Pablo Picasso Girl with a Mandolin (Fanny Tellier) 1910
Benz Glenn
Mike Benz Reveals USAID as a CIA Front for Foreign Meddling and Influence Operations
“… there is not an inch of daylight between USAID and the State Department, and USAID exists as an illusion to fool you into thinking that USAID is not the State Department, but it is. The only… pic.twitter.com/NBzQhUPpmE
— UngaTheGreat (@UngaTheGreat) February 4, 2025
SEN. JOHN KENNEDY
SEN. JOHN KENNEDY: “The USAID are screaming like they're part of a prison riot because they don't want us reviewing the spending. But that's all @elonmusk is doing. And he's finding some pretty interesting stuff … Just what the President said he was going to appoint Musk to do.” pic.twitter.com/etfGizrxEI
— Chief Nerd (@TheChiefNerd) February 4, 2025
Leavitt
NOW – Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt on Trump's deportation operation; "President Trump is not messing around and he's no longer going to allow America to be a dumping ground for illegal criminals from nations all over this world." pic.twitter.com/Lkai82FQFb
— Overton (@overton_news) February 4, 2025
Raskin
BREAKING: Rep. Jamie Raskin blasts Elon Musk outside USAID HQ, declaring that Democrats will block DOGE from eliminating government waste and fraud.
"Elon Musk, you didn't create USAID."
"He doesn't have the power to destroy it, and who will stop him? We are!"
"We don't have a… pic.twitter.com/sXtf9AqDZe
— KanekoaTheGreat (@KanekoaTheGreat) February 3, 2025
McCain
Meghan McCain is now threatening senators who will not vote to confirm Tulsi Gabbard.
"If anyone votes against her, I promise you I will do anything in my power to make sure there are consequences for this… there will be hell to pay." pic.twitter.com/Ljpe1l1vg6
— Ron Smith (@Ronxyz00) February 3, 2025
McCabe
Corrupt FBI guy attacks @realDonaldTrump. There are many like him still in FBI. So many that I don't think the agency is salvageable.pic.twitter.com/rN4m5NkiVl
— Tom Fitton (@TomFitton) February 4, 2025
80%
Elon is doing the same thing with our government that he did with Twitter. pic.twitter.com/pU4npd8fxN
— Don Keith (@RealDonKeith) February 3, 2025
Vivek
Simple formula to downsize the federal government: cut as much as possible & when in doubt, send it to the states. Federalism is the backstop. pic.twitter.com/j4GaojicgO
— Vivek Ramaswamy (@VivekGRamaswamy) February 4, 2025
“Ukraine is not losing, but the front is moving in the wrong direction”
Mark Rutte
Force 2 million people from their homeland and turn it into a playground for the rich. As Tacitus said: “they make a desert and call it peace”. Not Trump’s finest idea. “Jordan and Egypt should take them”. “But they don’t want to..” “Oh well, we’ll give them money”. “It’s not about money, it’s about homeland”.
• US Will ‘Take Over’ Gaza – Trump (RT)
US President Donald Trump has announced that the United States will assume control over the Gaza Strip, vowing to rebuild the war-torn enclave and create economic opportunities for its future residents. When asked whether US troops would be deployed to Gaza, Trump vowed to “do what is necessary.” Trump made the remarks on Tuesday following his meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the White House. The US president reiterated his view that Palestinians should be permanently resettled elsewhere, adding that the US would “take over” Gaza and lead efforts to clear the destruction left by 15 months of war between Israel and Hamas.“The US will take over the Gaza Strip. And we will do a job with it, too. We’ll own it and be responsible for dismantling all of the dangerous unexploded bombs and other weapons on the site,” Trump said, promising to “level the site and get rid of the destroyed buildings.”
Asked to clarify what exactly he meant by a “takeover,” the US leader said he envisions a “long-term ownership position” that would supposedly bring “great stability” to the entire Middle East. “Everybody I’ve spoken to loves the idea of the United States owning that piece of land, developing it, and creating thousands of jobs,” Trump claimed. Trump also said he is not ruling out deploying US troops to support his Gaza development plan. “We’ll do what is necessary. If it’s necessary, we’ll do that. We’re going to take over that place,” he said. Approximately 92% of homes in the Gaza Strip have been destroyed or severely damaged, and around 1.9 million people – more than 90% of Gaza’s population – have been displaced since the war broke out in October 2023, according to the UN. Trump, a former real estate mogul, has repeatedly referred to Gaza as a “demolition site” in recent weeks.
When asked who would populate Gaza once the US “takes over” and redevelops it, and whether the Palestinian people would be able to return, Trump responded: “I envision… the world’s people living there. I think the potential in the Gaza Strip is unbelievable. And I think the entire world, representatives from all over the world, will be there and they’ll live there… Palestinians also,” he said. “I don’t want to be a wise guy. But the Riviera of the Middle East – this could be so magnificent.”
Bibi
Libya, Iraq, Palestine, Iran.
Netanyahu has been President of America for a long time.
It’s cost us Trillions.
— ADAM (@AdameMedia) February 3, 2025
Trump appears to do better at home than abroad. Gaza is a mess, and so is Kiev. Putin will not talk to Zelensky: “..when the current head of the regime – that’s the only way to call [Zelensky] today – signed this decree, he was a somewhat legitimate president. But now he can’t cancel it because he is illegitimate. That’s the trick, the catch, the trap..”
Trump also wants Ukraine to pay the US in rare earths. But those are all in the Lugansk and Donetsk areas, i.e. parts of Russia.
• Zelensky Says He’s Ready For Talks With Putin (RT)
Ukrainian leader Vladimir Zelensky has expressed his willingness to negotiate with Russian President Vladimir Putin if it is the only way to bring the Ukraine conflict to an end. He made the remarks during an interview with British journalist Piers Morgan, with excerpts published on Tuesday. Asked if he is prepared to meet with the Russian president, Zelensky indicated that he is.“If that is the only setup in which we can bring peace to the citizens of Ukraine and not lose people, definitely we will go for this setup, for this meeting,” he said. “What is my attitude to him [Putin]? I will not be kind to him and I… consider him an enemy. And to be honest, I believe he considers me an enemy as well,” he said.
