Cross-Examination

• Even after Trump rebuke, MTG forces Johnson vote: Call it bipartisanship. Yesterday, the House of Representatives killed an effort by Republicans Marjorie Taylor Greene and Thomas Massie to force a vote on Speaker Mike Johnson’s ouster. It was an overwhelming vote, 359-43-7, and it was brought by Greene just before she got a gentle rebuke from Donald Trump: “I absolutely love Marjorie Taylor Greene,” Trump posted on Truth Social. “She’s got Spirit, she’s got Fight, and I believe she’ll be around, and on our side, for a long time to come. However, right now, Republicans have to be fighting the Radical Left Democrats, and all the Damage they have done to our Country. With a Majority of One … we’re not in a position of voting on a Motion to Vacate. At some point, we may very well be, but this is not the time.” Trump went on to cite his party’s strong position in the polls before adding: “But if we show DISUNITY, which will be portrayed as CHAOS, it will negatively affect everything! Mike Johnson is a good man who is trying very hard. I also wish certain things were done over the last period of two months, but we will get them done, together.” When the voting results were announced, the GOP side of the House let loose with a cheer, after which Speaker Johnson said: “I want to say that I appreciate the show of confidence from my colleagues to defeat this misguided effort. That is certainly what it was. I’ve said from the beginning, and I’ve made clear here every day [that] I intend to do my job. I intend to do what I believe to be the right thing, which is what I was elected to do. And I’ll let the chips fall where they may.”

• Biden’s BIG, BIG lie on inflation: The Leftmedia still isn’t quite sure what to do with Joe Biden. Do they ask him legitimate questions on occasion, thereby exposing his unfitness for office in the hope that their fellow Democrats will kick him to the curb at the party’s nominating convention in August? Or do they continue to run interference for him, to act as his Praetorian Guard to help drag him across the electoral finish line in November? CNN’s Erin Burnett seemed to opt for the former last night when, during an exceedingly rare interview with Biden, she challenged him on his dismal Bidenomics record and on the bone-crushing inflation that his money-printing policies caused. “No president has had the run we’ve had in terms of creating jobs and bringing down inflation,” he lied. And then he unleashed the Mother of All Inflationary Whoppers: “It was 9% when I came to office — 9%.” Fact-Check on Aisle 46: Inflation was just 1.4% when he took the Oath of Office on January 20, 2021, but it quickly blew up under his stewardship, reaching 9.1% just 17 months later. “What a clown,” posted Donald Trump’s son Eric. And who are we to argue with such a trenchant analysis?

• Biden calls illegal aliens “Hispanic voters”: In a recent interview with a Spanish-language radio station, Joe Biden unintentionally let the proverbial cat out of the bag when he referred to illegal aliens as “Hispanic voters.” Biden conflated the legal influx of Irish immigrants to America during the middle of the 19th century with the massive number of migrants who have illegally entered the U.S., saying, “It’s even a bigger influx now in terms of Hispanic voters, er, Hispanic citizens.” Most of the Irish immigrants were fleeing the potato famine. It’s disgraceful to liken them to the flood of illegal migrants flouting his open border. While it is true that the majority of illegal aliens are coming from Central and South American countries, it’s pretty presumptuous and even racist for Biden to suggest they are all Hispanic, as increasingly the number of migrants encountered are coming from all over the world. But the biggest problem is Biden referring to these illegal aliens as “voters.” Anyone who is here illegally should not now or ever be given citizenship and the right to vote. It is anathema to a society founded upon the rule of law instead of the rule of man or tyrants. Biden has exposed the whole motivation behind his open borders policy. It’s all about growing Democrat political power, period.

• Alleged murderer of Laken Riley is also allegedly a peeping Tom: We wish this disturbing story were more about remembering Laken Riley than it is her cold-blooded illegal immigrant murderer, but the suspect in the case is also accused of peering in through the windows of a University of Georgia staff member on same day he brutally murdered the young nursing student. As the New York Post reports: “The Venezuelan migrant accused in the shocking murder of Georgia nursing student Laken Riley has been indicted on charges for allegedly peeping at a University of Georgia staff member on the same day as the slaying. Jose Ibarra, a 26-year-old illegally living in the US, was hit with 10 new charges on Tuesday, including malice murder and kidnapping with bodily injury in the death of Riley, who was attacked while out for a run at the University of Georgia campus in Athens on Feb. 22.” In addition to the peeping-Tom charges, the grand jury in the case also indicted the illegal immigrant on counts of aggravated assault with intent to rape, aggravated battery, obstructing or hindering a person from making a 911 call, and tampering with evidence. If only Joe Biden and his fellow Democrats had seen fit to secure our borders rather than open them wide for the likes of Ibarra and countless others like him.

