Cross-Examination

• House passes Biden’s tax-and-spend bill: On Friday, House Democrats passed Joe Biden’s tax-and-spend “green energy” boondoggle, deceitfully named the Inflation Reduction Act. The Senate passed the bill two weeks ago, thanks to Democrat Senator Joe Manchin (WV) doing an about-face and dropping his opposition to such spending and tax-raising during a recession. In the House, the bill also passed on strict party lines by a vote of 220-207. Biden will now sign the legislation, which includes $80 billion in new spending to nearly double the size of the Internal Revenue Service, raising the specter of increased tax audits against middle-class Americans. The expansion is expected to increase tax revenue by at least $20 billion from those earning less than $400,000 annually. Another aspect of this bill is the expanded EV tax credit, which pushes more Americans into purchasing more expensive electric vehicles with the promise of what effectively amounts to a tax break in name only.

• Government sneakily taking over health insurance: According to the Department of Health and Human Services, the number of uninsured Americans hit an “all-time low” early this year. There are now fewer than 5.2 million uninsured, which HHS is celebrating as a milestone. But, ironically, this milestone has been reached while the cost of health insurance has increased. Since the pandemic, the number of Americans on Medicaid has increased by 24 million (or 34%). The total number of Americans now enrolled in Medicaid now exceeds 75 million. The question is, given that the U.S. unemployment rate has once again reached near-record lows, how are so many Americans still eligible for Medicaid? It all has to do with Joe Biden’s continued declaration of a public health emergency, which prevents people from being booted even though their income exceeds the qualification threshold. Furthermore, the Democrats expanded the ObamaCare exchange subsidies in March 2021, ensuring that millions more Americans would not be paying higher premiums. Meanwhile, since the start of the pandemic, Medicaid and ObamaCare spending has increased by roughly $230 billion, all on the taxpayers’ dime.

• Baldwin did pull the trigger: An FBI investigation into the fatal shooting of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins by actor Alec Baldwin on the set of the film “Rust” determined that the gun in question, a .45 Long Colt F.lli Pietta single action revolver, “could not be made to fire without a pull of the trigger,” contradicting Baldwin’s claims. In a news interview last year, Baldwin claimed that he pulled “the hammer as far back as I could without cocking” it and then “let go of the hammer [and] bang, the gun goes off.” He further asserted that “the trigger wasn’t pulled… I didn’t pull the trigger.” “I would never point a gun at anyone and pull the trigger at them,” Baldwin emphasized and then charged that “someone put a live bullet in a gun, a bullet that wasn’t even supposed to be on the property.” Thus far, no charges have been brought against anyone, though Baldwin and several members of the production crew are facing lawsuits. This latest finding certainly doesn’t help Baldwin.

• Cartel mayhem in Mexico highlights the need for a secure border: Over the weekend in Tijuana, Mexico, mayhem erupted as a drug war between rival cartels spilled out into the street. Police assisted by hundreds of Mexican Army and National Guard troops sought to squelch the violence. With several vehicles set on fire amidst the violence, the U.S. ordered government employees at the consulate in Tijuana to shelter in place. The Jalisco New Generation Cartel had issued a warning: “Be ware. As of Friday at 10 p.m. through Sunday at 3 a.m. we’re going to create mass chaos so the [expletive] government frees our people. We’re the Jalisco New Generation Cartel, we don’t want to hurt good people but it’s best they don’t go outside, we’re going to attack anyone we see on the streets on these days.” The violence in the city that borders the U.S. once again served to underscore the need for maintaining a secure border.

Headlines

• Trump under investigation for violating Espionage Act, search warrant reveals (Washington Times)

• New twist in FBI raid: Trump had “standing order” to declassify documents taken to residence (Just the News)

• Author Salman Rushdie stabbed on lecture stage in New York (The Hill)

• Taliban mark one year in power after Biden’s Afghanistan surrender and retreat (Reuters)

• Louisiana Supreme Court denies appeal challenging abortion ban (Fox News)

• Arizona bucks Biden admin, begins filling in huge border wall gap on its own (Daily Wire)

• Pompeo says China’s Xi senses “weakness” emanating from White House (Washington Times)

• Biden admin launches federal investigation into Southern Baptist Convention (Daily Wire)

• Inflation costing the average American $717 a month (Fox News)

• Palestinian shooter wounds eight in Jerusalem attack (BBC)

• Policy: Teachers unions, not parents, politicized U.S. schools (FEE)

• Humor: AOC says it’s dumb for Republicans to call U.S. a Banana Republic since it’s more like a Forever 21 (Babylon Bee)

• Satire: Jeffrey Toobin departing CNN to expose himself to new audiences (Babylon Bee)

For more of today’s editors’ choice headlines, visit Headline Report.