The remarks appear to reflect a shift in Zelensky’s stance. He has refused to negotiate with Putin in the past and even signed a decree banning any negotiations with Moscow, and Putin specifically. Last month, Zelensky said the ban applies to all Ukrainian officials except himself, while the original 2022 decree only stated that negotiations are “impossible” without specifying any individuals or entities prohibited from engaging in them. Last week, Putin reiterated Moscow’s position that Zelensky lacks the legitimacy to sign agreements, given that his presidential term expired in May 2024 and no constitutional mechanism exists to extend it. However, the Russian president said he is willing to send negotiators to talk to Zelensky if he is open to discussions.
“It’s possible to negotiate with anyone. However, due to his illegitimacy, [Zelensky] has no right to sign anything. If he wishes to participate in talks, I will deploy people who will conduct such negotiations,” Putin stated.The Ukrainian decree banning negotiations with Russia remains an obstacle to meaningful talks between Kiev and Moscow, Putin said. He pledged to deploy a team of legal experts to assess the authority of any Ukrainian negotiating team and determine whether they have the proper legal standing to sign an agreement. “If we start negotiations now, they will be illegitimate… Because when the current head of the regime – that’s the only way to call [Zelensky] today – signed this decree, he was a somewhat legitimate president. But now he can’t cancel it because he is illegitimate. That’s the trick, the catch, the trap,” Putin explained.
“This is the one shot the American people have to defeat BUREAUcracy, rule of the bureaucrats, and restore DEMOcracy, rule of the people. We’re never going to get another chance like this.”
• The Dynamic Duo Have the Dems on the Run (Green)
“Get ’em skeered and keep the skeer on ’em,” was Confederate General Nathan Bedford Forrest’s timeless advice about combat. President Donald Trump is a Yankee and Elon Musk is an awkward super-genius immigrant but I swear those two have been reading up on their Confederate history. No, I’m not suggesting they’re going to “put y’all back in chains.” What do you think I am, a Democrat? [shudder] When your enemy is scared, don’t give him a moment to recover his wits. When he’s on the ground, don’t let him up. When he flees, pursue him. Because sometimes a simple win isn’t enough. Trump and Musk have the Democrats scared, and every indication is they mean to keep them scared. And Another Thing: I used to refer to Democrats as opponents. But after years of being treated like their enemy, it’s time to return the favor.
The panic set in over the weekend when Musk and his DOGE boys — more on them momentarily — showed up at the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) like they owned the place. Correction: they showed up like we, the taxpayers, own the place. Which we do, by the way. It’s just been a long time since our civil servants had a good reminder of the “servant” half of their positions. By Monday, they were desperately flailing.
An unelected shadow government is conducting a hostile takeover of the federal government.
DOGE is not a real government agency.
DOGE has no authority to make spending decisions.
DOGE has no authority to shut programs down or to ignore federal law.
DOGE’s conduct cannot be…— Chuck Schumer (@SenSchumer) February 3, 2025
“Congress must take action to restore the rule of law,” he whined. You just want to grab Schumer by the lapels and give him a good shake while reminding him, “You ARE in Congress, you ninny. Take it up with your coworkers, assuming they’ll listen to your pathetic excuse for a United States senator.” Musk responded to Schumer, “This is the one shot the American people have to defeat BUREAUcracy, rule of the bureaucrats, and restore DEMOcracy, rule of the people. We’re never going to get another chance like this.” And I’ve just got to know which 22-year-old know-nothing intern posted this face-palmer on behalf of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee yesterday.
A foreign billionaire has seized the United States government.
— DCCC (@dccc) February 3, 2025
It’s like the Dems are so all-in on their illegal alien invasion that they no longer know the difference between a naturalized citizen and a foreigner. There are a great many examples of waste with which I’ve already amused you these last few days but I think Stephen Miller summed up best what’s wrong with USAID.
Aid to poor international countries is great. Sign me up. Send them grain. Send them rice. Vaccines. Anything. Do it.
"Here is $32 million to perform the Simple Jack scene from Tropic Thunder in makeup but make it Trans." in Burundi, Africa is exactly how and why you lost this…
— Stephen L. Miller (@redsteeze) February 4, 2025
THIS is what they’re panicked about losing. Not because anybody gives a damn about condoms for Gaza or establishing DEI in Serbian elementary schools, but because of the skim they’ll miss out on. Think of Democrats as mobsters who get their beaks wet on every transaction. Intelligencer’s Ed Kilgore collected his wits enough to very calmly shriek about “Trump and his underlings” doing things “that rely on exotic and dangerous theories of imperial presidential powers that Richard Nixon could have only dreamed of possessing.” Refusing to release grants (that were never explicitly authorized by Congress) to Deep State cronies is imperial, you see. Anyway, Kilgore’s genius #Resist plan goes thusly: There is a steadily increasing possibility that the Trump offensive could go so far and so fast that congressional Democrats are tempted essentially to go on strike when it comes to actions where they do actually have some leverage.
These include an upcoming effort to keep the federal government operating when the stopgap spending authority enacted in December runs out on March 14. So they’re going to stop us from shutting down wasteful government by shutting down even more wasteful government? Oh, please don’t throw me in that briar patch! More seriously, Kilgore writes that “the emerging idea may be for congressional Democrats to insist that before they provide a single vote that Republicans need, Elon Musk and Russell Vought (the OMB director nominee widely thought to be behind the funding freeze) must be put on a leash.”There are the chains again. It always comes down to those for Dems, doesn’t it?
Wait until the news sinks in that Trump is serious about radically downsizing the Department of Education. That’s another one of the Left’s Holiest of Holies that exists for the sacred purposes of funneling money to favored Democrat constituencies while indoctrinating children. It isn’t all fun and games, sadly. The Left doxxed at least one of the young computer geniuses Musk brought with him to OPM to untangle the spilled spaghetti mess of slush-fund spending at USAID and other agencies. There were two assassination attempts on Trump last year, so there’s no doubt in my mind the Left won’t happily trigger some other nut into taking a shot or two at one of Musk’s whiz kids. “In a mature society,” Robert Heinlein’s (literally) timeless character Lazarus Long observed, “’civil servant’ is semantically equal to ‘civil master.'” Well, I’m not feeling all that mature right now. How about you?
“Special government employees are appointed for no more than 130 days.”
• Elon Musk Is ‘Special Government Employee,’ White House Confirms (ET)
The White House on Monday confirmed that Space X and Tesla founder and CEO Elon Musk is considered a “special government employee” under the Trump administration amid questions about his work with the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE). Speaking to reporters at the White House, press secretary Karoline Leavitt confirmed Musk’s federal status and added, “I can also confirm that he has abided by all applicable federal laws.” Leavitt was also asked about Musk’s security clearance. She said she didn’t know but would check on it. The designation allows Musk, the world’s richest person, to work for the federal government and potentially avoid disclosure rules regarding possible conflicts of interest and finances that generally apply to other government staff.
