Sen. Joni Ernst is calling out the Biden administration for continued funding of “pathogens of pandemic potential” research in Guinea. Grants for the project have gone to the EcoHealth Alliance‚ which Ernst says “can’t be trusted — with dollars or dangerous diseases — after they funneled taxpayer dollars to fund Chinese-run risky research in Wuhan.” NIAID could easily come up with a new Guinea virus … and once again advocate for lockdowns‚ masks‚ and vaccines. Congress approved Ernst’s proposal to audit “defense dollars flowing to and through EcoHealth to pay for batty experiments in China or anywhere else.” Despite that provision‚ Ernst contends‚ “more funds have already found their way to EcoHealth Alliance. We must stop this before they are used to make the world a less safe place.” (READ MORE from Lloyd Billingsley: Crime and Punishment‚ California Style) A prime figure in that quest is Dr. Anthony Fauci‚ longtime director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases. The NIAID boss‚ a government bureaucrat since 1968‚ used the EcoHealth Alliance to channel taxpayer dollars to the Wuhan Institute of Virology (WIV) for dangerous gain-of-function research. Dr. Fauci also has connections to the continuing grants now under fire from Sen. Ernst. In September of 2021‚ the Department of Defense (DOD) gave Georgetown University a three-year grant of $2.8 million for reducing the threat of “high-risk pathogens” in Guinea. As it happens‚ Georgetown is the alma mater of Christine Grady‚ chief of  bioethics for the National Institutes of Health (NIH). Grady is also the wife of Dr. Anthony Fauci‚ and despite her fancy title‚ not exactly a star in the ethics department. A former NIH nurse‚ Grady is the author of  The Search for an AIDS Vaccine: Ethical Issues in the Development and Testing of a Preventative HIV Vaccine‚ from Indiana University Press in 1995. Dr. Fauci shows up on page 55‚ but Grady failed to reveal that she had been married to the NIAID boss for ten years. Her final-page disclaimer that the book was written in her private capacity does not excuse this deception. In similar style‚ when the NIH made Grady bioethics boss in 2012‚ they failed to mention that she was married to Fauci. Grady’s book authorized Fauci’s dangerous drug trials with AZT (azidothymidine)‚ and the author has no ethical problem with risky drug trials on pregnant women and children. Grady recommends research “in which the client and principal beneficiary is the community‚” and so does her husband.  “There comes a time when you do have to give up what you consider your individual right of making your own decision‚ for the greater good of society‚” said Dr. Fauci in October 2021. During the pandemic Fauci replicated the AIDS disaster‚ basically conducting vaccine experiments on the entire population‚ including children‚ the least vulnerable group. By all indications‚ this took place with full approval of NIA bioethicist Christine Grady‚ and without regard to consequences. “We will be dealing with the harm done for decades‚” explains Dr. Martin Kulldorff‚ co-author of the Great Barrington Declaration. “Our children‚ the elderly‚ the middle class‚ the working class‚ and the poor around the world — all will suffer.” The damage continues‚ and so does funding for dangerous research with pathogens‚ channeled through Georgetown and the EcoHealth Alliance. Dr. Fauci‚ who has connections to both‚ allegedly retired at the end of 2023. He said his replacement‚ Dr. Jeanne Marrazzo‚ is a “a really good person. I think she’s going to do a really good job‚” which makes sense on one level. During the pandemic‚ Marrazzo was a strong advocate of masks‚ social distancing‚ and vaccines‚ the whole Fauci-CDC package. (READ MORE: Travis Kelce‚ COVID ‘Variants‚’ and the CDC Vaccine Machine) Dr. Marrazzo commands a budget of more than $6 billion‚ with 21 laboratories and NIAID funding activities in 133 countries. That includes Guinea‚ where NIAID operates a “partnership of clinical research‚” and the DOD continues funding research for “pathogens of pandemic potential” through Georgetown University and the EcoHealth Alliance. NIAID could easily come up with a new Guinea virus‚ proclaim that it is already in the United States‚ and once again advocate for lockdowns‚ masks‚ and vaccines.  As in 2020‚ this could happen without any corroboration by independent medical scientists‚ with government suppressing contrary facts and opinion. As the CDC concedes‚ the Covid “variants” are pretty much the same as the original. The vaccines didn’t prevent infection or transmission but now everybody is supposed to get more jabs with their flu shot. That is the pitch from football players such as Travis Kelce and  Dr. William Schaffner‚ professor of infectious diseases at Vanderbilt University‚ who thinks Dr. Fauci is “a genius.” Dr. Fauci’s bio shows no advanced degrees in biochemistry or molecular biology‚ but the NIAID boss claimed to represent science. That is ludicrous‚ but the reality should be evident to all but the willfully blind. The time has come to hold Dr. Fauci and his cronies accountable for damages from the Covid pandemic‚ before the government announces the next one. Lloyd Billingsley is a policy fellow at the Independent Institute in Oakland‚ California. The post Fauci and His Minions Are Still in Control appeared first on The American Spectator | USA News and Politics.

