Hundreds of Thousands of Dollars Pour Into House District 53 Race

Susie Greenberg and Deborah Silcox in front of the Georgia State Capitol Building (composite image)

While many of Georgia’s 180 state House of Representative seats are not competitive, District 53 is where Democrat Susie Greenberg hopes to flip the “most flippable” seat back blue.

Incumbent Republican Rep. Deborah Silcox was first elected in 2022 by a margin of less than 1,500 votes, after many years of Democrat representatives. She previously was a representative in District 52, before losing that seat in 2020.

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Alex Soros Continues His Father’s Political Operation, and Is Aiming to Shape the 2024 Election

Since The Wall Street Journal first reported that Alex Soros had taken over his father’s political operation on June 11, 2023, he has pumped tens of millions of dollars into an array of efforts to sway the 2024 election, financial disclosures show.

Democracy PAC, the primary conduit through which the Soros family shuffles its wealth into electoral politics, spent roughly $40 million after the WSJ reported that George Soros had passed the reins on to his son, campaign finance records show. The PAC’s spending under Alex Soros signals somewhat of a departure from how his father operated it, with less focus on criminal justice and a greater emphasis on helping Democrats keep the White House.

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Commentary: Chronic Absenteeism Is a Problem, but Most Proposed Solutions Miss the Point

Classroom

Two weeks ago, three unlikely bedfellows joined forces to announce their intention to cut K-12 chronic absenteeism in half by 2029.

The right-leaning American Enterprise Institute, the left-leaning Education Trust, and the nonprofit organization Attendance Works revealed their plan in Washington, DC. The coalition hopes to combat chronic absenteeism, defined as students missing 10 percent or more of school days in a given academic year, by implementing a variety of initiatives, including home visits and similar interventions. Chronic absenteeism rates more than doubled during and after the Covid response. The goal is to reduce these rates to pre-pandemic levels, or around 13 percent.

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Proposal Suggests Fully Funding Veterans Affairs to Avoid Missing October Distributions

Veterans

With a looming deadline to fund benefits to about 7 million veterans in October, and Congress out until Sept. 9, Maine Sen. Susan Collins and six colleagues have filed legislation to get full funding.

A Republican and independent are among the six. Veterans Affairs is facing a deficit of about $15 billion the remainder of this year and next – a deficit larger than the annual budget of the Environmental Protection Agency, says one senator.

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Commentary: Theater of the Absurd, Harris-Walz Edition

Kamala Harris and Tim Walz de-boarding a plane

H. L. Mencken apparently never quite said that “No one ever went broke underestimating the intelligence of the American public.” He said lots of similar things, however, and I like to think he would have been proud of being the sort of chap to whom people attributed such astringent mots.

He would also, I feel sure, regard the theater surrounding the Kamala Harris-Tim Walz campaign as a test case of the proposition.

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Male Students Do Better on ACT, Get Less Financial Aid

Male College Student

The gender gap in higher education is growing – and it may be due to how universities admit students and help them pay for school.

Men earn 42 percent of bachelor’s degrees, 38 percent of master’s, and 44 percent of doctorates, according to the American Institute for Boys and Men.

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Majority Says First Amendment ‘Goes Too Far,’ According to Poll

Peaceful Protest

Free speech suppression on college campuses and social media censorship often spur debates over how far the First Amendment should go to protect Americans’ rights to express their opinions – and who should be entrusted with those decisions. 

About 53% of Americans believe the First Amendment goes too far in the rights it protects, according to a new poll by the nonprofit Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression, or FIRE.

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Christian and Conservative Professors Divided over Louisiana’s New Ten Commandments Law

Jeff Landry

Political science professors at conservative and Christian colleges are split over the constitutionality of a new Louisiana law that requires all public schools to display the Ten Commandments in every classroom.

The law already faces a legal challenge from several families as well as left-leaning and atheist activist groups while Christian and conservative Louisiana lawmakers applaud the law.