Special government employees are appointed for no more than 130 days. President Donald Trump said that Musk “can’t do and won’t do anything without our approval, and we’ll give him the approval where appropriate; where not appropriate, we won’t.” “He reports in … but he does have a good natural instinct,” Trump told reporters at the White House on Monday. The Republican president also downplayed complaints about Musk’s alleged conflict of interests, saying, “Where we think there’s a conflict or there’s a problem, we won’t let him go near it, but he has some very good ideas.” One of the most significant steps was DOGE gaining access to the U.S. Treasury payment system, which is responsible for 1 billion payments per year totaling $5 trillion. It includes sensitive information involving bank accounts and Social Security payments.
It’s unclear what Musk wants to do with the payment system. He has said that he could trim $1 trillion from the federal deficit “just by addressing waste, fraud and abuse.” Democratic lawmakers have decried what they characterize as an unelected billionaire amassing too much power over the federal government. “That’s the biggest data hack ever in the world,” Sen. Tammy Baldwin (D-Wis.) told reporters in Madison, Wisconsin. “I am outraged about it,” Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) said on Capitol Hill, adding that Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent must revoke Musk’s access to the payment system. “We must halt this unlawful and dangerous power grab.” In a post on the Musk-owned social media platform X, Schumer said that DOGE isn’t “a real government agency” and lacks authority to make spending decisions or to shut down programs.
In response, Musk wrote on X on Tuesday morning that Schumer’s reaction is “hysterical” and that DOGE “is doing work that really matters.” He framed DOGE’s mission in existential terms. “This is the one shot the American people have to defeat BUREAUcracy, rule of the bureaucrats, and restore DEMOcracy, rule of the people,” Musk wrote. “We’re never going to get another chance like this.” Meanwhile, a group representing retirees and union workers sued Bessent and the U.S. Treasury Department on Monday in a bid to get them to stop sharing personal and financial information with DOGE.
“The scale of the intrusion into individuals’ privacy is massive and unprecedented,” the groups wrote in their complaint, filed in the District of Columbia federal court. Aside from the Treasury Department, Musk and Trump have set their sights on the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), with both saying that the organization has been led by radicals and needs to be dissolved. On Monday, Secretary of State Marco Rubio confirmed that he is now the acting director of USAID. He said the agency lacked accountability and that its staff did not follow orders.
“..the “news” from Ukraine is being written by US government-backed media outlets and then picked up by US and other western media.”
• Audit USAID…Then Shut It Down! (Ron Paul)
As of this writing, when you attempt to access the US Agency for International Development (USAID) website or social media pages you are informed that, “This site can’t be reached.” The media reports that the new Trump Administration has not only frozen USAID activities but may be planning on bringing it back under control of the US State Department. Other reports, including statements by Elon Musk, suggest If true, the closing of USAID may be one of the most significant changes President Trump has made among many dramatic actions in his first couple of weeks in office. Many Americans may still have the idea that USAID is a government agency delivering relief at disaster sites overseas. They may still remember the bags of rice or grain with the USAID logo on them. But that is not USAID.
USAID is a key component of the US government’s “regime change” operations worldwide. USAID spends billions of dollars every year propping up “NGOs” overseas that function as shadow governments, eating away at elected governments that the US interventionists want to overthrow. Behind most US foreign policy disasters overseas you will see the fingerprints of USAID. From Ukraine to Georgia and far beyond, USAID is meddling in the internal affairs of foreign countries – something that would infuriate Americans if it was happening to us. When President Trump ordered a 90 day pause in USAID activities, we quickly learned just how pernicious the agency really is. The US media reported that Ukrainian press outlets were scrambling to keep their doors open when the US dollars stopped flowing. It is reported that 90 percent of the media outlets are funded by the US government!
This means that there is virtually no independent media in Ukraine, only fake news outlets willing to toe the US Administration’s propaganda line. Does anyone think these wholly US-funded “news” outlets would ever publish a story that the US government did not want published? This is plainly immoral, but it is also dangerous. Most US mainstream media stories about Ukraine have their origins in the “reporting” of the local media. From battlefield news to casualties to the state of the Ukrainian military, the “news” from Ukraine is being written by US government-backed media outlets and then picked up by US and other western media. It is a closed propaganda loop that not only propagandizes the US citizen but also feeds false information into US government outlets – such as Congress – that rely on mainstream US media reporting for their news on Ukraine.
No wonder so many in Washington continue to support this hopeless war! But USAID is not just in the business of disinformation. Elon Musk recently re-posted a New York Post article on X reporting that USAID funneled $53 million to EcoHealth Alliance to support gain-of-function research on coronaviruses at the Wuhan lab! Did USAID help fund COVID? Americans have a right to know. In natural catastrophes overseas Americans have shown themselves to be extremely generous. Private volunteer assistance organizations can more effectively assist victims of disasters worldwide. USAID needs a full and transparent audit. Americans deserve to know exactly what is being done in their name overseas. Then the agency needs to be shuttered completely, and its employees sent home. That would go a long way toward making America great again.
Ron Paul is NOT HOLDING BACK 🔥
“USAID is a key component of the U.S. Government’s Regime Change Operations Worldwide. They spend $B’s every year…propping up NGO’s overseas that function as Shadow Governments…they must be SHUT DOWN…” pic.twitter.com/8xHVB7loYo
— Liz Churchill (@liz_churchill10) February 4, 2025
“..their basic attitude is, ‘We don’t work for anyone, we work for ourselves, no agency of government can tell us what to do.”
• “Rank Insubordination”: Rubio Says USAID Full Of Rogue Employees (ZH)
Secretary of State Marco Rubio slammed the US Agency for International Development (USAID) for what he called “rank insubordination,” and is full of rogue employees who do whatever the hell they want. “Well, that was always the goal was to reform it, but now we have rank insubordination,” Rubio told Fox News, in comments just one day after President Trump announced that Rubio would serve as the acting head of USAID – which itself came after Elon Musk’s DOGE team descended upon the agency and revealed that “USAID is a ball of worms. There is no apple. And when there is no apple you just need to get rid of the whole thing. That’s why it’s got to go. It’s beyond repair.” According to Rubio, “Now we have basically an active effort — their basic attitude is, ‘We don’t work for anyone, we work for ourselves, no agency of government can tell us what to do.”