It has seemed likely for several weeks that Israel would attack Rafah‚ reportedly the last holdout of Hamas’ forces‚ on Purim‚ which began a few hours ago. Nothing would make more sense. Purim is a time to remember that when under threat‚ the Jewish people unite. With pressure building up — most especially‚ of course‚ due to losses on the battlefield … the IDF has to strike and strike as hard as possible. Ts’al‚ Israel Defense Force‚ has been under intense pressure to get the first phase of the war over and done with‚ namely knock out Hamas’ battalion-level formations.  When this job’s  done‚ they still will have the job of mopping up small units and policing the area‚ but isn’t that what they’ve done since 1948‚ on all fronts and even at times within the country? (READ MORE from Roger Kaplan: Where Are the Israeli Players at the Australian Open?) They will have to decide how to do this‚ with what help they can obtain from their neighbors and the U.S. Without help‚ they must do it alone. They also must pursue the leaders who escape — or who have safely stayed out of the combat areas since they launched the attack of Oct. 7 —  to the ends of the earth‚ and that may take years. The pressure comes from many sources‚ the main one being‚ of course‚ the imperative of defending themselves. You cannot waste a moment against an enemy who has explicitly stated he means to kill you. Then there is the pressure from the so-called international community‚ which the Biden administration has all but joined.  I say all but joined only because they haven’t yet embargoed arms deliveries to Israel‚ as far as I know. Israel’s prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu stated that his country would prefer if the U.S. — and others‚ if there are any — helped it finish the job against the terror army of Hamas‚ but if necessary‚ Israel would do it alone.  Coming from a Revisionist family (supporters of the Likud political party‚ which voices the intellectual heritage of Zeev Jabotinsky) Netanyahu of all Israeli leaders knows that if Israel does not count on its own resources‚ it certainly cannot count on help from others. Actually‚ this is not an exclusively Revisionist viewpoint‚ though the left and the liberals in Israel always hoped‚ and expected‚ that they would not be alone against wicked enemies.  And they had strong reasons to hold to this hope and this expectation. First the French (until the Six-Day War)‚ then the Americans‚ helped‚ quite a lot in fact‚ in sustaining the state’s defense capabilities.  Obviously‚ this help would not have been forthcoming if Israel had not demonstrated again and again its own determination to survive and to prosper‚ in every sense. Now the situation is dire‚ as the U.S.A.‚ traversing a period of spiritual and political confusion‚ shows signs of losing its grip. We may get ourselves together sooner than some pessimists think‚ but Israel can scarcely wait.  It is up against an enemy that has sworn to kill every last Israeli.  It must expend resources to defend its northern front against another enemy with the same intentions and who is if anything better equipped than the one with whom Israel has been fighting in the south‚ Hamas. And in the background is a major state sponsor of terrorism‚ Iran‚ which the U.S. and Europe both have been appeasing in ways that make the term “Munich” almost too gentle. Time is therefore of the essence‚ and Purim‚ which every Jew in Israel and indeed the world knows is a time of near-destruction when only the heroism of Esther‚ the firmness and wisdom of Mordecai‚ and the benevolence of the Almighty stopped disaster.  Thus the calendar‚ at times‚ serves a morale-boosting purpose. With pressure building up — most especially‚ of course‚ due to losses on the battlefield‚ every one of which is felt personally by everyone in Israel — the IDF has to strike and strike as hard as possible to get the brunt of Hamas’ fighting force off the board. There will then be a job for the experts from Washington‚ to wit convincing Arabs to finally do the job they have avoided since 1948: the diplomatic job of being good neighbors with Israel‚ the Islamic job of caring for their fellow-Muslims‚ instead of leaving them to rot in refugee camps that produce killers instead of doctors and musicians. The Arabs‚ in their vast majority — I sincerely believe — know perfectly well that the terrorists who want to destroy Israel want to destroy or at least enslave them as well. The goal of Islamic radicals is to rule over terrorist-regimes like they one in Gaza.  