by Victor Davis Hanson
As over 3,000 rockets are fired into Israel by Hamas, the establishment of the Democratic Party seems paralyzed over how to respond to the latest Middle East war.
It is not just that they fear that the squad, Black Lives Matter, the shock troops of Antifa, and the woke institutions such as professional sports, academia, and the media are now unapologetically anti-Israel.
They are in terror also that anti-Israelism is becoming synonymous with rank anti-Semitism. And soon the Democratic Party will end up disdained as much as was the British Labour Party under Jeremy Corbyn.
The new core of the Democrats, as emblemized by Representatives Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.), Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.), and Rashida Tlaib (D-Mich.), has in the past questioned the patriotism of American Jews who support Israel, and often has had to apologize for puerile anti-Semitic rants.
The Left in general believes we should judge harshly even the distant past without exemptions. Why then, in venomous, knee-jerk fashion, does it fixate on a nation born from the Holocaust, while favoring Israel’s enemies, who were on the side of the Nazis in World War II?
It was not just that the Grand Mufti of Jerusalem, Amin al-Husseini, was a Nazi sympathizer. Egypt, for example, welcomed ex-Nazis for their hatred of Jews and their military expertise—whether the infamous death camp doctor Aribert Ferdinand Heim or Waffen-SS henchman Otto Skorzeny. The Hamas charter still reads like it is cribbed from Hitler’s Mein Kampf.
The Left claims it champions consensual government and believes the United States must use its soft power clout to isolate autocracies. But the Palestinian Authority and Hamas refuse to hold free and regularly scheduled elections. If an Israeli strong man ever suspended free elections and ruled through brutality, U.S. aid would be severed within days.
If history and democratic values cannot explain fully the hatred of Israel on the Left, perhaps human rights violations do. But here too there is another radical asymmetry. Arab Israeli citizens enjoy far greater constitutional protections than do Arabs living under either the Palestinian Authority or Hamas.
Is the Left bothered by the allies of Hamas? After all, most are autocracies such as Iran, North Korea, China, and Russia.
We return then to other reasons for the woke furor directed toward Israel.
In part, the Western Left despises the unapologetically successful—as if they are always beneficiaries of unfair privilege. Underdog Israel was not so hated from 1947-1967. Then it was poor, more socialist, and in danger of being extinguished by its many neighboring enemies.
But after the victories in the 1967 and 1973 wars, the Israeli military proved unconquerable, no matter how large the numbers, wealth, and armaments of its many enemies.
For the Left, Israel’s current strength, confidence, and success mean it cannot be seen as a victim, but only as a victimizer. The more its Iron Dome missile defenses knock down the flurry of Hamas rockets, the more its planes take out those who launched them, so all the more the Left bizarrely believes Israel wins too easily and acts “disproportionately.”
In the virtue-signaling world of the contemporary West, Israel has become caricatured as playing the role of the American white police, the Palestinians a foreign version of the oppressed Black Lives Matter movement. The Palestinians then are woke, the Israelis not so much.
The Left also has a strange idea of current “imperialism” and “colonialism.” The general rule is that Westerners cannot settle in numbers in the non-West. But the reversal is certainly not true. Millions of Middle Easterners are welcomed into Belgium, France, Germany, the U.K., and the United States.
Yet, Jews have been in what is modern-day Israel since nearly the dawn of civilization. And their 1947 borders only grew after they were attacked and threatened with extinction.
Again, the Left always claims that its anti-Israelism has had nothing to do with anti-Semitism.
But it is almost impossible now to make that distinction when woke criticism obsesses over democratic Israel and ignores far greater oppressors and oppressed elsewhere.
Why are there no demonstrations in major Western cities damning the Communist Chinese government that has put 1 million Muslim Uighurs in camps? Why are the world’s millions of former refugees—the Volga Germans, the East Prussians, the Cypriot Greeks—long ago forgotten, and yet the Palestinians alone deified as perpetually displaced by the Jews?
Our formal NATO ally, Turkey, received little global pushback for its treatment of the Kurds, or its frequent intolerance of religious minorities. Why then does the Jewish state alone always earn such venom?
Hating democratic Israel while it is under attack is not just a reflection of the new woke and ethically bankrupt Left. It is also a symptom of a deeper pathology in the West, one of moral equivalence, amoral relativism—and self-loathing.
Hating Israel, then, has become the surrogate Western way of hating oneself.
– – –
Victor Davis Hanson is a distinguished fellow of the Center for American Greatness and the Martin and Illie Anderson Senior Fellow at Stanford University’s Hoover Institution. He is an American military historian, columnist, a former classics professor, and scholar of ancient warfare. He has been a visiting professor at Hillsdale College since 2004. Hanson was awarded the National Humanities Medal in 2007 by President George W. Bush. Hanson is also a farmer (growing raisin grapes on a family farm in Selma, California) and a critic of social trends related to farming and agrarianism. He is the author most recently of The Second World Wars: How the First Global Conflict Was Fought and Won and The Case for Trump.
