WORLD NEWS
Nine Injured in London ‘Corrosive Substance’ Attack Including Children, Police Officers
Nine people including two children were injured in a “horrific incident” in London on Wednesday evening, with several of those hurt having rushed to the aid of the original victims, police say.
An investigation is underway after a “suspected corrosive substance” was thrown just yards from Clapham Common, an upmarket London neighborhood in Lambeth, injuring several people. A woman and two children were taken to hospital for treatment, police said.
Three people who rushed to their aid were also hospitalized with injuries. In addition, three police officers responding to the scene were also injured by the “substance”.
A police statement notes a man was seen “fleeing the scene” of the “horrific incident” and is being sought in connection with the attack. No arrests have yet been made, per the Met.
London Assembly Member Marina Ahmad said, as noted by the BBC, that: “There has been a traffic collision with a man assaulting occupants in a car and throwing acid. Victims include children.”
The apparent acid attack is just the latest in London as the city weathers a surge in violent crime. As reported this week as police shot dead a man menacing residents with a crossbow:
The crossbow incident is one of many uses of weapons in London’s ongoing crime crisis, in a city where British law forbids firearms in almost all circumstances but criminals find a way nevertheless. As reported last month, 2023 saw knife crime surge, with over 40 incidents logged by police per day. Gun crime also rose six per cent over the previous year.
Per a paper by the Action on Armed Violence campaign group, there were an “estimated 103 homicides that occurred in Greater London in 2023, marked by a concerning trend in violent crimes”. Breaking down the killings, the report stated 67 people were stabbed to death and eight shot.
Graham to Biden: Hit Iranian Oil Infrastructure and Start Killing Their Soldiers
Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) called on President Joe Biden to initiate military action against Iran after an Iran-backed militia killed three American troops at an outpost in Jordan.
According to the South Carolina Republican, fear of the United States created from a military strike would deter further conflict backed by Iran.
“Why didn’t this happen on Trump’s watch?” Graham said. “The Iranians were afraid of Donald Trump. We killed the head of their Revolutionary Guard, Soleimani. Biden has yet to hit Iran directly. The Iranians could care less how many Houthis you kill. They could care less about how many Iraqi militia you kill. The only way you will change their behavior and stop killing Americans and attacking our troops and trying to bomb ships in the Red Sea is for Joe Biden to hit their oil infrastructure and start killing their soldiers inside Iran. I’m not asking to invade Iran. But I am calling on President Biden tonight to go to the source of the problem. If you don’t hit the Iranian oil infrastructure and hit them in the wallet and make them fear you, they’re going to keep killing our soldiers. To the three families whose loved ones lost their life, it breaks my heart because all this was preventable. So Mr. President, hit Iran, hit them now and hit them hard to protect Americans in harm’s way.”
“They will give in when they are afraid of America,” he added. “They were afraid of Donald Trump. To the American people, Our soldiers are over there to make sure ISIS and al-Qaeda don’t come back and hit us here at home. They are here to protect the homeland. Iran is trying to drive us out of the Mideast. Mr. President owes it to those in harm’s way to have their back. The reason they are being attacked so often is Iran does not fear you. If you hit Iranian oil infrastructure and hit them where it hurts, they would stop. Stop being afraid of the Ayatollah. He should be afraid of America. We lost deterrence. In 2021, the Taliban took over Afghanistan. In 2022, Russia invaded Ukraine. In 2023, Hamas attacked Israel. In 2024, they are attacking ships in the Red Sea. Biden has been a disaster in his first three years. Every year, a war has started.”
New Migrant Caravan Leaves Southern Mexico Headed North
A new migrant caravan began walking through southern Mexico to make their way north toward the U.S. border, where some have expressed the expectation of crossing illegally and then requesting asylum or protection. Prior caravans disbanded once they reached Mexico City or along the way when government officials gave them certain travel documents and allowed them to get on buses or airplanes.
The new caravan, which is still in its early stages, is made up of approximately 1,800 migrants. The group began moving through the southern state of Chiapas, near the Mexican-Guatemalan border. The group is expected to journey northwest through Chiapas toward the state of Oaxaca. The group began organizing earlier this week and posted signs around the city parks and migrant shelters in Tapachula, Chiapas and more migrants are expected to join the group in the coming days.
As in prior caravans, migrants have been carrying white wooden crosses and banners with messages claiming that immigration is not illegal and condemning governments that are not open to migrants.
Local government officials set up shelters and rest stops along the way to provide the migrants with food and water, while Mexican authorities have been escorting the migrants to keep them safe.
The new caravan comes at a time when U.S. border cities have been seeing record-setting numbers of migrants arriving and requesting asylum. The record-setting numbers have led to much controversy between the Biden administration and the Texas government.
Randy Clark: ‘Texas Border Showdown’ Wrought with Political Spin and Misinformation
As the fury heats up in the ongoing Shelby Park dispute between the Department of Homeland Security and the State of Texas, the first casualty may be the truth. One part of the political narrative that is less than forthcoming is the idea that Texas was prompted to seize the park while thousands of migrants were crossing daily. Another element of the state’s narrative in opposition to the reality on the ground is that bold actions by Texas after the seizure occurred are responsible for slowing down the record- breaking levels of migrant crossings witnessed in December.
The truth is that by the time Texas took action to fence off Shelby Park and expel Border Patrol agents, the park had already been cleared of migrants and Mexican officials had taken action to apprehend migrants along the border and ship them back into central or southern Mexico.
On Friday, Texas Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick addressed reporters outside the park, offering commentary that seemed to clash with actual events preceding the seizure of the small Texas border park. Patrick continued to push the same narrative on a weekend media blitz, repeating the same false narrative on a major news network.
In Eagle Pass, Patrick spoke to reporters at the park and said, “A few weeks ago, months ago, there were thousands crossing, no one’s crossing. We have secured this part of the border; we have secured it!” As he made the statement at the gates of the park, Patrick gestured towards the inside of the seized park, now gated off from the small border town. The park, that rests along the banks of the Rio Grande contains the city’s municipal golf course, baseball and soccer fields, and a boat launch pad and is now one of the most heavily guarded 2.5 mile stretches of the United States/Mexico border.
Over the weekend, Patrick appeared on Fox News telling Trace Gallagher he was happy the Biden administration decided not to cut the wire at the park, where, according to Patrick, four months ago, three thousand people were crossing each day. Patrick proclaimed the measures taken by the State of Texas had brought those numbers down to zero as he visited the park earlier.
