There are two ways to be fooled. One is to believe what isn’t true; the other is to refuse to believe what is true. —Soren Kierkegaard. "…truth is true even if nobody believes it, and falsehood is false even if everybody believes it. That is why truth does not yield to opinion, fashion, numbers, office, or sincerity–it is simply true and that is the end of it" – Os Guinness, Time for Truth, pg.39. “He that takes truth for his guide, and duty for his end, may safely trust to God’s providence to lead him aright.” – Blaise Pascal. "There is but one straight course, and that is to seek truth and pursue it steadily" – George Washington letter to Edmund Randolph — 1795. We live in a “post-truth” world. According to the dictionary, “post-truth” means, “relating to or denoting circumstances in which objective facts are less influential in shaping public opinion than appeals to emotion and personal belief.” Simply put, we now live in a culture that seems to value experience and emotion more than truth. Truth will never go away no matter how hard one might wish. Going beyond the MSM idealogical opinion/bias and their low information tabloid reality show news with a distractional superficial focus on entertainment, sensationalism, emotionalism and activist reporting – this blogs goal is to, in some small way, put a plug in the broken dam of truth and save as many as possible from the consequences—temporal and eternal. "The further a society drifts from truth, the more it will hate those who speak it." – George Orwell “There are two ways to be fooled. One is to believe what isn’t true; the other is to refuse to believe what is true.” ― Soren Kierkegaard
Have you ever been discouraged that your progress in sanctification is too slow or is up one day and down the next – well I have. It almost seems like I am a work in progress. Well, my friends that’s exactly who we are – we are all works in progress.
May I share a little theology here. There are actually two types of sanctification. One is called positional sanctification. The moment we become saved we are positionally sanctified in Christ. This is a one time event and is part of what happens to a Christian at salvation. The other type of sanctification is called progressive sanctification and as a Christian we will spend the rest of our lives working to become more like Christ. This second type of sanctification will have its ups and downs, periods when we will get discouraged, and many lessons to be learned on this journey to become more like Jesus.
I know on my own personal journey discouragement is something I have to fight against since it can be very easy to get down on myself when I seem to let Jesus down. Pastor Rick Warren shares some very good advice here that I believe can be very helpful for all Christians as we strive to be more like our Savior, when he states: “God changes caterpillars into butterflies, sand into pearls and coal into diamonds using time and pressure. He’s working on you, too.”1
Progressive sanctification is a lifelong process and by definition it takes time for God to work with His precious “works in progress.” Picture it this way, when we come to Christ we bring a lifetime of bad habits, evil thoughts, and wrong thinking with us. In my case, I came to Christ at age 28. That meant that I had 28 years of bad habits, evil thoughts, and wrong thinking that I needed to change.
Thankfully, over these past 40+ years as a Christian I have, through time, been able to work on many of these areas and made great progress with the help of God. But I still have work to do. I also have a choice to make. I can either choose to celebrate my progress and praise God each day that I am becoming more like Christ, as well as get excited for the rest of my journey here on earth, or I can get down on myself when I fall short on my road to perfection and get discouraged. Satan wants me to get discouraged but I am realizing that progressive sanctification takes time and I am learning to celebrate my progress more than my failures.
One other thing I noticed from Pastor Warren’s quote is that while caterpillars, sand, and coal are not very attractive the end product of butterflies, pearls, and diamonds are beautiful and precious to behold! And isn’t that just like us. We at salvation come to Jesus often as broken and unattractive sinners who God, through the process of time, is molding to be His special saints and treasured possessions.
And just how does He do this? Well as Christians, God will often send trials our ways, not to hurt us, but to help build up our faith so we can bring praise, glory, and honor to Jesus. I love what we read in (1 Peter 1:6-7): “In all this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials. These have come so that the proven genuineness of your faith—of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire—may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed.”
You see this is the pressure part that Pastor Warren talks about. For the Christian, pressure or trials are often the only way to grow in our walk with the Lord and closer to Jesus. As our faith grows we will want to become more like Jesus and that is a beautiful thing! Time and pressure are part of the package that all Christians need to understand are necessary if they want to grow and mature in their walk with Jesus.
So, the next time you feel discouraged remember that we are all works in progress and that God is not finished with us yet. Let God continue to mold you more into the image of His son. Life is a journey. It’s training for eternity. And next to the Trinity you are the most precious things in the universe – for you are created in the image of God!
But the word of the Lord endureth for ever. And this is the word which by the gospel is preached unto you. (1 Peter 1:25)
All human teaching and, indeed, all human beings shall pass away as the grass of the meadow; but we are here assured that the Word of the Lord is of a very different character, for it shall endure forever.
We have here a divine gospel; for what word can endure forever but that which is spoken by the eternal God?
We have here an ever-living gospel, as full of vitality as when it first came from the lips of God; as strong to convince and convert, to regenerate and console, to sustain and sanctify as ever it was in its first days of wonder-working.
We have an unchanging gospel which is not today green grass and tomorrow dry hay but always the abiding truth of the immutable Jehovah. Opinions alter, but truth certified by God can no more change than the God who uttered it.
Here, then, we have a gospel to rejoice in, a word of the Lord upon which we may lean all our weight. “For ever” includes life, death, judgment, and eternity. Glory be to God in Christ Jesus for everlasting consolation. Feed on the word today and all the days of thy life.
“Always be full of joy in the Lord; I say it again, rejoice! Let everyone see that you are unselfish and considerate in all you do. Remember that the Lord is coming soon. Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything; tell God your needs and don’t forget to thank Him for His answers. If you do this you will experience God’s peace, which is far more wonderful than the human mind can understand. His peace will keep your thoughts and your hearts quiet and at rest as you trust in Christ Jesus.” (Philippians 4:4-7)
Don and Ann wanted with all their hearts to please the Lord and worked at being victorious Christians. They diligently kept their quiet time and memorized Scripture, and they were faithful in church attendance. They did everything right. But as they said, “Even though we’ve claimed the fullness of the Holy Spirit by faith and tried to understand and apply identification truths [in which they sought to identify themselves with Christ, his crucifixion, burial and resurrection,] we just don’t seem to be enjoying the Christian life. There’s something missing.”
“In Philippians 4,” I told them, “you will find a surefire spiritual formula for victory in the Christian life. Just allow the Holy Spirit to make this passage a reality to you and apply the following as He enables you:
As an act of your will, decide that you’re going to be full of the joy of the Lord. You are the one who decides whether you’re going to rejoice or be discouraged and sad. Demonstrate before all men an unselfish, considerate attitude. Remember that the Lord can come at any moment, and be prepared.
Do not worry about anything. Pray about everything. Thank Him in faith for His answers.
The results of practicing these steps is the most priceless and wonderful experience one can know, the supernatural peace of God that cannot be purchased or acquired in any other way. In order to succeed in this formula for supernatural living, of course, you must already be studying the Word of God, applying its truths to your life daily, living in the power of the Holy Spirit and sharing your faith in Christ with others.
Bible Reading: Isaiah 12:1-5
Today, as an act of my will, I shall claim the supernatural resources of God by faith and continue to experience and share the abundant
“And who knows but that you have come to your royal position for such a time as this?” Esther 4:14
I just moved into the hood. Parenthood that is. I’ve never been this tired, nor have I ever felt this much love in my entire life. If you’ve got a little one (or many kids) yourself, you know exactly what I am talking about.
