Joe Biden was beating President Donald Trump 50 percent to 44 percent. There was a sudden wave of stories about a Biden comeback.

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Commentary: Avoid These Four Costly 401(k) Mistakes

Ford Stokes

As you near retirement, you must make smart choices with your 401(k) plan. This is especially important for baby boomers born between 1946 and 1964. For a secure retirement, avoiding mistakes and maximizing growth opportunities is crucial. Here are some common mistakes people make with 401(k) plans and solutions to improve retirement prospects.

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