Unbelievable stupidity in DC

Thanks to the Washington, DC, City Council and the complicity of the Democratic Senate, non-citizens, including illegal immigrants and foreign diplomats, can now vote in local DC elections. All they have to do to qualify is live in DC for at least 30 days.

https://www.foxnews.com/politics/washington-dc-city-council-bill-allowing-noncitizens-vote-law

The GOP House tried to quash what should be a clearly unconstitutional law, but the Senate failed to act in time. The House could still move to block funding to implement the law, or there could be a legal challenge to it in court, but for now, people who are not citizens and have no loyalty whatsoever to the US or the Constitution have just as much say over laws in our nation’s capital as American citizens.

Republican Rep. James Comer called this “reckless” and “an attack on the foundation of this republic." But the Democrat city council unanimously backed this, with member Charles Allen declaring, "This bill is in line with our D.C. values and this council’s history of expanding the right to vote and welcoming new voices into our political process and government. Our immigrant neighbors of all statuses participate, contribute and care about our community in our city.”

Well, how much they care about the community is an open question, considering they’re not citizens, their loyalties may lie abroad, and they’ve only been there a month. Also, note the typical leftist trick of redefining terms to win unwinnable arguments (i.e., illegal aliens and foreign diplomats are NOT “immigrants.”)

Let’s hope that some conservative legal organization quickly sues to have this assault on the Constitution overturned in court. In the meantime, whenever Democrats try to claim that it’s a racist conspiracy theory to suggest that they’re letting millions of illegal immigrants swarm into the US because they want to let them vote and cancel out the votes of millions of American citizens, remember this story and demand that they explain the Washington, DC, city council, which just gave the game away.

Supreme Court News

Today, the Supreme Court will hear arguments in a lawsuit by a group of states suing to block President Biden’s $400 billion plan to “forgive” student loan debt. I put “forgive” in quotation marks because he has no power to “forgive” other people’s debts. What he would really be doing is paying off debts that some people willingly assumed with money taken from taxpayers who didn’t borrow any money or agree to repay it.

https://www.bostonherald.com/2023/02/28/supreme-court-weighs-biden-student-loan-plan-worth-billions/

In this case, he wants to pay for the higher “educations” (another word I have to put in quotes these days) of people with college degrees, using tax money coerced from people who either worked their way through college, paid off their own student loans, or didn’t attend college and work blue collar jobs (so much for the Democrats’ endless crying about “fairness.”) Or more likely, it will be paid with more borrowed money put on our grandkids’ credit cards, when we’re currently paying China alone $60 million a day in interest on the national debt.

https://www.wsj.com/articles/joe-biden-student-loan-write-off-supreme-court-biden-v-nebraska-6c35118f

As the Wall Street Journal editorial board explains, the lawsuit isn’t about the money itself, but Biden acting like a king and usurping the role of Congress to determine spending. If Biden loses this case, the SCOTUS could also go further in reining in other overreaches of power that the executive branch has taken away from Congress without even a fight from Democrat legislators who tend to like autocrats, as long as they’re their autocrats.

Despite previously admitting that he does not have the power to forgive student loan debt, Biden now claims he does under a law granting the President the power to forgive loans during emergencies. But that law was very limited and meant for military members directly affected by emergencies like the wars following 9/11, not the general public. He’s citing COVID as the emergency, despite the fact that most of the country has long moved past that, and even he’s finally being forced to end the state of emergency in a couple of months. Indeed, a recent poll found that most of the targeted recipients of his generosity with other people’s money are not in dire financial straits (many are better off than before the pandemic) and would use the windfall to take vacations or buy new devices.

That’s why this is seen by so many people as just an attempt to buy the votes of young people in the last election, which sadly worked on too many of them. Let’s hope the Court strikes it down and they learn a valuable lesson about selling their votes for promises of “free stuff.”

Side note: In the Boston Herald article linked above, one of the pro-loan bailout protesters camping outside the Supreme Court said this: “I was 18 when I signed up for college. I didn’t know it was going to be this big of a burden. No student should have to deal with this. No person should have to deal with this.”

Just so we’re clear: She’s saying that even as late as age 18, people aren’t yet mature enough to understand the longterm ramifications of life-altering bad decisions and need adults to protect them. Isn’t that the exact argument against performing “trans” medical procedures on minors?

