Across the country, churches are becoming targets. When people disrupt worship and nothing happens, when there are no meaningful changes or follow through, it tells the next group of agitators they can do it again. Ohio can change that by treating intimidation inside a sanctuary like what it is: unacceptable.   “It takes an act of Congress” is an old American saying used when something feels nearly impossible. Unfortunately, that phrase is starting to apply to something that should never be difficult at all: ensuring peace and security inside houses of worship.  Ohio State Reps. Tex Fischer and Jonathan Newman recently introduced House Bill 662, a proposal aimed at deterring intentional disruptions of religious worship. The goal is sound and urgent. Every American should be able to worship without fear, whether in a church, synagogue, mosque, or temple.  If Ohio is going to lead the nation, it should do so in a way that reflects fidelity to the Constitution. House Bill 662 makes clear that people deserve real protection from intentional obstruction, trespass, threats, and intimidation in places of worship.  These situations are not hypothetical. It became painfully real in St. Paul, Minnesota, where demonstrators stormed a Sunday service at Cities Church. Families sat in pews with children at their sides, uncertain whether the disruption would remain shouting or escalate into violence. The message Americans are receiving is unacceptable: activists can turn worship into a spectacle and face little consequence. Obstructing a service or threatening worshippers isn’t a small matter. Yet too often, these incidents are brushed aside or reduced to minor charges.  Ohio has a chance to lead by proving that protecting churches and protecting free speech are not in conflict. The First Amendment safeguards both. We can defend worshippers from real disruption while honoring the full protections of the First Amendment.  House Bill 662 rightly recognizes that worship services are not stages for political theatrics, but time for worship. When people obstruct, intimidate, or intrude on these gatherings, it shouldn’t be brushed aside. The law should respond clearly and firmly.  No one should be allowed to storm into a sanctuary and terrorize families during worship. At the same time, America’s constitutional tradition ensures that peaceful protest remains protected.  As a pastor of a large congregation with multiple campuses and a television ministry, I understand the realities churches face. Houses of worship are private property. Churches have the right to ask disruptive individuals to leave, issue no trespass notices, and pursue criminal trespass charges when someone refuses to comply.  But those protections only work when local justice systems are willing to enforce them. Too often, they are not.  Pastors should not have to become legal experts in self-defense. Worshippers should not have to wonder if Sunday service—this sacred hour—will be shattered by rage, disruption, or violence. Houses of worship are open and welcoming by nature. That is their mission.   Ohio can draw a clear line: punish intimidation and disruption, but don’t give government a tool that can be used to punish lawful speech.  Protecting houses of worship is not partisan. It is a test of whether Americans can still gather, pray, and worship in peace, regardless of politics, denomination, or creed.   Ohio has a change to set the standard for the entire country by protecting both sacred spaces and the Constitution. We publish a variety of perspectives. Nothing written here is to be construed as representing the views of The Daily Signal. The post No One Should Fear Violence in a House of Worship. Ohio Is Leading the Way. appeared first on The Daily Signal.