The book of Esther is quite interesting to me because it does not mention God even once. And while His name is not read in words, His hand can be seen all over the place. God works in many ways, including behind the scenes.
Whether it is while caring for a newborn, or during any other intense moment of life, God is always at work, even when we are too overwhelmed to call on His name as often as we are used to doing so. Whatever it is that we go through, “…who knows but that [we] have come to [our] royal position for such a time as this?”
We are privileged to serve God in whatever area and season we find ourselves in. Whether we feel God’s presence or not, He is there and He is with us. After all, He is the one who prepared us for such a time as this. He will also graciously take us through it — and if we allow Him, make us a bit more like Jesus in the process.
Therefore, let’s depend on God as if we were a newborn ourselves. Let’s trust in Him for sustenance, for love, for security, for peace. Let’s trust in Him even when we can’t feel His hand or hear His voice. He is always with us.
Dear God, sometimes it’s hard to trust that you are with me. If I can’t hear your voice or see your hand, give me the faith to depend on you despite what I’m going through. Help me go on one more day. Thank you for your Spirit alive in me. Thank you for keeping me. Amen.
Thought — Simply pray to God with your deepest yearnings today, knowing in your heart that He is right there and that He is listening.
China Prepares For War: A Timeline Xi’s Inexorable March Toward War.” He’s fond of discussing, and he’s not shy about it, “The rejuvenation of the great Chinese race,” which he likens it to his life’s singular goal. – In October 2022, he mentioned his “laser-like focus on reacquiring the Taiwanese separatists.” He says that if he cannot achieve it, his entire set of lifetime achievements would amount to failure.
Rabbis urge IDF reservists to return to their ‘sacred duty’ over judicial reform protests a group of military rabbis sent a letter to the IDF Chief of Staff, urging the recalcitrant reservists to not renege on their “sacred duty.” “Serving in the regular and reserve army is a great mitzvah, a national duty, and a rare privilege to serve the people of Israel.
Trump Warns Democrats About Sending Him to Prison Former President Trump is warning Democrats that the implications of sending him to prison would be for the extremist party, saying it would be very dangerous. “I think it’s a very dangerous thing to even talk about,” Trump added, “because we do have a tremendously passionate group of voters, much more passion than they had in 2020 and much more passion than in 2016. I think it would be very dangerous.” “the USA, lawyers, and the legal system itself, are under siege… all a gift from crooked Joe Biden,
Voice Actors Are Fighting Back Against Generative AI Variety reports that Crabtree-Ireland joined voice actors at an intimate panel at San Diego Comic-Con, which spoke about the specifics of generative AI’s threat to artists and working actors. On the panel were voice actors who are a part of the National Association of Voice Actors .
China intensifies military drills with Russia amid US sanctions President Xi Jinping has resisted crossing Washington’s red lines over arming Russia’s war machine in Ukraine. But that hasn’t stopped China edging closer to Moscow’s military in another way: direct engagement.
Space Command leaders accused of ‘deliberate manipulation’ in headquarters fight The Alabama chairman of the House Armed Services Committee has accused Air Force and U.S. Space Command leadership of “deliberate, taxpayer-funded manipulation of a competitive selection process” in the fight over a permanent location for the U.S. Space Command headquarters.
Simply medieval’: Russian soldiers held in pits and cellars for refusing to fight in Ukraine A Russian soldier convicted of insubordination was among a group of conscripts who accused their superiors of locking them up in a cellar in eastern Ukraine after they refused to fight, subjecting them to unsanitary living conditions and an insufficient diet, according to a report by an independent Russian news outlet.
Elon Musk says Twitter’s blue bird to be replaced by an X Twitter Inc owner Elon Musk on Sunday signaled he would do more to take the social media company in a new direction with a rebranding that will replace its well-known blue bird logo with an X after acknowledging advertisers have been slow to return.
Extreme rainfall triggers severe flash floods in Nova Scotia, Canada n the most significant downpour recorded in over 50 years, Nova Scotia, an Atlantic Canadian province, witnessed severe flash floods near Halifax on Friday, July 21, 2023. Up to 300 mm (4 – 12 inches) of rainfall fell on the region within just several hours, resulting in collapsed roads, compromised bridges, and inundated buildings. At least 4 people, including 2 children, are missing.
Russian Attack Hits Chinese Consulate in Ukraine’s Odesa Russian missile and drone strikes on Ukraine on July 19 damaged the Chinese consulate building in the port city of Odesa and the port itself, which had a million tons of grain to be shipped to Asia and Africa, including about 60,000 tons to China.
Wheat Prices Jump Higher As Ukraine Threatens Retaliation Against Ships Going To Russian Ports With as of Monday the Black Sea Initiative grain deal effectively having collapsed, Russia has been warning that ships traveling to Ukraine’s Black Sea ports will be seen as potential military targets. The dire warning came after Ukraine’s government said it would persist in its grain and food exports via a temporary shipping route. A Wednesday statement from the Russian defense ministry (MoD) had announced “the flag countries of such ships will be considered parties to the Ukrainian conflict.”
Covid Related News: The death cult delusions infecting our times …Last week a tranche of documents relating to Moderna covid injection trials was released which, similar to Pfizer’s trial documents, raise several questions about the safety and liability of Moderna’s “vaccine.” Yet, without investigating any of these harms and offences, the push for vaccines for anthrax and RSV begins.
Dutch economist let the cat out of the bag about “carbon emission rights” In August 2022, Dutch economist Barbara Baarsma appeared on BNR Newsradio to explain her plan for the carbon dioxide wallet. In doing so, Baarsma, who was CEO of Rabo Carbon Bank until February 2023, revealed a lot of their plans regarding the carbon emissions scam.
“Equal laws protecting equal rights; the best guarantee of loyalty and love of country.” —James Madison (1820)
Fellow Patriots, continuing the Apollo 11 theme of recent days, on this day in 1969, the mission’s trio of astronauts splashed down in the Pacific. Today, among many other things, we look at whether “Barbie” is innocent fun or peddles an underlying agenda. —Mark Alexander
Getting rid of leftist discrimination is a great start for companies seeking to treat people well.
Nate Jackson
When something sounds really good but is actually really bad, arguing against it can be especially tricky. Such is the case with diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI). Every one of those words, based on its original meaning, is good and desirable. Certainly no one wants to oppress anyone else, and we all want our fellow Americans — of every color — to succeed and thrive. Then what’s wrong with DEI?
To put it simply, the Left is using DEI as a method for pushing Marxist ethics into every facet of life. First, divide people between oppressor and oppressed, and then do everything possible to turn the tables. Anyone who favors and defends Judeo-Christian values or meritocracy is a bigot and ipso facto an oppressor.
The caterwauling after the Supreme Court’s decision in June to mostly block the use of racial discrimination in college admissions is telling. Remember the essence of that case: Harvard University was favoring blacks in admissions at the expense of whites and people of Asian extraction.
Again, wanting blacks to attend Harvard or otherwise succeed in the marketplace is good. Forcing the issue at the expense of other sometimes more qualified people solely on the basis of race is wrong.
Well, that Court ruling is already having consequences in academia. Universities around the country are carefully evaluating not just admissions practices but the scores of DEI positions among their staff.