They bear the guilt for the sufferings of the people living there. The goal of Islamic moderates should be to show there are other ways to build‚ or rebuild‚ creative and healthy societies‚ and along the way find practical ways out of the cycles of anti-Israel violence. [I]t is impossible to see how the State department’s critique of Israel’s war strategy is anything but willful stupidity. Whether “radicals” and “moderates‚” with their connotations in the liberal political traditions of Western societies‚ are accurate designations for the politics of societies where Islam is the major social factor‚ is another question; but as a practical matter‚ the question is whether it is in the interest of the regimes — and the general populations — of Egypt‚ or Saudi Arabia‚ or Algeria (to take three examples of “typical” Arabo-Islamic states) to have “radicals” like those actively operating against Israel (Hezbollah‚ Hamas‚ Iran) score a win‚ any kind of win? These radicals have repeatedly threatened and made war on precisely such different types of states as Egypt‚ Saudi Arabia‚ and Algeria.  (READ MORE: The French March Against Anti-Semitism) A victory against Israel‚ even a tactical victory like the repulsed but devastating October 7 invasion‚ emboldens the radicals to take on the “moderates.” These moderates‚ instead of being terrified‚ should be fighting the radicals no less tenaciously as Israel does.  They should  encourage their populations to do what they really want to do — again‚ I sincerely believe — namely‚ take care of their families and their businesses and invest in medical schools and musical conservatories‚ and develop some athletic prowess of their own instead of buying Western football clubs and golf leagues. The U.S. State department should know this. Calls for a cease-fire in Gaza indicate the depths to which the Western liberal democracies have sunk morally and intellectually. There is only one condition under which Israel can reasonably consider a cease fire: one in which Hamas unconditionally surrenders‚ gives up its commanders for trial in Israeli courts‚ turns in its weapons‚ and testifies to its dependence on the Iranian regime. Nothing short of this can break through the collective mental and moral blinkers that the West’s “elites” wear. ‘Nor can anything short of this do anything for the West’s security.  If the Arab-Islamic radicals have the “moderate” Islamic regimes in their sights‚ they are not about to forget the scores they have to settle with the  infidels in the dar al Harb‚ which they view as lands to be conquered.  The attack on Moscow’s theater a few days ago‚ appalling as it is to say so‚ is in this regard a bracing reminder: even an anti-West part of the West is not safe from attack.  Maybe the terror attack was staged by Putin’s thugs — they’ve done this sort of thing before.  But in practical terms‚ all this would mean is that the ISIS commando responsible for the attack‚ in traditional Islamist fashion‚ lent itself to “manipulation” by an enemy regime‚ willingly or unwittingly calculating that a temporary tactical alliance with a kafir is okay if it kills kuffaar. (Such diabolical calculations are not unique to Islamic radicals‚ obviously; the communists used to say‚ “the worse it gets the better it gets.”) Obviously‚ we do not know.  But in the short term perspective‚ it is impossible to see how the State department’s critique of Israel’s war strategy is anything but willful stupidity.  You should not attack Rafah‚ the argument goes‚ because it will make the world dislike you for harming civilians.  Rather‚ you should accept a cease fire‚ which will allow Hamas and the UNRWA and assorted grifters succor these same civilians. However‚ the self-designated spokesmen of “the world” have amply shown their dislike for Israel.  Their dislike is so visceral and irrational that there is zero chance a charitable act will soften their feelings for the Jewish state‚ or Jews in general. Hamas‚ on its side‚ has shown exactly how much it cares for the welfare of Gaza’s population.  