News and Headlines: In The News, Politics, World News, Commentary/Opinion.
In The News:
These states have the highest gas prices over Memorial Day weekend, according to GasBuddy
As Americans hit the road this Memorial Day weekend, they are finding a nasty surprise: high gas prices.
According to Patrick De Haan, the head of petroleum analysis at GasBuddy, gas prices in some states are at their highest Memorial Day level since 2014, while others are at their highest since 2018.
Gasoline demand is also nearing pre-pandemic levels.
“We could fully return to normal levels as early as this weekend as it appears demand ahead of this holiday is looking quite high,” De Haan told USA TODAY.
Armed School Employee Prevents Man From Allegedly Kidnapping Juvenile Utah Girl
The incident happened at Lincoln Elementary School on Tuesday and involved a 41-year-old male suspect, identified as Ira Cox-Berry, the Ogden Police Department said in a press release.
Cox-Berry has been accused of trying to abduct an 11-year-old girl while she was on the playground. He allegedly walked up to the young girl and pulled her towards him, as if he was “intended to leave with her.”
The unidentified employee was nearby and saw the incident unfold, confronting Cox-Berry while demanding him to leave the area.
After the employee managed to take the students to safety, the suspect went towards the classroom and began “punching” the window in an apparent attempt to force his way into the classroom.
“At that point, the employee produced a firearm, holding Cox-Berry off while simultaneously calling 911,” police said.
US troops exposed nuclear weapons secrets on flashcard apps, report says
The presence of U.S. nuclear weapons within Europe has long been alluded to by leaked documents and statements by retired officials, though the U.S. and participating European governments have not officially confirmed or denied their existence.
Flashcards, however, used to help soldiers guarding these nuclear weapons memorize their locations and security protocols, have appeared to identify exact shelters with “hot” vaults likely to contain nuclear weapons.
Bellingcat reported it was able to uncover sets of flashcards simply by searching popular flashcard app sites with terms publicly known to be associated with nuclear weapons.
April inflation explodes to highest level since 1992 as Biden prepares to announce staggering $6T budget
In a note following the release, Paul Ashworth, chief U.S. economist at Capital Economics, wrote, “The combination of falling real consumption and soaring prices last month gives off a faint whiff of stagflation.”
The report added, “The figures are the latest to underline that the economy is in for a bumpy ride as it reopens from months of state and local lockdowns meant to contain the coronavirus pandemic.”
Biden repeatedly vowed to avoid raising taxes on Americans making less than $400,000. However, the White House changed the threshold to apply to families instead.
The New York Times reported this week that Biden’s $6 trillion budget, which he is set to unveil Friday, “would take the United States to its highest sustained levels of federal spending since World War II.” The $6 trillion budget is predicted to swell to $8.2 trillion in total annual spending by 2031.
The Times revealed that, in order to pay for the budget, Biden will, indeed, increase taxes on most wage-earners by allowing the Trump tax cuts for low- and middle-income Americans to expire in 2025.
Mollie Tibbetts murder trial: Jury finds Cristhian Bahena Rivera guilty
Jurors in the trial of a farm laborer charged with the brutal 2018 murder of Mollie Tibbetts found Cristhian Bahena Rivera guilty of first-degree murder on Friday in a case that drew national attention because of the suspect’s immigration status.
The verdict was announced Friday afternoon after a two-week trial in Davenport, Iowa, in which Cristhian Bahena Rivera, 26, faced the first-degree murder charge for which he was convicted.
Jurors reached their decision after deliberating for just over seven and a half hours.
WATCH: Trump Supporters Ejected from Yankee Stadium for Displaying ‘Trump Won’ Sign
Fans drop a massive “Trump Won” banner over the second deck at Yankee Stadium.
Facebook video shows the crowd cheering and chanting for the cops to remove the Trump supporters from the stadium.
At least one of the sign-hangers was seen being led away in handcuffs.