We could also point to the “resignation” of Tirien Steinbach as associate DEI dean at Stanford Law School as an example. Back in March, she joined the mob heckling and harassing Fifth Circuit Judge Kyle Duncan. After justifiable opposition to that disgraceful behavior, she was forced out.
It’s not just academia, though. Earlier this month, our Douglas Andrews explored how the SCOTUS ruling would impact the workplace writ large. After all, this author had previously highlighted the lucrative DEI industry — the astounding explosion of hiring for DEI positions and graduates over the last few years.
Corporate America is already well aware of how the Court’s ruling may provide a template for others to knock down the regime of racial preferences that were set up to advance anyone but whites. Again, the essence of DEI is exactly that kind of discrimination.
If CEOs weren’t thinking strategically, 13 Republican state attorneys general just sent a letter to all Fortune 100 companies “to remind [them] of [their] obligations as … employer(s) under federal and state law to refrain from discriminating on the basis of race, whether under the label of ‘diversity, equity, and inclusion’ or otherwise.”
Many in corporate boardrooms have no doubt been shouting expletives and doubling down in response to the blowback against DEI and anything woke in their branding or marketing. They are true believers who, like that infamous former Bud Light marketing lady, don’t want supposedly ignorant rubes as customers, favoring instead a new, more enlightened customer (read: sufficiently indoctrinated left-winger) who will help usher in a utopia of a needed racial reckoning.
Others, however, are likely breathing a huge sigh of relief. As the post-George Floyd DEI fad took off, many corporate leaders felt they had no choice but to acquiesce to the diversity mob. They now have some legal justification for pushing back against DEI initiatives, which are both expensive to implement and often result in having either subpar or demotivated employees, not to mention consumer opposition.
Either way, a shift is coming. “Companies including Netflix, Disney and Warner Bros. Discovery have recently said that high-profile diversity, equity and inclusion executives will be leaving their jobs,” The Wall Street Journal reported Friday. “Thousands of diversity-focused workers have been laid off since last year, and some companies are scaling back racial justice commitments.”
Reasons for this include not just the Court ruling but “the tech sector’s shake out last fall,” as well as successful boycotts of woke products.
To that last point, corporate spending on such initiatives rarely helps the bottom line. The Journal says “chief diversity officers [CDOs] have been more vulnerable to layoffs than their human resources counterparts, experiencing 40% higher turnover.” Hiring is also down: “The number of CDO searches is down 75% in the past year.”
Translation: If you’re not helping a company make money — or worse, are causing a collapse in sales — your position is going to be on the chopping block.
That may not be “inclusion,” but it sure is “equity.”
Every company in this great nation should make an effort, first and foremost, to remember that employees are people. In most cases, discrimination in the name of profit or ideology is wrong. (We say “most” because, for example, a Christian organization shouldn’t have to hire a Satanist.) A lot of good can be accomplished by looking for hidden talent among the less fortunate. Every company should strive to take care of people equally.
Treat people well and things have a way of working out. Ditching DEI is a great start.
It’s a lie that Joe Biden has stuck to repeatedly, but one that his legal team may now find untenable.
Douglas Andrews
If you’ve heard it once, you’ve heard it a dozen times: Honest Joey Biden has never spoken to his son about his overseas business dealings.
But don’t take our word for it. Let’s take a trip down Memory Lane, shall we? Let’s start in the summer of 2019 in Iowa, the state that got to know Joe Biden best, the state that ultimately sent him packing with a fourth-place finish in its caucuses.
“I have never spoken to my son about his overseas business dealings!” the candidate snapped at Fox News’s Peter Doocy at the conclusion of a campaign event. And the incurious CNN talkingheads swallowed it hook, line, and sinker.
Biden has since doubled down on that whopper multiple times, even though we caught him on a 2018 voicemail to his son in which he wants to discuss a potentially explosive New York Times article about Hunter’s corrupt dealings with an equally corrupt Chinese oil tycoon. As Biden said in that voicemail message: “I thought the article released online, it’s going to be printed tomorrow in the Times, was good. I think you’re clear. And anyway if you get a chance, give me a call. I love you.”
Now, though, amid an ever-expanding array of evidence to the contrary, Joe Biden’s Big Lie is becoming untenable — so much so that one of his mouthpieces has floated a subtle change in the official White House story. As The Washington Free Beacon reports, “House Republican leaders alleged in a Thursday letter that the White House has narrowed its denials about President Joe Biden’s involvement in Hunter Biden’s foreign business deals.”
The Free Beacon continues: “White House spokesman Ian Sams said on June 23 and June 29 that ‘the president was not in business with his son.’ That statement is a ‘clear shift’ from the White House’s previous messaging, according to the letter by Republican Reps. Elise Stefanik (N.Y.), Jim Jordan (Ohio), James Comer (Ky.), and Jason Smith (Mo.).”
That letter explains:
President Biden and official White House spokespersons have said repeatedly that the President had no knowledge of his son’s business, nor did he discuss business with his son. However, on June 29, 2023, Ian Sams, a spokesperson for the White House Counsel’s office, released a statement saying, “As we have said many times before, the President was not in business with his son.” This statement deviates from previous White House statements and brings forward concerns that the President knew of his son’s foreign business deals.
Frankly, it’s hard to imagine a single House Republican penning such a letter and keeping a straight face while doing so. But we can guess at why the White House Counsel’s office would engage in this sort of linguistic shape-shifting: Perhaps no one there wants to get disbarred after their boss is booted from office.
And things are about to get even more untenable, as a former business partner of Hunter’s is expected to testify before the same House Oversight Committee in the days ahead. As the New York Post’s Miranda Devine reports:
Hunter Biden would dial in his father, then-Vice President Joe Biden, on speakerphone into meetings with his overseas business partners, according to testimony expected before Congress this week from Devon Archer, the first son’s former best friend.
Archer, 48, who is facing jail for his role in a $60 million bond fraud, is scheduled to testify to the House Oversight Committee about meetings he witnessed that were attended by Joe Biden either in person or via speakerphone when Hunter would call his father and introduce him to foreign business partners or prospective investors.
“Who are you going to believe?” asked Jim Jordan, the Ohio Republican, during last Wednesday’s House Oversight Committee hearings. “The Justice Department that can’t get their story straight, change three times in 33 days, or these two guys, the go-to guys in international tax evasion cases, the A-team when it comes to these kinds of investigations, all over the world they’ve done this, and have been consistent throughout?”
It’s a rhetorical question, of course, but the former option seems to be increasingly untenable. Heck, one of Joe Biden’s own mouthpieces has quietly abandoned the oft-told lie that his boss never talked to his son about his overseas business dealings.
One wonders: How long before the president’s press secretary, Karine Jean-Pierre, stops peddling this and other Biden family falsehoods? And how long before the president is left all by himself on an island of lies?
The Justice Department didn’t want to find out if there was any evidence of Joe Biden’s illegality.
David Harsanyi
Two veteran IRS agents with impeccable records have now testified under oath that federal officials not only slow-walked the Hunter Biden probe but nixed efforts to investigate Joe’s role in the family business. And though legacy media are conveniently apathetic about the developments, they seem somewhat newsworthy to me.
