Cross-Examination

• Will CMT get the Bud Light treatment? Country Movie Television’s decision to pull Jason Aldean’s video “Try That In A Small Town” from its channel over dubious claims of it being “pro-lynching” has thus far resulted in fans propelling the song to number one on iTunes’ Top Songs and Music Videos. But is a Bud Light-like backlash coming CMT’s way? According to financial consultant Ted Jenkin, CMT may soon be facing a significant financial hit. He warns: “I think people are just saying, ‘Enough is enough. Don’t force an agenda down my throat, especially when it comes to the products I buy or the TV that I watch.’” As of June, CMT ranked as the 43rd-most-watched basic cable channel, pulling in an average of 116,000 daily viewers. Just a 10% drop in that viewership average could result in significant negative financial implications, producing another example of “get woke, go broke.”

• Smithsonian’s Latino museum loses funding for peddling victimhood: Giving an accurate presentation of history matters. According to a number of House Republicans, the Smithsonian’s latest museum currently in development, the National Museum of the American Latino, utterly fails to meet that expected standard. In fact, it was “hurtful,” said Arizona Republican Representative Juan Ciscomani following his tour. “The only thing worse than your story not being told is your story being wrongly told, and that’s exactly what is happening here,” he explained. “The Hispanic community deserves better.” Not only was the quality of the exhibits lacking, but the main message was focused on presenting Hispanics as a victim class. When complaints were raised, Smithsonian officials ignored them; therefore, Republicans will take their power of the purse and pull funding. “We’ll fix it,” said Representative Mario Diaz-Balart (R-FL). “But the way to do that is to make sure the Smithsonian understands that we will not accept the patronizing, quasi-racist attitude toward Latinos in the United States of America.”

• Harris’s “made up” Florida curriculum: Speaking of advancing historical inaccuracy, Kamala Harris was recently called out by none other than CNN over her recent completely vacuous claim that Florida’s new curriculum standard for teaching black history includes the claim that “enslaved people benefited from slavery.” The trouble is, as commentator Scott Jennings observed: “This is a completely made-up deal. I looked at the standards. I even looked at an analysis of the standards in every instance where the word slavery or slave was used.” Jennings further noted, “Everybody involved in this says this is completely a fabricated issue, and yet look how quickly Kamala Harris jumped on it.” He concluded, “So, the fact that this is her best moment, a fabricated matter, is pretty ridiculous.” Grifters gonna grift.

• Water heater crackdown: First the Biden administration came for gas stoves; now it’s going after gas water heaters. On Friday, the Department of Energy released newly proposed efficiency standards regulations for gas-powered water heaters. The agency claims that the new standards would save consumers some $11 billion annually as well as reduce greenhouse emissions by 500 million tons over a 30-year period. In actuality, what the new rule would do is eliminate more affordable gas-powered water heater units, forcing customers into purchasing more expensive gas units or going electric. It’s just another example of the government putting its thumb on the scales. “These products already exist in the free market,” contended Representative Thomas Massie (R-KY). “Consumers should decide whether the upfront cost of a heat-pump water heater is worth the possible long-term savings. In many cases, the monthly savings never make up for the upfront cost of the equipment.”

• Labor secretary kerfuffle: The Biden administration has apparently decided to play coy with the Senate regarding the currently open seat for Labor Department secretary. Following Marty Walsh’s resignation from the post this past March, Deputy Secretary Julie Su has been filling the lead role as acting secretary. Apparently, she will do so on into the future, as Joe Biden has refused to officially nominated Su for the post since her hard-left policy record has made a Senate confirmation nigh impossible. With all Republicans and likely at least three Democrats objecting to her, the Biden administration knows she’s a no-go. Biden’s handlers can drag out the ordeal until October 7, the deadline established by the Vacancies Act requiring a nomination. Ridiculously, the Biden administration is attempting to claim that since Su is currently the acting secretary, the deadline doesn’t apply. Given the standoff, the courts will weigh in.

• Drug cartels and retail thefts: The problem of thieving flash mobs that suddenly descend on unsuspecting stores seemingly out of the blue, pillaging everything from big-box stores to small businesses, is anything but spontaneous. In fact, there’s evidence that this is part of a growing business model for Mexican cartels. According to DHS special agent Eric DeLaune, these mass thefts are “a $70 billion a year enterprise — organized retail crime.” DeLaune explains, “In contrast to shoplifters, organized theft groups engage in large-scale thefts which rely on teams of ‘boosters’ who steal goods from major retail stores, ‘cleaners’ who disguise the origins of stolen merchandise, ‘fencers’ who resell products through brick-and-mortar fronts and major e-commerce websites, and professional money launderers who funnel illicit profits to criminals orchestrating schemes.”

Headlines

• Hunter Biden put then-VP dad Joe on the phone with business associates at least two dozen times, ex-partner Devon Archer to testify (NY Post)

• Is Biden admitting he knew? Republicans call out “shift” in White House’s Hunter denials (Free Beacon)

• Professors urge Biden to defy “mistaken” rulings by “MAGA” Supreme Court justices (Fox News)

• DEI officers are “questioning their career path” as demand falls (Free Beacon)

• Criminal gangs are taking U.S. shipments of weapons meant for Ukraine (Townhall)

• Biden has a border terrorism problem as encounters with flagged aliens explode ninefold (Just the News)

• Biden overrules Pentagon, nominates first woman to head Navy (Fox News)

• Legal lotto: Florida family awarded $800K after McDonald’s Chicken McNugget burned four-year-old girl (Fox Business)

• Elon Musk rebrands Twitter, teases new financial features (National Review)

• Israel parliament passes Netanyahu’s judicial reform bill amid mass protests (Fox News)

• Policy: Pushers of Central Bank Digital Currencies are the most terrifying of villains (Heritage Foundation)

• Satire: Hero: Biden announces he will donate the rest of his bribe money to charity (Babylon Bee)

For more editors’ choice headlines, click here.