The video is noteworthy in that it shows one of the few instances of New Yorkers supporting the police in the last year.
Suspect arrested after 11-hour standoff, shooting that injured 3 officers near Dallas
Officers originally responded to the home for a possible suicide call at 7:04 p.m. Once they arrived, they attempted to contact Hucabee who lived by himself at the home. About an hour later, police say Hucabee fired shots at officers and injured three of them.
Two of the officers were taken to a hospital for treatment and are OK. The third officer didn’t need to go to the hospital and was treated by medics at the scene.
Police say officers returned fire.
According to KXAS, one of the officers was hit in their bulletproof vest and another was carrying a metal shield that was hit. A SWAT team took over after the officers were shot.
Reversal: Michigan School Allows Valedictorian to Reference Faith in Speech
The legal organization that primarily defends religious liberty announced Thursday Hillsdale High School reversed its decision that blocked senior valedictorian Elizabeth Turner from making a reference to the significance of her faith in Jesus Christ in her address.
“We are grateful to school officials for acting swiftly to ensure that religious students can freely exercise their right to express their faith in a graduation speech,” said Keisha Russell, counsel for First Liberty Institute.
“Elizabeth is thrilled that she’ll be able to celebrate her graduation without being censored. We hope that future graduates will be free from religious censorship”:
“I’m grateful I will be able to share my faith with my classmates, and I pray that God uses this situation to advance His kingdom,” added Turner.
Pics: Carrier Theodore Roosevelt returns to San Diego after second deployment in a year
More than 4,500 sailors aboard the aircraft carrier Theodore Roosevelt returned to San Diego Tuesday after more than six months at sea. It was the carrier’s second deployment in less than a year.
Theodore Roosevelt sailors and their families can expect a long reprieve from oceangoing operations for the near future, according to Rear Adm. Doug Verissimo, the commander of the carrier strike group.
“Everybody will get a minimum of four to five months of coming home almost every night with some sporadic work here in the local area,” Verissimo said during a short news conference.
Due to the threat of the coronavirus, the ship did not make any port calls while deployed, Verissimo said.
China could overtake US in weapons spending by end of Biden’s term
Adm. Philip Davidson, who retired in April as commander of U.S. Indo-Pacific Command (INDOPACOM), similarly told the American Enterprise Institute in a March speech that “the period between now and 2026, this decade, is the time horizon in which China is positioned to achieve overmatch in its capability, and when Beijing could, ‘could,‘ widely choose to forcibly change the status quo in the region.”
Politico reported that if the PLA’s annual procurement value exceeds that of the U.S. military as projected by 2024, then by 2030 the U.S. will no longer have the world’s most advanced fighting force in total inventory value.
The warning about China’s potential to overtake the U.S. comes as China has steadily expanded its military in recent years. In 2019, China overtook the U.S. for the country with the largest naval fleet and it continued to expand its lead in 2020.
The LTSG research group also attributed the U.S. military focus on conflicts in the Middle East as having drawn away from developing capabilities to counter threats from near-peer countries like China.
Newt Gingrich: China needs to be ‘held accountable’ for lying to the world about COVID-19
The Fox News contributor reacts to House Bill that would allow victims’ families to sue China.
Politics:
NM Dem Backs Sanctions Against Israel After Hamas Attacks
Stansbury’s newfound support for sanctions marks a growing anti-Israel shift among Democrats: In a March interview—before Israel’s latest conflict with Hamas—the candidate said she hadn’t yet “dove into this issue” and declined to comment on Israel and the Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions movement.
The New Mexico Democrat has received the backing of prominent Democratic donors, such as the left-wing lobbying group J Street, which has called Stansbury an “ideal” candidate for the race.
Second Gentleman Doug Emhoff also hit the campaign trail in New Mexico to support Stansbury in her race against Republican state senator Mark Moores.
The special election will take place on June 1.
