Former House Speaker Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D., Calif.) suggested Joe Biden’s staying in the race was still an open question. He has said only God almighty could get him to leave. Asked if she supported Biden as the nominee, Pelosi said in an interview on MSNBC’s “Morning Joe”: “It’s up to the president to decide if […] The post Pelosi Cools to Biden Continuing; Clooney Wants Him Out After Raising $30M for Him appeared first on www.independentsentinel.com.

Virginia’s Republican governor called for “phone-free” schools in an executive order on Tuesday, citing the mental health and learning crisis among school-age children. Governor Glenn Youngkin’s order directs the education department to issue guidance on establishing “cell phone-free education policies and procedures” for public schools. The order cites the “alarming mental health crisis” among teenagers that is “driven in part by extensive social media usage and widespread cell phone possession among children.” Teens’ risk of mental health issues like depression and anxiety doubles if they spend more than three hours a day on social media, according to one study, and the average teen spends nearly five hours scrolling, according to Gallup. The public school plan also aims to “significantly reduce the amount of time students can be on phones without parental supervision.” “This essential action will promote a healthier and more focused educational environment where every child is free to learn. Creating cellphone and social media-free educational environments in Virginia’s K-12 education system will benefit students, parents, and educators,” Youngkin said in a statement. Virginia Education Secretary Aimee Guidera said that while government is not the only solution, limiting screen time at school is a must. “The data is clear, and it is time for Virginians to come together to address the damage of social media and screens to healthy childhoods,” Guidera said. “Government cannot be the sole solution to this crisis; school communities – especially parents and teachers – must work together to discuss and develop common sense approaches to limit screen time, prioritize open channels of communication, and re-establish norms that reinforce healthy and vibrant learning communities.” Youngkin’s order also cited the decline in academic achievement across the country since the pandemic, saying that limiting cell phones in classrooms would help students focus on academics. K-12 students suffered severe learning loss during the pandemic. Many returned to classrooms reading at the same level as when the pandemic began, putting them two grade levels behind. In 2022, eighth graders had the lowest U.S. history scores on record and among the lowest civics scores, according to the Department of Education. Math scores plummeted among fourth and eighth graders in almost every state, and reading scores have also sunk across the country, erasing the last three decades of progress. Last week, Arkansas Republican Governor Sarah Sanders rolled out a similar push for phone-free schools. Arkansas’ new grant program incentivizes public schools to ban phones by rewarding them with additional funding for mental health and other services. The program will also cover the cost of putting a cell phone ban into place, providing schools with secure pouches for students to store their phones during the school day. Sanders remarked that the average teen spending  five hours on social media means “five hours a day not with friends, not outside, and not learning.” “The facts are grim, but there are things we can do to help,” Sanders said. “Big Tech created an addicting product and marketed it to the most impressionable population out there, our kids.”

The eldest daughter of now-divorced actors Ben Affleck and Jennifer Garner demanded mask mandates in Los Angeles County and complained that people without masks “exacerbate homelessness” and harm “communities of color, disabled people, elderly people, trans people” and “women.” Violet Affleck, now 18, made the remarks to the LA County Board of Supervisors during public comment. The one-minute speech has since gone viral online, racking up millions of views. “I demand mask availability, air filtration, and Far-UVC light in government facilities, including jails and detention centers, and mask mandates in county medical faculties,” the teenager said. “You must expand the availability of high-quality free tests and treatment, and most importantly the county must oppose mask bans for any reason,” she continued. “They do not keep us safer.” “It stands to exacerbate our homelessness crisis, as well as the suffering of many people in our city,” Violet said of “mask bans.” “It hits communities of color, disabled people, elderly people, trans people, women and anyone in a public-facing essential job the hardest.” Los Angeles Democratic Mayor Karen Bass recently floated the idea of creating restrictions for protesters wearing masks at public demonstrations. Violet, who is often photographed wearing a mask outdoors, opened her comments by saying that she “contracted a post-viral condition in 2019.” “I’m okay now, but I saw first-hand that medicine does not always have answers to the consequences of even minor viruses,” she said. You can’t make this stuff up. Daughter of Ben Affleck and Jennifer Garner demanding mask mandates. What are they putting in the water of LA? pic.twitter.com/KhgOUQglvL — Gusano (@mistergusano) July 10, 2024 Though Americans were urged and even mandated to wear face masks during the height of the COVID panic, studies now suggest they make little to no difference and significantly harm children. One study published by the Cochrane Library reviewed the findings of 78 randomized controlled trials to determine the effectiveness of “physical interventions.” The review found that, when comparing the use of medical or surgical masks to wearing no masks, “wearing a mask may make little to no difference in how many people caught a flu-like illness/COVID-like illness (nine studies; 276,917 people); and probably makes little or no difference in how many people have flu/COVID confirmed by a laboratory test (six studies; 13,919 people),” the New York Post noted. Folks online commented on Violet’s demand, often criticizing her parents, Affleck and Garner. The famous exes also recently caught flack when they endorsed the gender “transition” of another one of their daughters, Seraphina Rose. The 15-year-old introduced herself as “Fin” during Garner’s father’s funeral service and reportedly uses the “they” pronoun. Related: Fauci Can’t Name One Study To Support Child Masking Before Pandemic

