When it comes to gas prices, what a difference one administration can make. After peaking above $5 a gallon under President Biden, prices at the pump are now at their lowest levels in more than four years — and still falling. Today, the national average for regular gas sits at about $2.85, and a growing number of stations are dipping below $2. That’s a real Christmas gift for working families, one that makes a meaningful difference.Falling gas prices bring immediate relief to households worried about affordability while also easing pressure across the broader economy. Compared with this time last year, Americans are saving a collective $400 million per week at the pump, according to GasBuddy.Cheaper fuel deserves celebration, but there is more work to be done to lock in these gains and drive prices even lower.Most people associate the One Big Beautiful Bill Act primarily with tax cuts. But it may prove to be one of the most consequential pro-energy laws passed in years. Lower gas prices do not happen by accident. They are the result of deliberate policy choices — specifically, President Trump’s reversal of the anti-energy agenda pursued by the Biden administration.That agenda, driven by radical environmental activists, sought to force a rapid transition away from oil and gas regardless of cost. It relied on higher taxes, blocked infrastructure projects, restricted leasing, and constrained production. Taken together, those policies drove up prices and fueled inflation that hit working families hardest.On day one, President Trump moved quickly to unwind many of those decisions, issuing nearly half a dozen energy-focused executive orders that restored certainty for producers. That early action was followed by his signature legislative achievement, the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, which combined broad-based tax relief with policies designed to restore American energy dominance.The bill reduces production costs by repealing the Inflation Reduction Act’s misguided fee increase on oil and gas produced on federal lands. It cuts that fee by 25%, making domestic production more attractive and more affordable for drillers.Just as important, the OBBBA restores predictability to federal leasing. The law mandates nearly 40 offshore oil and gas lease sales in the Gulf of America, Alaska, and other regions. It also establishes quarterly onshore lease sales and biannual offshore sales, giving the private sector long-term certainty. Under President Biden, leasing all but ground to a halt, with fewer leases issued than at any point since the 1960s — crippling the pipeline of future energy projects.The bill also repeals or tightens a range of Green New Deal-style tax credits that heavily subsidized renewables at the expense of oil and gas. Those credits masked the true costs of renewable projects and distorted electricity markets, contributing to grid instability and higher energy prices.RELATED: 5 truths the climate cult can’t bury any more Justin Hamel/Bloomberg via Getty ImagesThe bottom line is simple: The OBBBA encourages more oil and gas production at lower cost. Over the next decade, that means a steadier supply of crude ready to be refined into affordable gasoline.Still, Congress and the administration should not take their foot off the gas. Cheaper fuel deserves celebration, but there is more work to be done to lock in these gains and drive prices even lower.At the top of the list is permitting reform. Energy projects routinely take longer to permit than to build. Environmental reviews intended to inform decisions have morphed into open-ended processes that stretch on for years. Even approved projects can be tied up indefinitely by duplicative reviews and serial lawsuits from activist groups. The result is uncertainty that discourages investment and delays infrastructure Americans depend on every day.America First energy dominance is working, and families are saving real money because of it. The House has already passed several pro-energy permitting reforms, but meaningful engagement with the Senate will be required to deliver a comprehensive overhaul to the president’s desk. Without permitting reform, the full benefits of the OBBBA’s energy provisions will remain unrealized.The lesson is clear: Energy dominance follows when government gets out of the way. If permitting reform advances next year, producers will gain the certainty and speed they need to deliver reliable, affordable energy to consumers. In 2026, Congress should finish the job.

An educational program meant to help students make up for their mistakes in school is apparently being misused by racial equity proponents and leading to children receiving high grades for very little work.Credit recovery is a practice in which students, usually of high-school age, are given a second chance to learn a subject and prove their proficiency in that subject outside of normal class time.'Credit recovery is the scandal hiding in plain sight in American education.'Proponents say the practice can be very positive and effective when students fail because of circumstances out of their control, such as a death in the family or sudden financial loss and duress.But in recent years, the program has seemingly been manipulated by diversity, equity, and inclusion advocates, resulting in even worse educational outcomes. Rather than giving students a second chance to prove themselves, the policy is being abused to unfairly allow failing students to pass on to the next grade level without actually completing learning objectives.Some manage to complete the "recovery" work through make-up courses that can last a few hours or even a few minutes."The credit recovery classes have become, in many instances, get-out-of-jail-free cards for students who are chronically absent, truant, or are chronic disruptions in class," wrote Mike DiMatteo, a former teacher, for the Freedom in Education organization."They're receiving the same credit, but doing significantly less work — often as little as one-third to one-half of what a traditional course requires," he continued. "The evidence supports these concerns: Critics have raised alarms when students complete a semester of work in a matter of weeks or even days. In one egregious example, the NCAA discovered students receiving grades and credits for a semester's worth of work in a matter of days, sometimes hours, and in some cases just minutes."DiMatteo cited one anecdote of a student who received an A- and a year's worth of credit in biology after only one four-hour recovery class split over two days."In Los Angeles, which reported that 16,000 students took at least one credit recovery course in 2016-2017, a student described raising his biology grade from an F to a C in one week," he added.One study from 2020 found that credit recovery policies were being used to help disadvantaged black students but that often they ended up hurting rather than helping the students. RELATED: Mass. teachers union says standardized tests have allowed 'white supremacy to flourish' Robert Pondiscio, a teacher and American Enterprise Institute senior fellow, calls it an educational "scandal.""Credit recovery is the scandal hiding in plain sight in American education," he wrote. "When districts say they've raised graduation rates to pre-COVID levels, ask what percentage of graduates finished with one or more classes completed with 'credit recovery.'"The policy is just one part of the puzzle explaining how public schools are seemingly failing children more and more, as standardized testing shows across the nation.Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!

