Friday, June 21, 2024

June 21, 2024

Good morning,

Welcome to the news for independent thinkers

Leading the News . . .

Trump's convictions fueled donation surge that could reshape contest . . . Donors channeled tens of millions of dollars to Donald Trump's presidential campaign and the Republican National Committee in the days immediately following his May 30 conviction on 34 felony counts of falsifying business records, all but erasing the massive fundraising advantage that President Biden's campaign and the Democratic National Committee once held. Biden and his allied groups have raised more money than Trump and his allies have over the course of the general-election contest. But the surge in post-conviction donations to Trump's effort — captured in part in May reports filed to the Federal Election Commission on Thursday — has the potential to dramatically reshape the presidential race. Washington Post

Trump campaign gets $50m boost from single donor
Mike Bloomberg gives $20 million to help Biden beat Trump

Politics

Federal agencies place Bidenbucks bet in Nevada . . . At least four federal agencies likely will be involved in helping to mobilize voters in Nevada, based on President Joe Biden's executive order on elections, which some critics call "Bidenbucks." The Daily Signal obtained copies of letters from Nevada Secretary of State Francisco V. Aguilar to federal agencies regarding implementation of Biden's executive order. Executive Order 14019, which Biden signed in March 2021, directs every federal agency to be active in boosting voter participation and to partner with nonprofit organizations in doing so. Daily Signal

Biden slaps his name on taxpayer-funded projects . . . The federal government is on a spending spree and you're paying for it, but President Biden is taking credit. The White House is urging federal agencies to put Mr. Biden's name on signs wherever they spend money. His team has even provided templates to show how to give him top billing. Sen. Joni Ernst, Iowa Republican, says it's unseemly and may be against the law. Washington Times

Biden taking a full week at Camp David to prepare for debate

They're trying to get his dosing right . . .

Is Jack Smith's appointment legal? Trump's Florida judge is set to decide . . . Special counsel Jack Smith's case against Donald Trump for allegedly stealing national security secrets is on trial Friday — just not in the way Smith intended. U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon has punted the case indefinitely and seems many months away from preparing it to go before a jury. Meanwhile, she has scheduled a multi-day hearing in her Fort Pierce, Florida, courtroom focused on whether Smith, the prosecutor leading the case, was unconstitutionally appointed or is otherwise acting without legal authority. Politico

Missouri prosecutor to sue New York for lawfare against Trump . . . Andrew Bailey, attorney general for the state of Missouri, announced on Thursday that his office will be suing the state of New York for its "lawfare against" former President Donald Trump. "I will be filing suit against the State of New York for their direct attack on our democratic process through unconstitutional lawfare against President Trump. It's time to restore the rule of law," Bailey announced on X. "We have to fight back against a rogue prosecutor who is trying to take a presidential candidate off the campaign trail." Breitbart

White House promotes Biden official who compared police to slave patrols, wants to abolish ICE

Bannon loses an emergency appeal to delay his July 1 prison sentence . . . The D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled 2-1 against Bannon, with Judge Justin Walker, who was appointed by former President Donald Trump, dissenting. Bannon was sentenced to four months in prison in October 2022 after defying a congressional subpoena by the Jan. 6 Committee. The Department of Justice intervened earlier this week to ask the court to deny Bannon's appeal for a delay. Washington Examiner

Black Voters in Milwaukee could determine 2024. And it's not looking good for Biden

Squad member claims to be sorry for calling Hamas rapes propaganda . . . Rep. Jamaal Bowman (D., N.Y.) apologized this week months after dismissing reports that Hamas raped Israeli civilians on Oct. 7 as "propaganda" and "lies." "I apologize for my comments," Bowman said, "and now we're continuing to do the work to fight sexual violence and domestic violence in all its forms." A month after Hamas's Oct. 7 attacks on Israeli civilians that left 1,200 people dead, Bowman said, "There's still no evidence of beheaded babies or raped women. But they still keep using that lie [for] propaganda." Washington Fee Beacon

Of course, he's in a tough reelection fight against an apparently more sane Democrat.

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Culture

Bragg's office drops charges against Columbia anti-Israel protestors . . . Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg's office has dropped charges against the majority of Columbia University protesters who occupied a campus building to protest Israel last month. The district attorney's office dismissed 31 people out of 46 charged with trespassing "largely due to a lack of evidence," according to NBC News. "Prosecutors told 14 others that their cases would be dropped if they avoid being arrested in the next six months." Breitbart

National Security

Biden moves Ukraine ahead of US allies . . . The Biden administration has decided to move Ukraine to the top of the list on countries receiving air defense weapons, and effectively making American allies wait at least 16 months for those same weapons. The administration said it was because in recent months Russia has stepped up its missile and drone attacks in Ukraine in an attempt to destroy its energy system ahead of the winter. Sen. JD Vance (R-OH), a staunch critic of continuing to send billions of U.S. taxpayer money into Ukraine to fuel the war, said, "At this point we are actively endangering our national security by focusing on Ukraine to the exclusion of other priorities." Breitbart

Illegal immigrants charged with killing 12-year-old Texas girl were released by Border Patrol . . . At least one of two illegal immigrants who were charged with the murder of a 12-year-old girl in Texas were previously released by Border Patrol, according to multiple reports Thursday. Johan Jose Rangel Martinez, 21, and Franklin Jose Pena Ramos, 26, were caught crossing the border illegally in El Paso, Texas, in March and May, respectively. Both were released into the United States, after which they allegedly murdered Jocelyn Nungaray this week. Both illegal immigrants were from Venezuela. Washington Examiner