It has stolen their food‚ their medical supplies‚ and their lives‚ and still it uses their broken bodies as shields against Israel’s fire. Which‚ though reminding “the world” of this detail really is futile‚ Israel does its best to direct only at armed enemy targets‚ at considerable cost to its own fighting men and women. (READ MORE: ‘Right or Wrong‚ My Country’: Americans Need to Imitate Israel) The State department’s arguments‚ in short‚ are stupid and even wicked‚ because their purpose‚ the securing of a cease fire‚ will allow Hamas and related gangs to regroup and resupply and begin all over again — causing more suffering among Gazans and more anti-Israel hatred in “the world.” If this is American diplomacy at its finest‚ give me a random pick of the Juneau‚ Alaska phone book to fill the embassies and the offices at Foggy Bottom‚ the Republic will be served better.   The post The Power of Purim appeared first on The American Spectator | USA News and Politics.

A recent news report from ABC News caught my eye and should raise the eyebrows of all 85‚815‚827 Americans enrolled in Medicaid‚ 26 percent of the U.S. population. After the patient dies‚ his or her inheritors can lose their homes and/or their retirement savings to pay back Medicaid’s “free” medical care. Massachusetts Medicaid enrollee Salvatore LoGrande recently lost his battle with cancer after extensive medical treatment. Before he died‚ he remarked how proud he was that he had paid off the family home and could leave it free-and-clear to his daughter‚ Sandy.  (READ MORE from Deane Waldman: Insuring Illegals Takes Care from ‘Legals’) After his death‚ Sandy was shocked to receive a bill from Massachusetts Medicaid for $177‚000‚ payable within 30 days. The MERP man had come to collect. Eight years ago‚ I warned the public about MERP. Few people paid attention. MERP (Medicaid Estate Recovery Program) remains in effect and is well hidden. MERP is‚ as Paul Craig Roberts‚ Former Assistant Secretary of the Treasury for Economic Policy‚ said‚ “a pernicious death tax on those who have the least and are the most vulnerable.” Medicaid rules allow each state to recover the cost of care from the estates of deceased Medicaid recipients‚ plus an admin fee. The children and heirs of people enrolled in Medicaid who eventually die must pay the state government back. This fact is very poorly publicized and not well known. Some states include estate recovery in very fine print in the eleven-page Medicaid contract. Other states hide it entirely. It has been said that medical expenses during the last six months of life can exceed all prior medical costs over the person’s lifetime. Mr. LoGrande’s bill is not unusual‚ except that it may be atypically low! My neighbor’s bill for six months’ chemotherapy for lymphoma was $494‚000.  (She survived.) In addition to the cost of care‚ MERP assigns an administrative fee of up to $73‚320. Thus‚ typical MERP bills are several hundred thousand dollars. These bills are handed to those least able to pay the government back. They qualified for Medicaid and thus are on the lower end of the income scale. When a Medicaid family cannot pay these huge sums‚ state government is entitled to attach a lien on property or even pension funds. That is how the LoGrandes are losing their house. Each state chooses to implement as much or as little of the MERP claw-back provisions as it wishes. In 2015‚ New Mexico (NM) essentially chose not to invoke MERP. Despite the large number of Medicaid enrollees‚ 815‚000 individuals (forty percent of state population) and despite a $417 million budget shortfall‚ NM Medicaid chose to claw back a total of $9‚000. Other cash-strapped states‚ such as California‚ Illinois‚ Connecticut‚ and obviously Massachusetts‚ take the opposite approach and grab whatever they can. If you are waiting for data such as how much was collected and how many people were ensnared‚ you will wait forever. The states rarely release data to the public on their MERP programs. I was only able to acquire information on New Mexico because‚ at that time‚ I was inside the government as Director on the New Mexico Health Insurance Exchange Board. I cannot