National Security Archives - The Virginia Star

U.S. Government Awarded Sensitive Research Grants to Scientists in Chinese Communist Party Talent Programs

December 20, 2024 Daily Caller News Foundation

U.S. government agencies have awarded sensitive scientific, military and energy grants to dozens of researchers participating in Chinese government programs linked to economic espionage, a Daily Caller News Foundation investigation found.

The DCNF identified 50 federally-funded researchers currently working in U.S. universities and/or national laboratories who are listed as experts of Chinese government talent recruitment schemes, like the Thousand Talents Plan (TTP) and Chang Jiang Scholars program, following a months-long review of the talent plans’ websites, Chinese government documents, university profiles and state-run media reports.

Biden’s Border Crisis: ICE Reports Record Number of Deportations as Non-Detention Docket Swells to 6.2 Million

December 13, 2024December 13, 2024 The Center Square

The greatest number of illegal foreign nationals on the docket for deportation by the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Non-Detention Docket (NDD) was reported under the Biden administration.

The greatest number was 6.2 million in fiscal 2023, followed by 4.7 million in fiscal 2022 and 3.6 million in fiscal 2021, according to an ICE 2023 annual report.

House Panel Subpoenas Biden-Harris Official Accused of ‘Stonewalling’ Probe into Tim Walz’s China Ties

December 13, 2024 Daily Caller News Foundation

The House Oversight Committee subpoenaed a Department of Homeland Security (DHS) official on Wednesday for allegedly failing to comply with an investigation into Democratic Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz’s ties to the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), according to a letter exclusively obtained by the Daily Caller News Foundation.

After Record Number of Chinese Illegally Entered U.S., Biden Admin Announces Action

December 3, 2024December 2, 2024 The Center Square

After the greatest number of Chinese nationals illegally entered the country under the Biden administration – more than 176,000, creating national security threats – President Joe Biden and his administration announced several actions.

Commentary: Trump’s Wild Bunch Is Ready for Action

December 3, 2024 RealClearWire

If for no other reason than that it will elicit fear in the hearts of autocracy-phobics, I propose that Donald Trump’s second-term Cabinet be known as “The Wild Bunch.”

The name is best known as the title of Sam Peckinpah’s classic 1969 western featuring a colorful cast of aging outlaws – William Holden, Ernest Borgnine, Edmond O’Brien, Warren Oates, and Ben Johnson – who give it their all as they battle bounty hunters, the Mexican Federal Army, and the passage of time in order to make their mark while they still have a chance.

Trump Taps Kash Patel to Lead FBI, Vows to Tackle Crime and Border Security

November 30, 2024 Christina Botteri

President-elect Donald Trump announced Kashyap “Kash” Patel will serve as the next Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). Patel, a seasoned lawyer, investigator, and staunch advocate for the “America First” agenda, has built a career around exposing corruption and defending the principles of justice.

Local ‘Sanctuary’ Policies in Virginia Pose Dangers to National Security

September 9, 2024 The Center Square

Localities with “sanctuary” policies in Virginia have grown, many butting up against vital military or national security instillations, posing potential threats, according to a former Homeland Security and immigration senior official.

Last month, immigration policy think tank the Center for Immigration Studies (CIS) released an updated map of localities that have adopted sanctuary policies, which showed a surge in the commonwealth totaling 84.

Veteran: DOD Withholds Documents on Whether DEI Hiring Improves National Security

August 30, 2024 The Center Square

The U.S. Department of Defense is under scrutiny for refusing to release records about exactly how spending on Diversity, Equity and Inclusion helps with national security.

The Center to Advance Security in America in May filed with the DOD a Freedom of Information Act Request, the legal pathway to obtain government documents. The FOIA sought to find out what DOD officials estimate is the real impact on national security of DEI spending, for which Congress approved $86.5 million in fiscal year 2023.