Photo “Free Palestine March” by Alisdare Hickson. CC BY-SA 2.0.
The post Commentary: Why Does the Left Hate Israel? appeared first on The Georgia Star News.
Skip The Scoop | Seek Understanding
May 4, 2021 | Nightly News Rebroadcast | Video: 52 Minutes 29 Seconds
Man Shot Outside CIA Headquarters Has Died: FBI; Derek Chauvin’s Legal Team Asks for New Trial. President Joe Biden sets a new vaccination goal that he hopes to accomplish by July 4, an FBI agent shot and killed a suspect at the Virginia CIA headquarters, and a Memorial Day weekend motorcycle rally honoring veterans is denied a permit in the nation’s Capitol.
Bannon’s War Room | Morning Edition Hour 1 | Recorded May 4, 2021 | Video: 48 Minutes 40 Seconds
Episode 920 – GOP Bunks Up with Google … Why Kevin McCarthy Could Be Out of Republican Leadership.
“They’re going to take your jobs and now you’re not going to have your kids educated,” Bannon said. Guest is: Marylyn Todd.
Bannon’s War Room | Morning Edition Hour 2 | Recorded May 4, 2021 | Video: 47 Minutes 37 Seconds
Episode 921 – China Hands … How American Elites Sold Us Out to the Chinese Communist Party.
“Well, it’s really up in the air,” he said. “We need a rejuvenation of the American people and we need a reinforcement of the fundamentals, what’s america about? It’s about human rights, freedom…I don’t think kids are taught citizenship anymore in schools, we get a lot of woke history but we don’t get real history.” Guest is: Clyde Prestowitz.
Bannon’s War Room | Evening Edition | Recorded May 4, 2021 | Video: 48 Minutes 59 Seconds
Episode 922 – Police Lives Don’t Matter … Media Blackout of 100 Cops Murdered in Line of Duty. “No more to backstabbing Republicans,” he said. “In the military you get to see your enemy in front of you. In politics what so often happens is that you think you’re engaged in one fight and then you get RINOs who come in and stab in the back.” Guests are: Cpt. Maureen Bannon, Eric Greitens, Heather Mullins.
Reaching ‘Herd Immunity’ Is Unlikely in the U.S., Experts Now Believe
Early in the pandemic, when vaccines for the coronavirus were still just a glimmer on the horizon, the term “herd immunity” came to signify the endgame: the point when enough Americans would be protected from the virus so we could be rid of the pathogen and reclaim our lives.
Now, more than half of adults in the United States have been inoculated with at least one dose of a vaccine. But daily vaccination rates are slipping, and there is widespread consensus among scientists and public health experts that the herd immunity threshold is not attainable — at least not in the foreseeable future, and perhaps not ever.
As Global Pandemic Worsens, U.S. Keeps Blocking Vaccine Patent Waivers Amid Big Pharma Lobbying
Big Pharma has hired an army of lobbyists to pressure U.S. lawmakers to block an effort at the World Trade Organization to loosen intellectual property rules on COVID-19 vaccines, which would allow countries around the world to ramp up production, vaccinate more people and bring the pandemic to an end sooner. Dozens of countries from the Global South, led by India and South Africa, are demanding a temporary waiver on vaccine patents, but rich countries, including the U.S. under both the Trump and Biden administrations, have opposed the move. Lee Fang, investigative journalist at The Intercept, says there is a “glut” of vaccines going to wealthy countries while much of the rest of the world is left waiting. “These initiatives that are based on voluntary agreements with the pharmaceutical companies have not worked,” he says. Fang also discusses his reporting on the Biden’s administration’s ties to the vaccine makers: White House adviser Anita Dunn is co-founder of the consulting firm SKDK, which works closely with Pfizer; Biden’s domestic policy adviser, Susan Rice, holds up to $5 million in Johnson & Johnson shares; and White House science adviser Eric Lander holds up to $1 million in shares of BioNTech, which co-developed Pfizer’s coronavirus vaccine.
Kansas Legislature Overrides Governor’s Veto, Bans the Election Zuck Bucks. Plus: A Win for 2A Rights.
In the span of a month we’ve come full circle on election reforms — actual reforms, not the Democrats’ monstrosity that’s merely advertised as such. That unconstitutional power grab is going nowhere.
Kansas’ legislature has just overridden its governor’s veto and put into law a set of election reforms similar to those that just weeks ago Joe Biden declared were “Jim Crow on steroids.”
Biden would know these laws are nothing like Jim Crow, if he still had all his mental faculties, because he was around for Jim Crow. Biden happily cavorted with segregationist Democrats when it suited him. And Jim Crow was a Democrat policy.