Donald Trump Hammers ‘RINO Paul Ryan’ as a ‘Weak and Ineffective Leader’ for Republicans to Follow
The “RINO,” Trump said, had “lost all vote-getting capability with the people he represented in Wisconsin, and was the single biggest factor, other than Romney himself.”
Trump continued to say the former speaker is “now speaking to other Republicans telling them how to win elections,” even though he lost.
Trump then took aim at Fox News, saying “Fox will never be the same” since Ryan joined its board. Unfortunately, he said, “Fox totally lost its way and became a much different place, with millions of its greatest supporters fleeing for good.”
“Paul Ryan has been a curse to the Republican Party,” the former president said, before offering he has “no clue as to what needs to be done for our Country.”
Sen. Tom Cotton: Writing Bestselling Books like ‘Breaking the News’ Exposing Media Corruption Is the ‘Best Thing We Can Do’ to Fight It
Marlow highlighted two examples of conflicts of interest presented by marriages between news media persons and current and prospective Biden administration officials.
He added, “The type of thing I’ve been documenting in my book Breaking the News is how much of the media establishment is literally in bed with the Biden administration. The deputy press secretary, Karine Jean-Pierre, is married to another CNN anchor, Suzanne Malveaux.
Cotton noted the overlap of familial relations between many people in politics and news media, a phenomenon former Gov. Mike Huckabee (R-AR) jokingly described as beyond “incestuous” and amounting to an “orgy.”
He concluded, “It is a surprisingly close relationship between the Democratic party and the media that covers the party and shapes the news.”
Classic Stossel: Title IX
Politicians promised that Title IX would end discrimination of women in sports, but instead it has taken sports away from both men AND women.
Judge Pirro rips media for ignoring latest Hunter Biden scandal
Commentary/Opinion:
The ‘Justice with Judge Jeanine’ host discusses Biden’s spending plans, unemployment and Hunter Biden scandal.
Tucker: Stupid people took control of our country
Commentary/Opinion:
‘Tucker Carlson Tonight’ host says liberal politicians’ excuses are ‘just not true.’
Ingraham: Who’s really covering up for China’s COVID involvement?
Commentary/Opinion:
‘The Ingraham Angle’ host blasts the Biden administration for their lack of urgency with investigating the unknown origins of COVID-19.
Biden DHS may remove gang questions from green card applications
The Department of Homeland Security’s U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) agency is considering plans to remove gang-affiliation questions from green card applications, a portion added under former President Donald Trump’s administration that the Biden administration called “politically motivated.”
Former or current involvement in a gang did not immediately disqualify an applicant, but immigration officers were able to use their discretion in granting or rejecting a green card based on the information provided.
Law said the move comes as part of the Biden administration’s efforts to ease immigration policy across the board in the wake of the former Trump administration’s more strict approach.
“The biggest beneficiaries of that ‘compassion’ are apparently the most violent and dangerous aliens in the country,” said Law, who added that the Biden team at USCIS called the questions on gang affiliation “politically motivated.”
World News:
Canadian soldier who spoke at anti-lockdown rally, against COVID-19 vaccine charged with mutiny
Officer Cadet Ladislas Kenderesi has been charged with one count of persuading another person to join in a mutiny and one count of behaving in a scandalous manner unbecoming of an officer, according to the Ottawa Citizen.
In December, Kenderesi was filmed at an anti-lockdown rally in Toronto, wearing his Canadian Forces uniform and a nametag.
“I’m asking military, right now serving, truck drivers, medical, engineers, whatever you are, do not take this unlawful order (for) the distribution of this vaccine,” Kenderesi said.
If convicted, Kenderesi faces up to life in prison for mutiny and five years for scandalous conduct.
Molotov cocktail thrown at Jewish home in Lod as unrest continues
Three Molotov cocktails were thrown at the home of a Jewish family in Lod overnight Thursday.