On Wednesday, we learned the identity of “Whistleblower X.” Joseph Ziegler, a self-proclaimed Democrat who worked at the agency since 2010, told the House Oversight Committee that he handled 95% of the evidence in the Hunter tax investigation. Ziegler testified that throughout the five-year investigation, he felt “handcuffed,” “hamstrung,” “marginalized” and ultimately stopped from moving forward in the manner he would for any other scofflaw.
Ziegler wrote a 99-page memo laying out the case for felony charges, wholly consistent with the IRS guidelines governing charging in tax evasion cases. He maintains that every investigator and prosecutor on the case agreed felonies were in order — all of which should be easy enough to find out.
Sure, it’s fun to talk about salacious parts of the Hunter case, but the far bigger concern should be finding out why companies operating in authoritarian nations sent the Bidens $17 million. It would be a fair question even if there had been no criminal investigation.
Now, I’m not saying the feds were covering up proof of Joe Biden’s illegality — though circumstantial evidence and common sense say the family business couldn’t function without his participation. I’m saying it’s increasingly clear the Justice Department didn’t want to find out if there was any evidence. No one wanted a replay of the Hillary illegal server scandal. And that’s how Hunter got his sweet deal.
“Any time we potentially wanted to go down the road of asking questions related to the president, it was, ‘That’s gonna take too much approvals. We can’t ask those questions,’” Ziegler told CBS News. “And I mean, it created an environment that was very hard to deal with.”
Gary Shapley, the second whistleblower, also testified that every time prosecutors wanted to talk to Joe’s grown grandchildren or others who were receiving payments from foreign companies connected to the “big guy,” investigators shut them down. Shapley told the committee that every step of the way “decisions were made that benefited the subject of this investigation.” That included the Justice Department stretching out the investigation to allow the statute of limitations to expire.
Shapley says a U.S. attorney for D.C. appointed by Joe Biden was the one who had the final call on whether felony charges were brought against Hunter. U.S. Attorney David Weiss, he testified under oath, told a room filled with five other senior FBI and IRS agents that he was “not the deciding person on whether charges are filed.” Maybe Congress should get everyone else under oath and find out?
Not that any of this mattered to committee Democrats, who rarely even attempted to debunk the testimony. Most of them merely prattled on about the evils of Donald Trump and Rudy Giuliani, which is usually enough to placate their constituents. A few Democrats ludicrously argued that the president’s son, a man who allegedly tried to write off sex club memberships, prostitutes and fancy hotel rooms for drug dealers, was the victim of zealous over-prosecution.
Though occasionally, they inadvertently made important points.
Rep. Stephen Lynch (D-Mass.), for instance, went on and on about the corruption of the Trump years, bringing up Paul Manafort and Rick Gates, two people convicted of engaging in similar behavior to Hunter Biden, who was allowed to skate. Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-Md.) tried to excuse Hunter’s actions by noting that he had fallen into crack addiction and whoremongering after his brother’s sad death. Ziegler helpfully pointed out that Hunter had committed tax fraud after he was supposedly fully sober and married.
Any real political journalist with access would be pressuring the White House daily to explain what services Joe Biden’s son, brother and grown grandchildren — and virtually every other member of his family — rendered foreign entities in Romania, China and Ukraine that were worth over $17 million. The president could make this all go away by explaining the situation.
Frankly, I don’t expect to ever find out. It is what it is, but please stop telling me no one is above the law.
CMT backlash, Smithsonian’s Latino museum peddles victimhood, Harris’s “made up” Florida curriculum, and more.
Thomas Gallatin & Jordan Candler
Cross-Examination
Will CMT get the Bud Light treatment? Country Movie Television’s decision to pull Jason Aldean’s video “Try That In A Small Town” from its channel over dubious claims of it being “pro-lynching” has thus far resulted in fans propelling the song to number one on iTunes’ Top Songs and Music Videos. But is a Bud Light-like backlash coming CMT’s way? According to financial consultant Ted Jenkin, CMT may soon be facing a significant financial hit. He warns: “I think people are just saying, ‘Enough is enough. Don’t force an agenda down my throat, especially when it comes to the products I buy or the TV that I watch.’” As of June, CMT ranked as the 43rd-most-watched basic cable channel, pulling in an average of 116,000 daily viewers. Just a 10% drop in that viewership average could result in significant negative financial implications, producing another example of “get woke, go broke.”
Smithsonian’s Latino museum loses funding for peddling victimhood: Giving an accurate presentation of history matters. According to a number of House Republicans, the Smithsonian’s latest museum currently in development, the National Museum of the American Latino, utterly fails to meet that expected standard. In fact, it was “hurtful,” said Arizona Republican Representative Juan Ciscomani following his tour. “The only thing worse than your story not being told is your story being wrongly told, and that’s exactly what is happening here,” he explained. “The Hispanic community deserves better.” Not only was the quality of the exhibits lacking, but the main message was focused on presenting Hispanics as a victim class. When complaints were raised, Smithsonian officials ignored them; therefore, Republicans will take their power of the purse and pull funding. “We’ll fix it,” said Representative Mario Diaz-Balart (R-FL). “But the way to do that is to make sure the Smithsonian understands that we will not accept the patronizing, quasi-racist attitude toward Latinos in the United States of America.”
Harris’s “made up” Florida curriculum: Speaking of advancing historical inaccuracy, Kamala Harris was recently called out by none other than CNN over her recent completely vacuous claim that Florida’s new curriculum standard for teaching black history includes the claim that “enslaved people benefited from slavery.” The trouble is, as commentator Scott Jennings observed: “This is a completely made-up deal. I looked at the standards. I even looked at an analysis of the standards in every instance where the word slavery or slave was used.” Jennings further noted, “Everybody involved in this says this is completely a fabricated issue, and yet look how quickly Kamala Harris jumped on it.” He concluded, “So, the fact that this is her best moment, a fabricated matter, is pretty ridiculous.” Grifters gonna grift.
Water heater crackdown: First the Biden administration came for gas stoves; now it’s going after gas water heaters. On Friday, the Department of Energy released newly proposed efficiency standards regulations for gas-powered water heaters. The agency claims that the new standards would save consumers some $11 billion annually as well as reduce greenhouse emissions by 500 million tons over a 30-year period. In actuality, what the new rule would do is eliminate more affordable gas-powered water heater units, forcing customers into purchasing more expensive gas units or going electric. It’s just another example of the government putting its thumb on the scales. “These products already exist in the free market,” contended Representative Thomas Massie (R-KY). “Consumers should decide whether the upfront cost of a heat-pump water heater is worth the possible long-term savings. In many cases, the monthly savings never make up for the upfront cost of the equipment.”
Labor secretary kerfuffle: The Biden administration has apparently decided to play coy with the Senate regarding the currently open seat for Labor Department secretary. Following Marty Walsh’s resignation from the post this past March, Deputy Secretary Julie Su has been filling the lead role as acting secretary. Apparently, she will do so on into the future, since her hard-left policy record has made a Senate confirmation nigh impossible. With all Republicans and likely at least three Democrats objecting to her, the Biden administration knows she’s a no-go. Biden’s handlers can drag out the ordeal until October 7, the deadline established by the Vacancies Act requiring a nomination. Ridiculously, the Biden administration is attempting to claim that since Su is currently the acting secretary, the deadline doesn’t apply. Given the standoff, the courts will weigh in.