Retired Border Patrol Chief Sounds the Alarm on Kamala Harris Border Crisis ‘Fix’

August 12, 2024 Virginia Star Staff

Rodney Scott and Kamala Harris (composite image)

Vice President Kamala Harris’ campaign is attempting to cast her as a tough-on-the-border candidate, but a former leader of the Border Patrol is warning the public not to buy it.

The Harris campaign has released a slate of advertisements that claim the presumptive Democratic presidential candidate would “fix the border” and crack down on illegal immigration by increasing the number of Border Patrol agents. However, retired Border Patrol Chief Rodney Scott, who led the agency while Harris served as “border czar,” says voters must look at her record to understand how she would really handle border security.

Commentary: With His Amnesty Order, President Biden Is Making Illegal Immigration, Legal

June 25, 2024 Virginia Star Staff

550,000.

That is the estimated number of illegal aliens who will receive amnesty under President Biden’s latest executive action, which will make many of the migrants eligible for green cards, work permits, and a pathway to U.S. citizenship.

Commentary: China’s Land Purchases in U.S. Spark Outcry for Federal Solution

May 30, 2024 Virginia Star Staff

Over the past two years, nearly half the states in America acted to scrutinize purchases of land linked to China and other foreign adversaries. Concerns focus primarily on national security threats from China, and they’re well-founded.

The federal government has no idea how much real estate Chinese entities own in the United States. The U.S. Department of Agriculture legally is required to track foreign ownership of agricultural land, but underestimates Chinese ownership by at least 50 percent.

Analysts: Policymakers Must Confront Weaponized Migration to Address Border Crisis

March 18, 2024 The Center Square

Unless Congress and policymakers understand how weaponized migration is being used against the U.S., they won’t be able to solve the problem, foreign policy analysts warn.

More than 11 million foreign nationals, including gotaways, illegally entering the U.S. from all over the world is not an accident, military and foreign policy experts have warned. It’s called migrant warfare, The Center Square first reported. The European Commission, United Nations, NATO, and foreign policy institutes have identified hybrid warfare being used in Europe, including migrant warfare, to shape national and international policies.

Special Counsel Robert Hur Says Biden ‘Willfully’ Kept, Shared Classified Memos but Won’t Be Charged Because of His Poor Memory

February 8, 2024 Just the News

Special counsel Robert Hur concluded in a stinging report released Thursday that President Joe Biden willfully kept classified documents from his time as vice president, shared them with an author and knew he had them as far back as 2017, but he recommended against prosecution.

Senate Border Security Bill Offers Potential Massive Payday to Defense Industrial Complex

February 5, 2024 Admin

The Senate border security bill offers a massive payout of potentially close to $50 billion to the U.S. defense industry in replenishing weapons stocks sent to Ukraine, Taiwan and Israel as security assistance.

Mayorkas Mails Letter to GOP House Saying Impeachment Allegations ‘False,’ Won’t Testify in Process

January 30, 2024 Just the News

Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas on Tuesday issued a fiery defense against the impeachment articles he faces, calling the allegations “false” and urging Congress to fix the U.S. immigration system through legislation.

Multi-State Coalition of Attorneys General Sides with Texas in Battle Against Biden in New Push to Secure the Border

January 30, 2024 Virginia Star Staff

A coalition of state attorneys general sent a letter Monday to Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas backing Texas in its border battle with the Biden administration.

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott defied the Biden administration last week, making clear he would continue to put up concertina wire fencing at the southern border to help stop the flow of illegal immigration, which has soared since Biden took office.

House GOP Reveals Articles of Impeachment Against Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas

January 28, 2024 Just the News

House Republicans on Sunday released their articles of impeachment against Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas. The first article alleges Mayorkas participated in a “willful and systemic refusal to comply with the law,” while the second article says he breached the public’s trust for his handling of the southern border amid record illegal immigration numbers.

FBI Luminaries Starkly Warn Congress that U.S. Being Invaded at Border: ‘Alarming and Perilous’

January 26, 2024 Just the News

With a constitutional crisis brewing in Texas and voters nationwide alarmed by the toll of illegal immigration, some of the FBI’s most famous retired executives are issuing a stark warning to Congress that President Joe Biden’s border policies have unleashed an “invasion” of military-aged male foreigners who pose “one of the most pernicious ever” threats to American security.

