The Patriot Post® · Wednesday Top News Executive Summary
Democrat ecofascists in the Senate on Tuesday trashed an opportunity to practice what they preach by withholding votes on the socialist Green New Deal. As National Review reports, “Most Democratic senators decided not to vote on the bill at all, instead voting ‘present.’ The final vote was 0-57. All 53 Republican senators voted ‘no’ on the measure, and they were joined by three Democrats: Doug Jones (Ala.), Joe Manchin (W.Va.), and Kyrsten Sinema (Ariz.), along with Independent senator Angus King (Maine), who caucuses with the Democrats.” However, as Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell pointed out, “A vote for ‘present’ is a vote for it.”
The campaign to thwart Donald Trump’s veto of an earlier bill that would have voided his national-emergency declaration regarding border-barrier funding came up short in the House. According to Fox News, “The House voted 248-181 on Tuesday in favor of overriding — but this fell 38 votes short of the two-thirds majority needed. Only 14 Republicans voted in favor of the veto override.” Trump responded, “Thank you to the House Republicans for sticking together and the BIG WIN today on the Border. Today’s vote simply reaffirms Congressional Democrats are the party of Open Borders, Drugs and Crime!”
The Democrats’ continued obstruction on border security masks the real-world reality that the illegal-immigrant crisis is worsening by the day. According to NBC News, “Daily attempts by undocumented immigrants to cross into the United States from Mexico over the past month surpassed daily averages not seen since fiscal year 2006.” The report adds, “On March 19, CBP officers and agents stopped or apprehended 3,974 immigrants, the highest single day since the beginning of the Trump administration. Six other days since mid-February have topped 3,595, surpassing the daily average of 3,530 in fiscal year 2006.”
“Chicago Police Superintendent Eddie Johnson and Mayor Rahm Emanuel expressed anger over Cook County prosecutors’ decision to drop charges against ‘Empire’ actor Jussie Smollett Tuesday in a surprise court hearing,” CBS Chicago reports. Emanuel characterized the development as a “whitewash of justice” and wondered, “Where is the accountability in the system? You cannot have, because of a person’s position, one set of rules apply to them and another set of rules apply to everybody else.” A similarly frustrated Johnson stated, “I would never hide behind a brokered deal in secrecy. Period.” Columnist Michelle Malkin reminds us that “All crooked roads in Chicago lead back to the Obamas” and also offers some background on Michelle Obama’s former chief of staff, Tina Tchen, who appears to have influenced the outcome of this case.
Reuters reports that “Attorney General William Barr plans to issue a public version of Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s report on the investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election within ‘weeks, not months.’” Numerous pundits and lawmakers have demanded that the full report be released immediately, but vigilance is required. “Some portions of Mueller’s confidential report contain materials that arose during secret grand jury proceedings,” according to Reuters. “Federal rules generally prohibit the government from releasing that information to the public. The report also contains information about ongoing criminal investigations that Mueller referred to other U.S. attorneys offices.” Technically, Barr doesn’t have to release anything, so his decision to make what he can public is a nod to transparency.
Townhall’s Katie Pavlich reports, “Secretary of State Mike Pompeo announced Tuesday morning the United States is expanding the Mexico City Policy, which bans U.S. taxpayer money from being used for abortions abroad, to include additional organizations supporting the life ending procedure.” Pompeo declared, “We are … making clear we will refuse to provide assistance to foreign NGOs [non-governmental organizations] who give support to other foreign groups in the global abortion industry. We will enforce a strict prohibition on backdoor funding schemes and end runs around our policy.” According to Pavlich, “Pompeo also announced the enforcement of federal law banning the use of taxpayer dollars to lobby for abortion.” As Family Research Council President Tony Perkins points out, “Only 19 percent of the country agrees with Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) that the U.S. should be using foreign aid as a front for Planned Parenthood.”
Meanwhile, The Daily Wire’s Josh Hammer reveals that “Judge William Osteen of the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of North Carolina issued an opinion declaring unconstitutional North Carolina’s 20-week abortion ban.” A High Court reckoning may be coming, though. As Hammer also notes, “Prevailing U.S. Supreme Court abortion precedent allows a large role for the states in protecting fetal life. … Many conservatives … believe that the Supreme Court is bound to soon hear a landmark abortion case.”
Indifference for life at the opposite end: “It’s a sad day for New Jersey, as the state is poised to become the latest in the nation to allow medically-assisted suicide for terminally-ill patients. On Monday, state lawmakers passed bills in the Senate and Assembly approving the ‘Medical Aid in Dying for the Terminally Ill Act,’ which would give patients with six months to live or less the right to medication that would end their life.” (Townhall)
In 2017 alone, 48,000 people died of opioids, which includes OxyContin. According to the Associated Press, “The maker of OxyContin and the company’s controlling family agreed Tuesday to pay a groundbreaking $270 million to Oklahoma to settle allegations they helped create the nation’s deadly opioid crisis with their aggressive marketing of the powerful painkiller.” The AP further notes, “The deal comes two months before Oklahoma’s 2017 lawsuit against Purdue Pharma and other drug companies was set to become the first one in the recent barrage of litigation to go to trial. The remaining defendants still face trial May 28.”
For the record: “Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts has denied an emergency request by gun owners’ groups to temporarily stay the Trump administration’s ban on bump stocks. The ban took effect at midnight Tuesday. … The Justice Department issued the ban on Dec. 26, effectively classifying bump stocks as machine guns ‘because such devices allow a shooter of a semiautomatic firearm to initiate a continuous firing cycle with a single pull of the trigger.’ Bump-stock owners were given 90 days to turn them in or destroy them.” (The Daily Beast)
Humor: Jussie Smollett utilizes tried-and-true ‘I have a lot of money" defense (The Babylon Bee)
Policy: The Heritage Foundation provides “5 Things the Senate’s 2020 Budget Would Do.”
Policy: Tax-policy analyst Chris Edwards outlines some needed government-spending reforms in areas including but not limited to Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, Defense, and Interest.
For more of today’s editors’ choice headlines, visit In Our Sights.