Drug cartels and retail thefts: The problem of thieving flash mobs that suddenly descend on unsuspecting stores seemingly out of the blue, pillaging everything from big-box stores to small businesses, is anything but spontaneous. In fact, there’s evidence that this is part of a growing business model for Mexican cartels. According to DHS special agent Eric DeLaune, these mass thefts are “a $70 billion a year enterprise — organized retail crime.” DeLaune explains, “In contrast to shoplifters, organized theft groups engage in large-scale thefts which rely on teams of ‘boosters’ who steal goods from major retail stores, ‘cleaners’ who disguise the origins of stolen merchandise, ‘fencers’ who resell products through brick-and-mortar fronts and major e-commerce websites, and professional money launderers who funnel illicit profits to criminals orchestrating schemes.”
Headlines
Professors urge Biden to defy “mistaken” rulings by “MAGA” Supreme Court justices (Fox News)
Criminal gangs are taking U.S. shipments of weapons meant for Ukraine (Townhall)
Biden has a border terrorism problem as encounters with flagged aliens explode ninefold (Just the News)
Biden overrules Pentagon, nominates first woman to head Navy (Fox News)
Legal lotto: Florida family awarded $800K after McDonald’s Chicken McNugget burned four-year-old girl (Fox Business)
Elon Musk rebrands Twitter, teases new financial features (National Review)
Israel parliament passes Netanyahu’s judicial reform bill amid mass protests (Fox News)
Policy: Pushers of Central Bank Digital Currencies are the most terrifying of villains (Heritage Foundation)
Satire: Hero: Biden announces he will donate the rest of his bribe money to charity (Babylon Bee)
Film director Greta Gerwig’s feminist treatise “Barbie” captures the cultural zeitgeist.
Emmy Griffin
This past weekend, Hollywood director Greta Gerwig’s “Barbie” hit theaters nationwide. This author (and her poor husband) watched it so you don’t have to. It was everything one might expect it to be — a left-wing feminist propaganda film with vague allusions to the trans agenda — but it also presented some interesting questions that deserve delving into. (Warning, this article contains spoilers.)
Obviously, there was controversy with the film from the outset. There is a male-to-female “transgender” actor who plays one of the main Barbies, though if one didn’t know that Doctor Barbie was a “he” ahead of time, it wouldn’t be obvious. Another red flag was that the film about a child’s toy received a PG-13 rating, which it thoroughly deserved. It had lots of mature adult themes, including talks about the non-sexuality of the dolls and innuendos in spite of the lack of reproductive organs.
The main themes of the film seemed to be identity and feminine and masculine roles in society. By exploring these themes from a perspective of a moral relativist, it actually illustrates all that is wrong with leftist feminist thinking. Moral relativism is the secular philosophy that declares everyone should do what is right in their own eyes. “What’s right for you” or “Your truth” have replaced “The Truth” (morality structured by Judeo-Christian faith).
Moral relativism in “Barbie” actually portrays the highest good as individuals having and maintaining power. In the case of Barbieland (the fictional world of the Barbies), life is so much better when women are in charge of all the power. In Barbieland, the president is a woman, the Supreme Court is made up of women, and all positions of power are held by women. One of the major conflicts in the movie is when Ken, played by Ryan Gosling, comes back from the “real world” of Los Angeles (this in and of itself is problematic and will be addressed later) and brings a patriarchal message to all the Kens back in Barbieland. The Kens take over, and the Barbies are brainwashed into submissive bimbos who would do anything for a man as long as he was in power.
It is disingenuous in its portrayal of the Kens. The whole time, the Kens are portrayed as stupid, jealous, cruel when empowered, feminized, and unnecessary to the Barbies. By contrast, the Barbies are portrayed as excellent, virtuous, boss babes, and kind. This portrayal of adversarial social dynamics between men and women is so dishonest, particularly vis-à-vis women. Women can be fatuous, brutal, or envious, just as men can be exceptional, pious, and kind. This overpraise of women plays an important role in the “rescuing” of Barbieland from the Kens.
One of the heroes of the film, a human mother named Gloria — played by America Ferrera— is able to help the Barbies regain their autonomy by expressing to them the difficulties and inherent contradictions of being a woman and the eternal struggle of not being good enough for society. The victimhood of oppressed feminist ideals snaps the Barbies out of the submissive stupor, and they plot to take back their home from the oppression of the Kens.
Yet the movie willfully ignores the fact that men have the exact same difficulty in the world. Men can’t win for losing. Even if they are gentlemen and strive to do right (like Vice President Mike Pence never dining alone with a woman not his wife), they are ridiculed and declared toxic. Because there is no actual moral standard that the culture adheres to anymore, thanks to the leftist push for moral relativism, no man can ever be good enough either.
Christians also believe that they, in and of themselves, are not good enough. Romans 3:10-12 reminds us: “There is no one righteous, not even one; there is no one who understands; there is no one who seeks God. All have turned away, they have together become worthless; there is no one who does good, not even one.” All people are sinners in need of a Savior. That is why Christ came to earth and died for our sins. We can’t save ourselves.
The conclusion of this dilemma of “not good enough” vs. “good enough” in “Barbie” is never actually resolved. The standard for “good enough” is left up to the individual, and that is deeply unsatisfying and discordant to the viewer. Shallow leftist maxims are the only thing the characters are able to cling to for the feeling of redemption and resolution.
Another major critique of the film would be its disdain for mothers as a role in society. Motherhood is too limiting and backward for any commendation from the film’s writers. The writers were, however, happy to denigrate motherhood throughout the film. There was the early destruction of baby dolls by little girls clamoring to get a Barbie instead. It was actually very jarring to watch as these baby dolls were smashed, tossed, and altogether dismissed. Then there was the snide pooh-poohing of pregnant Barbie Midge. Her only purpose was fodder for anti-pregnancy jokes and as a nod to the discontinued Barbie. Being the mother of the next generation is a miracle and a privilege. It is one of the greatest, most amazing things women can do! Belittling that is shameful.
This anti-mother attitude was very ironic considering it is a mother who is one of the main protagonists. Gloria’s struggle to connect with her moody preteen daughter — who has all the earmarks of left-wing brainwashing, including calling the main Barbie “fascist” — is the impetus for Barbie to have to leave Barbieland and try to fix things in the real world. In spite of initial vitriolic hate from the daughter, the main Barbie ends up being a way for mother and daughter to connect with one another again.
The last major critique involves the choice to set the “real world” in Los Angeles, California. LA is not the real world by any stretch of the imagination. Neither Barbieland nor the “real world” of LA felt real in any way. LA is also not what most of America is like. Los Angeles is a sprawling city where extreme wealth and extreme poverty exist side by side. However, the film chose to focus on the affluent and consumerist-driven side of LA to illustrate American patriarchy. It is interesting to note that in LA, female director Greta Gerwig holds a position of power. The hyper-emphasis on the patriarchy in LA in contrast to the hyper-emphasis on the matriarchy in Barbieland gave both settings a feeling of unreality. It is also ironic the writers decided that LA, the leftist throne in the blue bastion that is California, is having such a patriarchy problem.