Biden called slammed Georgia a month ago, and Coke, MLB, American, and Delta Airlines duly lined up with Biden and his shrill supporters — many of whom, like Stacey Abrams, can’t actually win elections. Their power is mostly on social media and as any real PR pro will tell you, much of what you see on social media isn’t real. MLB moved the All-Star Game from majority black Atlanta to very white Denver in the name of social justice, or something. Following Biden is a fool’s game and has been for going on 50 years. He’s the guy who would have left Osama bin Laden alive 10 years ago if it had been up to him.
(READ) Trump statement on “The Big Lie”
– May 3, 2021 – Statement by Donald J. Trump, 45th President of the United States of America, “The Fraudulent Presidential Election of 2020 will be, from this day forth, known as THE BIG LIE!”
Cheney slams Trump on ‘big lie’ over election
Rep. Liz Cheney (R-Wyo.) on Monday shot back at former President Trump over his claims that the 2020 election was stolen, accusing those who spread the claim of “poisoning our democratic system.””The 2020 president…
Zuckerberg and George W. Bush Partner in Far Left Immigration Push.
Two organizations owned by Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg have partnered with Former President George W. Bush to push for mass migration and amnesty for illegal aliens, policies which favor the political left and Big Tech corporations.
George W. Bush told radio host Hugh Hewitt, during an April 22 interview, that “the Bush Center is spearheading a reform movement” concerning mass migration. The former president added, “And you know, we’re talking to people about, you know, what needs to be done.”
The Zuckerberg-owned organization listed on the George W. Bush Presidential Center’s webpage for immigration policy under “Program Partners” is the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative.
“The Chan Zuckerberg Initiative was founded in 2015 to leverage technology, community-driven solutions and collaboration to help solve some of society’s toughest challenges. Our mission is to build a more inclusive, just, and healthy future for everyone,” says the Initiative’s official website. Part of its “mission” is working with Bush to encourage amnesty for illegal migrants.
The Chan Zuckerberg group is the very same that dubiously pumped private cash into the 2020 election process in order to secure a “victory” for Joe Biden. They were rewarded with a position in the Biden administration.
MS-13 Gang Member Nicknamed ‘Terror’ Gets Life In Jail for Killing Texas Teen
An MS-13 gang member nicknamed “Terror” has been sentenced to life behind bars for his role in the shooting death of a Houston-area teenager. Douglas Alexander Herrera-Hernandez was sentenced to life in prison without parole after being found guilty of capital murder in the 2016 slaying of 16-year-old Estuar Quinonez, the Office of the District Attorney, Harris County, Texas, said in a release. The victim had witnessed several gang-related murders and his killers wanted to silence him forever, prosecutors said. “We are trying to break the back of this organization by sending their assassins to prison for as long as possible and we will remain unrelenting in our pursuit of these criminals who band together to terrorize communities,” Harris County District Attorney Kim Ogg said in the release. Prosecutors said Herrera-Hernandez admitted to contacting MS-13 gang leaders in El Salvador to sign off on Quinonez’s murder. Herrera-Hernandez and several other …
Judicial Watch: Records Show Iowa State Officials Coordinated with Big Tech to Censor Election Posts
The records show communications between the Secretary of State’s office and representatives of Facebook and Twitter to Target Judicial Watch Posts.
(Washington, DC) Judicial Watch announced today that it received 624 pages of records from the office of the Secretary of State of Iowa, revealing how state officials pressured social media companies (Twitter and Facebook) to censor posts about the 2020 election. Included in these records were emails from Iowa state officials to representatives of Big Tech pressuring these companies to remove Judicial Watch’s posts. The emails show how the state agency successfully pressured Facebook to censor Judicial Watch’s post about Iowa’s management of its voter rolls.
Judicial Watch received the records as a result of a June 2020 Iowa Open Records lawsuit that was filed after the Iowa Secretary of State failed to comply with a February 2020 request for records and communications about a Judicial Watch report regarding the accuracy of the state’s voter registration rolls (Judicial Watch v. Iowa Secretary of State (No. 05771 EQCE085973)). Judicial Watch was represented by Iowa lawyer Alan R. Ostergren of Des Moines, Iowa.
The records show that officials in the Iowa Secretary of State office on multiple occasions contacted officials from Facebook and Twitter to try to have these companies remove Judicial Watch posts that raised concerns about Iowa’s failure to maintain accurate election rolls.
“These records are yet another example of state officials conspiring with Big Tech to deny Americans their First Amendment rights,” said Judicial Watch President Tom Fitton. “These records further show that Big Tech censorship is a government scandal: Iowa government officials worked with Facebook to remove posts they didn’t like, and Facebook bowed to this political pressure immediately. It should be disturbing to all Americans that government officials are working to censor speech they disagree with and that these behemoth companies often seem willing to roll over and censor free speech.”