The mixed city has experienced weeks of unrest following unprecedented riots that prompted the government to declare a civilian state of emergency.
Two people dressed in dark clothes were captured on video throwing three of the flaming bottles—often used as weapons of vandalism or terrorism—and dashing away from the scene in security camera footage.
No one was hurt in the attack, but residents reported property damage to Israeli authorities. Lod’s police forces are investigating the incident.
IDF prepared if Hamas resumes rocket-fire; Israel condemns UNHRC for bias – TV7 Israel News 28.05.21
1) IDF Chief of General Staff Lieutenant General Aviv Kochavi emphasizes that if Hamas resumes its indiscriminate rocket-fire; the Israeli military will resume its offensive operation.
2) The United Nations Human Rights Council adopts a resolution to investigate Israel over the Gaza Strip and Jerusalem – yet stops short from even mentioning the indiscriminate rocket-fire by Hamas toward Israeli civilian communities.
3) The United Nations Special Envoy for the Middle East Peace process, at a Security Council meeting, blames Hamas for instigating the latest round of hostilities.
Leaving Paris: What’s behind the exodus?
This week we’re in the heart of Paris, a city that has attracted artists, philosophers, romantics and young hopefuls over the centuries.
But in recent years, and especially since the arrival of Covid-19, millions of French people who were once proud to call this city home are now packing their bags and leaving the city of lights.
We meet some of the Parisians who want to leave and we examine the consequences of this exodus on the price of real estate.
Microsoft: SolarWinds hackers target 150 orgs with phishing
The cybersecurity firm Volexity, which also tracked the campaign but has less visibility into email systems than Microsoft, said in a post that relatively low detection rates of the phishing emails suggest the attacker was “likely having some success in breaching targets.”
Burt said the campaign appeared to be a continuation of multiple efforts by the Russian hackers to “target government agencies involved in foreign policy as part of intelligence gathering efforts.” He said the targets spanned at least 24 countries.
The hackers gained access to USAID’s account at Constant Contact, an email marketing service, Microsoft said. The authentic-looking phishing emails dated May 25 purport to contain new information on 2020 election fraud claims and include a link to malware that allows the hackers to “achieve persistent access to compromised machines.”
Hamas Cheers as UN Rights Body Approves Open-Ended Probe Against Israel
On Thursday, the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) overwhelmingly voted to set up a permanent commission of inquiry to probe alleged “war crimes” committed during the recently-ended Gaza conflict.
The 47-member UN body voted 27-9 to open a probe demanded by Muslim countries and will likely target Israel primarily. The UN member states that voted against Israel included dictatorships, human rights abusers, and failed states.
These countries include China, Cuba, Russia, Somalia, Sudan, Uzbekistan, and Venezuela.
“Muslim countries are calling on the United Nations to investigate possible crimes committed during the 11-day conflict,” Reuters reported ahead of the vote.
Pakistan and the Palestinian delegation at the UN initiated the push to open a probe against Israel. Palestinians and the Organisation of Islamic Conference (OIC), representing 57 Muslim states, tabled the UNHRC resolution.
Commentary/Opinion:
These Are the Lies Politicians Tell to Get Black Votes (Pt.3)| Glenn Loury | POLITICS | Rubin Report
Glenn also shares his thoughts on why the narrative of systemic racism and racial disparities is wrong and how the Democratic party pushes lies to get the support of black voters.
In this clip Glenn shares why he views himself as an independent and not a Republican or Democrat. He gives his thoughts on how Democrats have fanned the flames of the racism bogeyman in a cynical attempt to get more of the black vote.
Glenn also explains how Barack Obama missed many opportunities to engage the country in an honest conversation about race. He also calls out Michelle Obama for saying that she fears for the safety of her daughters.
Glenn demands that if African-Americans want to start eliminating these disparities they need to stop playing the victim. The victim mentality will only encourage society to lower the bar for what is possible from African-Americans.
In The News Feed. 