FIRST ON THE DAILY SIGNAL— In the summer of 2019, the Wuhan Institute of Virology was set to become the headquarters for the Center for Biosafety Mega-Science, according to documents from the National Institutes of Health and National Institutes of Allergy and Infectious Diseases. In less than a year, biosafety seemed an unlikely description for the Wuhan lab that was widely suspected as the site where COVID-19 originated. As COVID began to emerge in the United States in January and February 2020, NIAID “got nervous” about the taxpayer dollars it sent to the Wuhan lab, according to one internal email. Other emails showed officials seemed frustrated and surprised about the lack of candor from the China grantees about the virus. The 145 pages of emails and other government documents show “a striking pattern of naiveté by NIH officials in their dealings with Chinese scientists,” said Alex Finnegan, director of digital capabilities at the Oversight Project, a watchdog group that obtained the documents through the Freedom of Information Act. “NIH officials viewed China’s scientific establishment not as it actually operates—under the authority and control of the Chinese Communist Party—but as they wished it to operate within the norms of open scientific collaboration,” Finnegan told The Daily Signal. “Again and again, reality intruded on this assumption, yet the records show little evidence that NIH changed its posture.” The FBI, CIA, and Department of Energy have concluded that the virus likely leaked from the Wuhan Institute of Virology. However, other agencies are undecided or still contend it had a natural origin. Early in 2020, NIH scientist Ping Chen asked Shi Zhengli, director of Wuhan Institute of Virology, for information on the virus, but Zhengli was not forthcoming. “For my curiosity, would you be able to share the viral agent info?” she asked. Zhengli replied, “Please be patient and wait for official announcement.” On Jan. 22, 2020, Chen told NIH colleagues, “The Chinese government is in charge of the information now.” A little more than a month later, Chen recounted in an email to colleagues a meeting she had with staffers from China’s embassy in Washington. The staffers would not share information. “They wanted information on drug, vaccine, and diagnostic development in the U.S. and the companies. But when we asked about reciprocal information, they immediately turned the subject around and asked us something else,” Chen wrote. “They are not sharing any with us.” NIH and NIAID staffers began to compile information on grants to China. NIH staffer Gayle Bernabe wrote to her colleagues on Feb. 3 that is a request “needed by today.” Bernabe added, “To respond to this request, perhaps we can divide the tasks at hand.” The same day, Chen emailed colleagues about grant money going to a Chinese researcher working under the Chinese Academy of Military Medical Science. Two active grants were going to Dr. Zhou Yusen, a researcher in the Beijing Institute of Microbiology and Epidemiology, described in the email as “an institute under the Academy of Military Medical Sciences (AMMS).”  The Academy of Military Medical Sciences is a unit within the People’s Liberation Army. The grantee, Dr. Zhou Yusen, died in May 2020 after reportedly falling from the roof of the Wuhan Virology Institute.  In March 2020, the World Health Organization declared COVID-19 to be a global pandemic, and President Donald Trump declared a national emergency. The lockdowns would follow.  Although staffers reviewed federal research grants to China, National Institutes of Allergy and Infectious Diseases Director Anthony Fauci expressed public doubt about a lab leak being the cause of the pandemic. In April 2020, Fauci told reporters during a White House briefing that evidence is “totally consistent with a jump of a species from an animal to a human.” He dismissed the theory of a potential lab leak, saying in May that evidence is “very strongly leaning toward this could not have been artificially or deliberately manipulated.” However, in 2021, he said of the natural origin theory, “I am not convinced about that, I think we should continue to investigate what went on in China.” After retiring from the government, Fauci became a distinguished university professor at Georgetown University with joint appointments at the School of Medicine and the McCourt School of Public Policy. He also became a public speaker, booked by Leading Authorities Inc.  The Daily Signal made phone and email inquiries to Georgetown University and Leading Authorities Inc., in an effort to reach Fauci.  The NIH responded that it is under new leadership now with Director Jay Bhattacharya and is investigating past matters. “The National Institutes of Health (NIH), under the leadership of Director Bhattacharya, fully supports and complies with the executive order addressing dangerous gain-of-function research, and we are currently investigating and reviewing the matters raised, many of which predate the current leadership at both NIH and the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID),” an NIH spokesperson told The Daily Signal in an email statement.    Chen is either the sender or recipient of the bulk of emails made available. The Daily Signal reached out to Chen’s current employer for comment. She did not respond as of publication time. The post EXCLUSIVE: Records Reveal What NIH Said About China When COVID-19 Emerged appeared first on The Daily Signal.

The public approves of President Donald Trump’s handling of the conflict in Iran at roughly the same level as his overall job performance, a new poll finds. A national NBC News poll reports 41% of the public approves of Trump’s “handling of the situation in Iran” and 54% disapproves. NBC News, in partnership with Hart Research Associates and Public Onion Strategies, conducted the survey of 1,000 registered voters from Feb. 27 to March 3. It has a 3.1% margin of error. The United States and Israel began strikes on Iran on Feb. 28, meaning the poll should capture Americans’ early impressions of the conflict. The poll would not capture the potential effects on public opinion of developments since March 3, such as the selection of a new supreme leader in Iran, the continued rise in oil prices, or the announcement of the death of a seventh U.S. service member. It also was conducted before Trump’s call for Iran’s “unconditional surrender” on Friday. This level of support for Trump in Iran tracks with his overall approval rating in the NBC survey. A total of 44% of voters approved of Trump’s job performance, and 54% disapproved.  Trump’s strongest issue in the survey is border security, on which he has a 53% approval rating and a 44% disapproval rating.  On “foreign policy” in general, Trump has a 43% approval rating and a 54% disapproval rating, also roughly in line with his general approval rating and the approval of the operation in Iran. The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the survey. The post Poll Reveals Popularity of Trump Iran Performance appeared first on The Daily Signal.