• Israel ammo update: The Biden administration admitted it paused the transfer of 3,500 bombs to Israel over supposed concerns about their use in urban settings and the impact on civilians. At issue is the Biden administration’s effort to prevent Israel from moving forward with its operation on the city of Rafah, which is the last stronghold of Hamas jihadists. On Monday, Biden warned Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that he would not support a major ground offensive in Rafah. To ratchet up the pressure against Israel even more, National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan effectively drew a line in the sand, claiming that how Israel engages Rafah will impact the U.S.‘s position on the war. With all these moves, the beneficiary is Hamas. And Biden is doing this because he’s concerned about placating the radical anti-Israel faction of his voter base. Logically, if Israel is condemned if it strikes from the air, and if it’s condemned if it launches a ground assault, then how exactly is it supposed to fight against Hamas? Use strong language? The fact of the matter is that the stance Biden has taken with Israel, America’s closest ally in the Middle East, in its war with Hamas is absurd. Democrats impeached Donald Trump for far less.

• Newsom’s tourism grandstanding gets deflated: If California Governor Gavin Newsom is really being positioned by Democrat power brokers to replace Joe Biden as the party’s presidential candidate, one of the issues he’ll have to address during the campaign is his own miserable record as governor, and before that, his miserable record as Mayor of San Fransicko. Perhaps that’s what he was up to recently when he claimed that California was awash in record-high tourism spending. Unfortunately, though, his story doesn’t hold up. National Review gives us the rest of the story: “Newsom triumphantly announced from San Francisco’s Golden Gate bridge on Sunday California’s tourism spending reached [a record] $150.4 billion last year. … 'From our world-renowned coastline, to the world’s tallest trees, to our iconic cities and theme parks, California is the nation’s coming attraction. Visitors from all over the world are coming here to experience the wonder of the Golden State, boosting our economy and creating good-paying jobs for years to come,’ Newsom declared.” Slippery Gavin was touting an independent report, but he failed to include a fairly important detail. According to a disclaimer within the report: “Adjusted for inflation, travel spending in 2023 was down 14 percent from the peak (in 2019).” Oops.

• Good news: Judge upholds religious freedom against LGBTQ agenda: The U.S. Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals dismissed a lawsuit raised against a Catholic school over the allegation of sex discrimination. Charlotte Catholic High School in Charlotte, North Carolina, was sued by a previously employed teacher, Lonnie Billard, whom the school refused to hire as a substitute after he announced his plan to enter into a same-sex “marriage.” The court pointed to the “ministerial exception” that permits religious institutions to mandate that employees uphold the tenets of their faith. Billard had violated the school’s rules against “engaging in or advocating for conduct contrary to the moral tenets of the Catholic faith, including the Catholic Church’s rejection of same-sex marriage,” and therefore he had no standing. “Even as a teacher of English and drama, Billard’s duties included conforming his instruction to Christian thought and providing a classroom environment consistent with Catholicism,” the court explained. "Billard may have been teaching Romeo and Juliet, but he was doing so after consultation with religious teachers to ensure that he was teaching through a faith-based lens.“ Luke Goodrich, vice president and senior counsel with the Becket Fund for Religious Liberty representing the Catholic school, said, "The Supreme Court has been crystal clear on this issue: Catholic schools have the freedom to choose teachers who fully support Catholic teaching.” He added, “This is a victory for people of all faiths who cherish the freedom to pass on their faith to the next generation.”

• Chicago voters’ message: While Chicago may be far from “MAGA country,” it’s increasingly becoming hostile territory for Joe Biden. The president will soon be heading to the Windy City to campaign and fundraise, but residents, particularly black residents, are not enthusiastic about the prospect of his reelection. Chicago-area radio host P-Rae Easley explained the reason for the negative view of Biden: “The city is completely fed up with the Democratic Party. We are stepping over illegals every day. They are now trying to break into people’s homes. Gas is through the roof, groceries are through the roof, violence is up. Nothing is comfortable here under Democratic leadership. We’re all moving on.” Another Chicago resident warned that Democrats may be in for a rude awakening, asserting: “So many of our black members have decided to change over, to switch from blue to red. And I think it’s kind of too late now to come to Chicago to appeal to us. It’s nothing here for him. We are fed up.” She added: “I think that they’re definitely going to vote for Donald Trump because we can’t afford to keep subsidizing the illegals who are coming here. … People are proudly stating that they’re going to vote for the first time in their lives, and they’re going to run to the polls to vote for Donald John Trump.” Well, if a large number of black Chicago residents do, in fact, cast their vote for Trump in November, Biden and the Democrats can’t say they weren’t warned.

Headlines

• Biden says Trump won’t accept 2024 election results (NBC News)

• Inside the left-wing dark money voter turnout operation targeting vulnerable patients (Washington Examiner)

• Chip Roy, Mike Lee introduce bill to require citizenship proof to vote (Daily Signal)

• CISA, FBI resuming talks with social media firms over disinformation removal, Senate Intel chair says (Nextgov)

• NPR CEO skips hearing to examine radio outlet’s ideological bias (Washington Examiner)

• Facebook’s Oversight Board to consider if “from the river to the sea” is hate speech (NBC News)

• Woke Disney’s stock plunges after another disastrous earnings call (Not the Bee) | New poll shows Americans overwhelmingly want Disney to return to family-friendly entertainment (Daily Wire)

• Humor: Dead worm found in RFK Jr.‘s brain already polling higher than Biden in 11 states (Babylon Bee)

For the Executive Summary archive, click here.