The problem with Patrick’s assessment of the first battle of Shelby Park is that it is simply not true. As recently as December, nearly 5,000 migrants crossed daily into the Shelby Park area, where Border Patrol agents, Texas authorities, and the Texas Military Department were powerless to stop the never- ending streams of migrants from crossing the river into the area. The wire, more than 20 miles of it, was not capable of stopping the migrant surge of thousands per day and was quickly defeated by the migrants using garbage strewn along the Rio Grande to avoid injury as they marched across it.
Patrick’s story regarding an imaginary battle to seize the park and stop the hordes of migrants with wire and reduce the crossings to zero contradicts Republican Speaker of the House Mike Johnson who documented an empty park just ten days before the State of Texas seized it. The fictional battle to bring the park under control never happened, and Fox News, who has documented the migrant crisis in the area more than any other major television news network, offered no pushback against Patrick’s false claims.
Patrick’s statements differ significantly from those made by Speaker of the Speaker Johnson’s assessment of how and why the migrant flow in December at the park was brought under control. In the process of a well-deserved impeachment move against Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, the House is little helped by Patrick’s claims that differ from Speaker Johnson’s assessment. The two versions differ more than substantially — the two versions presented contradict each other wholly.
On January 3, as reported by Breitbart Texas, a contingent of 65 Republican legislators, including Speaker of the House Mike Johnson, visited the park area, only to discover it void of the thousands of migrants regularly being staged outdoors in the Shelby Park area less than one week earlier.
In related news, the supposed “Convoy” of truckers headed to Eagle Pass, Texas, Yuma, Arizona and San Ysidro, California left Denham Springs, Louisiana yesterday, headed for the One Shot Bar and Distillery in Dripping Springs, Texas (outside Austin) prior to going to the border area near Quemado, Texas. Unfortunately, videos taken of the procession which were airing on social media last night showed the number of big rigs was scant, as a majority of the convoy consisted of pick-ups, cars, vans, RV’s and small trucks pulling trailers with signs attached to them conveying various anti-immigration messages. Proponents of the caravan say they expect more big rigs to join the convoy as it moves across Texas. Other factions are warning that the convoy is headed into another J6-style trap. Because we couldn’t get the convoy’s organizers to come back on the show for an update, we have to assume there isn’t one … another mouse that roared? Could it be that both sides of this equation are trying to start an uprising to justify government intervention of a larger magnitude?
U.S. NEWS, POLITICS & GOVERNMENT
Chinese hackers preparing to ‘wreak havoc’ on US, warns FBI chief Christopher Wray
In prepared remarks, FBI Director Christopher Wray told the House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party yesterday that cyber hackers working for the Chinese government are preparing to “wreak havoc” on the US, targeting critical infrastructure such as water treatment plants, the electrical grid, and transportation systems.
“China’s hackers are positioning on American infrastructure in preparation to wreak havoc and cause real world harm to American citizens and communities, if or when China decides the time has come to strike. Literally every day, they’re actively attacking our economic security, engaging in wholesale theft of our innovation, and our personal and corporate data.”
Wray’s comments to the committee follow previous assessments from private cybersecurity firms which have warned of the ongoing threat posed by China.
Last year, Microsoft said state-backed Chinese hackers had been targeting American infrastructure and could be laying the technical groundwork for the potential disruption of critical communications between the US and Asia during future crises.
American firm Mandiant accused Chinese hackers of using a security hole in a popular email appliance to break into the networks of hundreds of public and private sector organizations globally.
Mr Wray is among a number of senior US officials to continue warning of the Chinese government’s hacking prowess alongside Beijing’s determination to steal scientific and industrial research from American businesses.
China has called the accusations groundless, despite multiple criminal indictments detailing evidence.
Biden Admin-Released Migrant Crime Wave Sweeping Sanctuary Cities
And where the Chinese aren’t the focus of Americans’ concerns … the crime rate in the sanctuary cities continues to rise as migrants pour into retail outlets, removing detection tags from clothing items and stealing merchandise from local merchants. In Chicago, the mayor’s office has come under scrutiny after reports indicated over 2500 illegal immigrants were being housed in substandard, squalor conditions.
Johnson Sets Vote on Tax Bill Conservatives Call ‘Trojan Horse to Expand Welfare’ for Illegal Aliens
Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) is rushing through a tax bill unveiled days ago over significant policy objections from both conservative and centrist factions of the Republican Party.
Conservatives have spoken out against provisions in the bill they see as handouts to illegal immigrants, particularly an expansion of the Child Tax Credit without language requiring the parent to have a Social Security number. They argue the expansion would serve as an additional powerful migration pull, even as migrant encounters at the border reach record highs under President Joe Biden.
That tax credit fight takes place as Senate negotiators continue seeking a separate compromise on border security and foreign aid. In that fight, conservatives have accused Democrats of prioritizing policies that would alleviate border bottlenecks by more speedily processing migrants and hiding and housing those already here instead of deterring future migration in an election year ploy to obscure the severity of the border crisis and show action, even if contrary to the American interest.
Johnson indicated Wednesday morning he would move the bill later in the evening under suspension of the rules. “Suspension votes” require two-thirds support – but allow for speedier passage – and are generally used for non-controversial or low-profile votes, like renaming post offices.
However, Johnson is signaling a new normal for suspension votes that could sidestep opposition in his own party. Only weeks ago he suspended the rules to move another consequential piece of legislation – a continuing resolution which extended government funding levels and priorities enacted in December 2022 by Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) and Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) during a lame duck Congress.
That bill enjoyed overwhelming Democrat support. Johnson secured majority Republican support of the bill by only one vote, garnering 107 in support over 106 nays. But Breitbart News learned that Johnson secured a last-minute switch to yes in order to achieve a majority.
Conference rules adopted by House Republicans at the beginning of the Congress require majority support from Republicans for a Speaker to advance legislation.
In addition to concerns over the Child Tax Credit, a group of New York members have spearheaded opposition from Republicans from high-tax states over the state and local tax (SALT) deduction cap.
That group has continued working to hash out a compromise with Johnson in the hours leading up to the vote. In a tight contest, their votes might be necessary for Johnson to get two-thirds support.
Despite the criticism within his party, Johnson has touted the bill, calling it “important bipartisan legislation to revive conservative pro-growth tax reform.”