International

France's Jews consider voting for party with an antisemitic past . . . Serge Klarsfeld is a world-renowned Nazi hunter, a historian of the Holocaust and a moral authority in France who has pushed the country to reckon with its dark history of antisemitism. That is why many in France were shocked this week when Klarsfeld defended the far-right party of Marine Le Pen, which counts among its founders a former Nazi paramilitary soldier. Klarsfeld, an 88-year-old Holocaust survivor, said the main threat to France's Jews now comes from the far left and that he wouldn't hesitate to vote for Le Pen's party, the National Rally, in the coming parliamentary elections if the alternative were a coalition of leftist parties, the New Popular Front. Wall Street Journal

As France reels from the rape of a Jewish girl, antisemitism comes to the fore in election . . . The alleged rape of a 12-year-old Jewish girl in a suspected antisemitic attack has sent shockwaves throughout France, and thrust concerns about antisemitism to the forefront of campaigning for the country's legislative elections. Far-left figures have faced accusations of antisemitism linked to their response to Hamas' Oct. 7 attack on Israel and the ensuing war. Concerns came to the fore after two adolescent boys in a Paris suburb were given preliminary charges this week of raping a 12-year-old girl and religion-motivated violence, according to prosecutors. Lawyer and Jewish leader Elie Korchia told French broadcaster BFM that the girl is Jewish and that the word Palestine was mentioned during the attack. Associated Press

Chinese forces ram US ally's boats, wield blades . . . Chinese forces boarded and overwhelmed U.S.-allied vessels on Monday in one of the most dramatic escalations in recent times in the South China Sea, as seen in chaotic footage of the incident. The Chinese Coast Guard on Monday confronted Philippine navy boats that were attempting to deliver supplies to an outpost in the South China Sea. Footage depicts Chinese Coast Guard vessels ramming one of the boats and boarding the second boat, destroying and seizing equipment, injuring crew members, and wielding knives, spears and axes. Daily Caller

Kate Middleton pays sweet birthday tribute to Prince William as he turns 42 with adorable new photo

Pope told off by student for using anti-LGBTQ language . . . Pope Francis has been told by a Filipino Catholic university student to "stop using offensive language" against LGBTQ people. Slurs cause "immense pain", Jack Lorenz Acebedo Rivero said during an online video panel with other Catholic university students and the pope. His comments come after reports that the Pope used extremely offensive language against gay men during a closed-door meeting last month with bishops. BBC

Presumptuous brat.

Money

Store brands get fancy in private-label revolution . . . Store-brand products have long been uninspiring—cheaper knockoffs of well-known brands with names like "Toaster Treats" in place of Pop-Tarts or "Honey Nut O's" cereal in place of Honey Nut Cheerios. That is quickly changing, though. For example, Walmart WMT 0.61%increase; green up pointing triangle, America's largest retailer, launched a premium food brand in late April called Bettergoods. The lineup includes adventurous flavors such as cardamom rose raspberry jam. Wall Street Journal

You should also know

Wikipedia biased in favor of liberals . . . Wikipedia entries are more likely to paint public figures on the Right in a negative light than the Left, a Manhattan Institute study released Thursday found. The study analyzed the sentiments of 1,628 words that were used in reference to political topics and found that Wikipedia generally uses more negative terms in reference to right-leaning public figures, and less when referencing left-leaning figures. The results would suggest that Wikipedia is contradicting its "neutral point of view" policy. Daily Signal

American Airlines workers on leave after kicking black passengers off flight over body odor . . . American Airlines has placed several employees on leave after the company was sued by three black New Yorkers who were kicked off a JFK-bound flight over a body odor complaint. American CEO Robert Isom announced the disciplinary action this week in a note to staff in which he also denounced the troubling incident that transpired on a January flight from Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport. "I am incredibly disappointed by what happened on that flight and the breakdown of our procedures," Isom said in the note. New York Post

Southwest Boeing 737 plunges within 500 feet of Oklahoma neighborhood . . . A Boeing 737 aircraft suddenly plummeted to less than 500 feet of the ground over Oklahoma, terrifying residents who feared the jet was going to crash. Southwest Airlines Flight 4069 dived to between 400 and 500 feet as it flew over a high school in the City of Yukon. Doorbell camera footage showed the Boeing 737 MAX-8 then hovering above houses, before it flies out of frame. Daily Mail

Donald Sutherland, RIP . . . Donald Sutherland, the tall, lean and long-faced Canadian actor who became a countercultural icon with such films as "The Dirty Dozen," "MASH," "Klute" and "Don't Look Now," and who subsequently enjoyed a prolific and wide-ranging career in films including "Ordinary People," "Without Limits" and the "Hunger Games" films, died Thursday in Miami after a long illness, CAA confirmed. He was 88. For over a half century, the Emmy and Golden Globe-winning actor, who received an honorary Oscar in 2017, memorably played villains, antiheroes, romantic leads and mentor figures. His profile increased in the past decade with his supporting role as the evil President Snow in "The Hunger Games" franchise. Variety

Eating meat may help you live to 100 . . . Despite the anti-meat scare stories, eating meat makes you more likely to live longer. Specifically, you might have a better chance of living to 100. The most recent paper found that those eating a more diverse weekly diet, including meat, were 23 percent more likely to become centenarians than their peers who ate one that was more restrictive. A 2022 Australian paper on meat consumption and life expectancy by country, that found life expectancy is higher in nations that, on average, consume more meat. Daily Mail

Guilty Pleasures

University of Arizona urges students to treat insects like "marginalized groups" . . . The University of Arizona now incorporates a class in which students are told to "live like a bug" in order to understand "marginalized" groups. Students who enroll in an entomology course at the University of Arizona are directed to "reflect in personal writing assignments on the assumptions that inform popular attitudes towards insects, identifying ways that attitudes of othering interfere with self-identity and foster systems of privilege or oppression/marginalization." Daily Signal

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