The big story of the weekend was that President Trump launched massive tariffs on Canada, China, and Mexico.  The big question when it comes to tariffs is whether President Trump is using them as leverage or whether he’s doing this ideologically. This is always the big question with President Trump, because by using them as leverage, he’s been quite successful. When it comes to making deals, there is no one in the business world who’s better at leverage than President Trump. President Trump loves using leverage to get what he wants. He did this just a couple of weeks ago with Colombia. He threatened them with 25% tariffs and said they would escalate unless they took back illegal immigrants; they immediately caved.  And that seems to be happening with Mexico and Canada. As of Monday, President Trump was sending some strong signals. He said, “Listen, I like tariffs. Tariffs are going out.” When you’re playing chicken, you put a brick on the accelerator and say, “Listen, I’m perfectly happy to go off this cliff. Let’s do this thing, man. Let’s make it happen.” Trump talks up tariffs as a way of saying, “Listen, I don’t mind, we’ll do it. You think we won’t do it? We will 100% do it. It’s not a bluff. I’m happy. I’d rather do it.” And then, when he gets what he wants, he can back off the tariffs. WATCH: The Ben Shapiro Show We found out on Monday morning that the tariffs were anything but permanent. In fact, President Trump was able to leverage major concessions out of the Mexican government.  Trump wrote on Truth Social: I just spoke with President Claudia Sheinbaum of Mexico. It was a very friendly conversation wherein she agreed to immediately supply 10,000 Mexican Soldiers on the Border separating Mexico and the United States. These soldiers will be specifically designated to stop the flow of fentanyl, and illegal migrants into our Country. We further agreed to immediately pause the anticipated tariffs for a one month period during which we will have negotiations headed by Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Secretary of Treasury Scott Bessent, and Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick, and high-level Representatives of Mexico. I look forward to participating in those negotiations, with President Sheinbaum, as we attempt to achieve a “deal” between our two Countries. Remember, President Trump used his emergency authority to stop fentanyl and all illegal immigration in order to make the tariffs happen. He’s now saying that because Mexico is alleviating the emergency, presumably this is going to be delayed by a month, so a new trade deal can be negotiated. So it was all leverage. It was not, in fact, an overall love for tariffs. Meanwhile, he made clear exactly what he wanted from Canada. He wrote: Canada doesn’t even allow U.S. Banks to open or do business there. What’s that all about? Many such things, but it’s also a DRUG WAR, and hundreds of thousands of people have died in the U.S. from drugs pouring through the Borders of Mexico and Canada. Just spoke to Justin Trudeau. Will be speaking to him again at 3:00 P.M. Using tariffs as a form of leverage is something President Trump is very good at. As for overall tariff policy, it should be noted, trade wars are bad and not easy to win. Trade wars tend to impoverish people. Trade wars tend to impoverish the American consumer, in particular. That’s why we saw the stock market take a dive at the very beginning of the day when it looked as though Trump was pushing tariff policy as a net good to the United States. But it’s clear that President Trump is doing this as a leverage play. The Canadian government responded by getting very militant. Justin Trudeau, who is still titularly the prime minister of Canada, announced retaliatory tariffs right away, saying: Tonight, I am announcing Canada will be responding to the U.S. trade action with 25% tariffs against $155 billion worth of American goods. This will include immediate tariffs on $30 billion worth of goods as of Tuesday, followed by further tariffs on $125 billion worth of American products in 21 days’ time to allow Canadian companies and supply chains to seek to find alternatives. And then, on Monday afternoon, Trudeau suddenly capitulated. He wrote on X: I just had a good call with President Trump. Canada is implementing our $1.3 billion border plan — reinforcing the border with new choppers, technology and personnel, enhanced coordination with our American partners, and increased resources to stop the flow of fentanyl. Nearly 10,000 frontline personnel are and will be working on protecting the border. In addition, Canada is making new commitments to appoint a Fentanyl Czar, we will list cartels as terrorists, ensure 24/7 eyes on the border, launch a Canada- U.S. Joint Strike Force to combat organized crime, fentanyl and money laundering. I have also signed a new intelligence directive on organized crime and fentanyl and we will be backing it with $200 million. Proposed tariffs will be paused for at least 30 days while we work together. A trade war would hurt Canada more than it would hurt us; if they tariff American products, they’re taxing their own consumers. But this is what happens in a trade war. You increase your tariffs. The other countries being targeted increase their tariffs to retaliate because they say, “We’re not going to let your goods in our market. You’re not letting our goods in your market.” Then, if this sort of thing were to be carried out over a long period of time, it would be a real problem, because China, in particular, would be more than happy to fill that gap with cheap free trade with Canada, Mexico, or Europe. But when it comes to playing chicken, President Trump is very, very good. Mexico is sending 10,000 troops to the border and pledging to stop the flow of fentanyl. Canada is now doing the same. These are big wins for President Trump. There’s no other way to put it.