Barbie is a famous, identifiable American toy. It is iconic. The doll was a meaningful part of many a young girl’s childhood. However, this reimagining of Barbie as a feminist icon really is an attack on an earlier generation of women’s thoughts, dreams, and values, as well as an attack on future young girls’ view of femininity, girlhood, and what their role is in the culture.
There was one positive to the movie, however. It was very funny. It also had the capacity to laugh at itself. Still, it did overplay some running gags, and by the end of the movie it just read as inane.
Overall, “Barbie” was a feminist treatise that declared men are bad and women are oppressed; that roles and identity are a journey of self-discovery/are self-determined; and that you are enough. Because of the confused morality and the subsequent struggle with identity and gender roles, astute viewers are left with the unsatisfactory feeling of having no real resolution. It is not a film to take your kids to, and it is certainly no intellectually gratifying experience. It would fall into the category of chick flick fluff with a feminist agenda.
The Russia collusion hoax so jaded conservatives against the Washington establishment that they reflexively disagree with The Swamp.
Thomas Gallatin
“Tucker Carlson just ended Mike Pence’s candidacy.” That proclamation was trending among a number of conservative political pundits following the recent FAMiLY Leadership Summit in Iowa. To be fair, the clip of Pence’s seemingly dismissive remark following Carlson’s characterization of continuing to aid Ukraine when there’s “not one city that’s gotten better in the United States” was a bad look.
Pence replied, “Well, that’s not my concern,” which certainly doesn’t play well, especially when not given the whole context. We don’t think he was specifically replying to Carlson’s last sentence because he went on to argue that the issue with Ukraine wasn’t as binary as Carlson had asserted. “Anybody that says that we can’t be the leader of the free world and solve our problems at home has a pretty small view of the greatest nation on earth,” Pence said. “We can do both.”
But such a nuanced message doesn’t play well for political sound bites.
When it comes to sound bites, no politician may be better at producing them than Donald Trump. Regarding Ukraine, Trump’s boast that he’d be able to end the war in 24 hours is reminiscent of his 2016 campaign promise to “build the wall and make Mexico pay for it.” Of course, neither of those boasts were accomplished, but excuses abound in defense.
In a recent interview with Fox News’s Maria Bartiromo, who pushed him to explain just how he would accomplish ending the war in Ukraine so quickly, Trump revealed that his plan ironically hinges on giving even more military aide to Ukraine than Joe Biden has.
“I know [Volodomyr] Zelensky very well and I know [Vladimir] Putin very well. Even better. And I had a good relationship, very good, with both of them,” Trump explained. “I would tell Zelensky: ‘No more. You gotta make a deal.’ I would tell Putin: ‘If you don’t make a deal, we’re going to give him a lot. We’re going to [give Ukraine] more than they ever got if we have to.’ I will have the deal done in one day. One day.”
In other words, Trump’s foreign policy position differs from Biden’s only by degree. That said, we’ve argued before that Putin never would have invaded in the first place if Trump were still president.
Why does all this really matter? Carlson paints a direct contrast between spending money on Ukraine versus spending it on domestic programs as an apparent campaign issue. What do voters think?
Polling indicates that among the issues voters are most concerned about, the war in Ukraine hardly even registers. It might make for a good talking point about the government’s unending spending spree, but Americans are just not that invested in Ukraine.
With that in mind, Pence’s overall position on Ukraine makes sense if keeping the U.S. out of another war is the goal. He contends that if Ukraine falls to Putin, “in a short period of time [the] Russian military is going to cross the border of a NATO country that our armed forces will have to go and defend.” He added: “I never want to see American armed forces in Ukraine. I want to give the Ukrainian military what they need to fight and repel the Russian invasion.”
Furthermore, such a scenario would also only serve to embolden China. And a war with China is the last thing the U.S. would want.
Ron DeSantis, whose own position on Ukraine has lacked clarity, does present a pertinent criticism of the Biden administration’s current policy — the lack of a clearly defined goal. Will the U.S. keep aide flowing to Ukraine indefinitely? And to what end? Should the U.S. be pressing for a deal that ends the fighting sooner even at the expense of Crimea and the Donbas?
Those are all pertinent questions, but maybe the bigger reason that Ukraine has become the proverbial tar baby for Republican candidates is that it has everything to do with the Trump-Russia collusion hoax. A significant number of Republicans now seemingly reflexively reject the views of the Washington establishment — especially since The Swamp did everything in its power to hamstring Trump’s presidency.
The narrative surrounding Ukraine, which conservative media personalities like Carlson have helped establish, is effectively that the U.S. should have nothing to do with it. Ukraine is not our ally and Putin might even have a point, so why are we increasingly investing our resources in a war we should want no part of? That sentiment does appeal to voters who are tired of wars and praise Trump for keeping us out of another one.
For many Republican voters, support for Ukraine is synonymous with support for the Washington establishment, and they want nothing to do with that. Thus, when Pence attempts to make a sound argument as to why and how the U.S. needs to support Ukraine, many Republicans simply see it as kowtowing to The Swamp. When Trump promises to end it in a day, that resonates with people who want to move on.
There are still months left in the GOP primary, and candidates and voters will have to sort out what policy to elevate.
FBI ‘Well Aware’ of Hunter Biden Laptop Before Story Broke — Journalist Emma-Jo Morris testified that the FBI “knew” the Hunter Biden laptop was real before December 2019 — not just when she published the first story on it in October 2020.
Ron DeSantis Accused of Being ‘Pro-Slavery’ — Florida’s Department of Education has produced new standards for black history that include teaching both the “good” and “bad” of the past.
“What this [IRS whistleblower testimony] showed, clearly, is that there was no special treatment with Hunter Biden; that this is someone who has a more zealous view of prosecution in cases that have nothing to do with Hunter Biden.” —Congressman Ro Khanna (D-CA)
“They [BLM rioters] were taking care of the people in their town ‘cause they didn’t like what they saw.” —”The View” co-host Whoopi Goldberg
“In the state of Florida, they decided middle school students will be taught that enslaved people benefited from slavery. They insult us in an attempt to gaslight us and we will not stand for it!” —Kamala Harris
“Extremists here in Florida pass[ed] a law, ‘Don’t say gay,’ trying to instill fear in our teachers that they should not live their full life and love who they love.” —Kamala Harris
Delusions of Grandeur
“She [Kamala Harris] is an icon. She is an icon in the South Asian community, in the African American community, among millions of women in this country.” —New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy
“This president did such a remarkable job. He is a person of such knowledge, such vision for the country, such knowledge of the issues, such strategic thinking, and such a legislator. And on top of it all, a person who connects with the American people.” —Congresswoman Nancy Pelosi (D-CA)
Dumb & Dumber
“I believe that over the next year, Americans are really gonna learn what the Biden administration has done to support American families and drive down inflation and all the good works that they’re doing.” —Delegate Stacey Plaskett (D-Virgin Islands)
“[Republicans] want to talk about censorship; that anytime you point out untruths, you’re censoring. You’re stopping people from speaking. … People can speak, but we’re also going to give the American people the truth so that they can have science and facts and history against wild, outlandish claims that the Republicans are trying to get that’s not only going to keep them from going to the polls or suppressing vote[s] or telling untruths but is also really very detrimental to the American people.” —Stacey Plaskett
Theater of the Absurd
“I issued a memo very early on that we would not use the term ‘illegal alien.’” —Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas
“Some have used the border as a cudgel and conflated migration and the trafficking of fentanyl.” —Alejandro Mayorkas
“We have to place the level of migration we have experienced in its hemispheric and worldwide context.” —Alejandro Mayorkas
Hot Air
“The bomb has gone off, but we do have the ability to restrain fossil fuels if we make the commitments we need to.” —Washington Governor Jay Inslee
For the Record
“Think about it: The very books [Barack] Obama wants to keep on the shelves of elementary and middle schools contain such graphic images and language that they couldn’t be read on broadcast television or the evening news. But the groomers writing and pushing these books enjoy the political and financial support of the Democrats.” —Brian Mark Weber
Insight
“Man exists for his own sake and not to add a laborer to the State.” —Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803-1882)
And Last…
“DEI, like all other forms of race-centricity or race-consciousness, is cancerous to a free people. It must be destroyed.” —Josh Hammer
On Monday’s “John Bachman Now,” former acting Attorney General Matthew Whitaker speaks about Devon Archer’s testimony contradicting President Joe Biden’s denial that he was not on the phone with Hunter and Burisma. Watch NEWSMAX, an independent news network with a conservative perspective, available in 100M+ U.S. homes.