President Donald Trump says a sharp increase in high oil prices is a “small price to pay” in the fight against Iran. “Short-term oil prices, which will drop rapidly when the destruction of the Iran nuclear threat is over, are a very small price to pay for the U.S. and world safety and peace,” Trump wrote on Truth Social, adding, “ONLY FOOLS WOULD THINK DIFFERENTLY!” pic.twitter.com/kZqa02wtwM— Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) March 8, 2026 Oil prices have risen to more than $100 a barrel since the United States launched its attack on Iran in conjunction with Israel, killing Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei and striking hundreds of Iran’s military targets. Crude oil futures in London and New York soared almost 30% to nearly $120 a barrel on Monday, one of the biggest one-day jumps on record in early trading, threatening to raise costs of products from gasoline to jet fuel. Israel struck more than two dozen Iranian fuel depots over the weekend, sparking frustration in Washington, D.C., Axios reports. The Trump administration is concerned that strikes on Iranian oil facilities could further increase the cost of fuel and lead to Iranians backing the regime as they watch their nation’s infrastructure literally go up in flames, Axios reports, citing sources familiar with the matter. Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., a staunch defender of Israel and the operation in Iran, has cautioned Israel against further strikes on Iranian fuel depots. “Our allies in Israel have shown amazing capability when it comes to collapsing the murderous regime in Iran. America is most appreciative,” Graham wrote on X Sunday night. “However, there will be a day soon that the Iranian people will be in charge of their own fate, not the murderous ayatollah’s regime,” the senator continued. “In that regard, please be cautious about what targets you select. Our goal is to liberate the Iranian people in a fashion that does not cripple their chance to start a new and better life when this regime collapses. The oil economy of Iran will be essential to that endeavor.” Iranian clerics over the weekend selected Mojtaba Khamenei, the son of Ali Khamenei, as the nation’s next supreme leader. Khamenei is viewed as a hardliner, and his selection as the new leader indicates the Iranian regime’s commitment to continue the fight against Israel and the U.S. Reuters contributed to this report. The post High Oil Prices ‘Small Price to Pay’ for ‘Peace,’ Trump Declares   appeared first on The Daily Signal.

When President Donald Trump signed an executive order prioritizing production of the pesticide glyphosate, conservative influencer Alex Clark received hundreds of messages from Make America Healthy Again advocates saying they would no longer vote Republican.  “I have received hundreds of DMs saying I’m either not voting in the midterms or I’m considering not voting because this was such a massive issue,” Clark told The Daily Signal.  Removing pesticides and chemicals from the food supply is a top issue for MAHA voters, and many became disillusioned after Trump’s executive order said that glyphosate producers should have “immunity” under the Defense Production Act. “Half of them are thinking they’re not even voting at all because they’re very unhappy about the pesticide issue,” Clark said. “Half are probably still willing to vote red.” “But as far as 2028 goes, that’s not in the bag at all,” Clark said. “And if anybody on the right is thinking that we have MAHA voters in the bag for 2028, they are sorely mistaken, and they are in for a rude awakening.”  According to Clark, the GOP is in a “situationship” with MAHA voters, and if the GOP doesn’t keep its promises to them, they will flock to Democrats who make MAHA promises.  Calley Means, a top advisor to Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., told The Daily Signal the Trump administration is already doing what it must to win over MAHA voters. “The concern about children’s health from voters is loudly heard in the Trump administration,” Means said in an interview, “and Secretary Kennedy is working throughout the government to drive solutions.” The Trump administration is working to ensure farmers can thrive while also working to reduce contaminants in food, according to Means. “The government has just committed over a billion dollars to driving innovation and research towards an agriculture system we all want, which is an agriculture system that continues innovating and reduces dependence on chemicals that produce negative health outputs,” Means said. “That’s what everybody wants, and the Trump administration is ensuring farmers have the tools they need right now, while putting innovation initiatives into overdrive to build a better future.” “It is a fact that 99% of corn is sprayed with glyphosate right now in the United States, and that chemical is needed for farmers right now, and it is also true that we were working and should innovate towards a better future, which Bobby Kennedy is doing,” Means continued. There have been historic successes in the first year, and much remains to be done, Means said. So far, the Trump administration has changed the childhood vaccine schedule, updated the food pyramid, worked to phase out petroleum dyes from food, and launched Operation Stork Speed to improve the quality of infant formula. But MAHA activists want more, and getting pesticides out of food is at the top of their priority list.  “We will be pushing every single day to deliver tangible benefits, to improve our food system, to make health care more affordable, to empower patients, to reduce overmedicalization, to improve mental health,” he said, “to accomplish the core agenda items that the MAHA voters have made clear are important.” Democrats, on the other hand, are offering MAHA voters nothing, according to Means. “There’s nothing happening from the Democrats,” he said. “The Democrats have not lifted one finger to reverse childhood chronic disease and all of the energy is on the Republican side, and this is worth continuing.” The Republican party can’t afford to lose MAHA voters, according to Jay Richards, MAHA advocate and vice president of social and domestic policy at the Heritage Foundation.  “It would be a disaster for Republicans if the MAHA vote was either lost or suppressed in the midterm elections, because the numbers are almost certainly sufficient to win or lose on the margins of almost any local or national election,” Richards told The Daily Signal. “I think that it’s one of the most energetic parts of the current Republican base, and it would be a self-inflicted wound if Republicans didn’t understand how important that is.”  A new poll, conducted by the Brownstone Institute and Health Freedom Defense Fund, showed that a supermajority of Americans support freedom for individuals to make their own medical decisions. At least 80% of those surveyed expressed support for the rights to refuse medical treatments and make personal health choices, and to protect doctors from censorship.  Richards said the addition of MAHA voters to the MAGA coalition is “one of the most important political realignments” of the last generation. “If the White House and Republicans are able to meet those and respect them, I think that contingent of voters will continue to support Republicans,” Richards said, “but I don’t think the Republican Party should treat them as a base that’s going to stick with them, no matter what.”  Most MAHA voters understand that an outright ban on glyphosate is not realistic and would harm farmers, but Richards said the Trump administration needs “a well thought out plan to make it easier for farmers and consumers to get affordable food without a large amount of glyphosate contaminant on it.” “If the White House and Republicans can thread that needle, I think even the frustration over the executive order could dissipate between now and the election,” Richards said.  MAHA Institute co-president Mark Gorton said voters who look at the whole of what Kennedy is doing are not going to drop their support of him because of the glyphosate order. “If you just look overall at the work that Secretary Kennedy and his team are doing, if people are paying attention,” Gorton told The Daily Signal, “they’re really working to profoundly change our health system and remove the corporate capture in a way we have not seen in generations or American history.”  Gorton, a registered Democrat who supports the president due to this MAHA policy, said Democrats oppose the MAHA agenda, even on common sense issues. “Democrats only seem to be leaning into the corporate capture by Big Pharma, spouting Big Pharma talking points on vaccines, and everything else,” he said. “Whatever President Trump And Secretary Kennedy do, the Democrats support the opposite, even on issues that where that’s idiotic, and so as much as the Republican party may not be delivering 100% for MAHA, I mean, the Democrats are determined to do worse.” To keep MAHA voters, the Republican Party needs to deliver on policy issues, said Gorton. Gorton has seen a lot of action on the executive level, but said Republicans in Congress need to step up their game.  “Congress is, to a reasonable extent, still bought by corporate interests, and you see that there are pushbacks on a lot of MAHA issues, and so it would be nice to see Congress really delivering and passing meaningful legislation on some of these fronts,” Gorton said.  MAHA voters have had a “prominent seat at the table during the Trump administration,” Means said. “The Trump administration has driven historic victories for those voters,” he said. The post The MAHA Vote Could Decide the Midterms. What Can Trump Do to Secure It? appeared first on The Daily Signal.