Facebook oversight board to reveal decision on Trump ban on Wednesday
Facebook’s “Oversight Board” said Monday that its decision on whether to keep former US President Donald Trump blocked from its social media platforms will come Wednesday.
Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg announced the decision to block Trump from Facebook and Instagram on Jan. 7, one day after a group of Trump supporters stormed the US Capitol in a bloody and deadly riot.
“The shocking events of the last 24 hours clearly demonstrate that President Donald Trump intends to use his remaining time in office to undermine the peaceful and lawful transition of power to his elected successor, Joe Biden,” Zuckerberg wrote in the announcement.
In the same week, Twitter announced the decision to permanently ban Trump from its platform. Trump was also blocked from Snapchat and YouTube after the riot.
The bans ignited a debate about the role of social media giants in society and whether they should have the power to silence users without external policies that are clearly defined.
Gray Television to be second largest broadcaster after $2.7B Meredith deal
Gray Television will spend $2.7 billion to buy the local TV stations of Meredith, a purchase that will make it the second-largest local broadcaster in the U.S., the company announced Monday.
In the deal, Gray will acquire Meredith’s Local Media Group, which owns 17 television stations in 12 local markets including Atlanta, Phoenix, St. Louis, Nashville, Kansas City and Las Vegas.
Gray expects the deal to close at the end of the year, after which it will own stations in 113 local markets and serve approximately 36 percent of U.S. television households, according to the announcement.
Nexstar is the largest U.S. broadcast company, with stations in 116 markets serving nearly 62 percent of U.S. television households, according to its website.
As part of the deal, Meredith will spin off its National Media Group into a separate company.
National media owns numerous magazine brands including People, Martha Stewart Living, Better Homes & Gardens, InStyle, Allrecipes, Real Simple, Shape and Southern Living, as well as digital and marketing assets.
The Gray/Meredith deal is the latest of several significant media deals announced this year.
Modi Resists Pressure to Lock Down India as Virus Deaths Rise
Two weeks ago, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi called on states to only consider lockdowns “as the last option.” Now everyone from his political allies to top business leaders and U.S. President Joe Biden’s chief medical adviser see them as the only way to stem the world’s worst virus outbreak.
The debate has been complicated by Modi’s move last year to impose a nationwide lockdown without warning, spurring a humanitarian crisis as migrant workers fled on foot to rural areas. While Modi is keen to avoid that criticism again, particularly after his Bharatiya Janata Party failed to win an election in West Bengal when votes were counted Sunday, even states run by his party are ignoring his advice.
“One of the problems is this false narrative that it’s either a full lockdown, which equates to economic disaster, or no lockdown, which is a public health disaster,” said Catherine Blish, an infectious disease specialist and global health expert at Stanford Medicine in California. “What’s happening now is a health and an economic disaster. If you have huge swaths of your population getting sick, that’s not good for your population or your economy.”
Sen. Scott ‘Hopeful’ on Police Reform as Democrats Now Looking for ‘Solution,’ Not ‘Issue’
Sen. Tim Scott (R-S.C.) on Sunday said that he’s now hopeful on negotiating police reform with colleagues on the other side of the aisle as Democrats have since last year shifted their focus from looking for an “issue” to finding a “solution” to the problem.
Nearly a year after the Republican senator first unveiled his law enforcement reform bill in response to the nation-wide protest against police brutality fueled by the death of George Floyd, Scott said he is more optimistic about working with Democrats on the issue.
“One of the reasons why I’m hopeful is because, in a way, this time, my friends on the left aren’t looking for the issue; they’re looking for a solution,” Scott, the fourth black politician from the South to serve in the U.S. Senate, told CBS’s “Face the Nation.”
“And the things that I offered last year are more popular this year. That gives me reasons to be hopeful,” he told host John Dickerson.
Verizon Agrees to Sell Yahoo, AOL to Apollo for $5 Billion
Apollo Global Management Inc. agreed to pay about $5 billion to acquire Yahoo and AOL from Verizon Communications Inc. as the wireless company exits its ill-fated foray into the media business.
The private-equity firm is paying $4.25 billion in cash for a 90% share of the media assets. Verizon will keep a 10% stake and $750 million of additional preferred stock in the new company, called Yahoo, that will be formed to operate the business.
The Wall Street Journal earlier reported the potential sale of Verizon’s media assets to Apollo. Verizon Media, which mostly struggled to grow against Alphabet Inc.’s Google and Facebook Inc., generated $7 billion in revenue last year.
Apollo’s strategy for the business revolves around getting more revenue from each of its 900 million active monthly users. Verizon’s positioning of the media business as a complement to its core mobile business—aimed at helping it add subscribers and reduce the number of people who quit—meant it hasn’t pursued some opportunities to maximize the value of each asset, executives at the private-equity firm
May 3, 2021 | Nightly News Rebroadcast | Video: 52 Minutes 29 Seconds
Bill and Melinda Gates Announce Divorce After 27 Years; Biden Raises Refugee Cap to 62,500. The Biden administration has just increased the limit for foreigners seeking refuge in the United States, President Joe Biden visited an elementary school and a community college in Virginia to sell his latest spending plan, and violent riots broke out on the West Coast on May 1.