Biden Admin Watered Down Vetting Process for Chinese Illegal Immigrants, Email Shows

January 2, 2024 Admin

The Biden administration drastically simplified the vetting process for Chinese illegal immigrants in April 2023, according to an internal U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) email obtained by the Daily Caller News Foundation. The April 2023 email, which was sent by a CBP supervisor to a “master list” of about 500 Border Patrol agents, instructs CBP officials to radically reduce the number of interview questions for Chinese migrants apprehended after illegally crossing into the country from roughly 40 to just five. The “headquarters guidance” came as border agents were overwhelmed with near-record numbers of illegal crossings.

Journalists, Medical Groups, Big Business Emerge as Biden Allies in Social Media Censorship Case

December 30, 2023December 29, 2023 Just the News

President Joe Biden’s administration is getting some big-name allies as it defends against a landmark free speech infringement lawsuit. Their argument: protecting Americans from indirect censorship by government officials undermines the First Amendment, national security, and public health.

Advocacy groups for journalists, academics, doctors, technologists, and big business, and a powerful senator, made various forms of these arguments in friend-of-the-court briefs to the Supreme Court in the days before and after Christmas.

CCP-Tied Battery Firm’s Dominance Could Pose Major National Security and Espionage Threats, New Report Warns

October 25, 2023 Virginia Star Staff

A battery firm with considerable ties to the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) could pose significant espionage and national security risks to the U.S. as policymakers move to electrify American life, according to a new report by the Foundation for Defense of Democracies (FDD), a non-partisan research institute focused on issues of national security and foreign affairs.

CATL, a battery manufacturing firm headquartered in Fujian, China, is a major player in the global battery market, as it already holds a dominant position in the global electric vehicle (EV) battery market and is poised to supply crucial large-scale energy storage systems to American utility companies to help them provide the decarbonized power grids of the future, according to the FDD report. CATL, which has subsidiaries based in the U.S. and several European countries, has already had equipment installed within a U.S. military base, and the burgeoning dependence on the Chinese company’s products may leave essential American infrastructure vulnerable to espionage and malware attacks, according to the FDD report.

Feds Flagged Nearly 75,000 Illegal Migrants as Potential National Security Risks

September 3, 2023 Virginia Star Staff

Customs and Border Protection (CBP) authorities flagged 74,904 illegal migrants nationwide for potentially posing risks to national security between October 2022 and August, according to CBP data obtained exclusively by the Daily Caller News Foundation.

Certain illegal migrants are deemed to be “special interest aliens” because they may have travel patterns that “possibly have a nexus to terrorism” or may come from countries with such ties, according to a 2019 Department of Homeland Security (DHS) fact sheet. Border Patrol agents encountered 25,627 “special interest” illegal migrants in fiscal year 2022, compared to 3,675 encounters in fiscal year 2021, according to internal agency data previously obtained by the DCNF; however, this data doesn’t account for all CBP encounters of special interest aliens.

Illegal Migrants from Mexico Assault Northern Border Agent, Official Says

August 30, 2023 Virginia Star Staff

Three illegal migrants from Mexico assaulted a Border Patrol agent along the northern border on Aug. 20, according to an Instagram post from Swanton sector Chief Robert Garcia.

The three illegal migrants crossed the northern border from Canada illegally before assaulting the agent near Churubusco, New York, according to Garcia’s post. Border Patrol agents in the Swanton sector, which includes areas of New York, Vermont and New Hampshire have made more than 4,900 arrests of illegal migrants from 68 countries between October 2022 and July, amounting to more apprehensions than the last eight years combined in the region.

Commentary: Don’t Let a Movie Be Your Only Involvement in the Fight to End Modern-Day Slavery

August 8, 2023August 7, 2023 Virginia Star Staff

The Sound of Freedom is a wonderful and eye-opening movie. We’ve constantly urged people to see the movie and if you haven’t yet, go grab your tickets to see it right now.