“So the president made me the acting administrator,” he added. “I’ve delegated that power to someone who is there full-time, and we’re going to go through the same process at USAID as we’re going through now at the State Department.” According to Rubio, USAID has lost its focus and abandoned the “national interest” – telling Fox: “They have basically evolved into an agency that believes that they’re not even a U.S. government agency, that they are out — they’re a global charity, that they take the taxpayer money, and they spend it as a global charity irrespective of whether it is in the national interest or not in the national interest.”
“One of the most common complaints you will get if you go to embassies around the world from State Department officials and ambassadors and the like is USAID is not only not cooperative — they undermine the work that we’re doing in that country, they are supporting programs that upset the host government for whom we’re trying to work with on a broader scale, and so forth,” Rubio added. On Monday, deep state crusaders Ilhan Omar (D-MN) and Jamie Raskin (D-MD) staged a dramatic protest outside the USAID headquarters, with Omar suggesting that Trump’s move to fold the agency into the State Department was “what the beginning of dictatorship looks like!” – and Raskin suggesting that Elon Musk had “illegally seized power over the financial payment systems of the United States Department of Treasury,” adding “Elon Musk, you didn’t create USAID,” and that Musk “doesn’t have the power to destroy it.”
Tulsi, too, is one final round of votes away from being confirmed.
• RFK Jr. Moves Closer To Becoming US Health Chief (RT)
Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has moved closer to becoming the US secretary of health and human services after the Senate Finance Committee voted 14-13 to approve his nomination, with all Republicans in favor and all Democrats opposed. Kennedy, 71, an environmental lawyer and well-known vaccine skeptic, faced rigorous questioning during his confirmation hearings. Republican Senator Bill Cassidy of Louisiana, a physician and chairman of the Senate Health Committee, had initially expressed reservations about Kennedy’s stance on vaccines. However, Cassidy ultimately voted in favor after receiving assurances from Kennedy and the administration of their “commitment to protecting the public health benefit of vaccination.”
Democrats, led by Senator Ron Wyden of Oregon, strongly opposed the nomination, citing concerns over Kennedy’s views. Wyden warned that Kennedy’s leadership could erode public trust in vaccines and public health initiatives. “Mr. Kennedy has given us no reason to believe he will be anything other than a rubber stamp for plans to cut Medicaid and rip health care away from the American people,” Wyden stated. The full Senate, where Republicans currently hold a majority, is expected to vote on Kennedy’s nomination in the coming days or next week. A simple majority is required for confirmation.
US President Donald Trump nominated Kennedy shortly after winning reelection in November last year. If confirmed, Kennedy will oversee a vast budget and key agencies, including the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the National Institutes of Health (NIH), and other sub-agencies.Shortly before the committee’s vote, Trump endorsed his nominee in a post on Truth Social. “Twenty years ago, autism in children was 1 in 10,000. NOW IT’S 1 in 34. WOW! Something’s really wrong. We need BOBBY!!! Thank You! DJT,” the president wrote. Kennedy is the son of former US Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy and the nephew of President John F. Kennedy. He was a vocal critic of the Covid-19 response measures recommended by the World Health Organization, including the strict lockdowns and rapid rollout of vaccines.
Zerohedge: “Update (1615ET): DOGE is at it again – kicking down the doors of FBI headquarters to obtain the names of roughly 5,000 agents who worked on Jan. 6 cases. This comes after the agency withheld specifics on those involved, such as their names. Officials working for Elon Musk’s DOGE were spotted by CNN entering FBI headquarters on Tuesday to collect the information.
• DOJ Seeks Information on FBI Employees Who Investigated Jan. 6 (ET)
The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) has asked for the names of thousands of FBI employees who worked on investigations into the Jan. 6, 2021, breach of the U.S. Capitol. Acting Deputy Attorney General Emil Bove in a Jan. 31 missive to Acting FBI Director Brian Driscoll directed the FBI to provide the names of all bureau personnel who investigated Jan. 6 and an unrelated terrorism case, Senate Democrats said in a Feb. 3 letter. Driscoll told FBI workers in a separate message to the FBI workforce that the request encompasses thousands of employees across the country, including himself, “who have supported these investigative efforts.” Bove warned that “additional personnel actions” could follow, Senate Judiciary Committee Ranking Member Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) said. [..] An FBI spokesperson confirmed that Bove has requested information about FBI personnel.
“The FBI is currently working to respond to a request for information from the Acting Deputy Attorney General about current and former FBI personnel assigned to certain investigations or prosecutions, including the events that occurred at or near the United States Capitol on January 6, 2021,” the spokesperson told The Epoch Times in an email. “The FBI will work within the law and policy to respond to official requests for information from the Department of Justice. To be clear, the FBI does not view anyone’s identification on one of these lists as an indicator of misconduct,” the bureau added. Ed Martin, interim U.S. attorney for the District of Columbia, previously launched an investigation into why federal prosecutors brought a felony obstruction charge against hundreds of Jan. 6 defendants. Trump, after taking office, pardoned many people who had been charged over Jan. 6.
The new request for information comes after acting Department of Justice leadership terminated officials, including prosecutors involved in prosecuting Trump before he was elected, and six FBI executive assistant directors. “I do not believe the current leadership of the Justice Department can trust these FBI employees to assist in implementing the President’s agenda faithfully,” Bove stated in his letter to Driscoll, Senate Democrats said. Durbin and the other senators told Acting Attorney General James McHenry and Driscoll that the terminations, and reassignments that have also taken place, “deprive DOJ and the FBI of experienced, senior leadership and decades of experience fighting violent crime, espionage, and terrorism.” They asked for details about the actions.
Leaders of the Federal Bureau of Investigation Agents Association told members of Congress on Feb. 3 that the Department of Justice’s actions are threatening the jobs of thousands of FBI agents and “risk disrupting the bureau’s essential work.” “Any review of Special Agents should follow established disciplinary procedures that provide the necessary due process and transparency to our nation’s law enforcement officers,” the group said. McHenry and Driscoll are serving in acting positions as the Senate considers the nominations of Pam Bondi and Kash Patel to become, respectively, the attorney general and FBI director. Patel said during his confirmation hearing that he would not act against FBI employees solely due to their work on probes into Trump. “All FBI employees will be protected against political retribution,” he said. “I will not politicize that office,“ Bondi said during her confirmation hearing. ”I will not target people simply because of their political affiliation.”
