'Repeatedly refused to enforce federal immigration laws'

'I would pardon Trump'

Our Steve Morse Band Albums Ranked and Complete Discography list looks at the career of quite possibly the hardest-working guitar player in rock and roll. Not many guitar players have been part of so many classic rock groups while also celebrating such a phenomenal solo career. Most of us old rock and roll fans first discovered Steve Morse’s talents when he was the guitarist in the great rock and roll fusion band the Dixie Dregs‚ who were also‚ at times‚ just known as the Dregs. Others first discovered Steve Morse’s genius when he became the guitarist in Kansas in the 1980s. The post Our Favorite Steve Morse Band Albums appeared first on ClassicRockHistory.com.

Multiclassing with the Wizard class is pretty difficult due to Wizards being the only class that uses Intelligence as its main stat. So what are the best Wizard multiclass builds in Baldur’s Gate 3? Although Wizards are pretty great on their own‚ there are still some good options for multiclassing. Here are some of our recommended builds. Baldur’s Gate 3: Best multiclass Wizard builds There are a few good multiclass options for Wizards‚ although they’re the only class that relies on the Intelligence ability. But some subclasses use this stat‚ which can work well in a Wizard’s favor. Nevertheless‚ here are three good options to try out for a Wizard multiclass. Screenshot: PC Invasion Wizard (4)/Sorcerer (8) Both of these classes are spellcasters‚ and you get the best of both worlds with Sorcery Points and the Wizard’s ability to learn from spell scrolls. Metamagic can be fun to play with as a Wizard/Sorcerer sinc...

When his neighbor lost a hammer in the field‚ Eric Lawes didn’t think twice about using his metal detector to help locate the missing tool. What Eric didn’t expect was stumbling upon something else altogether‚ something ancient and worth much more than an old hammer! It was like any other day in the Hoxne village just outside of Suffolk‚ England‚ when Eric Lawes’s neighbor misplaced his hammer in... Source

Students learn in civics class—or at least they used to—that under the U.S. Constitution‚ Congress passes the laws‚ and the president and the rest of the executive branch have the duty to “take Care that the Laws be faithfully executed.” It seems that many federal officials missed that lesson in school‚ however‚ since government agencies today are writing regulations that flout the law with increasing regularity. Instead of executing laws “faithfully‚” the new standard seems to be “to the extent it’s convenient.” Take the Treasury Department’s recent rulemaking on federal funding to state and local governments related to COVID-19. You might have thought that the “public health emergency” related to COVID-19 was over‚ but regulators at Treasury came up with some imaginative changes to the English language to ensure that the federal gravy train keeps on rolling. By redefining “obligated” funds to include certain money that state and local governments merely estimate they will spend‚ Treasury effectively is extending the deadline for governments to tap the $350 billion COVID-19 slush fund all the way to 2026. The cost of this change to taxpayers likely will be in the tens of billions of dollars. Treasury’s rule is especially egregious because it bypassed laws intended to ensure that significant regulations allow a minimum of 30 days for public comment and congressional review before going into effect. But Treasury falsely declared those laws didn’t apply and made the rule effective on the next business day. All this was done‚ of course‚ the week before Thanksgiving‚ when it was most likely to go unnoticed. (It didn’t.) This is hardly the Treasury Department’s first offense. In the past couple of years‚ it: Classified electric cars leased by consumers as “commercial clean vehicles” to allow them to circumvent income limitations and domestic content requirements. Negotiated the U.S.‚ under Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen‚ into a new global minimum tax regime that is a uniquely bad deal for American companies‚ done without what the Constitution calls the “Advice and Consent of the Senate.” Concocted a new affordability test for health insurance coverage to expand eligibility for the Obamacare Premium Tax Credit‚ which appears nowhere in statute. Extended tax credits to foreign automakers by classifying countries as having “free trade agreements” with the U.S. based on extremely narrow trade deals covering only certain minerals. Twice pushed back by a year the start date of a new threshold for third-party payment apps to report transactions to the IRS‚ ignoring the effective date written in law. Plowed forward with a pilot program for government-run tax preparation services with no congressional authority. The list could go on. And of course‚ it’s not just the Treasury Department. Many federal agencies have stretched‚ twisted‚ or outright ignored the law instead of executing it faithfully. Among them: The Department of Homeland Security‚ the Justice Department‚ the Department of Health and Human Services‚ and the Environmental Protection Agency. The problem of executive overreach has been especially critical since Democrats lost control of the House of Representatives at the  beginning of 2023.  A divided Congress stalled a left-wing legislative agenda‚ but federal agencies’ “creative interpretations” and selective enforcement of the law kept the agenda moving forward. Or‚ more accurately‚ leftward. As bad as it is when our elected representatives in Congress pass misguided laws‚ it’s much worse when unelected and unaccountable bureaucrats and agency heads ram through unlawful regulations. That is not how our democratic republic is supposed to operate. In a government of the people‚ by the people‚ for the people‚ it’s imperative that every couple of years the people can toss out the politicians who are responsible for bad laws. But if the laws as executed are some Frankenstein version of legislation passed by Congress and rules and regulations concocted by political appointees and agency bureaucrats‚ then it’s much harder for the people to hold anyone accountable for laws they dislike. When the executive branch oversteps and snatches power from the legislative branch‚ the often-ignored third branch of the federal government—the judicial branch—becomes even more important. In the brilliant system devised by the Founders‚ courts can and must step in when federal agencies go rogue. Of course‚ some courts are more predisposed than others to stopping rogue federal agencies. But the general public can help push back against rogue federal agencies that issue unlawful regulations by submitting public comments in matters that concern them as citizens or  taxpayers. And ultimately‚ the people can elect politicians who they trust to appoint judges and Cabinet officials who respect the Constitution and the rule of law. Have an opinion about this article? To sound off‚ please email letters@DailySignal.com‚ and we’ll consider publishing your edited remarks in our regular “We Hear You” feature. Remember to include the URL or headline of the article plus your name and town and/or state. The post Rogue Agencies Flout Constitution and Undermine Our Republic’s Institutions appeared first on The Daily Signal.