For many, it has become similar to the Sinner’s Prayer moment in the life of a Christian.

Tennessee U.S. Rep Mark Green Says He Has Evidence That Some Chinese Migrants Are Tied To CCP, PLA

June 14, 2023 Admin

House Homeland Security Committee Chairman Mark Green possesses evidence that some Chinese migrants that crossed the southern border illegally and were released into the U.S. under the Biden administration are connected to the Chinese Communist Party and China’s People’s Liberation Army (PLA), he told the Daily Caller News Foundation during a press conference Wednesday.

North Dakota Governor Doug Burgum Launches Bid for White House, Joining Crowded Field of GOP Contenders

June 7, 2023 M.D. Kittle

At a Fargo events center packed with family, friends and neighbors, North Dakota Governor Doug Burgum stressed his small-town roots, his success in building a multi-billion dollar software business on the Great Plains, governing a growing state, and his vision for an innovative America in announcing his bid for the White House.

‘These Numbers Are Staggering:’ Chinese Migrants Continue to Surge Across Southern Border

May 23, 2023 Admin

The influx of Chinese migrants crossing the southern border continued through April, according to U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) data.

Border Patrol encountered 3,182 migrants from China at the U.S.-Mexico border in April alone, according to CBP data. Chinese migrants often pay hefty smuggling fees to reach the U.S., where they have been found with large sums of U.S. currency, according to Border Patrol agents who recently spoke with the Daily Caller News Foundation.

More Than 100 Known, Suspected Terrorists Apprehended at Southern Border Fiscal Year to Date

May 16, 2023 The Center Square

An Afghan national on the federal Terrorist Screening Dataset (TSDS) was apprehended attempting to enter the U.S. illegally near the Otay Mesa Port of Entry in San Diego, California.

The TSDS is the federal government’s database that includes sensitive information about terrorist identities. It originated as a consolidated terrorist watch list “to house information on known or suspected terrorists (KSTs) but has evolved over the last decade to include additional individuals who represent a potential threat to the United States, including known affiliates of watch listed individuals,” CBP states.

U.S. Officials Admit Losing ‘Operational Control’ of Border, Drug Cartels Poised to Seize it

May 14, 2023 Just the News

With just two words, the top uniformed officer in the Customs and Border Protection agency sent shockwaves across official Washington two months ago when asked whether his agency has operational control of the southern U.S. border.

“No, sir,” Border Patrol Chief Raul Ortiz told Congress in a shocking admission that exposed just how badly border security has deteriorated under President Joe Biden.

Biden Administration Loses Track of Tens of Thousands of Migrant Children

April 19, 2023 Just the News

Four years after Democrats made political hay out of migrant children being separated from their parents at the border, Republicans have turned the tables on the issue amid evidence the Biden administration has lost track of as many as 85,000 minors it allowed to enter the country unaccompanied by parents, leaving many prey to cartel extortion, forced labor, abuse and trafficking.

The extraordinary political boomerang will be on full display Tuesday when Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR) Director Robin Dunn Marcos is grilled by a House Oversight subcommittee on the failure of the Department of Health and Human Services to vet, monitor and track unaccompanied migrant children, whose arrival at the border has grown more than 10-fold since Joe Biden took office.

Commentary: After Decades of Outsourcing to China, the U.S. is Running Out of Children’s Antibiotics

April 19, 2023 Virginia Star Staff

Acute shortages of orally delivered amoxicillin, penicillin and other children’s antibiotics throughout the 2022 and 2023 cold and flu season have made it difficult for doctors to treat normal childhood illnesses like ear infections, bronchitis, strep throat and rarer cases of infections caused after suffering Respiratory Syncytial Virus (RSV), and also sickle cell disease—for months.

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued a warning about the amoxicillin shortage in Oct. 2022 just at the start of the cold and flu season. But since then, no statement has been issued by President Joe Biden about what appears to be an underreported public health crisis.