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Newsom Strengthens Chinese Relations as Scrutiny Grows over Walz’ China Ties

Gavin Newsom and Xi Jinping

California Gov. Gavin Newsom declared “California Panda Day” to highlight Sino-Californian cooperation as scrutiny grows over Minnesota governor and now Democratic vice-presidential candidate Tim Walz’s close relationship with China.

“Building on our strong foundation of partnership and deep cultural and economic ties, I traveled to China last year to advance priority issues including climate action and economic development,” said Newsom in his proclamation making August 8 “California Panda Day.”

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Illegal Migrant Released into U.S. by Biden Admin Allegedly Committed 22 Crimes in Just Six Months

David Hernandez-Martinez

An illegal migrant from Venezuela allegedly committed at least 22 criminal offenses in the span of just six months and still may not be deported, a report from the House Judiciary Committee revealed Wednesday.

Daniel Hernandez-Martinez was released into the U.S. by the Biden-Harris administration in early 2023 before allegedly committing a slew of crimes, the report found. Despite the array of charges, the Venezuelan migrant — who is a suspected member of the “Tren de Aragua” gang — wasn’t detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) until his seventh run-in with the New York Police Department.

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Commentary: Forced Abortion Is Part of Dark World of Surrogacy

Brittney Pearson was a mother of four and 24 weeks pregnant when she was diagnosed with breast cancer—a tragic enough situation. To make a bad situation worse, though, the Sacramento native was pregnant as a surrogate mother for a gay couple.

Upon being informed of the cancer diagnosis, the two men demanded that Pearson abort the child.

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‘Beholden to Teachers Unions’: NEA and AFT Donated over $135K to Walz, Who Backs Their Far-Left Agenda

Tim Walz

Teachers unions are among the largest donors to Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, Democrats’ vice presidential candidate, giving over $135,000 to his campaigns for governor and, before that, Congress.

Walz, who once taught high school social studies, sides with teachers unions instead of everyday Minnesotans, some parents say.

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Georgia Tries Navigating 2024 Election While Investigating Unresolved Disputes of 2020 Election

Chris Carr

As Georgia prepares for the 2024 presidential election with implementing new rules and procedures, some unresolved 2020 election disputes remain, with the State Election Board opening an investigation into an issue it previously closed.

Heading into this year’s presidential election cycle, Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger is implementing election security measures as the Georgia State Election Board is enacting new rules that could impact the November election and investigating 2020 presidential election issues.

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Commentary: Social-Emotional Learning Is Hurting Students

Sad Student

Social-emotional learning (SEL) has been in vogue in education circles for decades. Following its precepts, teachers, counselors, and administrators encourage students to look inward and focus on their feelings. The result?

A generation of young people who can’t stop thinking about their emotions, leaving them incredibly fragile. But that’s not what many of the experts will tell you.

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New Platform Aims to Halt CCP Influence on States

Ryan Walker

There’s a new tool available for lawmakers and American citizens to combat the threat of the Chinese Communist Party. Today, Heritage Action for America launched the website CounterTheCCP.com, exposing the ways in which China stands to harm America’s sovereignty and offering model legislation and resources to deal with that threat.

“To win the new cold war with China, the United States needs a comprehensive strategy,” Ryan Walker, Heritage Action executive vice president, said in a statement.

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Three Months from Election Day, Georgia Election Board Alters Rules

Georgia Election Board

Georgia’s election board has approved a measure that allows county election boards to make a “reasonable inquiry” before certifying election results.

However, critics of the move are sounding the alarm, saying it will open the door to overreach.

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Abortion Numbers Up Since Overturning of Roe v. Wade, According to Report

Abortion Protest

Abortion occurred more often across the United States in the first three months of this year than prior to the Supreme Court overturning Roe v. Wade, a new report from the Society of Family Planning released on Wednesday showed.

The organization, which supports abortion rights, attributed the increase in abortions to laws in Democratic-controlled states that protect abortion doctors who use telemedicine to see patients from states with limits on abortion.

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Majority of Americans Would Not Advise Family Members to Join Military, Poll Finds

Boot Camp

The majority of Americans would not advise their family members to join the military, according to a Defense Priorities/YouGov poll released on Thursday.