Trump Lawyer Jenna Ellis Challenges Liz Cheney to Debate on 2020 Election Integrity: ‘Name the Time and Place’
Jenna Ellis, a former Trump campaign lawyer, is challenging Rep. Liz Cheney to debate election integrity in the 2020 election.
On Monday, Rep. Liz Cheney insisted on Twitter that the 2020 presidential election “was not stolen.”
“Anyone who claims it was is spreading THE BIG LIE, turning their back on the rule of law, and poisoning our democratic system.”
Cheney was responding to a Trump statement released Monday morning that “The Fraudulent Presidential Election of 2020 will be, from this day forth, known as THE BIG LIE!”
In response to Cheney’s tweet, Ellis pointed out that “Election officials in at least six states violated the law in the administration of the 2020 election. That’s called cheating.”
“If you have the guts to debate me on this, name the time and place,” Ellis tweeted to Cheney.
Hillary Clinton voices concern on Biden’s Afghanistan withdrawal, warns of ‘unintended’ consequences
Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton is putting a warning label on fellow Democrat President Biden’s decision to pull all U.S. troops out of Afghanistan.
“I know it is a very difficult decision,” Clinton said Sunday on CNN “This is what we call a wicked problem. You know there are consequences both foreseen and unintended of staying and of leaving. The president has made the decision to leave.”
Biden, who during the Obama administration was vice president when Clinton was the country’s top diplomat, said last month that all of the remaining 2,500 U.S. military troops in Afghanistan will leave by Sept. 11 – roughly 20 years they arrived in the aftermath of the 9/11 terror attacks.
Clinton said her major concerns are the potential collapse of Kabul and the Taliban taking over the country, which could result in the resuming of global terrorist activities.
New York area will lift capacity restrictions May 19
The New York tri-state area will jointly lift most of the coronavirus capacity restrictions on businesses and restaurants starting May 19, governors announced Monday.
Govs. Andrew Cuomo (D) of New York, Ned Lamont (D) of Connecticut and Phil Murphy (D) of New Jersey said retail stores, food services, theaters, fitness centers, amusement parks, hair salons, museums and other businesses will be allowed to operate at full capacity for the first time since the beginning of the pandemic.
“The tide is turning against COVID-19 in New York, and thanks to our increasing vaccination rates, as well as our successful, data-based regional approach, we’re able to take more steps to reopen our economy, help businesses and workers, and keep moving towards returning to normal,” Cuomo said in a statement.
The announcement of May 19 represents a significant acceleration from the July 1 target for full reopening set by New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio (D) just four days ago.
A day later, Cuomo declared that indoor capacity would increase for restaurants and bars statewide from 50 to 75 percent starting on May 7.
Walgreens launching mobile clinics, walk-in COVID-19 vaccinations
Walgreens’ mobile clinics and select stores will offer vaccinations with no appointment needed. Also Monday, Illinois officials reported 2,049 new, confirmed COVID-19 cases and 28 more deaths, raising the state death toll to 22,047.
Walgreens on Monday launched mobile clinics in Chicago to bring COVID-19 vaccines to underserved communities — no appointments necessary.
And starting Wednesday, some Walgreens locations also will offer walk-in vaccinations, with no need to book online in advance.
Details on where the mobile clinics will be set up, or on which store locations will offer walk-in vaccinations, were not immediately available.
“We understand the important role Walgreens has and will continue to play in removing access barriers to the COVID-19 vaccine,” John Standley, president of Walgreens, said in a statement. “Mobile clinics and the other models we use will allow us to bring vaccines to the heart of the most impacted communities, as well as addressing common barriers like transportation and convenience for those who want to get vaccinated.”
Austin residents vote to ban homeless encampments
More than half of Austin residents voted Saturday to reinstate a ban on homeless encampments in the city.
Fifty-seven percent of voters in the Texas state capital said they were in favor of reinstating criminal penalties for camping in public spaces via Proposition B, the Austin American-Statesman reported.
The controversial measure was one of eight proposals on the ballot. More than 150,000 Austin residents cast a vote, with 85,830 voting in favor and 64,409 against, according to the paper.
The vote comes after the city’s mayor, Stever Adler, and the city council in July 2019 canceled a more than 20-year-old ordinance that banned camping in public spaces.
Denmark Ditches J&J COVID Vaccine, Says Benefits ‘Do Not Outweigh Risk’ of Blood Clots
Denmark on Monday became the first country to exclude Johnson & Johnson’s (J&J) COVID vaccine from its vaccination program over a potential link to blood clotting disorders.The Danish Health Authority said in a statement it had concluded “the benefits of using the COVID-19 vaccine from J&J do not outweigh the risk of causing the possible adverse effect in those who receive the vaccine,” Reuters reported.