proffer data on other states as that information is not available. The public only gets to know what’s going on when some family like the LoGrandes make their stories known. (READ MORE: There’s a Tiny ‘Bubble’ That Could Save Healthcare) MERP‚ by its nature‚ is a clandestine program and comes as a great and most unwelcome surprise bill to the families. Even as Washington passes legislation to stop care providers from handing patients “surprise bills‚” state Medicaid programs are presenting patients’ families with a terrible surprise bill right after they lose their loved one. Though former President Obama said he would make his administration “the most transparent in history‚” the correct adjective for MERP is opaque. At a time when Washington is passing mandates for price transparency for medical providers‚ they still abide by the cynical but accurate aphorism‚ “rules [transparency] for thee but not for me.” Americans have been led to believe that Medicaid is a no-charge medical insurance program funded by both the federal and state governments. True‚ there is no-charge to the person receiving the care. After the patient dies‚ his or her inheritors can lose their homes and/or their retirement savings to pay back Medicaid’s “free” medical care. Deane Waldman‚ M.D.‚ MBA is Professor Emeritus of Pediatrics‚ Pathology‚ and Decision Science; former Director of the Center for Healthcare Policy at Texas Public Policy Foundation; former Director‚ New Mexico Health Insurance Exchange; and author of the multi-award winning book Curing the Cancer in U.S. Healthcare: StatesCare and Market-Based Medicine. The post Medicaid Enrollees: The State Can Take Your House appeared first on The American Spectator | USA News and Politics.

Like the United States itself‚ the opaque world of espionage is now badly polarized. While no official confirmation has been issued‚ there are various reports that British actor Aaron Taylor-Johnson‚ 33‚ will be the next James Bond‚ the successor in this magnificent franchise that started with Sean Connery in “Dr. No” in 1962 and concluded with Daniel Craig in “No Time to Die” in 2021. (READ MORE from Frank Schell: India’s Ontological Question: Regional or Global) Taylor-Johnson seems certainly the right age.  Some industry sources advise that Bond was born in 1920‚ which would make him 33 when Casino Royale‚ the first Bond novel‚ was published in 1953.  The forces of modernity and tradition are mobilizing themselves for what may be a cosmic conflict about the nature‚ behavior‚ and kit of a superspy. Supporters of the new Bond order may desire a clandestine agent as a habitué of Starbucks. Film critics will debate the pros and cons of this selection.  What is particularly alarming about Taylor-Johnson is that he reportedly grows his own kale‚ which a waggish chap might say tastes like a motel shower curtain. Kale is said to have been grown in the ancient world‚ although it is no secret that the Millennials‚ also known as Generation Y‚ think they discovered it. Media have characterized Taylor-Johnson as a “feminist‚” and this label could generate further controversy regarding a newly anointed Bond of MI6‚ the British Secret Intelligence Service. The PC and woke pundits will doubtless gush over the appropriateness of this selection — if it turns out to be true. They will argue that the world needs switched on‚ more sensitive secret agents who can operate in a free form‚ “open-source‚” egalitarian manner — coolly matrixed to constituencies without the “sneer of cold command‚” in the words of Shelley’s sonnet in iambic pentameter‚ “Ozymandias.” They may opine that the time has come to be more tolerant of Chinese‚ Russian‚ Iranian‚ and North Korean intentions‚ since the 21st century no longer belongs to the West. They may say that the next Bond must embody the aspirations and yearnings of the Global South‚ seeking not to suppress them by the robust Anglo-American alliance‚ but to enhance and nurture them. Those pundits could also say that archfiends such as Ernst Stavro Blofeld‚ said to be of Polish and Greek antecedents and the boss of SPECTRE‚ need to be brought inside the tent‚ and accorded the respect that they deserve. They might say that besides Blofeld (“You Only Live Twice”)‚ Dr. No and Auric Goldfinger (by movies of those names)‚ Hugo Drax (“Moonraker”)‚ and Rosa Klebb (“From Russia with Love”) are painfully misunderstood victims — persecuted by Great Britain and the United States‚ the heir and successor to the British Empire.  