Florida Attorney General Calls on Congress to Impeach DHS Secretary Mayorkas

April 13, 2023 The Center Square

Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody is urging Congress to “begin impeachment proceedings immediately” of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas. She cites several reasons to justify her request, including claiming he’s violated federal law, lied multiple times under oath before Congress, and is endangering American lives.

In a letter addressed to five Republican congressional leaders Tuesday, she urged them “to act to protect the American people and impeach Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas. Secretary Mayorkas is directly responsible, and his actions have caused our unprecedented border crisis.”

Commentary: The Border Isn’t Just a Crisis, It’s Also a Grift

April 7, 2023 Virginia Star Staff

There was a time not long ago when Americans would read news stories about obscene levels of corruption in other countries and feel justified in a sense of superiority. Things might not be perfect here, but at least we weren’t that bad. No more. We have now reached the point here where it is that bad. We have surrendered the right to look down our noses at any other country.
One of the most glaring examples of this today can be found in the crisis raging at the U.S.-Mexico border. There have been endless videos of hordes of migrants traversing the Rio Grande and walking into the United States, but that is just a part of the total picture.

Pentagon’s ‘Strategic Management Plan’ Devotes Roughly One Out of Every Six Pages to Diversity, Climate Change

March 16, 2023 Virginia Star Staff

Nearly one of every six pages of a document detailing the Pentagon’s management strategy are devoted to combating climate change and fulfilling Diversity, Equity and Inclusion initiatives.

The Strategic Management Plan for 2022 to 2026, released Tuesday, covers 124 pages and underscores the actions the Department of Defense (DOD) is taking to fulfill the Biden administration’s broader national defense strategy. It lays out high-level, long term goals and steps the department will take to accomplish those objectives and overcome anticipated challenges, as well as performance metrics for so-called Agency Priority Goals (APGs) that include climate and diversity targets.

Texas Sheriff: We’re Experiencing ‘Silent Invasion’ of Military Age Men

February 28, 2023 The Center Square

What’s happening at the southern U.S. border with Mexico is in fact an invasion, Kinney County Sheriff Brad Coe says.

“We’re experiencing a silent invasion of military age men,” Coe told The Center Square when describing what his deputies have been increasingly facing over the past two years.

Three in a Week: Two Objects Shot Down by Fighter Jets Believed to Be Balloons, Officials Say

February 12, 2023February 12, 2023 Just the News

U.S. fighter jets shot down two objects believed to be surveillance balloons over the weekend, according to Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and other U.S. officials on Sunday.

Schumer, a New York Democrat, told ABC’s “This Week” on Sunday that national security advisor Jake Sullivan told him that “they believe” the objects shot down Friday and Saturday over Canada and Alaska were surveillance balloons.

Commentary: The Unacceptable Cost of Open-Border Mission Creep

February 7, 2023 Admin

One of the pitfalls of political extremism is that a few bad foundational ideas beget a host of even worse ideas and results. Such is the case with our immigration crisis, as what began with faculty lounge bull sessions has become accepted government policy that now threatens America’s future.

The idea that America’s borders should be softened to the point that any noncitizen could enter the country on his own terms was always problematic. From that flawed logic has come an intricate web of problems that most in our government have no will, no courage, and no competence to repair.

Senators Cruz, Hagerty, and More Slam Biden’s First-Ever Border Visit as ‘Too Late,’ ‘Propaganda’

January 9, 2023January 8, 2023 Just the News

President Joe Biden on Sunday landed in the border town of El Paso, Texas, and his visit is being criticized as “too late” and a “propaganda event,” as record numbers of illegal migrants have entered the United States since he entered office.

“Biden’s promise to secure the border is too little, and two years late. Irreversible damage has been done,” Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) tweeted. “Over 313,000 illegal aliens flooded the border last month. 5.3M illegal aliens since Biden took office.”