Danish health officials noted the European Medicines Agency’s (EMA) conclusion that “there is a possible link between rare but severe cases of blood clots and the COVID-19 vaccine from J&J,” referring to an investigation last month into eight U.S. reports of rare blood clots — one of which was fatal — that occurred after recent vaccination.
Unlike the Danish Health Authority however, the EMA concluded the benefits of using the J&J vaccine outweigh the risks. The EMA did recommend adding a warning to J&J’s vaccine label, and the company said it would comply with that measure.
“Taking the present situation in Denmark into account, what we are currently losing in our effort to prevent severe illness from COVID-19 cannot outweigh the risk of causing possible side effects in the form of severe blood clots in those we vaccinate,” the health authority said.
Denmark stopped using AstraZeneca’s vaccine last month after European regulators found a possible link between AstraZeneca’s COVID vaccine and “very rare” blood clots.
Both J&J and AstraZeneca vaccines use a modified adenovirus vector technology as opposed to the mRNA technology used in the Moderna and Pfizer’s COVID vaccines.
Florida Gov. DeSantis Suspends Local COVID-19 Emergency Orders, Bans Vaccine Passports
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis signed a bill banning COVID-19 vaccine passports and also announced an executive order that suspends all local pandemic emergency mandates effective July 1.
DeSantis signed Senate Bill 2006, passed by Florida state lawmakers last month granting DeSantis the ability to override local emergency orders. The bill also includes a ban on vaccine passports that would levy fines of $5,000 per violation.
“I’m going to sign the bill. It’s effective July 1. I’ll also sign an executive order pursuant to that bill invalidating all remaining local emergency COVID orders effective on July 1,” the Republican governor said in a news conference in St. Petersburg on Monday. “But then, to bridge the gap between then and now, I’m going to suspend, under my executive power, the local emergency orders as it relates to COVID.”
Describing his executive orders as the “evidence-based thing to do,” DeSantis said that proponents of lockdowns “really are saying you don’t believe in the vaccines, you don’t believe in the data, you don’t believe in the science.” He added: “We’ve embraced the vaccines. We’ve embraced the science on it.”
The order suspending local emergency mandates only affects governments, not businesses.
The ‘Left’ Has Learned, The Quickest Way To Shut Down Your Opponent’s Objections Is To Call Them A ‘Racist’ | Just Ask ‘Minorities’ | “GOP Whip Montoya Blasts ‘race-baiting’ In Session”
House Minority Whip Rod Montoya, R-Farmington
SANTA FE — House Minority Whip Rod Montoya, R-Farmington, had some harsh words for legislative leaders this week as the special session got underway, accusing lawmakers of “aggressive race-baiting” and unjustified allegations of bullying and sexism.
He outlined his thoughts in a three-page letter to Democratic and Republican leaders in both chambers of the Legislature.
Montoya said that as a Hispanic man married to a Native American woman, he is tired of white progressives offering platitudes about climate change as Navajo coal miners and others lose their jobs.
“Members of the Democrat Party regularly use such terms as ‘marginalized peoples,’ ‘institutional racism,’ and ‘implicit bias’ to avoid having to answer legitimate policy questions,” Montoya said. “While this may be an effective way to shut down opposition, it does not benefit us as a lawmaking body.”
Bannon’s War Room | Morning Edition Hour 1 | Recorded May 3, 2021 | Video: 48 Minutes 24 Seconds
Episode 917 – The Great Reset to the Great Realignment … (w/ Cpt. M. Bannon, Gracia, Rachmuth).
“Ilegals are having gun battles on their ranches, they’re finding dead bodies, their homes are being broken into,” Gracia said. “They don’t have the manpower to address this.” Guests are: Cpt. Maureen Bannon, Bianca Gracia, Sloan Rachmuth.
Anti-Woke Faction Opposed To Critical Race Theory Wins Texas School Board Race
- Candidates opposed to critical race theory swept Saturday’s race in Southlake
- School district had been embroiled in bitter controversy for nine months
- Last summer, plans for diversity training were announced after offensive video
- Conservative parents fiercely opposed plan, saying it called for ‘diversity police’
- Others insisted new curriculum was needed to battle racism and inequity
- Now, candidates opposing the diversity plan win board seats by wide margins
- It comes amid a national debate over critical race theory in classrooms
Candidates opposed to teaching ‘critical race theory’ in the classroom have swept a local school board election in Texas, following a bitterly contested campaign that saw passions rise on both sides.
In Saturday’s election in Southlake, candidates opposed to the new curriculum won the two open seats on the Carroll Independent School District board overwhelmingly, with nearly 70 percent of the vote.