Yet significant conservative opposition to the bill exists. Richard Stern, Director of the Heritage Foundation’s Herman Center for the Federal Budget and a former budget staffer to Johnson, told Breitbart News the bill is “a Trojan horse to expand welfare programs, including those that go to illegal aliens.”
He continued, “Most of the bill is an increase in spending and subsidies, not tax relief. 91.5% of what is being labeled as “middle class tax cuts” are actually going to a dramatic expansion of the welfare state. Further, the bill will create at least $155 billion in new federal deficits that will drive inflation and mortgage rates even higher. This is a reckless and fiscally irresponsible measure that will burden hard working American families.”
In a sign that the vote will be close, staff for the Ways and Means Committee, which recommended the bill only days before Johnson scheduled a vote, encouraged committee members to cast their vote as soon as the vote opened as a show of force.
In an email to the committee’s GOP members’ staffs obtained by Breitbart News, a staffer for Ways and Means Chairman, Jason Smith (R-MO), told members they “need to light up the board with GREEN as quickly as possible.
“We know it is probably when Members are coming back from dinner but if they can prioritize voting early in the tally it would be appreciated by the Chairman.”
Smith, who negotiated the deal with Senate Finance Chairman Ron Wyden (D-OR), and the bill’s other proponents argue that changes to the bill could endanger the bill’s passage in the Senate.
But Republicans who oppose the legislation question why Johnson is prioritizing a bill with bad policies unsupported by conservatives that would hand the unpopular Biden a rare election year win.
Republican Megadonor Ken Griffin Donated $5 Million to Nikki Haley Super PAC
After initially staying out of the 2024 presidential race, billionaire hedge fund manager Ken Griffin has thrown his support behind Nikki Haley as she challenges Donald Trump for the Republican presidential nomination.
A spokesperson for Mr. Griffin said he made two contributions, one in December and another in January, totaling $5 million, to a super PAC backing Ms. Haley’s campaign.
The second donation was made in early January, before the Iowa caucuses, which Mr. Trump won with 51 percent of the vote. Ms. Haley finished third with 19 percent, just 2 percent behind Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, who has since dropped out of the race.
The donations were disclosed on Jan. 30 after Mr. Griffin mentioned earlier in the day at an investment conference in Miami that he had supported Ms. Haley’s campaign. However, Mr. Griffin did not say whether he would continue supporting Ms. Haley.
Ms. Haley’s second loss to Mr. Trump in New Hampshire was seen by some as a clear indicator of voter sentiment, especially since her chances of winning had been considered favorable due to the state’s high number of independent voters.
But the back-to-back, double-digit losses did not discourage Ms. Haley, who argued that her performance has shown the strength of her candidacy.
Being the only challenger of weight to Mr. Trump in New Hampshire, Ms. Haley managed to more than double the percentage of voters that favored her in Iowa—from 19 to 43—whereas Mr. Trump scored 51 percent in Iowa and 54 percent in the Granite State.
Haley will continue to campaign as she heads towards the February 24th South Carolina primary.
“It’s a narrower road than it was eight weeks ago,” Mr. Griffin said at the investment conference, commenting on Ms. Haley’s chance of securing the nomination.
Mr. Griffin issued a rare statement later that day praising the former United Nations ambassador as someone with “a tremendous track record of leadership,” adding, “America would be well served by someone with her foreign policy credentials and policy priorities in the White House.”
Though he did not expressly say he would stop supporting Ms. Haley’s campaign, he indicated that he plans to concentrate his financial support on congressional elections.
“While voters decide on who will serve as the Republican Party’s nominee for President, I will continue my focus on actively supporting U.S. House and Senate candidates prioritizing economic freedom and a strong defense of America at home and abroad,” Mr. Griffin said in the statement.
Mr. Griffin, founder and CEO of the multinational hedge fund Citadel LLC, did not donate to Mr. Trump’s campaigns but had praised his fiscal policies. He was among a group of megadonors who stayed out of the 2024 presidential race as they watched candidates try to challenge the former president.
CDC Confirms Outbreak on Cruise Ship Due to ‘Unknown’ Illness
The CDC said that 135 people were sickened with an “unknown” illness while on board a cruise ship operated by Cunard Line.
In an update issued yesterday, the agency said that 92 passengers and eight crew members were sickened in that outbreak, with the main symptoms being diarrhea and vomiting. It’s the second outbreak on a cruise ship in 2024.
In response, Cunard Cruise Line will increase “cleaning and disinfection procedures” on the ship and isolate the passengers and crew, according to the CDC.
The company confirmed to Fox News that a “small number of guests had reported symptoms of gastrointestinal illness on board Queen Victoria,” and it “immediately activated their enhanced health and safety protocols to ensure the well-being of all guests and crew onboard.”
The incident comes about a month after nearly 100 passengers on a Celebrity Cruises vessel, the Celebrity Constellation, were sickened with norovirus when it departed in early January from Florida, according to the CDC in a separate update. The agency said that 92 passengers and eight crew members were sickened in that outbreak, with the main symptoms being diarrhea and vomiting. It’s the second outbreak in 2024.
Out of about 2,700 passengers and crew, 135 were sickened on Cunard Line’s Queen Victoria between Jan. 22 and Feb. 12. However, the cases that have been currently reported “do not represent the number of active (symptomatic) gastrointestinal cases at any given port of call or at disembarkation,” the agency said. While the CDC report did not indicate the cause of the Cunard Cruise ship’s outbreak, norovirus has been the most common source of illnesses on cruises in recent years.
The CDC reported 14 outbreaks on cruise ships in 2023. Norovirus was listed as the causative agent in all but one of the incidents.
Government Workers Got Bigger Raises Than Private Sector Workers Last Year
The compensation of government workers rose at a faster pace than workers in the private
sector in 2023, the Labor Department said Wednesday.
The employment cost index for employees of state and local governments rose 4.6 percent last year.
That was only slightly less than the 4.8 percent gain seen in the previous year.
The index that tracks private sector employment costs rose by a smaller 4.1 percent.
Those figures are not adjusted for inflation. After adjusting for inflation, government employment costs rose 1.3 percent while the private sector’s rose by 0.9 percent.
Wages in the government sector rose 4.7 percent. Private sector wage costs were up by 4.3 percent.
The bigger difference came in the cost of benefits packages. Government benefits rose 4.6 percent while the private sector’s increased by 3.6 percent.