Kudos

Kudos to Rep. Eric Swalwell for somehow finding a way to tweet an attack on Trump that was factually incorrect on multiple levels.

https://redstate.com/nick-arama/2023/02/28/swalwell-tweet-attacking-trump-is-hilarious-self-own-n709471

Speaking of the left’s false Trump narratives, Chris Miller, who was acting Secretary of Defense on January 6, 2021, ripped to shreds the idea that there was an attempted coup by Trump and his supporters to overthrow the government that day.

https://www.westernjournal.com/man-secretary-defense-jan-6-crushes-leftist-narrative-running-military-no-coup/

Miller told Tim Pool’s podcast, “Dude, I was running the military. There was no coup. Can’t happen…There was gonna be no military coup.” He said, “I spent my life in service to this country and I swore to protect and defend the Constitution,” and if he’d seen any directives from Trump that looked like a coup attempt, “I would have resigned and gone right outside and gotten on TV and said, ‘I resigned in protest because I was asked to do something anti-constitutional.’ Period. End of story.”

That should settle this once and for all, but of course, it won’t. Personally, I never believed there was a serious attempt to overthrow the federal government largely because the alleged invading force showed up unarmed and led by a guy in a furry buffalo hat.

Tom Sizemore

I’m sad to have to report that doctors for actor Tom Sizemore, who suffered a brain aneurysm following a stroke 10 days ago, have reportedly told his family that there is no hope of recovery and they will have to make a decision about removing him from life support.

https://www.westernjournal.com/family-black-hawk-star-making-end-life-decision-doctors-declare-no-hope/

Since his debut in the 1980s in the movie “Born on the Fourth of July” and the TV series “China Beach,” Sizemore has appeared in many popular films, often with military settings, including “Pearl Harbor,” “Blackhawk Down” and “Saving Private Ryan.” In his private life, he’s long struggled with drug addiction that contributed to arrests and periods of homelessness. He wrote about his efforts to stay sober in Hollywood in a memoir titled, “By Some Miracle, I Made It Out of There.” Our prayers and condolences go out to his family.

Update on Arizona Election Accusations

We’re still in a holding pattern after reporting Monday about explosive testimony last week before a joint hearing of the Arizona Legislature’s Senate Elections Committee & House Municipal Oversight & Elections Committee. Arizona forensic investigator Jacqueline Breger testified Thursday, accusing a number of state and county officials --- Gov. Katie Hobbs and Secretary of State Adrian Fontes included (the secretary of state runs elections) --- of racketeering in league with the Sinaloa Cartel.

“The Maricopa County database has absolutely no integrity whatsoever,” Breger said. “Racketeering enterprises are inextricably intertwined with election fraud.”

It should be noted that Ms. Breger was not testifying under oath. She was giving a “presentation.”

https://tennesseestar.com/2023/02/25/explosive-testimony-at-senate-elections-and-house-municipal-oversight-elections-joint-meeting-accuses-hobbs-fontes-runbeck-and-judges-of-racketeering/

As reported in the TENNESSEE STAR, “She [Breger] said her office is ready to work with any enforcement agencies. They reported their findings to former Governor Doug Ducey in May of 2022 and many law enforcement agencies. Several have opened ongoing investigations, including law enforcement in California and New Mexico, which have already used their report and taken some corrective action, she said. Their final report, which includes 47 findings, will include election fraud and will be a 300-page book with 3,000 attachments.”

The report, she said, will be available on reporttothegovernor.com. According to that webpage, the release date for pre-sale of their REPORT TO THE GOVERNOR by attorney John Harris Thayler is April 15 of this year.

Wait a minute --- “pre-sale”? That got us wondering what this really is. Surely a report of this nature would not be listed on a marketing webpage. But, sadly, that might fit, as our first, cursory look into the background of Jacqueline Berger did show a history in marketing, though she now is reportedly an insurance agent. She had represented herself at that meeting as a highly credentialed forensic investigator. We’re not saying she isn’t, just that we’ve not seen the evidence.

So some details don’t smell quite right. And to echo something said Monday by Scott Adams (we’ll have an update on him in tomorrow’s newsletter, by the way), the story seemed just too “on the nose.” Too perfect. Here was one woman’s testimony, outlining all the worst suspicions about Maricopa County election fraud and corruption. This is why we like to follow the “72-Hour Rule” of reporting a “bombshell” story as fact, and sometimes --- like now --- it’s even longer.

ARIZONA DAILY INDEPENDENT NEWS NETWORK (we’ll call them ADI) says in their headline that Breger’s claims have been debunked. Of course, as we’ve seen many times, just saying claims are “debunked” doesn’t necessarily mean they are, so let’s take a look.