First Lady Melania Trump gave a behind-the-scenes look at President Donald Trump’s second inauguration in a Hello! magazine cover and story, her first magazine cover feature in 16 years. The digital cover featured a stunning black-and-white image of the first lady wearing a black dress with a black jacket along with the story, “Melania Trump 2.0 – Exclusive photos and insight as she returns as First Lady,” in which the outlet spoke to three insiders close to Melania. Throughout the piece there were numerous photos of the first lady’s looks from Trump’s first turn in the White House. There was also a black-and-white picture of Melania and son Barron on their way to Trump’s inauguration, where he was sworn in as the 47th President of the United States last month. In the photo, the first lady wore a custom double-breasted navy coat with a matching boater hat. She completed the look with black leather gloves and matching dark blue suede pumps.   View this post on Instagram   A post shared by HELLO! Magazine (@hellomag) Two of the photos showed Melania getting dressed in a gorgeous strapless black and pearl-colored floor-length gown with a fitted bodice and black ribbon that wrapped around the entire dress — designed by the first lady’s stylist and designer Herve Pierre for Trump’s inauguration balls. Speaking to the outlet, Pierre opened up about working with the first lady and gave a bit of insight about her. “[When I had] just started to work for Mrs Trump, I was preparing clothes for a fitting and saw her putting shoes in a suitcase,” Pierre said. “I immediately told her that she couldn’t do that and it was my job to do it, and she answered: ‘I always pack myself so I am sure what is in my luggage.’ “She will also make a coffee for you herself,” he added. “So if you have a vision of a woman surrounded by servants, you are wrong.” Melania’s official photographer Regine Mahaux also shared with the outlet and said, “[Melania’s] a different person than she was eight years ago and has always been true to herself. This time, it feels like a different energy with new people that the President has surrounded himself with.” “She’s always in the right place,” Mahaux added. “She’s always behind her husband. He’s in the light; she doesn’t need the light. She’s a very good number two. It’s always her husband first, and I like that; she has strong family values, to be a good wife and to make sure they’re happy.” The cover story also included an interview with Melania’s interior designer Tham Kannalikham, who has already helped the first lady put Trump’s stamp on the White House. “We felt a deep obligation to give the White House the respect it deserves, understanding our role as stewards of this historic home,” the designer said. “Together, we approached this endeavour with a commitment to elevating its design to the highest standards, celebrating American craftsmanship and artistry.” Related: Designer Reveals Behind-The-Scenes Details About Melania’s Inauguration Ball Dress

Tuesday, February 4, is World Cancer Day. Millions celebrated recovery, shared prayers for those struggling, and fondly remembered loved ones lost to the horrendous disease. This year, World Cancer Day has a significant meaning for Kate Middleton. The princess spent nearly a year fighting an undisclosed type of cancer and focused on healing and her family. While many see Kate as an incredible role model, it’s also important to realize that to three people, she’s mom. Kate is their home, their light, and their love. Prince George, Princess Charlotte, and Prince Louis mean the world to their mother and father, and Kate made sure that she let us all know. View this post on Instagram A post shared by The Prince and Princess of Wales (@princeandprincessofwales) Kate Middleton Posted A Poignant Message On World Cancer Day Kate shared a photo taken by her son, Prince Louis. It’s a photo of her, though we don’t see much of her face. Kate appears far away but is happy. With her arms stretched wide, it’s as if she’s sending the world a hug. She captioned the photo, “Don’t forget to nurture all that which lies beyond the disease. C.” The princess did just that. She nurtured Louis’ love for photography and let him take her picture. She embraced her son’s passion and didn’t let cancer take it all away. Kate Middleton Hopes that others will see what she means on World Cancer Day. On Instagram, it appears fans heard her message loud and clear. One wrote, “Touching and darling that your son took this pic what a great memory he will have that he was the photographer!” “Best wishes to HRH. You are an example of strength, courage and love,’ someone shared. This person let Kate Middleton know she is still in many people’s prayers on World Cancer Day. “I send you much strength and health.” May this year be one of health and happiness for the royal family. This story’s featured image is by Rebecca Naden – WPA Pool/Getty Images. The post Kate Middleton Drops A Photo Of Herself Taken By Prince Louis & It Has A Very Special Meaning appeared first on InspireMore.