This is a change from last year, when private compensation rose by 5.1 percent in nominal terms (and fell 1.3 percent after adjusting for inflation) while government compensation rose 4.8 percent (and fell 1.5 percent after inflation).
The employment cost index measures the change in compensation per employee hour worked.
Trump special prosecutor Nathan Wade has reached a temporary divorce settlement with his estranged wife and so will likely avoid having to testify in court about his alleged affair with his boss, Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis.
Mr. Wade, the Atlanta special prosecutor who was hired by Ms. Wills and brought election interference charges against former President Donald Trump in Georgia, on Tuesday reached a divorce settlement with his wife, Jocelyn Wade, per court documents viewed by The Epoch Times.
Cobb County Superior Court Judge Henry Thompson signed the temporary settlement in the divorce case on Jan. 30, canceling a hearing that was supposed to take place on Jan. 31 in which Mr. Wade was expected to testify about his relationship with Ms. Willis.
Ms. Willis has been accused of being in an “improper” relationship with Mr. Wade, whom she appointed as a special prosecutor in the Fulton Country election interference case against the former president and over a dozen co-defendants.
President Trump and Republicans have alleged that Ms. Willis’ case against the former president is a politically-driven prosecution meant to derail his 2024 comeback bid.
Articles of Impeachment for Mayorkas Advance to House Floor
All 18 Republican members of the House Committee on Homeland Security (HCHS) voted on Jan. 31 after more than 14 hours of often impassioned debate to refer two articles of impeachment against Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas to the full House for a final vote as the panel’s 15 Democrats unanimously opposed the measure.
Speaker of the House Mike Johnson (R-La.) has said he expects the impeachment measure to be voted on by the House of Representatives “as soon as possible.”
Before that can happen, however, the House Rules Committee, led by Chairman Tom Cole (R-Okla.), must adopt a rule for how the articles will be considered for that vote, including whether to allow amendments from the floor.
When the measure does reach the House floor for a final vote, there are 14 Democrats who may face a tough decision on how they will vote regarding Mr. Mayorkas’ future. That is because each of the 14 voted in favor of H. Res. 957 on Jan. 17. That resolution was approved by the full House on a 225-187 vote, with 21 members not voting. Twelve of the 21 not voting were Democrats and nine were Republicans.
The resolution put the House on record in denouncing “the Biden administration’s open-borders policies … condemn[ing] the national security and public safety crisis that President Joe Biden, ‘Border Czar’ Vice President Kamala Harris, Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas, and other Biden administration officials have created along the southwest border; and urg[ing] President Biden to end his administration’s open-borders policies.”
Article I of the measure accuses Mr. Mayorkas of a “willful and systemic refusal to comply with the law,” and claims that, “In large part because of his unlawful conduct, millions of aliens have illegally entered the United States on an annual basis with many unlawfully remaining in the United States.
“His refusal to obey the law is not only an offense against the separation of powers in the Constitution of the United States, it also threatens our national security and has had a dire impact on communities across the country.”
Among more than a dozen examples of that refusal, the article declares that Mr. Mayorkas chose not to “comply with the detention mandate set forth in section 235(b)(2)(A) of the Immigration and Nationality Act, requiring that all applicants for admission who are ‘not clearly and beyond a doubt entitled to be admitted … shall be detained for a [removal] proceeding …’
ECONOMY & BUSINESS
New York State Plans to Hire 4,000 Illegal Immigrants With Relaxed Work Qualifications
The New York government is considering a plan to loosen hiring qualifications for 4,000 jobs so that they can be filled by illegal immigrants who already have federal work permits.
State agencies have found 4,000 vacant positions in an effort to put illegal immigrants into the state’s workforce, according to a memo (pdf) by the New York Department of Civil Service, which was approved earlier this month.
Most of the jobs are “hard-to-recruit, entry-level titles” such as caring for people with mental and physical disabilities, building and ground maintenance, food service, automotive repair, and office aide, according to the memo, first reported by Bloomberg News.
In the memo, New York officials identified three barriers preventing illegal immigrants from getting those state jobs.
“First, many migrants and asylum seekers are unable to verify their educational attainment such as high school completion or equivalent education, which is required for some of these positions,” they wrote. “Second, some have limited English proficiency. Lastly, even if they have successful experience performing the work to be done, it may be difficult for agencies to verify previous employment outside the United States.”
To address these barriers, the Civil Service Department said it would create positions in “transitional” titles with requirements “more in line with the candidates’ qualifications.” In other words, illegal immigrants would be hired into the same positions while, at least temporarily, having the usual qualifications such as English proficiency, proof of education, and previous employment waived for them.
Last December, the New York Department of Labor said it has identified 39,456 private sector jobs open to illegal immigrants, although it does not know how many illegal immigrants have been hired.
As part of an effort to move tens of thousands of illegal immigrants out of the government’s care and into independent living, the Labor Department was tasked in late August 2023 to study the type and number of job openings that could be filled by those with legal work status.
Elon Musk’s $56 Billion Tesla Compensation Package Nullified by Judge
A $56 billion pay package granted by Tesla to Elon Musk in 2018 has been nullified by a Delaware judge who ruled that the company’s board of directors failed to prove “the compensation plan was fair.”
Chancery Court Judge Kathaleen McCormick voided the payment package to Mr. Musk on Jan. 30 as part of a lawsuit filed by Richard Tornetta, a shareholder in the electric vehicle maker, five years ago. Judge McCormick agreed, writing in the 200-page ruling that the company’s board of directors failed to prove “that the compensation plan was fair” or show any evidence that they “ever discussed or negotiated” the compensation package with the businessman.“In the final analysis, Musk launched a self-driving process, recalibrating the speed and direction along the way as he saw fit. The process arrived at an unfair price,” the judge wrote.
The process leading to the approval of Mr. Musk’s compensation plan was also deeply flawed, she said.
“In addition to his 21.9 percent equity stake, Musk was the paradigmatic ‘Superstar CEO’ who held some of the most influential corporate positions (CEO, Chair, and founder), enjoyed thick ties with the directors tasked with negotiating on behalf of Tesla, and dominated the process that led to board approval of his compensation plan,” the judge wrote. “At least as to this transaction, Musk controlled Tesla.”
Under the package offered by Tesla, Mr. Musk had the chance to secure 12 tranches of Tesla stock options, which would vest if Tesla achieved various market capitalization and operational milestones, such as a $50 billion increase in its market capitalization.