“Congress isn’t going to get rid of the Education Department. There simply aren’t the votes, as many Republicans have shown in the past that shuttering the Education Department is a bridge too far.”
• Dept. of Ed on the Chopping Block as Trump Readies Executive Order (Moran)
Donald Trump has ordered a plan to shutter the U.S. Department of Education and transfer its programs to the states, giving Congress a roadmap on how to accomplish that. This is a long-term project with no certainty of success. While the Education Department has many enemies, it also has many friends in both parties. With an FY 2025 budget of $82.5 billion, there’s plenty of cash to spread around. That $82.5 billion is in addition to the $276 billion spent to help K-12 students “catch up” after the pandemic. The government called that program “The Education Stabilization Fund.” The truth is, it didn’t stabilize anything. The National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) is often called “The Nation’s Report Card” because it’s administered to so many students.
The results from the 2024 NAEP test reveal the total failure of our Education Department. “The percentage of eighth graders who have ‘below basic’ reading skills according to NAEP was the largest it has been in the exam’s three-decade history — 33 percent,” reports the New York Times. “The percentage of fourth graders at “below basic” was the largest in 20 years, at 40 percent.” The teachers won’t take responsibility for that disaster. The Education Department isn’t either, despite creating programs they claimed would help kids “catch up.”
ABC News: “Closing down the department would be an extraordinary move that would help Trump inch closer to fulfilling the promise that he made for months on the campaign trail: dismantling it and sending education policy back to the states. But any executive action is likely to ask for a plan to shut down the department, but not an immediate directive to shut down the department, sources told ABC News. It’s also unclear how the next education secretary would handle plans to close the department and reallocate its functions. Trump’s education secretary choice Linda McMahon has not yet had a Senate confirmation hearing. A bill in the Senate to shutter the department would likely fail without a two-thirds majority vote.”
Without a semi-orderly transfer of responsibilities from federal to state agencies, chaos will ensue. That’s why the Trump administration will begin the process by moving carefully. The planned executive order would “shut down all functions of the agency that aren’t written explicitly into statute or move certain functions to other departments,” according to the Wall Street Journal.” “Fully abolishing the department would require an act of Congress, and lawmakers have for years shown little interest in doing so. Trump unsuccessfully tried to merge the education and labor departments in his first term. Last week, Rep. Thomas Massie (R., Ky.) introduced a bill to abolish the Education Department by the end of 2026. “Unelected bureaucrats in Washington, D.C., should not be in charge of our children’s intellectual and moral development,” Massie said. “States and local communities are best positioned to shape curricula that meet the needs of their students.”
I liken attempts to get rid of the Education Department to trying to get rid of Obamacare. Both of those huge entities have embedded themselves into every nook and cranny of American life. It’s not just a question of declaring them dead or repealed. Both Obamacare and federal education programs are a part of the DNA of many communities, and the chaos that would ensue by getting rid of either of those programs would cause enormous pain to some of the most vulnerable citizens. Congress isn’t going to get rid of the Education Department. There simply aren’t the votes, as many Republicans have shown in the past that shuttering the Education Department is a bridge too far. But if Trump and Elon Musk are able to shrink the Department of Education, curtailing many of its programs, the administration should consider it a victory.
“Greene pointed to NPR’s refusal to cover the Hunter Biden laptop story because “we don’t want to waste the listeners’ and readers’ time on stories that are just pure distractions..”
• House Panel Asks PBS, NPR Chiefs to Testify on Alleged ‘Biased Content’ (ET)
The heads of the taxpayer-funded Public Broadcasting System (PBS) and National Public Radio (NPR) are being asked to testify at a congressional hearing on allegations of “blatantly ideological and partisan” coverage. In a Feb. 3 letter to PBS President and CEO Paula Kerger, Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.), chairwoman of the House Oversight and Accountability Committee’s (HOAC) Subcommittee on Delivering on Government Efficiency (DOGE), cited as an example of such coverage PBS reporting that characterized a recent gesture by Elon Musk as a “Nazi salute.” Musk vigorously denied the allegation and Greene pointed to the Anti-Defamation League’s statement that said Musk “made an awkward gesture in a moment of enthusiasm, not a Nazi salute.”
Greene told Kerger that “this sort of bias betrays the principles of objective reporting and undermines public trust. As an organization that receives federal funds through its member stations, PBS should provide reporting that serves the entire public, not just a narrow slice of like-minded individuals and ideological interest groups.” In response, a PBS spokesman released a statement to The Epoch Times saying the outlet is “grateful to have bipartisan support in Congress, and our country. We’ve earned this support from decades of noncommercial and nonpartisan work in local communities: providing all Americans with content they trust.” The statement continued, saying PBS is committed to offering “a broad range of stories and programs that help citizens understand our past and shape our future; and helping children and families open up worlds of possibilities through educational programming.”
In a similar Feb. 3 letter to NPR President and Chief Executive Officer Katherine Maher, Greene pointed to NPR’s refusal to cover the Hunter Biden laptop story because “we don’t want to waste the listeners’ and readers’ time on stories that are just pure distractions” as evidence of unacceptable bias in federally funded news coverage. An NPR spokesman released the following statement to The Epoch Times concerning the hearing: “Since its inception, NPR has collaborated with local nonprofit public media organizations to fill critical needs for news and information in America’s communities. We constantly strive to hold ourselves to the highest standards of journalism. … We welcome the opportunity to discuss the critical role of public media in delivering impartial, fact-based news and reporting to the American public.”
Greene offered the two media executives two alternative dates in March for the hearing. A subcommittee spokesman told The Epoch Times the date has not been set. In addition to the Musk and Hunter Biden laptop incidents, Greene said the forthcoming hearing was prompted in great part by the publication in 2024 of an exposé by former NPR senior editor Uri Berliner. Berliner criticized the organization for “only serving a liberal leaning audience and for failing to properly report major news stories—including Hunter Biden’s laptop, COVID-19 origins, and the Russian collusion hoax,” Greene said in a separate statement announcing the hearing.
“..pausing so-called “gender-affirming care” for gender-confused minors violates state law.”
• NY AG Letitia James Defies Trump’s EO On “Gender Affirming Care” (AmG)
In open defiance of President Trump’s January 28 executive order to “protect children from chemical and surgical mutilation,” New York Attorney General Letitia James on Monday warned hospitals that pausing so-called “gender-affirming care” for gender-confused minors violates state law.