Only 37% of respondents would encourage their family to serve in the military, while 63% would not, according to the poll. Several branches of the military have been plagued with recruiting and retention problems in recent years as the Pentagon continues to look for solutions.

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Harris Campaign Misrepresents Walz’s Congressional Accomplishments amid Scrutiny of Military Record

Tim Walz

The Harris campaign misstated Democratic Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz’s congressional accomplishments in a statement widely reported by the corporate media.

Harris campaign spokesman James Singer falsely said that Walz served as chair of the House Veterans Affairs Committee during his tenure as a federal lawmaker in a statement addressing the “stolen valor” scandal swirling around Vice President Kamala Harris’ running mate. Walz was only ever the committee’s ranking member, and the statement was reported by outlets including The Associated Press, Axios, Politico, PBS and NBC News.

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Commentary: Battle for the Soul of America

Donald Trump

There is a battle for the soul of America. 

The first shots of a long simmering revolt were fired when Democratic Party candidate Barack Obama pledged to “fundamentally transform” America five days prior to his winning the presidency in 2008.

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Fani Willis Says Resignation of Nathan Wade Was ‘Boon’ to Trump’s Defense, Urges Court to Toss Disqualification Appeal

Nathan Wade Fani Willis

Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis in a court filing published Friday argued the forced resignation of former Special Counsel Nathan Wade was a “boon” to former President Donald Trump and the other defendants in her Georgia racketeering case against the former president and his allies over their contest of the 2020 election results.

In a filing submitted on August 5, the district attorney’s office argued the victory for the defendants, though ultimately unnecessary, provides the necessary appearance of impropriety to dismiss their appeal.

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Commentary: DEI Litmus Tests Must End

Ideological litmus tests have no place in higher education. They weaponize loyalty and contradict the university’s purpose of fostering academic inquiry and informed debates. Scholars cannot pursue truth or progress if they are denied academic jobs based on their devotion to a specific political ideology or philosophy. 

I applaud states like Florida, Alabama, Wyoming, Tennessee, and Texas that have banned varied Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) requirements that mandate loyalty to its agenda. But we need to go further. Congress can deny federal funding to universities that impose DEI on faculty, administrators, and staff. Conservative lawmakers are already trying to “dismantle” DEI in the federal government and others are currently weighing defunding universities over Title VI violations. They should extend defunding to universities that require DEI. 

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Rhonda Vincent Releases ‘Destinations and Fun Places’

Rhonda Vincent

Rhonda Vincent is one of my favorite Opry performers, whom I had the privilege to interview back in 2021. Not only is our “Queen of Bluegrass” full of energy and light, but she is exceptionally talented and can play any stringed instrument, especially her beloved mandolin, like nobody’s business. And when she is surrounded by her amazingly gifted band, The Rage, you have one of the best performances at the Opry if you are lucky enough to attend on the evening they are playing.

Right before the pandemic in February 2020, Vincent was asked to join the Opry by long-time mentor and friend Jeannie Seely. She knew that 20 years ago, Seely had written a song about her called “I Miss Missouri,” which is where Vincent and her talented family are from. The only problem was when the great Nashville flood of 2010 hit, the song and lyrics were lost because Seely’s house was on the Cumberland River.

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Report Shows Harris and Emhoff Donated to Defund Police and Pro-Sanctuary City Group

Kamala Harris and Doug Emhoff

Vice President Kamala Harris and second gentleman Doug Emhoff donated to a liberal legal group in favor of defunding the police and permanently designating Washington, D.C as a “sanctuary city” that does not report illegal immigrants to Immigration and Customs Enforcement, according to their joint tax returns.

Harris and Emhoff donated $1,000 in 2021 and 2023 to Legal Aid DC, noted a Washington Examiner report.

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Butler Township Police Decline to Name Officer Who Claimed to Warn Secret Service of Would-Be Trump Assassin’s Perch, Cite ‘Numerous Investigations’

The Butler Township Police Department (BTPD) on Friday declined to provide The Pennsylvania Daily Star with the name of the police officer who claimed to warn the U.S. Secret Service about the possibility of an assassination attempt in a June 13 bodycam video released by the department Thursday.