The election followed a harsh dispute over plans the district introduced last summer to require diversity and inclusion training after a video went viral showing some of its high school students laughing as they shouted the N-word.
Parents packed school board meetings to oppose the plan, arguing it would create ‘diversity police’ and discriminate against white children. Some even pulled their kids out of the district, and one mother sued, pausing the plan’s implementation.
Bannon’s War Room | Morning Edition Hour 2 | Recorded May 3, 2021 | Video: 48 Minutes 16 Seconds
Episode 918 – Shut Up and Get Your Gene Therapy…NY Times and Fauci Move the Herd Immunity Goal Posts.
“They’re saying shut up and get your vaccination,” Kassam said. “Or shut up and get your gene therapy, I should say.” Guests are: Cpt. Maureen Bannon, Mike Lindell, Marylyn Todd, Dustin Cournoyer, Mark Finchem.
Bannon’s War Room | Evening Edition | Recorded May 3, 2021 | Video: 40 Minutes 16 Seconds
Episode 919 – It’s a Small World of Election Rigging … Raffensberger Ties in NH. Heather Mullins, of Real America’s Voice, reports on the battle over the forensic audit in New Hampshire. Mullins reveals another reason for uproar against Verified Voting: its head worked with Brad Raffensberger in Georgia. Guests are: Cpt. Maureen Bannon, Boris Epshteyn, Mark Finchem.
ADL’s Official Stance On Israel | “Support Israel: A Jewish and Democratic State”
Israel is the national homeland of the Jewish people. The overwhelming majority of Jewish people around the globe, regardless of political orientation, consider a connection to Israel a part of their Jewish identity.
For decades, ADL has worked to support a secure Jewish and democratic state of Israel and to promote a strong and constructive US-Israel relationship. ADL is a strong advocate for a two-state solution, calling for a mutually negotiated and sustainable peace agreement that can ensure security, self-determination and dignity for both Israelis and Palestinians. We champion policies and initiatives that foster Israeli-Palestinian understanding and people-to-people engagement and call out those who would undermine such progress and ultimately peace. ADL celebrates wider Israeli-Arab normalization and peace efforts in the region as a critical driver for regional security, stability and people-to-people understanding.
Understanding the complexities of current issues confronting Israel, both external threats and internal challenges, is important in helping to separate facts from misleading assertions and misrepresentations. Through analysis and action, ADL seeks to unpack historical and contemporary developments, and encourage thoughtful, informed and fair discourse about Israel, Israeli-Palestinian relations, and Israel’s place in the broader Middle East and the world.
ADL recognizes that, like all other countries, Israel should not be exempt from criticism, however ADL educates and engages on how certain harsh expressions about the Jewish state and Zionism can be antisemitic. We raise awareness about efforts to delegitimize Israel’s existence, which is often a characteristic of the BDS (boycott, divestment, sanctions) movement’s campaigns and initiatives. (link to anti-Israel page)
On the ground in Jerusalem, ADL’s Israel office advocates for a Jewish and democratic state and works to help build a cohesive society. We speak out on issues of hate, discrimination and inequities, and actively oppose initiatives that would serve to undermine Israel’s vibrant democratic institutions and pluralistic fiber. We advocate in support of vulnerable and minority communities – Jewish, Muslim, and Christian – including Ethiopian, Charedi, Bedouin, Druze, LGBTQ+ and African asylum seekers. We work in partnership with civil society organizations and activists across Israel to strengthen our reach and bring diverse Israeli communities and coalitions together. Our educational programs engage Israelis of all backgrounds on issues of understanding, tolerance and respect.
John Kerry Threatens Israel With Boycotts (2014)
US Secretary of State John Kerry on Saturday threatened Israel that a failure in the peace talks would lead to global boycotts and delegitimization of the Jewish state. The warning comes as no surprise to those familiar with reports earlier in the month, which revealed that Kerry is orchestrating the European boycottsagainst Israel.
Deputy Defense Minister Danny Danon responded to Kerry’s threats of boycotts, saying “we respect Secretary of State Kerry but will not hold talks with a gun to our head. Friends don’t put ultimatums on the security of the state of Israel.”
Speaking at a security council in Munchen, Germany, Kerry also mentioned Defense Secretary Moshe Ya’alon’s comments calling Kerry “messianic” and “obsessive” in trying to force Israel to submit to a peace deal, which would include massive territorial withdrawals and an Arab capital in Jerusalem.
Former Security Adviser: John Kerry Undermined Trump in Unapproved Iran Talks
Former Secretary of State John Kerry repeatedly undercut President Donald Trump’s foreign policy towards Iran during unauthorized talks with senior Iranian officials, according to Keith Kellogg, the former chief of staff for the National Security Council under President Donald Trump.
ADL To Kerry: ‘Your Threats Destroy Peace Talks’ (2014)
Abraham Foxman, Director of the Anti-Defamation League, issues sharp response to US Secretary of State’s remarks against Israel.