Trump specified in his executive order that the term “child” or “children” referred to individuals under 19 years of age, and the phrase “chemical and surgical mutilation” meant “the use of puberty blockers, including GnRH agonists and other interventions, to delay the onset or progression of normally timed puberty in an individual who does not identify as his or her sex; the use of sex hormones, such as androgen blockers, estrogen, progesterone, or testosterone, to align an individual’s physical appearance with an identity that differs from his or her sex; and surgical procedures that attempt to transform an individual’s physical appearance to align with an identity that differs from his or her sex or that attempt to alter or remove an individual’s sexual organs to minimize or destroy their natural biological functions.”
The EO notes that the above procedures are often referred to as “gender affirming care.”“Countless children soon regret that they have been mutilated and begin to grasp the horrifying tragedy that they will never be able to conceive children of their own or nurture their children through breastfeeding,” the EO states. “Moreover, these vulnerable youths’ medical bills may rise throughout their lifetimes, as they are often trapped with lifelong medical complications, a losing war with their own bodies, and, tragically, sterilization.” The EO continues: “Accordingly, it is the policy of the United States that it will not fund, sponsor, promote, assist, or support the so-called “transition” of a child from one sex to another, and it will rigorously enforce all laws that prohibit or limit these destructive and life-altering procedures.”
James stated in a letter to health care providers and organizations that receive federal funds that denying such “care” to children in New York violates state laws that protect against discrimination based on sex and gender identity. “Regardless of the availability of federal funding, we write to further remind you of your obligations to comply with New York State laws,” the letter states. “Electing to refuse services to a class of individuals based on their protected status, such as withholding the availability of services from transgender individuals based on their gender identity or their diagnosis of gender dysphoria, while offering such services to cisgender individuals, is discrimination under New York law.”
1%. Not the same as Twitter yet..
• 20,000 Government Workers Take Trump Buyout Offer As Mass Layoffs Loom (ZH)
Approximately 20,000 federal workers, or around 1% of the federal workforce, have accepted the Trump administration’s “buyout” offer before Thursday’s deadline, Axios reports, citing a senior administration official. The offer allows federal employees to stop working immediately and continue to be paid through Sept. 30. And with the door open for another 48 hours, the White House expects more to take the offer. “We expect more to come. If you see what’s happening at USAID, it’s just one piece of the puzzle,” said the official, referring to the federal agency which oversees foreign aid programs full of rogue employees that were funding all sorts of woke, anti-American projects around the world.
The buyout offer has faced heavy opposition from unions and other organizations, which argue that the offer is illegal, there’s no guarantee people will actually get paid (lol), and it’s something that Congress would need to authorize. The Trump admin rejects those assertions, and says it’s following through on its promise to restructure the federal government. Last week, the administration sent out a memo offering to pay all federal workers an 8-month severance through Sept. 30.The official further stated that the administration is still trying to implement a hiring freeze, which has proven more difficult than expected as some agencies continue to hire new workers. According to the report, the normal attrition rate within the federal workforce is around 6% per year, suggesting that some of those who have taken the buyout offer were planning to leave government service anyway.
According to the Washington Post, the assistant commissioner of a division of the General Services Administration told staff early this week that mass layoffs across the federal government are “likely” after the ‘buyout’ offer expires Thursday. “Please know that I empathize with the tough decisions you each are having to make,” wrote Erv Koehler, assistant commissioner of general supplies and services at GSA, in an email obtained by the Post. “Please focus on making the best decision for you and your particular situation.” According to Koehler’s email, GSA’s Federal Acquisition Service “is being asked” to cut its program by 50%, which reflects the agency’s goal to half the size of its staff.
“President Trump has appointed DOGE and Elon Musk to act as his agents when it comes to reasserting executive control over government agencies. Agents acting within the scope of their assigned agency have the same authority as the principal.”
• Trump Attack On The Deep State Spectacular And Almost Certainly Legal (Widburg)
In the last few days, Donald Trump’s Department of Government Efficiency (“DOGE”) has effectively put an end to USAID, gelded the General Services Administration (GSA) tech division, the Office of Personnel Management (OPM), and the Treasury, and fired corrupt people in the FBI—and that’s just the short list. With the war on USAID, GSA, OPM, and the Treasury alone, DOGE is saving taxpayers at a rate of one billion per day. All of this has driven the Democrats into a frenzy as they insist that an elected president managing the government is a coup. Unfortunately for them (but not for us), they don’t have a legal leg to stand on.
President Kennedy founded USAID via Executive Order 10973 in November 1961: “Administration of Foreign Assistance and Related Functions.” It was meant to be a permanent clearing house that would work with the State Department to distribute money intended to help advance technology and financial competence in low-income countries. It reflected the fact that, in 1961, the U.S. was still the last country standing after WWII. The vision was to benefit America by fortifying poor countries against Soviet depredation. USAID has strayed far from that mandate. [..]Elon Musk revealed that the Treasury Department was cutting checks to terrorist organizations and known fraudsters. And, of course, Trump fired all the FBI agents involved in the war against those of Trump’s supporters who showed up at the Capitol on January 6. The Acting FBI Director fought back, which leads to the point of this article: It’s almost certain that none of these people has a legal leg to stand on, whether it comes to the way Trump has stopped the money flow or the firings.
First, Trump’s refusal to fund corrupt agencies: Since 1801, under the aegis of Thomas Jefferson, presidents have had a power known as impoundment. This means the president gets to decide how to spend—or not spend—money that Congress has allocated. In other words, the generation that ratified the Constitution believed that this was an appropriate exercise of executive power. However, in 1974, in yet another piece of Watergate fallout, Congress enacted the “Congressional Budget and Impoundment Control Act of 1974,” which says that the president must submit to Congress his plans not to spend money. Given the history of impoundment (the ratifying generation approved of it), it’s highly unlikely that this act is constitutional. The fact that no president has yet challenged it doesn’t change this reality.
Additionally, because Trump has a majority in Congress, if he were to submit his impoundment plan, the greater likelihood is that it would give him a pass. (RINOs would have a hard time explaining to voters why they want America to pay for “trans” comic books in Peru.) Second, Trump’s ability to fire employees: [..] In 1789, the First Congress debated whether the Constitution gives the president the unilateral power to remove Executive Branch officers. Ultimately, Congress simply said that when the president fires someone (a tacit acknowledgment that he has that unilateral power), a lower-level employee must take custody of records until a new officer is appointed. That debate has led the Supreme Court to hold several times that Congress has no direct role in firing officials. [..]
