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24+ min ago (226+ words) Rep. Bennie Thompson (D., Miss.) referred to last month's attack on two National Guardsmen as an "unfortunate accident" during a Thursday congressional hearing. He promised to "get it straight" after Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem called him out'then described it as "an unfortunate situation." "Madam Secretary, you and the gentleman from [National Counterterrorism Center] referenced the unfortunate accident that occurred with the National Guardsman being killed," Thompson said during a House Homeland Security Committee hearing. "You think that was an unfortunate accident? It was a terrorist attack," Noem interrupted. "They shot our National Guardsmen in the head." "I mean, no'wait, wait'Look, I'll get it straight. Then you can respond," Thompson, the committee's ranking member, said, shaking his hand at Noem. "It was an unfortunate situation." Thursday's hearing centered on national security threats facing the nation and included questions surrounding how…...

40+ min ago (670+ words) As I pointed out two days ago, I.Q. testing gets little respect from liberal conventional wisdom, except when it can be used to help a murderer escape the death penalty. Back in the 2002 Atkins decision, the Supreme Court ruled that states must pick an IQ score from 65 to 75 and not assign the death penalty to anybody who scored below it. Way back in 1998, Joseph Clinton Smith (a white man) was convicted in Alabama of beating a robbery victim to death with a hammer, carpenter Durk Van Dam. Alabama went with the middle of the road IQ score of 70 as the minimum for the death penalty. Smith has taken IQ tests five times, two before his conviction and three after. All five times he scored between 72 and 78, which would suggest he's over the 70 cutoff in Alabama. I.Q. expert Russell Warne writes in The…...

49+ min ago (403+ words) A new report from the Crime Prevention Research Center (CPRC) on concealed carry in the U.S. reveals that 46.8 percent of Americans now live in "Constitutional Carry" states'there are 29 of them'where no license or permit is required, while Congress is mulling H.R. 38, the Concealed Carry Reciprocity Act, and anti-gunners are in a panic. The report was prepared by John R. Lott, CPRC founder and CEO; Carlisle E. Moody, College of William & Mary " Department of Economics and CPRC associate, and Rujun Wang. Of course, this is spelled out in the text of H.R. 38, which may be read here. The pertinent language says this: "(1) has a statute under which residents of the State may apply for a license or permit to carry a concealed firearm; or "(2) does not prohibit the carrying of concealed firearms by residents of the State for lawful purposes. "(b) This section shall not be construed…...

51+ min ago (165+ words) The new tariffs will take effect next year and apply to countries that don't have a free-trade agreement with Mexico. Mexico Approves Tariffs of up to 50 Percent on China, Others Mexican lawmakers on Dec. 10 gave the green light to tariffs of up to 50 percent on imports from China and other Asian nations without a trade deal with the country, taking a significant step to protect domestic industries and jobs. The proposal to reform the General Import and Export Tariffs Law was passed in the Senate on a vote of 765, with 35 abstentions, after its earlier passage in the lower house, where it received 281 votes in favor, 24 against, and 149 abstentions. UK Hits Chinese Cyber Firms With Sanctions Over Cyberattacks Japan to Respond to CCP's Economic Retaliation Appropriately, PM Says India Urges Caution When Traveling in China After Citizen Detained in Shanghai Airport…...

1+ hour, 41+ min ago (341+ words) The Trump administration says that "everything is on the table"including terrorism-related sanctionsas it moves closer to taking fresh punitive measures against the Hamas-linked United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA), according to three senior officials, who told the Washington Free Beacon'that the aid group's "time playing a role in Gaza is over." "The Trump Administration is currently exploring all options to hold [UNRWA] accountable," a senior State Department official familiar with the matter said. "UNWRA is a corrupt organization with a proven track record of aiding and abetting terrorists." Reuters reported earlier on Thursday that "terrorism-related sanctions" are among the list of options. The official said "no final decisions have yet been made," but did confirm that "everything is on the table." A second U.S. official briefed on the UNRWA discussions said that, whatever route the administration takes, the aid…...