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Jack Smith Requests Delay in Trump Case to Assess Impact of Supreme Court’s Presidential Immunity Ruling

Special counsel Jack Smith requested a delay Thursday night in former president Donald Trump’s election interference case.

Prosecutors wrote in a filing that the government is still assessing the impact of the Supreme Court’s presidential immunity ruling and asked for the timeline to be pushed back several weeks. Judge Tanya Chutkan previously scheduled a hearing for Aug. 16, but Smith requested permission to instead file a proposed schedule for pretrial proceedings by the end of the month, effectively delaying any action until September.

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Venezuelan Dictator Suspends X After Sparring with Elon Musk

Nicolas Maduro

Venezuela’s dictator Nicolas Maduro temporarily banned X from the country on Thursday after accusing the platform’s owner, Elon Musk, of using it to stoke opposition against him.

Maduro declared himself the victor in the country’s July 28 elections, despite credible concerns that the race was rigged against his political opposition. Musk has been publicly critical of Maduro’s refusal to step down from power, and Maduro has now suspended X from Venezuela in retaliation.

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Kamala Harris Takes Questions from Reporters 18 Days After Becoming Nominee

Kamala Harris

On Thursday, Vice President Kamala Harris (D-Calif.) finally took questions from reporters after being criticized for dodging the media for nearly three weeks after becoming the Democratic nominee for President of the United States.

As Fox News reports, Harris spoke to journalists on the tarmac at the Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport after a rally in Michigan. Her unplanned press gaggle took place after former President Donald Trump held an hour-long press conference at his Mar-a-Lago estate in the early afternoon.

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Advertising Coalition Accused of Censoring Conservatives Disbands amid Lawsuits

The influential advertising coalition known as the Global Alliance for Responsible Media (GARM) announced their dissolution on Thursday after facing multiple lawsuits from social media companies accusing the group of censoring conservatives, Business Insider reported.

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Biden Admin Cuts $85 Million Check to Boost Production of Green Appliance Despite Cratering Demand

Jennifer Granholm

The Biden administration is deploying roughly $85 million to boost production of a green appliance despite plummeting consumer demand, according to a Wednesday press release from the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE).

The White House on Wednesday announced nearly $85 million in grants for four producers of electric heat pumps, the DOE wrote in a statement. The announcement comes despite cratering demand for the electric appliance, with total U.S. shipments of the product falling 16 percent in 2023 despite the federal tax credit being raised from $300 to $2,000 in January 2023, according to a study from the University of California Berkeley’s Haas School of Business.

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Romanian Businessman Hired Hunter Biden in Effort to ‘Influence’ U.S. Policy, DOJ Says

Hunter Biden in front of US Capitol building (composite image)

A Romanian businessman facing bribery charges paid Hunter Biden in an effort to “influence U.S. policy and public opinion,” according to the Department of Justice (DOJ).

During the fall of 2015, Hunter Biden entered into an “oral agreement” with businessman Gabriel Popoviciu, identified as G.P., who wanted the U.S. government to “investigate” the criminal probe against him in Romania, prosecutors wrote in a Wednesday court filing in Hunter Biden’s upcoming tax case. Special counsel David Weiss’ team explained in the filing that Hunter Biden’s business associate would testify about the arrangement during his coming tax trial, slated to begin Sept. 5.

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Commentary: The Harris Flop Would Be Scarier than Her Flip

Kamala Harris and Tim Walz at a rally

Joe Biden won in 2020 on the premise that until the November election, he would pose as good ol’ Joe from Scranton and not scare voters.

So Biden talked about “unity” and “competency.” He erased his prior wild primary pandering to left-wing voters about shutting down fracking and opening the border.

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Georgia Election Board Seeks New Investigation into Fulton County’s Handling of 2020 Election

Sherri Allen

A Georgia State election board on Wednesday night voted to request that state Attorney General Chris Carr reopen an investigation into Fulton County’s counting of the results of the 2020 election.

The request comes after the board closed the matter in May, but voted to install an independent election monitor for the 2024 election, after an independent investigation found that the county likely scanned thousands of ballots twice in a recount of the 2020 election.

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