There was a fight over this power when Andrew Johnson attempted to fire an Executive Branch officer whom Lincoln had appointed, violating the Tenure of Office Act, and leading to Johnson’s impeachment. However, the Senate did not convict Johnson, and by 1887, Congress repealed any requirement that the Senate approve firings. When the 19th century ended, the president’s unilateral power to fire officers was unquestioned. This makes sense because if the Founders had wanted to extend the “advice and consent” power to firings, they could have done so. This standard continued through the 1920s. Things changed in the 1930s when an activist Supreme Court created a new standard, which has affected (or infected) the government to this day: It held that if Congress designates an agency as “independent,” Congress, not the president, has the power over dismissal, with the president as its agent.
This was the go-ahead to create a fourth branch of government that is neither legislative, executive, nor judicial, although, as we’ve repeatedly seen, these “independent” agencies all claim those powers. The big issue of our day is whether these “independent” agencies are constitutional—I say they’re not because they are not one of the three branches of government established under the Constitution. Thankfully, the Supreme Court has, of late, been pulling back from the 1930s template. Here’s another legal concept: “The greater includes the lesser.” In this case, it means that if the president has the power to fire officials, he has the power to fire lesser employees working under those officials.
And one last legal concept: President Trump has appointed DOGE and Elon Musk to act as his agents when it comes to reasserting executive control over government agencies. Agents acting within the scope of their assigned agency have the same authority as the principal. I’m confident that President Trump is acting entirely within the authority the Founding Fathers and ratifiers of our Constitution intended him to have. However, we know that these issues will end up before the Court and, perhaps, before Congress. I’m hopeful that, as President Trump and DOGE expose an escalating amount of government fraud, abuse, and waste, despite the escalating Democrat pushback, Congress and the Courts will understand that they will not have the American people at their backs if they strike down his legitimate use of constitutional power.
“..billions of dollars were shifted from helping Americans in need to facilitating illegal immigration. Super messed up!”
• Biden Spent Billions Promoting Illegal Immigration – Musk (RT)
Elon Musk has accused the administration of former US President Joe Biden of redirecting billions of dollars in taxpayer funds away from assisting Americans in need and instead using them to support undocumented migrants. The entrepreneur is a close ally of current US President Donald Trump and leads the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), an organization responsible for reducing wasteful government spending. Musk has been vocal about the economic impact of illegal immigration, often criticizing government spending on social services for people in the country illegally. He has claimed that federal policies have incentivized unlawful border crossings while placing a significant financial burden on US citizens.
“Under the Biden administration, billions of dollars were shifted from helping Americans in need to facilitating illegal immigration. Super messed up!” Musk stated in a post on X on Tuesday. He previously estimated that illegal immigration cost US taxpayers over $150 billion in 2023 alone, citing data from the Federation for American Immigration Reform. This figure includes expenditures on healthcare, education, and law enforcement. The Biden administration had defended its approach to immigration, asserting that it was balancing border enforcement with humanitarian obligations. The previous administration claimed having expanded legal pathways for migrants while deporting those who failed to meet asylum requirements.
However, critics such as Musk and many Republican leaders maintain that Biden’s policies have weakened border security, incentivized illegal crossings, and strained government resources. Musk has shown a growing interest in political and social issues, particularly immigration. In 2023, he personally visited Eagle Pass, Texas, to witness the conditions at the US-Mexico border and spoke with officials about the challenges posed by the migrant surge. Since then, he has advocated for stronger border controls and policy reforms to curb illegal immigration.
Staying in power for 16 years is far too long. You kill off the next generation of leadership.
• Merkel To Blame For The Rise Of The AfD: Former Austrian Chancellor Kurz (RMX)
Former Austrian Chancellor Sebastian Kurz has openly blamed his former German counterpart Angela Merkel for the rise of right-wing populism in Germany, arguing that her 2015 open-border migration policy directly fueled the Alternative for Germany (AfD). Kurz stated that without Merkel’s migration stance, the AfD would never have gained the support it currently enjoys. Speaking to Bild, Kurz defended the asylum policies advocated by CDU leader Friedrich Merz, particularly his call to reject all illegal migrants at Germany’s borders. “I don’t just think that is correct, but it is absolutely necessary,” Kurz said. “If you look at how large parts of Europe — including Germany and Austria — have changed due to uncontrolled migration, it is obvious that this development is not good.”
Kurz, who was Austria’s foreign minister during the 2015 migrant crisis, emphasized that migration policies require not just words but concrete actions. He expressed hope that a policy shift in Germany would serve as a model for the rest of Europe. “In 2015, I saw firsthand how the Welkomkultur — or ‘welcome culture’ — triggered a negative domino effect, encouraging more migrants to come to Europe,” he explained. “When we shut down the Balkan route, other countries followed, and we saw a reversal of the migration wave. The same is possible today. If Germany takes the lead, other European nations will follow.”
Earlier this week, the CDU sought in the German parliament to implement a stricter immigration and asylum policy, legislation that could only pass with support from the Alternative for Germany (AfD). The move led to violent protests from left-wing activists at the CDU party headquarters in Berlin, but Kurz dismissed controversy surrounding the AfD’s support, arguing that leaders should focus on implementing the right policy irrespective of political alliances. “A politician should do what is right and not constantly worry about who supports or opposes it,” Kurz stated. “That is what leadership means.”
The Austrian politician criticized conservative politicians who shy away from necessary policies out of fear of aligning with right-wing populists on certain issues. “In Germany, there is a fear that a policy could be supported by the AfD,” he said. “But you cannot intentionally do something wrong just to avoid being on the same voting side as the AfD.” He pushed back against criticism that his own coalition with the right-wing FPÖ from 2017-2019 helped legitimize populist movements, emphasizing that he had won two elections against the FPÖ as leader of the Christian-democratic Austrian People’s Party (ÖVP), proving that the center-right can defeat right-wing populists by pursuing strong policies. “The right-wing parties are always strongest when conservative parties fail to implement their policies consistently,” Kurz warned.