1+ hour, 44+ min ago (530+ words) The Trump administration wants to persuade four more countries to leave the European Union to "Make Europe Great Again, according to reports of a longer, still-classified version of the US national security strategy released last week. There are also suggestions of creating a new elite C5, or Core Five, forum of world powers to sideline the G7, comprising America, China, India, Japan and Russia. The four EU countries seen as targets to follow Brexit are Austria, Hungary, Italy and Poland, according to leaked details reported by the US defence website Defense One. The classified version of the strategy, which warned of "civilisational erasure in Europe because of mass immigration and multiculturalism, is believed to call for the US to "support parties, movements, and intellectual and cultural figures who seek sovereignty and preservation/restoration of traditional European ways of life " while remaining pro-American....

1+ hour, 59+ min ago (343+ words) JERUSALEM'Israeli lawmakers over the past two weeks covertly held a series of meetings with senior Taiwanese officials, seeking to strengthen bilateral cooperation and counter the growing menace of China. According to Tal, the talks had U.S. support and focused on "expanding cooperation with Taiwan in terms of security, economics, and all aspects of social resilience." He said the larger goal was to "create a new alliance that will counter the Chinese axis of evil"'China, Russia, Iran, and North Korea'which is "growing its influence and trying to take dominance from America." "Israel and Taiwan are on the frontline of the same struggle," Tal told the Washington Free Beacon by phone from Taipei on Wednesday. "We're really fighting and up against the same threats and the same forces." The meetings are the latest signs of deepening ties between Israel and Taiwan. This…...

2+ hour, 20+ min ago (651+ words) Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Mo., joins 'Jesse Watters Primetime' to discuss fallout from President Donald Trump's strike on Iran nuclear sites and the ceasefire between Israel and Iran. A lone progressive's effort to impeach President Donald Trump failed Thursday, with nearly two dozen Democrats joining the House GOP to quash it. Rep. Al Green, D-Texas, moved to get a vote on two articles of impeachment Wednesday night via a privileged resolution, a mechanism allowing lawmakers to force action on a bill within two legislative days. Republicans called for a vote to table the measure on Thursday, a move that effectively kills consideration of the bill itself when a privileged resolution is called for. Twenty-three Democrats joined Republicans in pushing the impeachment aside. A significant number of Democrats also voted "present," including all three senior leaders " House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N....

2+ hour, 29+ min ago (636+ words) In a scene that perfectly captures the strangeness of American politics today, President Donald Trump, a billionaire and self-styled champion of American business (at least the ones he likes) was all smiles during an Oval Office visit from Zohran Mamdani, the democratic socialist and mayor-elect of New York City. For months, the two men traded the harshest of insults. Mamdani was a "communist" and "radical left lunatic"; Trump a "fascist" and "despot." Yet with New York's mayoral election over and cameras clicking, the insults were on hold. The men praised each other as "rational" and "productive." Trump even joked that Mamdani might "surprise some conservative people." Give them points for collegiality, just don't be surprised. Trump and Mamdani are only the latest example of the right and the left converging on economic issues. One likes price floors, the other likes…...

2+ hour, 31+ min ago (445+ words) President Donald Trump issued a message to Colombian President Gustavo Petro as tensions between the two countries continue to escalate, warning: "He will be next soon." Speaking to reporters, Trump stated that Petro is "next" on the White House's list of alleged drug trafficking suspects to remove from power. Initially, Trump stated he "really thought too much about" removing Petro from power. Now, it seems the president has changed his mind regarding the leader. "Colombia is producing a lot of drugs," Trump told reporters. "So he better wise up or he'll be next. He'll be next soon," he added. "I hope he's listening; he's going to be next." The comments from the president mark a major escalation of Trump's threats against the Colombian leader. During a conversation with Politico this week, Trump teased that he planned on expanding his anti-drug…...