The Michigan Supreme Court declined Wednesday to remove former President Donald Trump from the state’s 2024 ballot. The court wrote that it was “not persuaded that the questions presented should be reviewed by this Court” before rejecting the case on procedural grounds‚ according to a brief order. MichiganSupremeCourt-SCROTUM-1Download Last week‚ the Colorado Supreme Court ruled that Trump was ineligible to appear on the state’s ballot under Section 3 of the 14th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution‚ which disqualifies officials who take an oath to the Constitution and then “engaged in insurrection” from holding office. Colorado halted enforcement of its decision until Jan. 4 to provide Trump time to appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court. Niraj Warikoo‚ a reporter for the Detroit Free Press‚ wrote Wednesday on X‚ formerly Twitter‚ of the Michigan court’s ruling: Trump can be on the presidential ballot next year after Michigan Supreme Court ruling today. The court declined to consider appeal of lower court ruling in favor of Trump’s side. Free Speech For People‚ an organization backed by left-wing donors‚ filed the Michigan lawsuit in September to remove Trump after filing a similar case in Minnesota. “The events of January 6‚ 2021‚ amounted to an insurrection or a rebellion under Section 3: a violent‚ coordinated effort to storm the Capitol to obstruct and prevent the Vice President of the United States and the United States Congress from fulfilling their constitutional roles by certifying President Biden’s victory‚ and to illegally extend then-President Trump’s tenure in office‚” the lawsuit stated. Judge Elizabeth Welch issued a short dissent Wednesday‚ writing that “considering the importance of the legal questions at issue and the speed with which the appellants and the judiciary have moved‚ I believe it is important for this Court to issue a decision on the merits.” Originally published by the Daily Caller News Foundation The Daily Signal publishes a variety of perspectives. Nothing written here is to be construed as representing the views of The Heritage Foundation. Have an opinion about this article? To sound off‚ please email letters@DailySignal.com‚ and we’ll consider publishing your edited remarks in our regular “We Hear You” feature. Remember to include the URL or headline of the article plus your name and town and/or state. The post Michigan Supreme Court Declines to Remove Trump From State’s 2024 Ballot appeared first on The Daily Signal.

Liberal activist Kirk Bangstad’s Minocqua Brewing Co. SuperPAC on Oct. 12 filed a petition with the Wisconsin Supreme Court that sought to dismantle the state’s popular school choice programs and shutter the state’s independent charter schools. Bangstad hired international law firm Perkins Coie LLP—armed with more than $1 billion in revenue and 1‚120 attorneys—to take on 60‚000 low- and middle-income Wisconsin families benefiting from those school choice programs. Yet‚ despite a bottomless war chest and a newly Democrat-leaning judiciary‚ the Wisconsin Supreme Court unceremoniously dismissed Bangstad’s petition on Dec. 13 in a unanimous order. My organization—the Liberty Justice Center—filed an amicus brief in the case and praised the Wisconsin Supreme Court’s decision to uphold school choice. But what if Bangstad’s campaign had succeeded? In an explosive report by the Wisconsin Institute for Law and Liberty‚ Will Flanders analyzed data from Wisconsin’s Department of Public Instruction and revealed that the sudden tidal wave of new students displaced by the end of school choice would have overwhelmed the state’s public schools‚ severely compromising the quality of education available to Wisconsin students. For example‚ the Milwaukee Public Schools would have gone from a surplus of more than 20‚000 seats to a deficit of more than 17‚000—necessitating the immediate purchase or construction of at least 17 new school buildings. Likewise‚ to maintain its current student-teacher ratio‚ Milwaukee Public Schools would have needed to hire almost 2‚400 additional teachers—a nearly 57% increase in its current teaching staff. Those numbers are particularly daunting when considering that the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction is already facing a drastic teacher shortage‚ having recently tripled the number of emergency teaching licenses issued in the state. Even Bangstad’s lawyers were compelled to “recognize” that dismantling school choice in Wisconsin would “impact tens of thousands of children‚” but they nevertheless tried to justify their lawsuit by noting that their client “feel[s] that” the benefit to children currently attending traditional public schools “outweighs the negative impacts to the children currently benefiting from these [school choice] programs.” As Flanders’ analysis shows‚ however‚ these “feelings” were not grounded in reality. This lawsuit would have been a death knell not only for the school choice programs despised by the establishment‚ but also for the traditional public schools Bangstad claims to support. Unfortunately‚ Bangstad is not alone in his rabid campaign against school choice. Lawsuits are currently pending before the Supreme Courts of South Carolina and Oklahoma attempting to thwart those states’ nascent expansions of educational options for kids. In Texas‚ teachers unions successfully lobbied the legislature to kill a school choice bill—one that would have increased their own teacher members’ salaries at public schools—just to ensure that students are left without other educational options. And‚ most shamefully‚ a feckless state legislature and governor in Illinois bent to the will of a teacher union’s president—one whose own child attends private school—by allowing the Illinois Invest in Kids program to expire‚ effectively kicking 9‚600 low-income students out of their preferred schools. Wisconsin students and families are fortunate that their state Supreme Court stood firm on their behalf. Public officials in all states should follow their lead and stand with kids—not with special interests. The Daily Signal publishes a variety of perspectives. Nothing written here is to be construed as representing the views of The Heritage Foundation. Have an opinion about this article? To sound off‚ please email letters@DailySignal.com‚ and we’ll consider publishing your edited remarks in our regular “We Hear You” feature. Remember to include the URL or headline of the article plus your name and town and/or state. The post Special Interests Intent on Killing School Choice Don’t Care About Kids. Luckily‚ Wisconsin’s Supreme Court Does. appeared first on The Daily Signal.