Biden Blamed by Own Ex-Border Chief for Soaring Asylum Cases, Record Immigration Court Backlog

January 2, 2023January 1, 2023 Admin

The Biden administration is to blame for soaring asylum cases that have created a record years-long backlog in U.S. immigration courts, according to President Joe Biden’s own former Border Patrol chief.

“Several factors have contributed to this backlog, but the massive increase that we’re seeing today can be directly attributed to the Biden administration’s border and immigration policies,” said Rodney Scott, who headed the Border Patrol in both the Trump and Biden administrations.

Florida AG Moody Calls on Biden to Restore Top Drug Post to Address National Fentanyl Crisis

December 20, 2022December 19, 2022 The Center Square

Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody on Monday called on President Joe Biden to reverse an Obama-era decision to make the Director for the Office of the National Drug Control Policy a cabinet-level position again.

Moody sent a letter to the president asking him to take action immediately before the public health authority Title 42 ends this week, “which will fuel a massive border surge and allow even more deadly fentanyl to flood into the country,” she said.

Marsha Blackburn Commentary: Firing Servicemembers over the COVID-19 Shot Threatens Our National Security

November 22, 2022November 21, 2022 Admin

President Biden said it himself: the pandemic is over. So why is his Department of Defense (DoD) willing to look at the brave men and women who volunteered to serve our nation and say, “you’re fired” – all because they chose not to get the COVID-19 shot?

In the United States, the number of new servicemembers joining the military has reached a record low. Every single branch struggled to hit its recruitment goals this year, including the U.S. Army, which fell 10,000 soldiers short. At this rate, they will face a deficit of 21,000 soldiers next year. The National Guard also missed the mark by about 12,000 recruits, and expects to discharge up to 14,000 more by 2024 for refusing the COVID-19 shot.

China Poses ‘Most Comprehensive and Serious Challenge’ to America, New Defense Strategy Says

October 30, 2022October 29, 2022 Virginia Star Staff

The Pentagon identifies China as the No. 1 threat to U.S. national security in the latest version of the National Defense Strategy, released just days after the leader of the communist regime secured a third five-year term.

“The key theme … is the need to sustain and strengthen U.S. deterrence with the People’s Republic of China as our pacing challenge,” Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said Thursday during a press conference on the new document.

House Republicans Request Government Watchdog Investigate Foreign Investments in American Farmland

October 4, 2022October 3, 2022 Admin

More than 100 House Republicans are asking a government watchdog to probe foreign investments in U.S. farmland, including those by China, which they say may present national and food security concerns.

Led by Reps. Glenn Thompson of Pennsylvania and James Comer of Kentucky, the lawmakers on Saturday called on the Government Accountability Office (GAO) to study foreign farmland ownership and how the U.S. government is monitoring acquisitions, a letter shows. There has been an uptick in foreign investments and ownership, which may be “underreported” due to the U.S. Agriculture Department’s (USDA) unreliable data, the Republicans say.

Victor Davis Hanson Commentary: How to Erode the World’s Greatest Military

July 26, 2022July 25, 2022 Admin

The U.S. Army has met only 40 percent of its 2022 recruiting goals.

In fact, all branches of the military are facing historic resistance to their current recruiting efforts. If some solution is not found quickly, the armed forces will radically shrink or be forced to lower standards—or both.

Jack Maxey: Contents of Hunter Biden’s Laptop Point to Chinese Communist Ties, Include 80K Images Due for Legal Scrutiny

July 19, 2022July 18, 2022 Admin

Neil W. McCabe, the national political editor of The Star News Network, about his work mining Hunter Biden’s laptop. Maxey said his next step is to partner with law enforcement to review sensitive national security and other materials that would be illegal for a private citizen to view without the color of law.

Foreign Investment in U.S. Farmland May Be a National Security Issue, According to Expert

June 13, 2022June 12, 2022 The Center Square

Foreign investment in U.S. farmland has tripled in the past 10 years, reporters at a non-profit investigative journalism group found.

Investigate Midwest used U.S. Department of Agriculture data to call attention to this trend. Farmer Joe Maxwell, co-founder of the group Farm Action, told The Center Square that control of U.S. farmland by foreign investors is worrisome on a number of fronts.

