FBI Director Christopher Wray told a congressional committee this week that hackers backed by the Chinese communist regime are preparing to "cripple" American infrastructure should Beijing decide "the time has come to strike." Wray indicated in his statement to the Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party Wednesday that the intelligence community has assessed that "China is attempting to pre-position on U.S. critical infrastructure—setting up back doors to cripple vital assets and systems in the event China invades Taiwan and therefore‚ limiting our ability to assist Taiwan." "China's hackers are positioning on American infrastructure in preparation to wreak havoc and cause real-world harm to American citizens and communities‚ if or when China decides the time has come to strike‚" Wray told lawmakers in his oral testimony. In one example‚ the FBI director noted that hackers affiliated with the Chinese military gained access to the computer networks of a major American transportation hub. Gas pipelines‚ the electric grid‚ and water treatment plants have similarly been targeted. FBI Director Wray opening statement before @committeeonccp : "The PRC has a bigger hacking program than that of every major nation combined." — (@) Chairman Mike Gallagher (R-Wisc.) said that "this is the cyberspace equivalent of placing bombs on American bridges‚ water treatment facilities and power plants‚" reported CNN. "There is no economic benefit for these actions. There's no pure intelligence-gathering rationale‚" continued Gallagher. "The sole purpose is to be ready to destroy American infrastructure‚ which would inevitably result in chaos‚ confusion and potentially mass casualties." The U.S. has long known of efforts by state-backed Chinese hackers to compromise American systems and exploit vulnerabilities. These efforts in cyberspace to compromise American security come amidst similarly brazen aerial and ground operations. The regime has‚ for instance‚ sent spy craft over the mainland U.S.; operated illegal police stations on American soil; threatened diplomats; and dispatched agents to execute espionage and political destabilization missions. China does not appear to be merely posturing. The communist regime‚ which has been building up its military and preparing for war at a time when the U.S. military has been assessed as "weak‚" has made expressly clear in recent months that it intends to take the island nation of Taiwan. In the face of significant demographic‚ economic‚ and social troubles at home‚ the communist regime may increasingly see such a military adventure as an opportunity to change its fate and fortune. "[Communist China] represents the defining threat of this era‚" said Wray. "There is no country that presents a broader‚ more comprehensive threat to our ideas‚ our innovation‚ our economic security‚ and‚ ultimately‚ our national security." Wray also expressed concerns about the use of Tiktok by the Chinese regime to "control data collection on millions of users‚ which can be used for all sorts of intelligence operations or influence operations." Extra to collecting data on Americans and pushing influence operations‚ the FBI director indicated TikTok gives Beijing the ability "to control the software on millions of devices‚ which means the opportunity to technically compromise millions of devices." — (@) Gen. Paul Nakasone‚ the head of the National Security Agency‚ told lawmakers‚ "We need to have a vigilance that continues onward." "This is not an episodic threat that we're going to face. This is persistent‚" added Nakasone. Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors‚ sign up for our newsletters‚ and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!

U.S. Representative Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.) recently spoke at a Minneapolis event discussing the fledgling Republic of Somaliland’s efforts to break away from greater Somalia. In the course of that speech‚ she assured her mostly Somali audience that she is “Somali first‚ Muslim second.” She also told them that they could “sleep in comfort knowing I am here to protect the interests of Somalia from inside the U.S. system.” Prominent Republicans immediately began calling for Omar’s expulsion from Congress‚ denaturalization‚ and deportation. And rightly so — the last thing our country needs is a Manchurian candidate serving the interests of an unstable terror haven like Somalia from within the U.S. Congress. But are Omar’s statements actionable? The answer to that question is complex. When you hand the Visigoths the keys to the gates of Rome‚ the empire will inevitably fall. The Immigration and Nationality Act does allow foreign nationals to be stripped of their citizenship in certain very limited circumstances. Aliens who have committed certain acts (obtaining naturalization through fraud; declaring allegiance to a foreign state; bearing arms against the U.S.; committing treason‚ etc.) may be tried before a federal court and stripped of their citizenship. This process is known as “denaturalization.” But a confusing tangle of complex judicial decisions and executive-branch policies have made it increasingly difficult to take citizenship away from those who should never have been naturalized in the first place. A First Amendment shield So where does that leave Omar‚ who has an established track record of anti-American utterances and who sometimes seems to be working harder on behalf of vicious terror groups like al-Shabab and Hamas than she does for the American people? There certainly is a plausible argument that what Omar said violates the oath of allegiance she took when being naturalized. That pledge begins‚ “I hereby declare‚ on oath‚ that I absolutely and entirely renounce and abjure allegiance and fidelity to any foreign prince‚ potentate‚ state or sovereignty‚ of whom or which I have heretofore been a subject or citizen …” The oath concludes with a statement that the individual takes “this obligation freely‚ without any mental reservation or purpose of evasion.” And Omar’s statements do seem to indicate that she held mental reservations with regard to the vows she was taking. Nevertheless‚ American courts have generally required abstract states of mind to be proven by evidence of action consistent with the presumed thought process. Right now‚ we have no proof that Omar has engaged in acts like passing classified information to Somalia or to terror groups. Thus‚ any reviewing court is likely construe very broadly any statements that Omar is “Somali first” or that she will “protect” the “interests of Somalia‚” as political speech protected under the First Amendment that cannot serve as a basis for denaturalization. And‚ in any case‚ the Biden administration‚ with whom Omar is ideologically aligned‚ is unlikely to take any legal action against her. A more promising avenue of stripping Omar of her citizenship might be the ongoing claims that she committed fraud to aid a relative in gaining access to the United States. She has been accused of marrying Ahmed Nur Said Elmi‚ who is allegedly her brother — while still legally married to her first husband — in order to obtain a green card for him. Omar has publicly claimed Elmi is not her sibling‚ but she has never provided any documentation or other information that would put the matter to rest. If the allegations are true‚ then Omar is guilty of incest‚ bigamy‚ and immigration fraud. A conviction for any of those three offenses would likely render her subject to expulsion from Congress‚ denaturalization‚ rescission of her green card‚ and deportation from the United States. But‚ while the FBI has purportedly looked into these issues‚ the bureau hasn’t revealed any of its findings. And‚ once again‚ it appears unlikely that the Biden administration is willing either to pursue these kinds of charges or aid state authorities in levying them. Disaster waiting to happen By any reasonable measure‚ Ilhan Omar has shown repeatedly that she neither likes nor respects the nation that welcomed her family as refugees and presented her with a path to success. As such‚ it is reasonable to conclude that she ran for Congress either to further her own interests or to further the interests of her beloved Somalia — a nation riddled with terrorists from al-Shabab‚ one of the world’s most dangerous jihadist groups. Accordingly‚ Ilhan Omar’s case should serve as a cautionary tale for American lawmakers and jurists. Rendering it virtually impossible to denaturalize foreigners who never deserved U.S. citizenship in the first place is disaster waiting to happen. When you hand the Visigoths the keys to the gates of Rome‚ the empire will inevitably fall.