The youth are always cooking up some new saying, joke, or dance move that makes older generations scratch their heads and shrug. Most of the time, these trends are innocent and silly, but there’s one that’s wildly popular right now that has a much deeper meaning than most realize.Earlier this year, a song titled “Doot Doot (6 7)” by Philadelphia rapper Skrilla went viral on social media, sparking a trend where kids randomly yell “six seven.” The phrase gained explosive traction through youth basketball culture — syncing with highlight reels of 6'7" NBA star LaMelo Ball and viral courtside chants at games — before spreading widely among children.While the phrase in the song is speculated to be a reference to 67th Street in Philly, the meaning behind the internet trend is ambiguous, with some interpreting it to mean “whatever” or “so-so.” Most agree, however, that it’s just a nonsensical, internet-fad slang phrase intended to be absurd and annoying.Rick Burgess, BlazeTV host of the spiritual warfare podcast “Strange Encounters,” however, says parents who dismiss this trend as the foolish whims of adolescents have the wool pulled over their eyes.The phrase “six seven” in Skrilla’s song may be pitched as a reference to a street in Philadelphia to squash any skepticism surrounding the viral phrase that has our youth in a chokehold, but it’s really a dark Easter egg pointing to the sinister beliefs of the artist. Rick plays a clip that’s gone viral of Pastor Nathan Bentley at LifePoint Church in San Tan Valley, Arizona, warning that Skrilla is “a self-confessed member” of the Church of Satan, who has boldly admitted in podcast interviews that he worships pagan gods — even sacrificing animals to them for career success in Hollywood.“He talks about since he’s really dedicated himself to this, since he’s begun to put blood oaths into it, his career took off,” Bentley said from the pulpit.And it’s true. Last year, on the “No Jumper” podcast with Adam Grandmaison, Skrilla admitted to sacrificing animals as part of his religion. Bentley also pointed out the song’s strange combination of sex and drug themes and the iconic “Baby Shark” earworm composed for children. “Now, tell me, why would a rapper, who’s got this hardcore persona, who’s singing about things that are very mature and whatnot, throw in the middle of his song the ‘Baby Shark’ thing?” Bentley asked, positing that the artist’s explicit intention was to lure children.Rick, who dove into the research himself, confirms everything Bentley warned of.“It’s ugly, ugly stuff,” he sighs.“Do you want your children doing some sort of ritual with six and seven that comes out of a pagan religion ... and includes worship of pagan gods, animal blood sacrifices, omens, mysticism, [and] blood oaths?” Rick asks.If the answer is no, he encourages squashing this trend in our homes.“The demons that I think are clearly at the root of this six-seven thing — I think one of the things that they have banked on is that all of us, as parents and grandparents, will think it’s cute and will determine it is no big deal,” he says.“And if you let it continue with your children and grandchildren, that’s certainly your decision. ... But I would go find out everything I could possibly find out about ‘six seven.’ ... And I pray that your children are not about to experience a strange encounter.”To learn more, watch the full episode above.Want more from Rick Burgess?To enjoy more bold talk and big laughs, subscribe to BlazeTV — the largest multi-platform network of voices who love America, defend the Constitution, and live the American dream.

Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd related a horrific series of alleged crimes that spun out of a disagreement over a football game.47-year-old Jason Kenney shot and killed his wife at their Lakeland home before shooting his 13-year-old stepdaughter twice, once in the face, according to Judd.'You’re drinking, you’re using cocaine again. ... You need God.'Kenney and his wife got into an argument after she suggested that he turn off the television as he was watching "Monday Night Football." The argument escalated and led his wife to tell their son to go call the police.The 12-year-old boy ran over to their neighbor's home, but as he left the home, he heard gunshots.When deputies arrived, they found the man's wife, Crystal Kenney, dead, and the stepdaughter shot twice. They rushed her to the hospital in critical condition.Judd said that Kenney fled the scene and called his sister in upstate New York. He allegedly told her that he had done something terrible and that he would not let police take him to prison for the rest of his life.Police caught up with the man at his father's home, where he had barricaded himself inside a shack. They heard a gunshot and found his dead body when they entered the shack.Judd said that police found a note written by Kenney's wife to him, but said they could not determine when it had been written."You’re drinking, you’re using cocaine again. This is not the way the family should be. You need God," she wrote.He said that she had been a regular churchgoer and donated to her church every week."When you go in there, there is a beautiful Christmas tree with lots of Christmas presents under it, just like the nuclear family should be," said Judd. "The only thing he did right that night was shoot himself." RELATED: Wife and son helped father dismember man's body with a chainsaw after a lethal poker game Judd said the 12-year-old boy was unharmed and noted that he was Kenney's biological son. Also unharmed was his wife's 1-year-old daughter, who was found sleeping in a crib.Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!