'English continued to assert that English was here to 'Kill Scott Bessent''

Trump’s shock-and-awe approach to the federal bureaucracy appears to be working. Nothing bedeviled President Donald Trump’s first term more than the outright resistance and hostility within the federal government to his administration. Armies of hostile bureaucrats stymied his plans, coordinated with legacy media to cook up negative stories, and generally behaved as if they—and not the president—had a right to run the executive branch. Trump is now better prepared to take on the Leviathan. The #Resistance isn’t looking nearly as formidable these days. Their defeat was deeper, the outrage from the American people is sharper, and Trump is more relentless in getting a handle on the federal apparatus. That isn’t to say that resistance isn’t taking place. On Sunday, a small group of federal employees gathered at the Office of Personnel Management to demonstrate their opposition to Trump’s shake-up of how the government does business. They reportedly intend to protest at OPM all week. The protesters appeared to number in the dozens, at most. So, this isn’t exactly a latter-day Million Man March. It might not even be the hundred-man march. Many appeared to be wearing medical masks. Democrats are now protesting outside of the Office of Personnel Management to seemingly protest the USAID audit and the treasury audit that OPM is helping DOGE with.2025 is not 2016. The public isn’t showing up for the Dems, even in deep blue D.C.Why do Dems fear audits? ?? pic.twitter.com/XDnlTrNhHe— Robby Starbuck (@robbystarbuck) February 3, 2025 The federal workers were apparently upset that the newly created Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), headed by entrepreneur Elon Musk, has gained access to Treasury Department data and payment systems. According to DC Media Group, the protesters blocked several young men from entering OPM, though I doubt that will make much of a difference in the long run. The data miners who work for Musk have a very different work ethic than your typical D.C. bureaucrat. “DOGE is working 120 hour a week. Our bureaucratic opponents optimistically work 40 hours a week. That is why they are losing so fast,” Musk wrote on X on Sunday. DOGE is working 120 hour a week. Our bureaucratic opponents optimistically work 40 hours a week. That is why they are losing so fast. https://t.co/dXtrL5rj1K— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) February 2, 2025 Not only are DOGE data miners energetic, but they also appear to be rather gifted. One of them is a prodigy who decoded the Herculaneum papyrii when he was 20 years old. Sounds like he’s uniquely equipped to untangle and decipher the inner workings of our federal government. My favorite part about DOGE is how one of the guys will be some kind of insane prodigy who decoded the Herculaneum Papyrii at the age of 20 and the hit piece author’s bio trying to take him down is like, “associate staff writer for general topics, hobbies include having a cat.” pic.twitter.com/wgXE2RkVCL— Payton Alexander (@AlexanderPayton) February 3, 2025 Let’s just say, these young DOGE employees represent a stark contrast to the people trying to block them from doing their job. In the other corner, you have the deep state “civil servants.” USA Today interviewed Keya Chatterjee, “a former federal employee who is now the executive director of Free D.C., a local social justice nonprofit.” Ah, yes, it’s always hard to tell where the social justice nonprofit begins, and the federal bureaucracy ends. This is the typical background of the people who feel like they have the right to rule in this country, those who think they have a right to commandeer the wealth and power of this country to serve their pet ideological causes. “They’re stealing all of our data. They’re stealing our servers, and it is not theirs to have,” Chatterjee said, according to USA Today. “We will take it back.” Again, they think they have a special right to rule. Here you can see the mentality behind the rhetoric of “our democracy.” They really think that access to the government belongs to them alone. What deep state bureaucrats are coming to understand in these first few weeks of the second Trump administration is how thoroughly they’ve lost the “Mandate of Heaven,” as they call it in China. Trump is unleashing his swift sword of government efficiency into federal agencies, and for the most part, the American people are mostly on board. It seems like DOGE is uncovering some truly outrageous things buried within the layers of our bloated federal Leviathan. According to Musk, the Treasury Department instructed employees to always approve payments, even to known terrorist groups. “The @DOGE team discovered, among other things, that payment-approval officers at Treasury were instructed always to approve payments, even to known fraudulent or terrorist groups. They literally never denied a payment in their entire career. Not even once,” Musk wrote on X Saturday. The @DOGE team discovered, among other things, that payment approval officers at Treasury were instructed always to approve payments, even to known fraudulent or terrorist groups. They literally never denied a payment in their entire career. Not even once. https://t.co/kInoGWdw4C— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) February 1, 2025 We are going to learn very quickly just how much of the bloat of federal government is created just to perpetuate itself or is being siphoned away, literally by crooks. Even more, we are going to see just how much the federal apparatus has been co-opted to carry out and fund explicitly left-wing goals, regardless of who is in the White House. What Trump and his administration are doing right now is extraordinary. They are actively targeting the real powers that rule the federal government in a way that has rarely happened since the adoption of the New Deal nearly a century ago. Never has the mandate to do so been so strong, as Americans have lost faith in elite institutions of all types, especially the federal government. The hyperideological bureaucrats masquerading as “nonpartisan” civil servants aren’t going to be indulged and placated this time around. The corrupt old regime that tottered along, foisting DEI on the country while it failed to effectively govern is being washed away, and right now there is little the Left can do about it. The post Deep State Resistance Is Crumbling in Trump 2.0 appeared first on The Daily Signal.