Mr. Tornetta had argued the multi-billion-dollar pay package that Tesla granted Mr. Musk—reportedly the largest compensation plan in public corporate history—should be nullified because it was overly excessive.
Additionally, the shareholder claimed that the key milestones Mr. Musk had to achieve in order to receive the pay package—which were described in proxy disclosures as very difficult to achieve—were, in fact, widely expected to be achieved, meaning Mr. Musk would likely qualify for large portions of the pay package.
The lawsuit further argued that a proxy statement issued by Tesla wrongly characterized the board’s Compensation Committee and the board as “independent when they were not,” and claimed that Mr. Musk himself came up with the compensation plan.
Intercontinental Exchange, Inc. (NYSE: ICE), a global provider of technology and data, today announced that Raymond James Bank (NYSE:RJF) will use the company’s Encompass® end-to-end digital lending platform “to support mortgage origination for high net-worth borrowers across both retail and delegated correspondent lending channels.”
Raymond James Bank chose the solution from ICE Mortgage Technology after “an objective evaluation of multiple competing alternatives.”
Tim Bowler, President of ICE Mortgage Technology, said:
“Raymond James Bank undertook a comprehensive review of several competing vendor solutions before determining that Encompass was the best system to support its lending needs. It is clear that our end-to-end ICE mortgage technology ecosystem – and our mission of creating a better experience for the American homeowner – is resonating in the marketplace.”
The bank, an affiliate of NYSE-listed Raymond James Financial, Inc. (NYSE:RJF), “already uses ICE Data Services and other ICE solutions, including MERS®, the Mortgage Electronic Registration System, making the interconnectivity of Encompass a natural fit.”
Bowler added:
As noted in the update, Intercontinental Exchange, Inc. (NYSE: ICE) is a Fortune 500 company “that designs, builds, and operates digital networks that connect people to opportunity.”
They provide financial technology and data services “across major asset classes, helping our customers access mission-critical workflow tools that increase transparency and efficiency. ICE’s futures, equity, and options exchanges – including the New York Stock Exchange – and clearing houses help people invest, raise capital, and manage risk.”
US judge dismisses Disney’s lawsuit accusing DeSantis of retaliation
A U.S. judge on Wednesday dismissed Walt Disney Co’s lawsuit against Florida Governor Ron DeSantis and members of a state board for allegedly using the state to punish the company for voicing an opinion protected by free-speech rights.
Disney had sued in April 2023, arguing that Florida’s government was retaliating after the company criticized state limits on classroom discussion of sexuality. DeSantis and other defendants had urged the case be dismissed, saying Disney could not sue them over constitutionally enacted state laws.
In his ruling, U.S. District Judge Allen Winsor in Tallahassee, Florida, said Disney lacked standing to sue the governor or the secretary of commerce.
Winsor, who was nominated by then-President Donald Trump in 2019, also knocked down Disney’s free-speech claims.
He said that, while the First Amendment prohibits government officials from retaliating against protected speech, a plaintiff – in this case, Disney – cannot bring a free-speech challenge to an otherwise constitutional law based on the subjective motivations of the lawmakers who passed it.
“The federal court’s decision made it clear that Governor DeSantis was correct: Disney is still just one of many corporations in the state, and they do not have a right to their own special government,” Redfern said in statement. “In short – as long predicted, case dismissed.”
The dispute began after Disney last year criticized the classroom ban on discussions of gender identity and sexual orientation, dubbed the “Don’t say gay” law by opponents.
DeSantis began repeatedly attacking what he termed “woke Disney” in public appearances as he geared up for his campaign for the Republican presidential nomination, an effort he abandoned earlier this month.
State lawmakers stripped Disney of its control over the special development district that since 1967 had given the company virtual autonomy around its theme parks, including the Walt Disney World Resort.
The newly formed, DeSantis-appointed district, known as the Central Florida Tourism Oversight District board (CFTOD), then voided contracts that Disney had pushed through just before the prior board was replaced.
Disney responded by suing the governor and board members.
Judge Winsor rejected Disney’s claim against DeSantis and the state’s Secretary of Commerce. He found that the company failed to demonstrate that DeSantis has “actual control” over the board, and “struggled to articulate an injury” caused by the secretary.
He noted that since the supervisors have already been appointed, Disney would face the same situation it faces now if the court enjoined future appointments. “It would be operating under the control of the CFTOD board, over which it has no control.”
The new board has separately asked a state judge to declare prior agreements, which were favorable to Disney and limited board action for decades, improper and void. That case is still pending.
Disney allegedly gave the previous board and its employees millions of dollars’ worth of tickets, discounted hotel stays, and other benefits that were “akin to bribes of public officials,” according to a report issued by the new board in early December.
Disney shares ended down 0.9% at $96.05 a share on Wednesday.
An Egg McMuffin Was Once Just 99 Cents. Can You Guess How Much One Costs Today?
The days of the 99 cent Egg McMuffin are never coming back. Our central bank has been treating our currency like toilet paper, and our politicians in Washington have been borrowing and spending trillions of dollars that we do not have. As a result, we are in the midst of an inflation crisis that seemingly has no end. Of course the mainstream media insists that inflation is “low”, but literally just about everything that we shell out money for on a regular basis costs a lot more these days. For example, just check out what it will cost you to get a single Egg McMuffin at one McDonald’s location in Connecticut…
A McDonald’s customer was left astounded after paying $7.29 for a single Egg McMuffin in a Connecticut drive through.
Bespoke Investment Group posted a picture of the customer’s receipt with the caption ‘$7.29 for one McDonald’s Egg McMuffin. What has the world come to?? These were 2 for $2 pretty recently.’
The bill records the purchase of two Egg McMuffins for $14.58 and one Bacon, Egg & Cheese McGriddle without two half-strips of bacon for $7.19.
$7.29 for just one Egg McMuffin?
Are you serious?
So that means that the price of an Egg MucMuffin in Connecticut is now more than 7 times higher than it was during the Reagan administration…
HEALTH
Deep vein thrombosis (DVT) is a condition in which blood clots occur in a deep vein in your body (usually the legs). If that clot travels to the lungs, it can cause a deadly pulmonary embolism.
Travel is one of the major factors that can contribute to DVTs, because sitting still for hours — whether in a car, train, or plane — can cause the blood to pool in your legs, and lead to the formation of clots.
When you travel by car, it is imperative to take advantage of every rest stop you come across to get out and stretch your legs. And if you’re on a train or plane, you need to get up and walk around frequently.