Commentary: Onshoring Semiconductor Capacity Is Crucial to National Security

June 4, 2022June 3, 2022 RealClearWire

When you think about national security, you probably don’t immediately think about semiconductors. These tiny chips are the “brains” enabling all the computational capabilities and data storage that we take for granted today. Chips power virtually every sector of the economy – including data centers, automotive, healthcare, banking, and agriculture. As a consequence of their widespread use, semiconductors have grown to become a $555 billion global industry, and are the world’s fourth most traded product. Semiconductor manufacturing and advanced packaging have been cited frequently as one of the main critical supply chain priorities for the nation.

A steady source of uninterrupted, trusted chips is necessary for the security of the nation – supporting the readiness of the U.S. military and protecting critical infrastructure like the electric grid. The problem is that most chips are fabricated outside of the U.S., in the vulnerable region of Southeast Asia – hence the security issues. Around three quarters of global chip production capacity comes from Southeast Asia.

Commentary: Gas-Price Change, Not ‘Climate Change,’ Is What Matters to Americans

February 16, 2022February 15, 2022 Virginia Star Staff

There are few more easily observable measures of the cost of everyday living than the price of gasoline at the pump. As has been widely reported, gas prices in the United States recently hit a seven-year high. The striking thing, however, is not just how high gas prices have gotten, but how fast and far they have risen.

Based on statistics from the U.S. Energy Information Administration—the statistical arm of the Department of Energy—weekly average retail prices for regular unleaded gasoline in the United States increased 94 percent in less than two years. Average gas prices rose from $1.77 per gallon during the week ending April 27, 2020, to $3.44 per gallon during the week ending February 7, 2022—nearly doubling in the process.

That was the largest percentage increase in gas prices within a two-year window since October of 2005, more than 16 years ago. In the election of 2006, Republicans—then the party in power—lost 30 House and six Senate seats, thereby losing control of both chambers, before losing the presidency two years later.

Latest Durham Revelations Put Biden’s National Security Adviser in Uneasy Light

February 16, 2022February 15, 2022 Virginia Star Staff

Special Counsel John Durham’s investigation isn’t just imposing accountability for Hillary Clinton’s 2016 political trick to dirty up Donald Trump with the FBI; it’s also encroaching on the credibility of President Biden’s current chief foreign policy adviser and point man for the current Russia-Ukraine crisis.

National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan was a senior adviser to Clinton’s 2016 campaign and, by his own admission, spread the word to reporters back then that Democrats believed Trump was colluding with Vladimir Putin to hijack the election and had a secret computer channel to the Kremlin. Neither proved true.

But long before that Russia collusion narrative crumbled like a stale Starbucks muffin, Sullivan gave sworn testimony to the House Intelligence Committee disputing that anything the Clinton campaign spread around Washington was misinformation.

Commentary: U.S. Natural Gas Is Critical to Strengthening America’s National Security

January 7, 2022January 6, 2022 Virginia Star Staff

In recent months, European gas prices have risen as much as 700 percent, leaving millions of citizens vulnerable to a dangerously unstable grid and burdened with high electricity costs heading into this winter. Disruptions from this energy crisis have been felt by households and many industries that rely on affordable power to provide goods and services.

Until the recent escalation of Russia’s confrontation with NATO over Ukraine, the Biden administration’s solution to Europe’s energy crisis had been to implore Russia to send more gas to Europe. EU member states are already dependent on Moscow for roughly 40 percent of their gas supply. Initially, the White House made a deal with Germany, letting the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline move forward. As part of an effort to repair relations with Germany, this decision allows Russia to tighten Putin’s grip over European energy security at the expense of our strategic partner Ukraine. Fortunately, German regulators refused to approve the pipeline, effectively delaying the certification of the project before July 2022. As part of the growing confrontation with Europe and the U.S. over Ukraine, Russia has further cut gas exports to Europe.