Remember when people say “Trust the Science!” they mean you have to pay attention to the paranoid rantings of dummies like Peter Hotez, who think that movie theaters could still be Covid “superspreaders” in the summer of 2023.
MOSCOW (Sputnik) – The Ukrainian armed forces lost more than 350 soldiers over the past 24 hours during offensive attempts, the Russian Defense Ministry said on Monday, adding that 11 Ukrainian attacks have been repelled.
OutKick founder Clay Travis joins ‘America’s Newsroom’ to discuss the trend of college towns becoming Democratic strongholds and provides reaction after the majority of USMNT members remained silent during the national anthem. #FoxNews
In an interview with The New York Post, RFK Jr., the nephew of President John F. Kennedy, took a deep dive into the topic of currency and the coming “digital cash” era.
As Slay News previously reported, Democrat President Joe Biden has ordered the Federal Reserve to implement a CBDC that will replace traditional money as a “digital dollar.”
The move from Biden falls in line with the agenda of the World Economic Forum (WEF), the United Nations, the International Monetary Fund (IMF), and other globalist interests.
The WEF has been pushing the technology for some time, gloating that “digital cash” will offer a handful of powerful elites “absolute control” over the world’s populations.
Slay News recently reported on a WEF agent boasting during a globalist summit that one of the “benefits” of “digital cash” is that governments can control what citizens can and can’t pay for.
During the WEF’s recent Annual Meeting of the New Champions in Communist China, Tolani Senior Professor of Trade Policy at Cornell University Eswar Prasad gave a chilling insight into the rationale behind the globalist elite’s interest in pushing toward a cashless society.
When Lauren Chen first heard about Warner Bros.’ new “Barbie” movie, she couldn’t hide her excitement. Like many girls who grew up in the ’90s, Chen loved playing with Barbie dolls as a child.
That excitement only escalated when she discovered that Amy Schumer, who was originally rumored to play Barbie, dropped out of the film because it wasn’t “feminist” enough for her taste.
“Amy Schumer thinking a movie is not feminist enough … is a seal of approval,” Chen says.
However, her enthusiasm quickly dissipated when comedian Kate McKinnon, who also plays in the movie, said that “Barbie” is “about how gender roles deny people half their humanity.”
“Red flags everywhere,” Chen responds, adding, “Even if you don’t fit into a gender role, trust me, we are open enough as a society where your humanity will not be denied.”
Further, “Why is the discussion of gender roles happening in my Barbie movie?” she scolds. “I just want to see Barbie … wearing different outfits and looking cute, maybe driving around in a pink convertible. Is that too much to ask?”
Unfortunately, humanity-denying gender roles aren’t the only woke concept pushed in the movie. Men, or “the Kens,” are portrayed as no more than accessories.
Issa Rae, another actress in the film, is quoted saying, “I think a Ken is just a great accessory. That’s what I loved about Greta’s imagining of Barbie … the Kens are just supplemental characters to these Barbies; while Barbies can do everything, Kens are there to kind of support and don’t necessarily have their own story.”
Reduce men to accessories, thus driving home the idea that gender roles deny humanity? That makes a lot of sense …
“I love it when male characters are just poorly written in two dimensions; that’s just the backbone of a great movie, obviously,” Chen retorts.
But that’s only the beginning of “Barbie’s” wokeism.
“There are actually more warning signs about this movie, more indicators that say ‘you should not go see it,”’ Chen says, unless you want to pay to hear “Hollywood weirdos lecture [you] about their fringe, elitist political views.”
A prominent LGBTQ activist that TGC relentlessly promotes is Rebecca McLaughlin. McLaughlin, herself, openly admits that she is romantically attracted to other women.
Conservative commentator Ben Shapiro reviewed the film “Barbie,” and his review wasn’t exactly a positive one.
The Daily Wire star began his review by throwing a Barbie and Ken doll into a garbage can and then lighting them on fire.
Shapiro had just finished watching the “Barbie” movie, as well as the recently released “Oppenheimer” film.
“Let me begin with my generalized assessment of the movie,” he tells his audience. “This movie is not just a piece of s***. This movie is a flaming piece of dogs*** piled atop an entire dumpster on fire, piled atop a landfill filled with dogs***.”
“It is one of the worst movies I have ever seen,” Shapiro added.
“The only thing that can be said for this film is production design,” he continued.
The conservative criticized the film for its jokes, arguing that there really wasn’t much substance in them.
“Every joke that happens in this film happens basically within the first 45 seconds of the film. So, for example, Barbie turns on the water and there’s no water, oh because, you know, like in Barbie house there’s no actual water,” he said.
“Do you get it? And then she drinks but there’s no actual liquid in the actual cup.”
“The movie is a s*** show,” Shapiro added.
He then brought up the question: “Who is the intended audience for this film?”
He explained who he felt was the intended audience for the film.
“So, the intended audience for this film is moms and their 8-year-old daughters,” he said.
Shapiro explained his argument by saying that the previews for the “Barbie” movie were just kids movies with G or PG ratings.
Shapiro then criticized the film for its confusing message and mismanaged plot.
He said the film’s writers were unable to decide “whether they hate Barbie, or that were supposed to kind of like Barbie. It seems they kind of despise Barbie as a fascist emblem.”
Shapiro also believed that the movie was “woke” because it appeared to spread the belief that men and women must be divided.
“The basic sort of premise of the film, politically speaking, is that men and women are on two sides of the divide, and they hate each other,” he began.“And literally, the only way you can have a happy world is if the women ignore the men and the men ignore the women.”
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“That seems to be the final outcome of this film. I was trying to separate this into problems with plot and problems with character and problems with the politics and so on,” he added.
“But they’re all intertwined because the thing is just a mess. It doesn’t make any sense. Plot-wise, it makes no sense. Character-wise, it makes no sense,” he continued.
Towards the end of his review, Shapiro got into an aspect of the film “Barbie” which appeared to argue that a trip to the gynecologist is what makes a woman, a woman.
“It all just boils down to a lady at a gynecologist — that’s female power,” Shapiro said, sarcastically.