This sounds simple, but it’s your best protection.
If you’ve experienced any type of blood clot in the past, talk to your doctor about special precautions to take, such as wearing compression stockings.
In addition, taking aspirin during your trip can help prevent blood clots. Discuss that option with your physician before you set out.
Study reveals disease burden caused by plastic exposure
There is a good chance that the drinks you enjoy are laden with tiny pieces of plastic invisible until put under a microscope. Though the ingestion of a small amount of tiny plastics is inevitable, our consumption of plastics has increased with each passing year.
Plastics contain harmful chemicals that contribute to both disease and disability. A new study published in the Journal of the Endocrine Society details the disease burden and related costs, shedding light on how harmful plastics really are.
Study unveils cost of plastic-related health problems
The recent analysis of plastics delved into a wide range of literature to unveil insights about plastic-related fractions, abbreviated as PRF. The in-depth PRF analysis explored the connection between diseases and disabilities caused by the consumption of food and drinks containing the following chemicals.
- PBDEs (polybrominated diphenyl ethers)
- Bisphenols
- Phthalates
- PFAS (per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances)
- Additional polyfluoroalkyl substances
The scientists in charge of the study updated prior disease cost and burden estimates for such chemicals throughout the nation. The data served as a foundation for calculating estimates of causally related disease burden along with costs resulting from plastic consumption.
The study results were quite disturbing. The scientists estimated $249 billion in disease burden attributable to plastic in 2018 alone. The bulk of the financial burden stems from exposure to PBDEs (polybrominated diphenyl ethers), a class of chemicals used as flame retardants in various products. $66.7 billion in disease burden resulted from exposure to phthalates. PFAS exposure costs another $22.4 billion.
The researchers defined fractions related to plastics by compiling a list of sources that use those chemicals, including their proportions or quantities in each form of use. The sources used for the study include industry reports and governmental reports.
SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY
‘Blood on Your Hands’: Senators Confront Big Tech CEOs Over Child Safety
Bipartisan lawmakers have urged social media executives to address the issue of children’s sexual exploitation online. During a hearing with company leaders, they asserted that social platforms bear responsibility for the negative impacts their products have on children, accusing them of having “blood on their hands.”
The Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on January 31 featured testimony from the CEOs of major tech companies, including Discord, Meta, Snap, TikTok, and X (formerly Twitter). Each executive provided justifications for the safety features of their respective apps.
“Social media companies, as they are currently designed and operate, are dangerous products,” committee ranking member Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) said in his opening statements. “They’re destroying lives, threatening democracy itself. These companies must be reined in, or the worst is yet to come.”
The South Carolina Republican also told the story of a fellow lawmaker from his state whose child killed himself due to sexual exploitation that took place through Instagram, a subsidiary of Meta.
“Mr. Zuckerberg, you and the companies before us … have blood on your hands. You have a product that’s killing people.”
Sen. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.), chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, delivered a floor speech the day before the hearing, asserting that the focus of the hearing was on the alleged failures of technology companies to protect children from sexual exploitation online.Mr. Durbin called on his fellow senators to support his legislative proposal, the Strengthening Transparency and Obligations to Protect Children Suffering from Abuse and Mistreatment Act of 2023 (STOP CSAM Act).
The legislation aims to provide support for victims, enhance accountability, and increase transparency for online platforms, he said.
Mr. Durbin emphasized the need for tech companies to prioritize child safety and make their platforms inaccessible to child sex offenders. He acknowledged that while some companies have recently implemented child safety measures, more action is required to combat this crisis effectively.
SURVEILLANCE STATE (4TH AMENDMENT)
Terror by Night: Who Pays the Price for Botched SWAT Team Raids? We Do
Sometimes ten seconds is all the warning you get.
Sometimes you don’t get a warning before all hell breaks loose.
Imagine it, if you will: It’s the middle of the night. Your neighborhood is in darkness. Your household is asleep. Suddenly, you’re awakened by a loud noise.
Barely ten seconds later, someone or an army of someones has crashed through your front door. The intruders are in your home.
Your heart begins racing. Your stomach is tied in knots. The adrenaline is pumping through you. You’re not just afraid. You’re terrified.
Desperate to protect yourself and your loved ones from whatever threat has invaded your home, you scramble to lay hold of something—anything—that you might use in self-defense. It might be a flashlight, a baseball bat, or that licensed and registered gun you thought you’d never need. You brace for the confrontation.
Shadowy figures appear at the doorway, screaming orders, threatening violence, launching flash bang grenades. Chaos reigns.
You stand frozen, your hands gripping whatever means of self-defense you could find.
Just that simple act—of standing frozen in fear and self-defense—is enough to spell your doom. The assailants open fire, sending a hail of bullets in your direction.
In your final moments, you get a good look at your assassins: it’s the police.
Brace yourself, because this hair-raising, heart-pounding, jarring account of a SWAT team raid is what passes for court-sanctioned policing in America today, and it could happen to any one of us or our loved ones.
Nationwide, SWAT teams routinely invade homes, break down doors, kill family pets (they always shoot the dogs first), damage furnishings, terrorize families, and wound or kill those unlucky enough to be present during a raid.
No longer reserved exclusively for deadly situations, SWAT teams are now increasingly being deployed for relatively routine police matters such as serving a search warrant, with some SWAT teams being sent out as much as five times a day.
SWAT teams have been employed to address an astonishingly trivial array of so-called criminal activity or mere community nuisances: angry dogs, domestic disputes, improper paperwork filed by an orchid farmer, and misdemeanor marijuana possession, to give a brief sampling.
Police have also raided homes on the basis of mistaking the presence or scent of legal substances for drugs. Incredibly, these substances have included tomatoes, sunflowers, fish, elderberry bushes, kenaf plants, hibiscus, and ragweed. In some instances, SWAT teams are even employed, in full armament, to perform routine patrols.
These raids, which might be more aptly referred to as “knock-and-shoot” policing, have become a thinly veiled, court-sanctioned means of giving heavily armed police the green light to crash through doors in the middle of the night.
No-knock raids, a subset of the violent, terror-inducing raids carried out by police SWAT teams on unsuspecting households, differ in one significant respect: they are carried out without police even having to announce themselves.
Warning or not, to the unsuspecting homeowner woken from sleep by the sounds of a violent entry, there is no way of distinguishing between a home invasion by criminals as opposed to a police mob. In many instances, there is little real difference.