It should be painfully obvious to everyone by now that we are living in the fast-hardening cement of what Barack Obama promised to wildly cheering crowds on the campaign trail in 2008: A “fundamental transformation” of America. Anyone who can remember back to the decades before Obama’s two-term presidency will recall a country committed to fairness and common sense: Judging people based on the content of their character‚ rather than the color of their skin; Welcoming people who entered the country lawfully and endured the arduous citizenship process; Never giving a second thought about girls’ and women’s sports being reserved only for a person born female and without a speck of steroids‚ let alone testosterone‚ in their bodies; Expecting that immensely immature men dressed as clownish faux women would remain hidden inside “special” bars and clubs and not held up as twerking examples of bravery to kindergarten children; Acknowledging without equivocation that Marxism was a bad idea and not an ideal; Never contemplating that anyone other than a tyrant would jail his political opponents for simply questioning suspicious election results. And generally‚ in a more fair-minded time: No one considered gleefully calling evil "good" and good "evil." This‚ of course‚ is but a very short list of the slop that is being shoveled on a daily basis down the throats of ordinary‚ common-sense Americans. (We will leave it to the reader to shout out a few dozen more.) The United States has been transformed into Obamaville. As I point out in my new book‚ “Obvious: Seeing the Evil That’s in Plain Sight and Doing Something About It‚” all of this slow boil of the pot‚ with the American frog paddling lethargically within‚ began with the nomination of Barack Obama. People so desperately wanted what Obama was peddling — “Hope and Change” — that they inserted into that second word whatever their hearts desired most. And certainly‚ the color of the man’s skin was a huge selling point. Sure‚ the candidate had practically no track record‚ and had he been white‚ Hillary Clinton would have been the Democratic Party’s nominee in 2008. But the biracial aspect of Obama’s candidacy was seen‚ perhaps even symbolically‚ as a way of finally unifying this country after so much racial divisiveness over the previous decades. Many conservatives like to push back on the charge that America is “systemically racist” by pointing to the 2008 election. Would a racist nation vote a black man into office? tends to be the gist of the argument. But isn’t it more accurate to say that voting for someone based on his skin color is also racist? Racism goes both ways. That’s why anyone who says that black people cannot be racist is making a racist statement. "It's not about skin‚" a friend once told me. "It's about sin." The Bible puts it this way: “All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” It doesn’t matter who you are; some have a penchant to steal‚ some to cheat‚ some to lie‚ some to murder‚ some to treat others in a derogatory way. And‚ of course‚ so many of us are pretty good at choosing from time to time a smorgasbord of most everything (and then some) on that list. So where does all this leave us? The left didn’t expect Donald Trump to win the presidency in 2016. His administration was a bump in the road. And so‚ in just a few short years‚ we have fallen as far as Bedford Falls of "It's a Wonderful Life" descended into Pottersville. The United States has been transformed into Obamaville. The hour is late‚ no doubt. The November election will be crucial in undoing many terrible changes. And if‚ as some pundits are beginning to think‚ the Democrats’ standard-bearer suddenly turns out to be yet another Obama‚ with the added twist of possibly becoming the history-making first woman U.S. president‚ let’s just hope there are enough common-sense citizens who would not do something "systemically sexist" by voting for her. Vigilance is necessary this time around to ensure a free and fair election and to keep the cement of “fundamental transformation” from hardening into unbreakable rock. Editor’s note: A version of this article appeared originally at the Stream.

Ah‚ The Day Before‚ we hardly knew ye. The ill-fated survival horror game was pretty much dead on arrival back in December of last year‚ and by Monday January 22‚ it was erased from the ether entirely. Now‚ thanks to a new documentary on the development process‚ it's not at all difficult to understand why the game crashed and burned so spectacularly. Continue reading The Day Before only lasted 46 days‚ and now we know exactly why MORE FROM PCGAMESN: Best PC survival games‚ Best PC zombie games‚ The Day Before release date

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