I’d like to talk a day about an irony. Maybe it’s something that’s a paradox. Have you noticed that there’s certain people who are coming out of the woodwork who are diehard Trump opponents and suddenly they say, sorta, “I like Donald Trump,” or they don’t say it publicly or they don’t write it emphatically. And here’s what I mean. He went to Davos and I thought, “Wow, they’re going to destroy Don.” I don’t mean destroy him effectively, but they’re going to try to destroy him. And then the question and answers were amazing. He outlined tax reform, transparency, low interest rates, targeted tariffs, more energy development, more fossil fuels, closed borders. I thought, “Wow, that is going to drive the Davos people crazy.” And then the questions were, “Are you sure you can send us a liquid, not natural gas? We need it in Europe,” or there were, “This sounds great, but when will it start?” And you start to think, these are capitalists and they want Europe to be turned to its former grandeur. And all of a sudden, this man is saying something that is exactly opposite of the socialism that destroyed their countries and which they bought into. And now they don’t have to do it. And they’re secretly, but more openly even admiring Donald Trump. Same phenomenon happened when I was on campus, not long on the Standford campus, a professor whom I know came up to me, and I would say that he is a moderately anti-Trumper, never Trumper maybe, and he whispered, said, “Wow, the end of DEI is actually not that bad, is it?” And what he was saying is, “There’s no more racial quotas and maybe I wanted to be a dean.” I’m saying, I’m extrapolating what he was saying. “Maybe I want to be a dean or maybe I want to get published at University Press and there’s not going to be any racial quotas anymore or discrimination and I’m for that because the DEI is a monstrosity. There won’t be any czar that calls me up and says your syllabus doesn’t have enough DEI material in it, or I’ve looked at your grading pattern and you’re inordinately giving Cs to people of color. No more commissars.” So even they are, you know, happy that Donald Trump is doing this. And then we get into the FAA [Federal Aviation Administration] and people are really angry at Donald Trump because in this tragedy of the airline accident, Donald Trump actually said things that were quite blunt. He said that DEI was maybe at fault, and we now know that the, and I don’t want to get into a critique yet of the crash, but it seems like the helicopter was too low, and there was culpability, which seems like one of the air traffic controllers was not there. It seems like somebody left early. It seems like there was a mistake on, giving directions about the proper elevations. But we do know this, and Donald Trump brought it up, and that was that the FAA consistently under Joe Biden had racial quotas and they abolish programs and universities that encourage people who had either expertise through the curriculum or prior military experience who would do well on meritocratic exams to try to join the FAA and they were rejected because of their race. That is a fact and in fact, there has been several lawsuits challenging the FAA and the first nomination to the FAA, of course, the candidate that Biden picked didn’t even know the fundamentals of aviation. He came from the Denver airport, but he didn’t have any knowledge of the actual mechanics of how airports worked, it seemed. My point is that when he did that, everybody in the media thought it was awful. But then people who probably didn’t even vote for him said, “Wait a minute. I want to be safe. I want my daughter to be safe. I want my husband to be safe. You mean there’s people in these control towers that were selected for criteria other than merit?” And while it might have been illiberal or maybe inconvenient, Donald Trump told the truth. What I’m getting at is this. This country has moved so far to the left on energy, on DEI, on transgenderism, on crime, on the border, that people even who supported it, whether they’re the people in LA that lost their homes, or the people who voted for Adam Schiff—and we saw what he did at the nomination—they want a return. And this man is the only person, Donald Trump, with the guts and the backbone to not just make a transition, not to the far right. back to the center or the center traditional right that secretly, at least for now, they are happy that it’s going on because they feel that they and most Americans will be the beneficiaries, And you know what’s correct? They’re absolutely right. Thank you. This is Victor Davis Hanson for The Daily Signal. Thank you so much for tuning in today. Please subscribe to The Daily Signal for our next episode. Maybe you can check out my own website at VictorHansen.com for podcasts, lectures, Ultra Series, behind a paywall, but more importantly, just daily columns that are accessible and free to everyone. Thank you very much. We publish a variety of perspectives. Nothing written here is to be construed as representing the views of The Daily Signal. The post Even Never Trumpers Are Warming Up to The Donald appeared first on The Daily Signal.