According to an in-depth investigative report by The Washington Post, “police carry out tens of thousands of no-knock raids every year nationwide.”
While the Fourth Amendment requires that police obtain a warrant based on probable cause before they can enter one’s home, search and seize one’s property, or violate one’s privacy, SWAT teams are granted “no-knock” warrants at high rates such that the warrants themselves are rendered practically meaningless.
In addition to the terror brought on by these raids, general incompetence, collateral damage (fatalities, property damage, etc.) and botched raids are also characteristic of these SWAT team raids.
In some cases, officers misread the address on the warrant. In others, they simply barge into the wrong house or even the wrong building. In another subset of cases, SWAT teams have conducted multiple, sequential raids on wrong addresses; executed search warrants despite the fact that the suspect is already in police custody; or conducted a search of a building where the suspect no longer resides.
That appeared to be the case in Ohio, when a botched SWAT team raid in pursuit of stolen guns at a home where the suspects no longer resided resulted in a 17-month-old baby with a heart defect and a breathing disorder ending up in the ICU with burns around the eyes, chest and neck. In that Jan. 10, 2024, incident, police waited all of six seconds after knocking on the door before using a battering ram to break in and simultaneously launch two flash-bang grenades into the home. The baby’s mother, having lived in the house for a week, barely had time to approach the door before she was grabbed at gunpoint, handcuffed and hustled outside. Only later did police allow her to enter the home to check on the baby, who had been hooked up to a ventilator near the window that police shattered before deploying the flash grenades.
Aiyana Jones is dead because of a SWAT raid gone awry. The 7-year-old was killed after a Detroit SWAT team—searching for a suspect—launched a flash-bang grenade into her family’s apartment, broke through the door and opened fire, hitting the little girl who was asleep on the living room couch. The cops weren’t even in the right apartment.
Exhibiting a similar lack of basic concern for public safety, a Georgia SWAT team launched a flash-bang grenade into the house in which Baby Bou Bou, his three sisters and his parents were staying. The grenade landed in the 2-year-old’s crib, burning a hole in his chest and leaving him with scarring that a lifetime of surgeries will not be able to easily undo.
The horror stories have become legion in which homeowners are injured or killed simply because they mistook a SWAT team raid by police for a home invasion by criminals.
That’s exactly what happened to a 16-year-old Alabama boy. Mistaking a pre-dawn SWAT team raid for a home invasion, the boy grabbed a gun to protect his family only to be gunned down by police attempting to execute a search warrant for drugs. The boy’s brother, not home at the time of the raid, was later arrested with 8 grams of marijuana.
Then there was Jose Guerena, the young ex-Marine who was killed after a SWAT team kicked open the door of his Arizona home during a drug raid and opened fire. According to news reports, Guerena, 26 years old and the father of two young children, grabbed a gun in response to the forced invasion but never fired. In fact, the safety was still on his gun when he was killed. Police officers were not as restrained. The young Iraqi war veteran was allegedly fired upon 71 times. Guerena had no prior criminal record, and the police found nothing illegal in his home.
All too often, botched SWAT team raids have resulted in one tragedy after another for those targeted with little consequences for law enforcement.
The problem, as one reporter rightly concluded, is “not that life has gotten that much more dangerous, it’s that authorities have chosen to respond to even innocent situations as if they were in a warzone.”
A study by a political scientist at Princeton University concludes that militarizing police and SWAT teams “provide no detectable benefits in terms of officer safety or violent crime reduction.” The study, the first systematic analysis on the use and consequences of militarized force, reveals that “police militarization neither reduces rates of violent crime nor changes the number of officers assaulted or killed.”
SWAT teams, designed to defuse dangerous situations such as those involving hostages, were never meant to be used for routine police work targeting nonviolent suspects, yet they have become intrinsic parts of federal and local law enforcement operations.
There are few communities without a SWAT team today.
In 1980, there were roughly 3,000 SWAT team-style raids in the US.
Incredibly, that number has since grown to more than 80,000 SWAT team raids per year, often for routine law enforcement tasks.
In the state of Maryland alone, 92 percent of 8200 SWAT missions were used to execute search or arrest warrants.
Police in both Baltimore and Dallas have used SWAT teams to bust up poker games.
A Connecticut SWAT team swarmed a bar suspected of serving alcohol to underage individuals.
In Arizona, a SWAT team was used to break up an alleged cockfighting ring.
An Atlanta SWAT team raided a music studio, allegedly out of a concern that it might have been involved in illegal music piracy.
And then there are the SWAT team raids arising from red flag gun laws, which gives police the authority to preemptively raid homes of people “suspected” of being threats who might be in possession of a gun, legal or otherwise.
With more states adding red flag gun laws to their books, what happened to Duncan Lemp—who was gunned down in his bedroom during an early morning, no-knock SWAT team raid on his family’s home—could very well happen to more people.
At 4:30 a.m. on March 12, 2020, in the midst of a COVID-19 pandemic that had most of the country under a partial lockdown and sheltering at home, a masked SWAT team—deployed to execute a “high risk” search warrant for unauthorized firearms—stormed the suburban house where 21-year-old Duncan lived with his parents and 19-year-old brother. The entire household, including Lemp and his girlfriend, was reportedly asleep when the SWAT team directed flash bang grenades and gunfire through Lemp’s bedroom window. Lemp was killed and his girlfriend injured.
No one in the house that morning, including Lemp, had a criminal record.
No one in the house that morning, including Lemp, was considered an “imminent threat” to law enforcement or the public, at least not according to the search warrant.
So, what was so urgent that militarized police felt compelled to employ battlefield tactics in the pre-dawn hours of a day when most people are asleep in bed, not to mention stuck at home as part of a nationwide lockdown?
According to police, they were tipped off that Lemp was in possession of “firearms.”
Thus, rather than approaching the house by the front door at a reasonable hour in order to investigate this complaint—which is what the Fourth Amendment requires—police instead strapped on their guns, loaded up their flash bang grenades and acted like battle-crazed warriors.
This is what happens when you use SWAT teams to carry out routine search warrants.
These incidents underscore a dangerous mindset in which the citizenry (often unarmed and defenseless) not only have less rights than militarized police, but also one in which the safety of the citizenry is treated as a lower priority than the safety of their police counterparts (who are armed to the hilt with an array of lethal and nonlethal weapons).
Yet it wasn’t always this way.