ADI begins by saying this is getting to be a familiar pattern in Arizona politics --- someone coming forward with claims of “copious amounts of evidence” pertaining to voter fraud and other crimes, and then not bringing the goods, or even being “in on the misconduct.” They say this is the case with Jacqueline Breger.

Some of the people she accuses of crimes have connections, they say, to Thayler, for whom Breger works. John Harris Thayler “is awaiting a March 6 court date in Maricopa County Superior Court where he is charged with felony evading law enforcement. He is also the subject of numerous complaints filed in the Mesa Municipal Court in 2020 and 2021, one of which he appealed and is now being heard by another Maricopa County judge.”

Thayler is currently suspended from practicing law in Arizona, and he’s on one year of probation with the California State Bar. Also, according to ADI, Thayler is also involved in three family court cases from his former marriage. His ex-wife happens to play a role in Breger’s testimony last week. So there’s a lot of personal background to this story that might affect motivations. Or not.

Breger reportedly got this forum because several weeks ago, Rep. Liz Harris asked Sen. Wendy Rogers, who chairs the Senate Committee on Elections, if she could host an “elections presentation,” and this was approved for February 23. Rogers has said it was Harris who invited Breger, who was described during her presentation as an “expert witness” who’d been called to “testify.” Again, she was not sworn in before giving her “testimony.” We’ll be looking to further clarify how Rep. Harris fits in.

Rogers has said in a statement, “Any claims as serious as those presented to us should have been immediately turned over to Arizona law enforcement officials and not brought before the Legislature. This was not the appropriate venue to discuss what could potentially be criminal activity.”

That does makes sense. But after hearing this unvetted speaker and listening to her claims, why did Rogers wait over 72 hours to respond to the controversy? She waited till Sunday evening to express her reservations. She issued no apologies to all those people whose names might have been slandered in that hearing room. I would think that if this testimony were thought to be fake, she would have issued a strong statement and apology immediately, and that the individuals mentioned by name in the hearing would have offered vigorous denials. Instead, there was silence.

“In fact,” ADI says, “Rogers leaves open the possibility Breger’s comments were legitimate despite no proof they are.”

And what about the claim that evidence was turned over to then-Gov. Doug Ducey? Berger’s written report to the committee states that over 3,000 pages of “documentary evidence” detailing corruption among Arizona officials was turned over to Gov. Ducey, at his request, in May of 2022. Details about this claim are vague, only that Thayler provided the governor with “several notebooks” of voluminous evidence. Was it really turned over? When did he ask for it? Was the request in writing? What did he do with the evidence? We’ll ask again what we asked on Monday: Has Ducey had anything to say? Would he clear up these questions, please?

The tie-in to election fraud is where the story really gets bizarre, involving a claim of the discovery of about 25,000 falsified ballots and “a significant amount of cash” inside the home then rented by Thayler’s former mother-in-law. According to Breger’s presentation, the ex-wife and her mother had been been involved for years in facilitating illegal money transfers to candidates, campaigns and political action committees. I know --- can’t make this stuff up. Or maybe you can.

One lawsuit that Thayler initiated in federal court in California --- against his ex-wife and mother-in-law, among others --- was transferred to a U.S. district court in Arizona and dismissed as frivolous by that judge, who said it “weaves a delusional and fantastical narrative that does not comport with federal standards.”

Still, the headline saying that Breger’s claims have been “debunked” is not accurate. The truth of her claims is still an open question. We haven’t seen the evidence, but Gov. Ducey urgently needs to address the claim that Breger’s “voluminious” evidence was given to him.

https://arizonadailyindependent.com/2023/02/26/testimony-at-elections-committee-meeting-debunked-harris-denounced/

In sum, we’re still trying to find out more. In the meantime, if you think Breger’s claims should be dismissed out of hand as as “conspiracy theory” just because they sound wild and involve many people, here’s a story about criminal activity spanning four states that turned out to be very real, involving a Chinese organized crime group, identity theft through drivers license fraud, and the Texas Department of Public Safety…

https://www.fox4news.com/news/dps-sent-at-least-3000-drivers-licenses-to-organized-crime-group-targeting-asian-texans

As for election integrity, thanks to a settlement with Judicial Watch, Los Angeles County has just had to remove the names of 1,207,613 ineligible voters from its voter rolls. I am not kidding, and that is not a typo…

https://www.judicialwatch.org/los-angeles-county-lawsuit-settlement/?utm_source=deployer&utm_medium=email&utm_content=&utm_campaign=tipsheet&utm_term=members

Breger’s story of widespread criminality in Arizona doesn’t sound all that far-fetched now, does it?