“The ‘Tondelayo’ was being knocked about the sky … climbing‚ diving and making corkscrew patterns in a crazy choreography designed to unsettle the fighters‚ who were pressing in from all sides‚” according to an account by Elmer “Benny” Bendiner‚ the B-17′s bombardier‚ in his wartime postscript‚ “The Fall of Fortresses.” It was July 30‚ 1943‚ and the primary targets of the 379th Bomb Group were the Nazi aero engine shops located in the central German town of Kassel. Of course‚ B-17 bombing missions were no picnic. Aeronautical advancements at the time allowed a B-17 to fly at altitudes of approximately 35‚000 feet for up to 2‚800 miles‚ all while carrying a hefty bomb payload supplemented by 10 .50-caliber machine guns. The bomber‚ however‚ flew at a speed of just 150 mph‚ which left crews immensely vulnerable when flying through swarms of the 400 mph-capable Messerschmitt and Focke-Wulf-190s. What’s more‚ it would not be until the routine implementation of the P-51 Mustang in 1944 Europe that B-17s would be regularly accompanied by fighter escorts. In 1943‚ as casualty rates hovered around 30 percent‚ surviving the mandatory 25 missions as a crewman of a B-17 — ominously dubbed the “Flying Coffin” — often came down to luck. The Kassel raid was no exception. The Tondelayo and its crew weathered near constant attacks from Luftwaffe fighters‚ with Messerschmitt and Focke-Wulf-190s hedge-hopping from station to station to refuel along the bombers’ flight path — easy actions with nary an Allied fighter in sight. From the skies‚ German fighters spit the Tondelayo with 20 mm explosive shells. From below‚ anti-aircraft flak peppered the flying coffin. “I was undeniably alive in battle. … This was not the war of boredom and vermin we had read about in the tales of our fathers’ agony. This was a frenzy in which I heaved and sweated but could not stop because‚ shamefully‚ my guts loved what my head hated‚” Bendiner noted about the constant proximity to death. “I exulted in that parade of Fortresses forming for battle. I confess this as an act of treason against the intellect‚ because I have seen dead men washed out of their turrets with a hose. But if one wants an intellectual view of war‚ one must ask someone who has not seen it.” Throughout the war‚ B-17 crews became used to the all too frequent scene of adjacent bombers being hit and hurtling towards the earth. For the men of the Tondelayo‚ July 30 seemed like it would yield much of the same. But on that particular raid‚ the Tondelayo was afforded remarkable luck in the form of Czech prisoner of war sabotage.After losing both of the bomber’s waist gunners‚ Tondelayo crew members‚ upon successfully returning to England‚ discovered 11 unexploded 20 mm shells housed in the bomber’s gas tank. Such placement of explosives would normally spell out certain death for all on board‚ except for a “highly personal miracle‚” Bendiner recalled. In looking at the shells’ construction‚ the armorers found no explosives. Instead‚ the munitions were “clean as a whistle and as harmless‚” Bendiner wrote. One shell‚ however‚ wasn’t quite empty. Inside the casing was “a carefully rolled piece of paper” written in Czech‚ he noted. “This is all we can do for you now‚” the message read. Ultimately‚ the Tondelayo’s luck would run out. She now sits somewhere on the bottom of the English Channel‚ a relic of sacrifice and sabotage. Bendiner‚ meanwhile‚ retired from the service with a Distinguished Flying Cross‚ the Air Medal with three oak leaf clusters‚ and a Purple Heart. He authored numerous books after the war and worked as a journalist for Esquire. Elmer Bendiner died in September 2001.

US Carrier Group Back in South China Sea