There was a time in America when a person’s home was a sanctuary, safe and secure from the threat of invasion by government agents, who were held at bay by the dictates of the Fourth Amendment, which protects American citizens from unreasonable searches and seizures.
The Fourth Amendment, in turn, was added to the U.S. Constitution by colonists still smarting from the abuses they had been forced to endure while under British rule, among these home invasions by the military under the guise of “writs of assistance.” These writs gave British soldiers blanket authority to raid homes, damage property and wreak havoc for any reason whatsoever, without any expectation of probable cause.
We have come full circle to a time before the American Revolution when government agents—with the blessing of the courts—could force their way into a citizen’s home, with seemingly little concern for lives lost and property damaged in the process.
If these aggressive, excessive police tactics have also become troublingly commonplace, it is in large part due to judges who largely rubberstamp the warrant requests based only on the word of police; police who have been known to lie or fabricate the facts in order to justify their claims of “reasonable suspicion” (as opposed to the higher standard of probable cause, which is required by the Constitution before any government official can search an individual or his property); and software that allows judges to remotely approve requests using computers, cellphones or tablets.
This sorry state of affairs is made even worse by the U.S. Supreme Court, which tends to shield police under the guise of qualified immunity. As Reuters concluded, “the Supreme Court has built qualified immunity into an often insurmountable police defense.”
Rubber-stamped, court-issued warrants for no-knock SWAT team raids have become the modern-day equivalent of colonial-era writs of assistance.
Given President Biden’s determination to expand law enforcement and so-called crime prevention at taxpayer expense, our privacy, property and security may be in even greater danger from government intrusion.
TSA Rolls Out Facial Recognition To All ‘Federalized’ Airports
Joe Biden’s Transportation Security Administration is moving forward with plans to expand facial-recognition technology at 430 U.S. airports despite the fact that a bill has been introduced with bipartisan support calling for the government to end the invasive policy of stealing the biometric data of millions of airport passengers.
The TSA says it will install enhanced Credential Authentication Technology (CAT) devices at the airports, an upgrade from previous units used in a pilot program at nearly 30 U.S. airports.
The latest CAT scanners, known as CAT-2 units, incorporate facial recognition technology by capturing real-time pictures of travelers and comparing them against their photo IDs. These units have been deployed at nearly 30 airports nationwide and will now be rolled out at more than 400 “federalized” airports in the coming years, reports MSN.
As of now, participation in facial recognition screenings is supposedly optional for travelers, who can choose to stick with the standard physical ID verification process. But there have been countless firsthand accounts from airport passengers who have indicated that they were not given any option by TSA to reject the face scans.
The CAT-2 units utilize one-to-one verification, comparing photos against government-issued identification. They say they delete the images from their system soon after taking them (who are they fooling, we know they keep this data for a very long time if not indefinitely).
According to MSN: “The TSA emphasizes that photos are not stored after a positive ID match, except during limited testing for evaluating technology effectiveness. This testing involves a block of two to four weeks at specific locations, with data collected and submitted to the DHS Science and Technology Directorate for independent analysis.”
Here’s the catch: TSA may not keep the data for more than a few weeks, but they have no control over Homeland Security and other entities to which they pass the information on.
A bipartisan group of senators, led by Senators John Kennedy (R-Louisiana) and Jeff Merkley (D-Oregon), introduced legislation in November 2023 to ban TSA from using facial recognition, citing privacy concerns. The government’s increasing reliance on facial recognition has prompted calls for greater regulations around its quickly expanding usage.
GARDENING, FARMING & HOMESTEADING
Delicious Dahlias – Yep, Dahlias Are Edible!
We all know that dahlias are delicious to the eye and the heart, but also – great news! Dahlias (Acocoxochitl) are edible. Flower and tuber. Hooray.
However, as with many edible plants… there’s edible, and then there’s tasty. All dahlias are edible, which is a great starting point for experimenting with. And some varieties are delicious, which is even better.
Dahlias come in abundant diversity… because of the type of plant that they are, and also because their seeds don’t grow true to type – which means that folks have been breeding new dahlia cultivars for a very long time.
This also means you can grow new varieties of new dahlias yourself, if you steward and propagate their seeds well.
Couple this diversity with the fact that our knowledge on how dahlias were first used in Mexico is patchy because of colonisation and attempted cultural erasure… there’s plenty of learning to do here, in order to add dahlias to your list of resilient, perennial edible plants to grow in your garden.
How to Start a Worm Composting Bin
Discover the eco-friendly way to dispose of kitchen scraps and yard waste with worm composting. Learn how to start a vermicomposting bin and create a nutrient-rich soil amendment for your garden.
This detailed guide will take you through setting up and maintaining a worm composter, from assembling the necessary materials to troubleshooting common issues. Get ready to explore the world of vermicomposting and learn how to utilize nature’s decomposers for a more sustainable home and garden.
2ND AMENDMENT
Biden Administration Preparing to Effectively Ban Private Gun Sales: Whistleblowers
President Joe Biden’s administration has drafted a document that would require background checks for all gun sales, even transactions between private citizens, according to a whistleblower group.
The U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) drafted the 1,300-page document, which provides legal justification for a proposed rule that would require background checks for all gun sales, Empower Oversight Whistleblowers & Research said in a letter yesterday. The document was drafted at the direction of the White House, according to two whistleblowers who communicated with the organization.
However, Empower Oversight stated in their letter to Attorney General Merrick Garland, head of the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ), that the rule proposed in that document represents an overreach of executive branch power.
“Such an expansive rule that treats all private citizens the same as federal firearms licensees would circumvent the separation of powers in the Constitution, which grants ‘all legislative powers’ to Congress while requiring that the president ’take care that the laws be faithfully executed,’” Tristan Leavitt, Empower Oversight’s president, wrote.
“To the extent such a rule prevents the private sale of firearms, it would also clearly violate the Second Amendment to the United States Constitution, which declares that ’the right of the people to keep and bear arms, shall not be infringed.’”
Mr. Leavitt said in a statement that the rule, if it were finalized, “seems almost certain to be struck down in the courts” like President Biden’s debt relief plan was. He added, “It’s thus hard to view it as anything other than a cynical pay [sic] to energize his base in a presidential election year.”
The ATF, which is part of the DOJ, declined to comment on the letter beyond pointing to publicly available information.
“Because the proposed rule is still working its way through the process, we cannot comment further,” a spokesperson told The Epoch Times via email
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