In yet another backlash, the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) issued a letter slamming the boycott threats against Israel from US Secretary of State John Kerry Tuesday.
Kerry’s comments at the Munich Security Conference Saturday have sparked an immense backlash from the Israeli government. He said then, “today’s status quo absolutely, to a certainty, I promise you 100 percent, cannot be maintained. It’s not sustainable. It’s illusionary,” Kerry stated. “You see for Israel there’s an increasing de-legitimization campaign that has been building up [. . .] there are talk of boycotts and other kinds of things. Are we all going to be better with all of that?”
The ADL’s response strongly condemns Kerry’s comments.
Apparently, Human Rights Watch Disagrees With ADL’s Stance On Israel | Video: 3 Minutes
One would think, if you listen to the ADL, that the debate on Israel is between Anti-Semites, or more kindly, Gentiles and Jews. It’s more complicated. There’s actually a very strong and vibrant debate on Israel between those of us who are either Jewish or have Jewish ancestry. Tied into this debate is a mix of political affiliations, many times expressed as ‘Left’ and ‘Right’. Even this is complicated and not quite accurate because the differences also lie in the gamut of beliefs from pure Atheism to strict Orthodoxy. In any case, as the ADL makes a strong push to reform it’s image to the general public and particularly to those deeply involved in politics with some knowledge of the history of the ADL, Human Rights Watch has ‘Crossed A Threshold’ and strongly suggested Israel is guilty of ‘crimes against humanity of apartheid and persecution.’ ~ Human Rights Watch
Gov. Abbott praised by Anti-Defamation League over racist posts by GOP leaders in Texas
DALLAS – The Anti-Defamation League (ADL) praised Texas Governor Greg Abbott Monday for denouncing racist posts by several Texas Republican County Chairs, but also called on the governor to take concrete measures, and use input from the African American community, to address institutional racism in the Texas Republican party and beyond after nearly a dozen social posts of the same conspiratorial nature were identified as coming from local party officials.
Texas GOP Chairman Allen West Joins Gab After Party Takes Account Down
Just days after the governing body of the Republican Party of Texas voted to leave the free-speech social media platform Gab, Texas GOP Chairman Allen West has created a Gab account of his own.
His first Gab post was dedicated to discussing why critical race theory is subversive, rooted in Marxism, and must be combated. His second post came just nine minutes later: a picture of the Constitution, with West’s caption stating his support for free speech. . . .
Could We Soon See Liz Cheney Gone from Leadership?
Source: AP Photo/Matt Rourke, File
Rep. Liz Cheney (R-WY), who is the chair of the House Republican Conference and the third-highest ranking Republican in the U.S. House, has found herself in the news quite a bit lately. Matt reported last week that she said she thinks she may even run for president in 2024, after being particularly vocal in impeaching Trump the second time around, while she continues to trash him to this day. Well, Republican leaders have had enough of her, and may even be willing to push her out, according to Axios.
On Saturday, Jonathan Swan, Glen Johnson and Alayna Treene reported, “Scoop: GOP leaders threaten Cheney ouster.” Honestly, it sounds like House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) and Minority Whip Steve Scalise (R-LA), the highest and second-highest ranking Republicans in the House, respectively, have been fed up with her for some time.
Hubble Watches How a Giant Planet Grows
NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope is giving astronomers a rare look at a Jupiter-sized, still-forming planet that is feeding off material surrounding a young star.
“We just don’t know very much about how giant planets grow,” said Brendan Bowler of the University of Texas at Austin. “This planetary system gives us the first opportunity to witness material falling onto a planet. Our results open up a new area for this research.”
Though over 4,000 exoplanets have been cataloged so far, only about 15 have been directly imaged to date by telescopes. And the planets are so far away and small, they are simply dots in the best photos. The team’s fresh technique for using Hubble to directly image this planet paves a new route for further exoplanet research, especially during a planet’s formative years.
Fake News: New York Times, WaPo, NBC forced to retract false claims about Giuliani
The New York Times, Washington Post and NBC News all issued retractions Saturday for their coverage of Rudy Giuliani following a raid of his Manhattan apartment by the FBI.
The Times appended their correction to a story about the role Giuliani may have played in the 2019 recall of ambassador Marie L. Yovanovitch and whether he received a warning from the FBI about Russian disinformation.
“An earlier version of this article misstated whether Rudolph W. Giuliani received a formal warning from the F.B.I. about Russian disinformation. Mr. Giuliani did not receive such a so-called defensive briefing,” The Times wrote Saturday in a note attached to the piece.
The Washington Post’s correction, on a story about prominent Americans being targeted by Russian disinformation, was similar.
“An earlier version of this story, published Thursday, incorrectly reported that One America News was warned by the FBI that it was the target of a Russian influence operation,” the paper said.