Despite the Biden-Harris administration’s “whole-of-government” attempt to increase unionization, the percentage of American workers belonging to unions notched down each of the past four years of their administration. Marking yet another record-low, 9.9% of American workers belonged to unions in 2023. This follows a steady decline from 13.4% at the turn of the century in 2000, and from a high of about 33.5% in the mid 1950s. While the media reports have documented new unionization efforts—including some successes—in recent years, those newly-unionized jobs haven’t been enough to replace unionized job losses and other workers choosing to ditch their unions. For example, roughly 22,000 unionized workers lost their jobs at the then 99-year-old Yellow Trucking company when, despite the company’s offer of a substantial pay hike, their union blocked Yellow from implementing a modernization plan that was necessary for its survival.      The 2018 Supreme Court decision in Janus v. AFSCE also contributed to a decline in unionization by preventing public sectors workers from being forced to join a union as a condition of employment. Workers in right-to-work states also have that same freedom, and consequently only 5.5% of workers are unionized in those states, compared to 13.2% in states that force private sector workers to join the union as a condition of employment. While the record-low unionization rate suggests that the Biden-Harris administration was unsuccessful in its efforts to increase unionization, the reality is that unionization almost certainly would have declined even further absent the Biden-Harris administration’s actions to tip the scales in unions’ favor. In particular, the Biden-Harris administration made it difficult or impossible for workers to get rid of unions they no longer want and changed the rules governing union elections to restrict workers’ freedoms and rights to not join a union. For example, longtime employees of the first Trader Joe’s store to unionize in Hadley, Massachusetts were quickly frustrated by the union that was supposed to represent them but instead silenced them—including asking security to escort them out of a negotiation session. When many other Trader Joe’s employees also realized the union wasn’t providing them anything new and was instead creating a divisive and inhospitable work environment, a group of 46% of the workers petitioned the National Labor Relations Board to for a decertification election, to let employees vote on whether or not to get rid of their union. Despite the fact that workers had well over the 30% of signatures necessary for a decertification election, the National Labor Relations Board denied their request, saying that Trader Joe’s was under investigation for unfair labor practices. According to Michael Alcorn and Leslie Stratford, two Trader Joe’s employees leading the decertification attempt, “The company is accused of everything from having an ‘overly broad’ dress code to giving one of our coworkers a ‘negative appraisal’.” Most of the allegations were from years prior, before workers unionized.  As Alcorn and Stratford wrote, “If the mere allegation prevents us from holding a decertification election, it’s hard to see an election ever moving forward. … It’s hard not to conclude that the NLRB cares more about protecting unions than it does about workers’ rights.” The issue at hand for these Trader Joe’s employees and many other workers across the country is that the Biden-Harris administration’s National Labor Relations Board reinstated so-called “blocking charges” whereby unions can strategically file unfair labor practice allegations against employers to indefinitely delay elections (both unionization and decertification) if they do not believe the results will go their way. Trader Joe’s employees are among many who have been denied the right to vote their unions out. Starbucks reported in February 2024 that workers at 27 of its stores had filed decertification petitions, but the National Labor Relations Board had not allowed any of those elections to take place and had dismissed some workers’ petitions outright. In addition to preventing workers from escaping unions they no longer want, the Biden-Harris administration also made it easier for workers to be forced into unions they don’t want. For example, the NLRB also issued a new regulation that prevents workers from requesting the right to a secret ballot election if their employer voluntarily agrees (or is pressured into accepting) unionization without workers having the opportunity to vote in a secret ballot election. And the Biden-Harris administration’s NLRB issued a decision that undid 76 years of precedent and which restricts employers’ free speech rights by preventing them from holding so-called “captive audience” meetings to provide workers with important information about unionization, including their legal rights. As the Big Labor movement has shifted its focus from providing things that attract workers to want to join unions and is instead using politics and power to force more workers into unions, workers are losing out. Over the past five years, union wages grew 5.7 percentage points less than nonunion wages (22.7% nominal growth for union workers versus 28.4% for nonunion workers). And unions’ historic wage advantages—the difference between earnings of union vs. nonunion workers—has been declining across most industries. In manufacturing, it has almost disappeared, and in wholesale and retail trade, union workers make less than nonunion workers.    