They may suggest that instead of bashing Blofeld‚ the new Bond should invite him to the ominous looking MI6 headquarters at London’s Vauxhall Cross — not to break bread‚ but to break crunchy kale chips. Supporters of the new Bond order may desire a clandestine agent as a habitué of Starbucks‚ queueing up gently for a latte with extra foam and nutmeg‚ briskly downloading special apps — and engaging a barista with charm.  They will want a Bond who is casually kitted out‚ perhaps in torn jeans‚ Birkenstocks‚ a backward baseball cap‚ and a T-shirt with a slogan helping Bond to feel good about himself. They may also be anti-foppery. There would be no place for the bespoke suits and designer silks of London’s Savile Row and Jermyn Street. The new Bond may tote a backpack‚ looking like he is about to assault the menacing Kangshung Face on a Tibetan side of Mount Everest. As for the weapons kit‚ the new Bond might not even carry. Festooned with moral authority and the desire to have meaningful dialogue‚ he could comport himself into the heart of darkness with goodwill as his backup weapon. (RELATED from Frank Schell: James Bond: Metamorphoses and The James Bond Franchise Needs Help) Arrayed against this image of the new Bond are the supporters of tradition — those with a Manichean view of good versus evil; those who have read Joseph Conrad’s The Secret Agent; those clandestine veterans of the Cold War who knew the gray half-light of Eastern Europe; those who can discourse on the subtleties among sevruga‚ ossetra‚ and beluga caviar; those who can wash down foie gras with the finest Sauternes; those who sport trilbies‚ carry an English tan briefcase‚ and a Whangee crook; those who eschew moral relativism; and those who are dismayed by the perceived politicization of intelligence. A successful British actor‚ Taylor-Johnson must be wished every opportunity for success. The Ian Fleming and Bond legacies should not be allowed to atrophy. It is highly doubtful that any actor can perform like Sean Connery‚ however Taylor-Johnson must be given the chance to make his mark — even though to some he might look more like an alienated poet of the counterculture than a grim‚ clandestine operative. Frank Schell is a business strategy consultant and former senior vice president of the First National Bank of Chicago. He was a Lecturer at the Harris School of Public Policy‚ University of Chicago and is a contributor of opinion pieces to various journals. The post The Next James Bond Polarizes Espionage appeared first on The American Spectator | USA News and Politics.

by Geoffrey Grinder‚ Now The End Begins: A woman who was banned from a Planet Fitness gym after photographing a transgender customer shaving in the women’s locker room claims the gym has since assigned a staffer to accompany the person in the ladies-only area — and is telling other women to back off. TRUTH LIVES […]

by Stefan Stanford‚ All News Pipeline: Two very high profile personalities‚ General Michael Flynn and former presidential candidate and Congressman Ron Paul‚ have recently warned of an upcoming Black Swan Event‚ with Paul saying it will be “very‚ very‚ dangerous.” First off‚ for those that have never heard of a Black Swan Event‚ it is defined […]

from SGT Report: Google whistleblower and friend Zach Vorhies returns to SGT Report to discuss the Zionist’s endless wars‚ war crimes in Gaza and Ukraine‚ globalist smear tactics and trolls. Thank you for tuning in! Protect Your Retirement W/ a Gold and/or Silver IRA: https://www.sgtreportgold.com/ or CALL( 877) 646-5347 – Noble Gold is Who I […]

from The Highwire with Del Bigtree:  TRUTH LIVES on at https://sgtreport.tv/

from Revolver News: A group called “Squatter Squad” has dived headfirst into the mess of squatting that’s sweeping the nation. They believe they have the solution to help desperate homeowners. Many local city officials are backing squatters instead of legal‚ decent homeowners. Just another day where regular Americans get the short end of the stick […]