“Final rating. Out of 10 Barbies, how many barbies, 10 out of 10 being good. The answer is negative all the Barbies, negative all of them,” he concluded.
While campaigning for president in 2019, Joe Biden told reporters in Iowa, “I have never spoken to my son about his overseas business dealings.”
Hunter Biden’s old friend and longtime business partner is apparently set to tell congressional investigators this week that the Democratic president has been anything but mute and passive when it comes to his son’s business schemes.
According to a new report from the New York Post, Devon Archer will testify before the House Committee on Oversight and Accountability about the 24 or more instances when he allegedly witnessed Joe Biden take part in his son’s business calls or in-person meetings with foreign nationals or prospective investors.
This figure is far greater than that indicated by the Obama White House visitor logs alone, a review of which found last year that Biden had held court with at least 14 of Hunter Biden’s business associates while vice president.
Archer’s testimony, should it ultimately happen, may kneecap the White House’s denial of Biden’s involvement in his son’s foreign business dealings.
Committee Chairman James Comer (R-Ky.) subpoenaed Archer last month, noting Archer had played a “significant role in the Biden family’s business deals abroad, including but not limited to China, Russia, and Ukraine. Additionally, while undertaking these ventures with the Biden family, [Mr. Archer] met with then-Vice President Biden on multiple occasions, including in the White House. Mr. Archer’s testimony is critical to the Committee’s investigation.”
Archer was at the investment firm Rosemont Seneca Partners with Hunter Biden and also sat with him on the board of the Ukrainian energy company Burisma. He was sentenced to prison in February 2022 for defrauding a Native American tribal entity to the tune of $60 million in bonds.
“The Committee is investigating foreign nationals’ attempts to target and coerce high-ranking U.S. officials’ family members by providing money or other benefits in exchange for certain actions. The Committee is considering legislative solutions to this problem,” wrote Comer. “The Committee has identified Mr. Archer as possessing information relevant to its investigation and seeks your client’s testimony regarding these and other related topics.”
According to Miranda Devine of the New York Post, Archer will testify about two dinners Hunter Biden set up for his then-vice president father to meet with business partners from Ukraine, Russia, and Kazakhstan in Washington, D.C. — once on April 16, 2015, and again in early 2016.
A scandal-plagued senior Burisma executive, Vadym Pozharskyi, reportedly made an appearance at the first dinner along with Russian billionaire Yelena Baturina — whom a U.S. Senate report previously accused of wiring $3.5 million to the first son — and the former mayor of Moscow, Yury Luzhkov.
Following the April event, Hunter reportedly received an email from Pozharskyi thanking him for making the introduction to his father.
“Dear Hunter, thank you for inviting me to DC and giving me an opportunity to meet your father and spent [sic] some time together,” wrote the Burisma executive.
Another one of the meetings Archer may discuss apparently took place on Dec. 4, 2015, in Dubai following a Burisma board meeting, reported the Post.
Archer is expected to testify that he and Hunter Biden left a dinner with the Burisma board at the Burj Al Arab Hotel, traveled to the Four Seasons Resort Dubai at Jumeirah Beach, then took a call from Pozharskyi.
Pozharskyi reportedly wanted to know “where they were because Burisma’s owner Mykola Zlochevsky needed to speak to Hunter urgently. Soon afterward, the two Ukrainians joined Hunter and Archer at the Four Seasons bar and Pozharskyi asked Hunter: ‘Can you ring your dad?'”
Hunter allegedly complied, called his father, put the vice president on the speakerphone, then “introduced the Ukrainians to Joe Biden by name as ‘Nikolai and Vadym.’ He also said words to the effect that the Burisma bigwigs ‘need our support.'”
While Archer will reportedly testify that then-Vice President Biden only spoke in “vague pleasantries” during the call, his actions just a few days later were loud and definitive: Biden traveled to Ukraine and strong-armed the government to fire its top prosecutor, Viktor Shokin, who had launched an investigation into possible corruption at Burisma, a company that was paying Hunter Biden well over $50,000 a month.
Joe Biden leveraged $1 billion in U.S. aid to Ukraine — just after the Russian annexation of the Crimean Peninsula — in order get the nation to oust Shokin. Biden claimed he did so because the prosecutor had not adequately dealt with corruption in the Ukrainian government.
TheBlaze previously detailed how Archer was party to a 2015 email exchange with the first son and Pozharskyi that spelled out the “ultimate purpose” of Hunter Biden’s dealings the the company: to “close down … any cases/pursuits” against the company’s founder.
The Post noted that Hunter Biden involved his father in a similar way on multiple other occasions.
Tony Bobulinsky, another former Hunter Biden business partner, said, “I am also aware of other Biden family business associates confirming that Joe would take phone calls from Hunter in the middle of business meetings and would weigh in via speakerphone.”
“Sitting with Hunter at Chateau Marmont before I first met Joe Biden on May 2, 2017, Hunter was adamant that his father takes his calls at any time, no matter what his lawyers say or with gatekeepers like Kate Bedingfield [former Biden spokesperson] playing interference,” added Bobulinsky.
Ahead of the 2020 election, Bobulinsky blew the whistle about Joe Biden’s and Hunter Biden’s involvement with the Chinese energy company CEFC, which allegedly paid them millions, despite Joe Biden’s insistence in the final presidential debate that he had “not taken a penny from any foreign source ever in [his] life.”
The Post suggested that since it came out that Archer would testify before Congress, his family has been on the receiving end of death threats and warnings to “keep your mouth shut.”
The Washington Examiner reported that Archer has already canceled scheduled depositions before the committee three times.
Committee members reportedly hope to hear Archer’s testimony before the August recess, during which time the damning details will be left to simmer.
The Fox News contributor joined ‘One Nation’ to discuss his take on the latest developments in the investigation into the Biden family’s overseas business dealings. #FoxNews
Hunter Biden’s former business partner is expected to testify that Hunter called his dad Joe Biden at least 24 times during business meeting with clients when his dad was in office as Vice President.
There is no place to hide now, Joe.
In 2020, at the second United States presidential debate, Joe Biden lied to the American people and said the Hunter Biden laptop story was a “Russian plant.”
Joe Biden: Look, there are 50 former national intelligence folks who said what he’s accusing me of is a Russian plant. They have said, five former heads of the CIA, both parties, say what he’s saying is a bunch of garbage. Nobody believes him except him and his good friend Rudy Giuliani.
Joe Biden knew this was a lie. Joe Biden knew Hunter was working for the family cutting deals around the world in million-dollar pay-for-play schemes.
Now we have a second witness to testify against the Biden Crime Family.
Hunter Biden’s former business partner and friend is set to testify that Hunter called then Vice President Joe during meetings with clients, reports say.
Devon Archer, 48, was subpoenaed on June 12 by the House Oversight Committee, which is investigating Hunter’s businesses and whether he and other members of the Biden family improperly traded on their connections.
Archer has so far canceled his scheduled depositions three times, The Washington Examiner reported, but still intends to speak to the committee. They go on recess for the summer break in August.
On Sunday, The New York Post reported Archer is expected to tell the committee Joe spoke to Hunter’s business associates, including those at Burisma, at least 24 times.
Archer and another business associate, Tony Bobulinski, have both said Joe Biden offered brief greetings and platitudes rather than concrete agreements to Hunter’s business partners.
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