Leland Vittert’s War Notes: Weekend of Opportunities‼️

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NewsNation Chief Washington Anchor and On Balance host Leland Vittert was a foreign correspondent for four years in Jerusalem. He gives you an early look at tonight's 9 p.m. ET show, delivered straight to your inbox.

Behind the curtain 🎥: Tonight, we "pretaped" an interview at 4:15 p.m. with Kevin O'Leary — aka Mr. Wonderful.

🎤We tried to talk about the feeling of unfairness sweeping America —
- 💸The rich keep getting richer as the stock market soars.
- 🥗And 45% of Americans struggle to buy groceries
- His response🎤: Taxing the rich more is un-American.
Perspective 👀: Where is entrepreneurship in America? What about the next generation, asks Marc Thiessen?
- ✏️@marcthiessen: "I'm disappointed that no kids ever came by my neighborhood and offered to shovel snow, could have made hundreds, even thousands this week. What's happened to this generation?"

Perspective 🌎: We heard from a LOT of you about our piece last night about the dangers of calling anyone you don't like Nazis.

Look back 🔙: We were inspired by Stephen Colbert cracking a joke about Nazis being braver than ICE for showing their faces.
Watch here📺: Instagram and X
Response 💬: The most important response I got was from a school principal who wrote about bringing eighth graders to D.C. in the 1990s.
- ✏️"Our trip took place in September/October so that it could be incorporated into the curriculum. The Holocaust Museum was one of the sights students looked forward to visiting. Sadly, in the past 10 years, the Holocaust Museum has been deleted from the itinerary because parents felt the sight was too upsetting and graphic for their students. I am disappointed that history was replaced with activities that would be fun and interesting. It appears now that students are more interested in taking selfies and group photos with their friends in front of memorials they know nothing about."
- ‼️ADULTS?!?! This is where good teachers, principals, school boards and parents must step in!
- The Good News: The majority of states now require Holocaust Education in Schools.

The ultimatum 🚨: President Trump is not letting up on his pressure campaign with Iran to either make a deal or face the U.S. military.

🎤Trump: "We have a large armada, flotilla, call it whatever you want, heading toward Iran right now, even larger than what we had in Venezuela."
The regime says talks are off the table as long as it remains under threat.
Iran's foreign minister, Abbas Araghchi, says they are ready for anything —
- 🎤Araghchi: "The Islamic Republic of Iran, just as it is ready for negotiations, is also ready for war."
Watch tonight 📺: Retired U.S. Navy Commander Kirk S. Lippold joins us.

Kangaroo Prosecutions

‼️Finally, we have bipartisan agreement — America's justice system is corrupt when it's THEIR side being attacked.

📺Much of the media echoes the Democrats' side in this.
📃When Democrats were charging Republicans, it was the rule of law.
🤦Now that Republicans are charging Democrats, it's a kangaroo court and the end of democracy.
- 📰After news broke this morning that former CNN anchor Don Lemon was arrested, Democrats went crazy —
  - 🎤CNN's Jamie Gangle: "Is this arrest more about revenge and retribution?"
  - 🎤Rep. Hakeem Jeffries: "The Trump administration has systematically targeted the free and fair press"
  - 🎤Sen Chuck Schumer: "If you dare criticize this administration, watch your back. That's not a democracy. That's a police state. And that is pure authoritarian bile."
To be fair ⚖️: Republicans are far from consistent on issues relating to our justice system — today, Republicans love grand juries.
- 🗣️This morning, Republicans talked about how much they love grand juries after Lemon's arrest.
  - 🎤James Blair: "A federal grand jury indicted Don Lemon. He was not just magically arrested. Pass it on…"
  - 🎤Charlie Hurt: "Of course, if it was a grand jury that did indict him, that's pretty unimpeachable."
    - Switch up 🔄: This is a 180 from when Republicans said grand juries would indicate a ham sandwich or when Trump was indicted.
- ‼️It speaks to what Clausewitz said:
  - 🎤"War is the continuation of politics by other means"
  - 🤷And now the Justice Department (of both administrations) is politics by other means …

Look back 🔙: "Infowars" host Owen Shroyer was sentenced to 60 days in prison due to his involvement with January 6, yet he never entered the Capitol building.

🤷He certainly thinks of himself as a journalist — where were all the defenders of journalism and democracy back then?

Watch tonight 📺: NewsNation's Kellie Meyer at the White House with the administration's next steps, George Will and then Mike Nellis.

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Every night during On Balance, Leland Vittert asks "why?" about the most pressing matters of the day, with an intellectual, balanced and sometimes irreverent take on the news.

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