Cross-Examination

• Colorado GOP may cancel its primary: When Colorado legalized marijuana back in 2012, a lot of folks shrugged and thought, Federalism. And while we had a hunch that the societal impact of easy dope would one day be readily apparent, we had no idea that it would strike the state’s judicial branch so forcefully. It’s hard to explain what those four justices were thinking when they used a Civil War-era amendment to kick the opposition party’s standard-bearer off the state’s presidential primary ballot, but this political charade has galvanized the state’s Republican Party. On Tuesday night, shortly after the Supreme Court’s decision, the Colorado GOP said that if former President Donald Trump isn’t restored to the state’s primary ballot in 2024, the party would cancel its primary altogether. We’re not sure what the strategy is here, nor how it punishes anyone except Republicans, but the plan has been in the works for months. It’ll mean that instead of filling out and depositing a primary ballot, Republican voters would go to their individual precinct’s caucus on March 7 to determine their preferred presidential candidate. It all seems unduly complicated. And, we believe, unnecessary. Colorado went for Joe Biden by 13 points in 2020 and is unlikely to figure in the outcome of the 2024 election. Beyond that, the caucus will likely be rendered moot by a fast-tracked Supreme Court ruling to overturn Colorado’s dopey decision. As columnist and constitutional law professor Jonathan Turley writes, “The moment has come for nine justices to speak in one voice.”

• Xi to Biden: We will take Taiwan: It’s no surprise that Chinese President Xi Jinping is committed to the “reunification” of Taiwan with China. What’s newsworthy, though, is that he evidently warned Joe Biden in no uncertain terms last month that he “intends to end Taiwan’s decades-long de facto independence — peacefully, if possible.” Weakness is provocative, and Biden is thus a highly, er, successful provocateur. First with the Taliban in Afghanistan, then with Vladimir Putin in Ukraine, now with Hamas in Israel, and coming soon, perhaps, with China across the Straits of Taiwan. As the New York Post reports, “Xi told the 81-year-old commander-in-chief that ‘Beijing will reunify Taiwan with mainland China but that the timing has not yet been decided,’ NBC News reported Wednesday.” Biden’s National Security Council spokesman, John Kirby, added: “I’m not gonna get into the specifics of the discussion between the two leaders. I think you can understand I’m not gonna read out that private conversation.” Oh, we can understand — probably because Biden said something stupid, like when he told Putin and the rest of the world that a “minor incursion” by Russia into Ukraine would be no big deal. Why is news of Xi’s weeks-old warning to Biden being revealed only now? Perhaps because the mainstream media now sees Joe Biden as damaged goods, as expendable, as unworthy of their continued protection.

• Plagiarism is so Gay: A fresh new batch of plagiarism allegations has hit Harvard President Claudine Gay, and it’ll be interesting to see how far the “Veritas” university is willing to go to protect this disgraceful quota hire. After all, Harvard has an honor code, and students have been dismissed from the university for the crime of plagiarism. Heck, Teddy Kennedy was once suspended from Harvard for a year when he paid a fellow student to take a Spanish test for him. How is that any worse than stealing the thoughts of others and pawning them off as one’s own? On Tuesday, Harvard’s research integrity officer, Stacey Springs, received a complaint of more than 40 allegations of plagiarism against Gay. As The Washington Free Beacon reports, “The document paints a picture of a pattern of misconduct more extensive than has been previously reported and puts the Harvard Corporation, the university’s governing body — which said it initiated an ‘independent review’ of Gay’s scholarship and issued a statement of support for her leadership — back in the spotlight.” Ultimately, this story is about much more than just the scalp of a dishonest Ivy League president. It’s about a university president having presided over an environment of hatred toward Jews, and about whether the color of one’s skin amounts to a permanent “get out of jail free” card against accountability. As The Wall Street Journal’s Jason Riley observes, “Once you lower standards for hiring administrators or admitting students, you are forced to lower standards for evaluating their conduct and performance.” We think Gay is on borrowed time, and Harvard’s defense of her will soon become untenable.

• LGBT activist puts porn in Little Free Libraries: In a blatant effort to corrupt children with deviant sexual material, the president of Northern Indiana Atheists, Troy Moss, has successfully launched a fundraising effort to build and place multiple book exchanges known as Little Free Libraries to “share banned and challenged diverse books.” Moss’s rationale for his campaign is a response to “local religious extremists” getting local government-run libraries to put books that describe, depict, and promote queer sex acts on request-only shelves. As Moss states, “We want the bottom shelf to be accessible by littles.” Originally seeking $800 for his deviant book-access crusade, Moss has pulled in nearly $1,000 to build and place several of his book exchange boxes in neighborhoods in and around South Bend and Mishawaka. A spokeswoman for Little Free Libraries, Margret Aldrich, explained that the national organization “does not police what stewards put in their Little Free Libraries,” though the organization’s website notes that “everyone who uses the library has the right of helping make sure the types of books in it are appropriate to neighbors of all ages and backgrounds.” So, parents might want to keep tabs on the books entering their neighborhood Little Free Library and remove any objectionable material.