The continued decline in unionization in the U.S. despite government efforts to force more workers into unions demonstrates the diminishing value of unions. But workers still desire upward mobility and a voice in the workplace, which unions could provide if they adapt and change their divisive, top-down, one-size-fits-all methods. By focusing on individual workers’ desires and on helping workers achieve long-term wage gains through increased productivity (which require allowing technology and automation that enhance productivity), unions could begin to reverse their decline. And policymakers can help prioritize workers’ rights and voices by allowing voluntary labor organizations and reducing government-imposed barriers to work. The post In New Record Low, Unionization Rate Falls to Single Digits in 2024 appeared first on The Daily Signal.

Sen. Ron Johnson, leading Senate oversight in the new majority, anticipates more transparency under the Trump administration—but still expects challenges from the same bureaucrats that stonewalled his information requests during the Biden administration. Johnson, R-Wis., is the chairman of the Senate’s Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations, part of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee. “Will we get all the information we requested? I don’t know. My assumption is the shredders, the BleachBit programs are in high gear,” Johnson told The Daily Signal. “I suggested early on after President [Donald] Trump’s election that he ought to appoint somebody called a secretary of information extraction. The deep state does not give up its secrets easily, no matter who’s in charge.”  The entrenched bureaucracy battle against transparency is another reason to promptly confirm Trump’s Cabinet choices, Johnson said.  “It’s one of the reasons why we need to get his nominees confirmed quickly, the sub-Cabinet posts confirmed quickly,” Johnson said. “He’s put acting administrators in place. He did that very swiftly because President Trump in his first term, he wasn’t a seasoned politician. … He came in far more trusting of the administration, that people would respect the fact that he won the election. He was now president. He’s commander in chief. The permanent bureaucracy, they don’t, they just look at any president, and the attitude is that this, too, shall pass.” Johnson wrote about 60 oversight letters as a ranking member of the subcommittee to the Department of Health and Human Services and subagencies regarding what he called the government’s failed response to the COVID-19 pandemic.  “The lack of transparency from the agencies has been jaw-dropping,” Johnson added. “We’re going to focus on that. I’ve got a pent-up demand for information that belongs to the American public that they have every right to see, things like the analysis of the vaccine-injury surveillance systems.” He noted that after several years, committee members gained access to about 50 pages of redacted email from Dr. Anthony Fauci, former director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases after initially requesting several thousand pages.  “The redacted emails were incriminating enough. Who knows who’s in those last 50 pages, so that there will be an early target of subpoenas,” Johnson said.  On his way out, President Joe Biden granted a pardon to Fauci, who some members of Congress think played a potential role in directing U.S. tax dollars to pay for gain-of-function virus research in a Chinese laboratory. The term “gain of function” describes a risky process of making a pathogen more dangerous or contagious for the purpose of studying a response. Fauci has previously denied that such federal funding occurred for the Wuhan Institute of Virology. However, he accepted the Biden pardon.  A presidential pardon would likely prevent someone from invoking a Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination for testimony. However, the Wisconsin senator said, the first order of business will be to obtain documents before calling Fauci to testify.  “First, we have to get the documents. I mean, what you don’t want to do is just call somebody in for an interview before they have the documentation to base your questions on. You don’t want to call people in for a hearing until you’ve probably done a transcribed interview,” Johnson said.  The post Confirming Trump Cabinet Is Key to Forcing Deep State Transparency, Sen. Ron Johnson Says appeared first on The Daily Signal.

Police Constable Who Investigated British Grooming Gangs Says Evidence was Met with Indifference

Trudeau: On Second Thought ...