Rep. Eric Swalwell (D-CA) was torched by Daily Wire Editor Emeritus Ben Shapiro on Wednesday after the Democrat attempted to derail a Judiciary Committee hearing that featured Shapiro testifying on an alleged conspiracy to silence conservative media outlets. Shapiro testified shortly after the Republican-led committee released a report on Wednesday morning accusing the Global Alliance for Responsible Media (GARM) of strategizing to censor conservative content, including from The Daily Wire. At one point during the hearing, Swalwell pushed to turn the attention away from GARM and onto Shapiro’s religious and political beliefs, asking the Daily Wire host if he supports Project 2025, a proposed set of presidential transition policies put forward by the Heritage Foundation that the Left has recently focused on to paint former President Donald Trump and conservatives as extremists. “Mr. Shapiro, thank you for joining us today. I think it is important that you’re here as one of the leading conservative voices in the country,” Swalwell said. “And the country in the last couple of weeks has talked about, googled Project 2025 … and you’re not going to get any censorship from me, so I just wanted to know from your perspective, I think it would help us understand, on just like a scale of 0-100 percent, how much do you support Project 2025?” “I think like President Trump, I haven’t looked all that deeply at Project 2025,” Shapiro replied. “But it seems that Democrats on this committee [think that] — sort of like Peter Pan and Tinkerbell — if they say Project 2025 enough, their presidential candidate becomes alive again.” .@benshapiro: “It seems that Democrats on this committee think that—sort of like Peter Pan and Tinkerbell—if they say Project 2025 enough, their presidential candidate becomes alive again.” pic.twitter.com/JI1PcFckvj — Daily Wire (@realDailyWire) July 10, 2024 Swalwell, who was reportedly involved in a long-term romantic relationship with a suspected Chinese spy, went on to ask Shapiro where he stands on a range of issues, from deportation and immigration to abortion pills and same-sex marriage. Shapiro succinctly responded to the Democratic congressman’s policy questions and added, “I’m not sure why I’m testifying on immigration policy at this point.” Swalwell also brought out a poster that displayed a 2018 quote of Shapiro calling homosexual activity “a sin.” “Yes, I’m a religious Jew. You found me out,” Shapiro said. “I agree with me. Yes, that’s true.” .@RepSwalwell attempts to spar with @benshapiro. It doesn’t end well for China’s spy guy. FULL EXCHANGE: pic.twitter.com/Fp3R4n42Ac — Daily Wire (@realDailyWire) July 10, 2024 During Shapiro’s opening statement before the committee, he told lawmakers about a “cartel” acting to stamp out conservative voices through arbitrary standards. “GARM purportedly sets ‘brand safety’ standards – objective standards by which advertisers and platforms can supposedly determine just what sort of content ought to be deemed ‘safe’ for advertising,” he said. “In reality, GARM acts as a cartel. Its members account for 90 percent of ad spending in the United States — almost $1 trillion. In other words, if you’re not getting ad dollars from GARM members, it’s nearly impossible to run an ad-based business.”

Actor Jay Johnston, of “Bob’s Burgers” and “Anchorman” fame, has pleaded guilty to felony charges stemming from his connection to the events on January 6. The 55-year-old was arrested last June and charged with a felony count of interfering with law enforcement officers during civil disorder along with multiple misdemeanor offenses, per NPR.  Johnston pleaded guilty earlier this week to the felony charge. He is scheduled for sentencing on October 7. A bystander video from the event allegedly shows him filming protesters near the barricades around Congress. An FBI affidavit stated that Johnston was part of a group who forced their way into the Capitol Building via a tunnel using stolen police riot shields, the outlet noted.  The Justice Department called this spot “the site of some of the most violent attacks against law enforcement that day.” The FBI claimed the video showed Johnston “handing up a stolen U.S. Capitol police shield to other rioters” and that he “participated with other rioters in a group assault” on law enforcement, per NBC News. Johnston’s lawyer contacted the FBI’s National Threat Operations Center after they began circulating images of the actor that day in an effort to get the public to help identify him. Further evidence presented against the “Bob’s Burgers” actor included receipts for a hotel stay in Washington, D.C. during the same time as the rally, and text messages between him and a friend. “The news has presented it as an attack. It actually wasn’t. Thought it kind of turned into that. It was a mess. Got maced and tear gassed and I found it quite untastic,” Johnston shared via text. The entertainment professional was a regular on the HBO comedy “Mr. Show with Bob and David” in the 1990s alongside Bob Odenkirk and David Cross. He also had appearances in the 2004 Will Ferrell comedy “Anchorman,” “Arrested Development,” “The Sarah Silverman Program,” and “Men in Black II.” Johnston was previously asked not to return to his role as fan-favorite recurring character Jimmy Pesto on the animated series “Bob’s Burgers” after it was suspected that he was involved in the incidents on January 6. No charges had been filed against the actor when he was let go from the show. Johnston has not had any Hollywood appearances since it was revealed that he attended the rally. RELATED: Supreme Court Rules DOJ Overstepped In Charging Hundreds Of January 6 Defendants With Obstruction

In a July 5 interview with ABC News host George Stephanopoulos, President Joe Biden claimed Virginia Democratic Sen. Mark Warner “tried to get the [presidential] nomination too.” Verdict: Misleading Multiple news outlets, including The New York Times, reported in 2006 that while Warner was exploring a 2008 presidential bid, he ultimately decided not to run. […]

'The magnitude of the costs'

'He has to win all of these states'

Smh...