• Tennessee sues BlackRock for climate deception: As we take stock of the past year, we can confidently report that it’s been tough for the Diversicrats, at least on Wall Street. There, the Environmental-Social-Governmental movement met with the reality of free-market capitalism, as investors clawed back more than $14 billion from their so-called sustainable funds this year. Ya hate to see it. Likewise, we hate to see what’s happening in Tennessee, where, in a first-of-its-kind lawsuit, the Volunteer State sued one of the leading pushers of the globalist ESG movement, BlackRock, for harming everyday Tennessee investors by way of the investment firm’s radical ESG commitments. As The Federalist reports, the suit details how BlackRock, thanks to its alliances with a group of ESG entities, “makes key company decisions based not on what will obtain the highest profit, but on what will instead move the world closer to radical ‘net zero’ goals.” In short, BlackRock has been misleading its investors by talking out of both sides of its mouth — the green side and the “green” side.

• Yet another reason to leave California: On Tuesday, the State Water Resources Control Board in California unanimously voted to approve standards that will allow for the “direct potable reuse” of sewage by treating and recycling it for drinking water. The Golden State now becomes the second state in as many years to green-light the recycling of sewage for drinking water. Colorado became the first just last year. California’s chairman of the state water board, E. Joaquin Esquivel, praised the decision, claiming it will help “ongoing efforts to find innovative solutions to the challenges of extreme weather driven by climate change.” With California having struggled with droughts for years, this decision comes after years of state leadership bowing to demands from environmentalist groups, which has prevented the building of more reservoirs and stymied sensible water-collection efforts. The question is, how much more will the cost of water rise for California residents?

• Civic illiteracy from California leadership: After seeing the Colorado Supreme Court’s unprecedented decision to have Donald Trump removed from the state’s primary ballot based upon a dubious interpretation of the 14th Amendment, California Democrat Lieutenant Governor Eleni Kounalakis wants to do the same in the Golden State. On Wednesday, Kounalakis sent a letter to California Secretary of State Shirley Weber calling on her to “explore every legal option” to see Trump removed from the ballot. Kounalakis ridiculously asserted, “This decision is about honoring the rule of law in our country and protecting the fundamental pillars of our democracy,” but she then later demonstrated her lack of civic literacy by writing, “The constitution is clear: you must be 40 years old and not be an insurrectionist.” Actually, the minimum age threshold the Constitution sets for the presidency is 35. Furthermore, speaking of the rule of law, Trump has not been convicted of insurrection, no matter how much Democrats and the Leftmedia repeat the word.

• Confederate monument removal proceeding: Well, that didn’t last long. The temporary stay ordered by U.S. District Judge Rossie D. Alston Jr. on Monday to pause the removal of The Confederate Memorial in Arlington National Cemetery has been lifted. Alston issued his temporary injunction following an objection raised by the group Defend Arlington over concerns about the potential desecration of graves. However, after touring the site on Tuesday, Alston lifted his injunction, stating: “I saw no desecration of any graves. The grass wasn’t even disturbed.” Sadly, the monument erected in 1914 for the express purpose of encouraging reconciliation is being removed for the false claim that it is divisive.

Headlines

• U.S. sanctions other countries for doing what Colorado just did (Daily Signal)

• Second gay sex tape allegedly filmed in U.S. Capitol (Daily Wire)

• Abbott starts flying illegals to sanctuary cities (NBC News)

• ACLU sues Texas over new law authorizing arrest, deportation of illegal immigrants (National Review)

• U.S., Venezuela swap 10 American prisoners in exchange for close Maduro ally (New York Post)

• Anti-gun group investigated after destroying weapons in “buyback” program, might have violated universal background check law (Not the Bee)

• Newsom’s 10-year plan to end homelessness enters its 20th year (Townhall)

• One million fewer men attended college last year than a decade ago (Daily Wire)

• Israel condemned by UN twice as many times as rest of world (National Review)

• Policy: Protect the Red Sea (National Review)

• Satire: Colorado Supreme Court demands Jack Phillips bake cake to celebrate Trump ruling (Babylon Bee)

For more editors’ choice headlines, click here.