After the left-wing parties took control of Austria, the FPÖ rallied to win last September’s elections as the largest party, and its leader Herbert Kickl is now in talks with the ÖVP to form a coalition. He is expected to become the FPÖ’s first-ever chancellor.Kurz argued that Merkel’s migration policies since 2015 were the main factor behind the AfD’s rise, saying: “Without the wrong migration policy since 2015, there would not be such a strong AfD in Germany. The failed migration policy is the guarantee that the AfD will continue to grow.” Kurz concluded with a stark warning to Germany’s political leadership, urging them to address citizens’ legitimate concerns about migration before they drive more voters to right-wing populist parties. “If you really want right-wing parties to grow without limits, then you should continue ignoring the legitimate concerns of a large part of the population,” Kurz said. “Otherwise, you will only push more people into the arms of these parties.”
“..more liquefied natural gas (LNG) as well as F-35 fighter jets..”
• UK Hoping To Buy Its Way Out Of Trump Tariffs (RT)
The UK government is considering purchasing more liquefied natural gas (LNG) as well as F-35 fighter jets from the US in the hope of averting punitive tariffs on British goods, Politico has reported. Tariffs were a prominent tool in US President Donald Trump’s repertoire during his first term in office, with the Republican using the same tactics after returning to the White House last month. In an article on Tuesday, Politico quoted an anonymous former UK Energy Department figure as predicting that London and Washington could seal a deal that grants the US an even bigger share of the British market. According to the media outlet, American LNG currently accounts for 26% of the UK’s energy imports.
Former UK Energy Secretary and Chancellor of the Exchequer Kwasi Kwarteng told Politico that with dwindling North Sea offshore gas production, London would inevitably have to turn to foreign suppliers. “The US is the natural place to go,” the official said, adding that the “only other options are Qatar or Russia – and we’re not going to get it from there.” Citing an unnamed “defense industry figure,” the report claimed that the UK could also place more orders for US-made F-35 warplanes. The media outlet noted that the prospect of further purchases had been uncertain given London’s participation in the multinational Global Combat Air Program (GCAP) aimed at building a new fighter-jet. However, with Trump back in office, “everything [is] on the table,” another anonymous senior UK government figure told Politico.
Speaking to the BBC earlier this week, Trump claimed that while the “UK is out of line,” trade issues “can be worked out.” Last Saturday, Trump slapped 25% tariffs on imports from Mexico and Canada, and 10% tariffs on goods from China, suggesting that the European Union could soon face similar measures. On Tuesday, however, Trump placed the decisions on hold for a month after Canada and Mexico agreed to beef up security along their respective borders with the US. Trump argued that the agreements with both neighbors would help “stop the flow of fentanyl and illegal migrants into our country.”
It’s not over. The IMF, in exchange for a $1.4 billion loan, insisted bitcoin acceptance should not be mandatory everywhere. We have questions.
• El Salvador Abandons Bitcoin Legal Tender Experiment (RT)
El Salvador’s Congress has approved a reform revoking Bitcoin’s status as legal tender, in a reversal of the country’s landmark 2021 decision, according to media reports. The amendments to its Bitcoin law come after a loan deal with the International Monetary Fund, which requires that the acceptance of the cryptocurrency be made voluntary in the country. In 2021, El Salvador became the first country to adopt cryptocurrency as legal tender, officially recognizing Bitcoin alongside the US dollar, which had been the nation’s primary currency for two decades. The legislative changes passed on January 30 removed Bitcoin’s mandatory acceptance in El Salvador, making its use entirely voluntary. The reform was approved with 55 votes in favor and two against.
The amendments reportedly come after nearly two years of pressure from the IMF, which urged the country to mitigate Bitcoin-related financial risks in exchange for a $1.4 billion loan, which was agreed to in December, to stabilize the country’s struggling economy. The IMF specifically pushed for Bitcoin acceptance to be voluntary in the private sector, according to Reuters. The move marks a significant policy reversal for El Salvador, as President Nayib Bukele championed Bitcoin’s legal tender status as a way to boost financial inclusion, particularly for the unbanked population.
However, recent surveys show that 92% of Salvadorans have refrained from using Bitcoin since its official adoption, highlighting public skepticism toward the digital currency, despite government efforts. Although Bitcoin has lost its legal tender status, the government has recently indicated that it will continue buying the cryptocurrency to add to its reserves. Last year, Bukele slammed the US dollar, claiming it is backed by nothing, and that the US economy is based on the “farce” of printing unlimited amounts of money. He went on to predict that Western civilization will collapse when this bubble “inevitably bursts.”
“Talk is cheap. What matters is success. On that metric, the Trump administration is set to actually achieve what Paris Agreement signatories only write on paper.”
• Trump’s Withdrawal From the Paris Agreement Won’t Hurt the Climate (RCW)
President Donald Trump withdrew from the Paris Agreement. Cue the leftwing meltdown. Though everyone knew the withdrawal was coming, the left and the “international community” are still decrying America’s alleged abdication of leadership on climate. But toothless agreements window dressed with international summits and photo ops are not the same as leadership. The truth is America has led the world in reducing emissions for years not because of the Paris Agreement, but because innovation and the free market facilitate the deployment of cheaper and cleaner energy. Let’s review the record. In recent decades, America has achieved unprecedented — and unexpected — energy production thanks to fracking and horizontal drilling. Since the early 2000s when these twin technologies began to be deployed much more expansively, U.S. natural gas production has more than doubled.
By 2016, hydraulically fractured gas wells accessed through horizontal drilling accounted for nearly 70% of all oil and natural gas wells. While the left may clutch its pearls at the increased production of a fossil fuel like natural gas, this clean energy source has been a main driver of U.S. emissions reductions. Over the past 15 years when America has massively increased natural gas output, the U.S. reduced carbon emissions more than any other country. We can see this year by year. For example, from 2022 to 2023, America offset dirtier coal energy generation with natural gas. As coal declined by 121.9 terawatt hours of electric generation over that time, natural gas increased by 118.9 terawatt hours. At the same time, U.S. greenhouse gas emissions declined 1.9%. Notably, 80% of the U.S. carbon emissions reductions were driven by the electric power sector — precisely where natural gas has an outsized impact.
Notice what didn’t cause those emissions reductions? The Paris Agreement. The American energy sector — powered by innovation and good-old-fashioned free market economics — has been driving down carbon emissions cheaply and effectively before the Paris Agreement was a twinkle in climate activists’ eyes. And it will continue to reduce carbon emissions long after President Trump’s decision to withdraw. The Paris Agreement is far from the panacea some activists claim it is. It isn’t even a particularly effective tool to rally nations toward greater climate success. In the middle of the allegedly climate-conscious Biden administration, none of the world’s biggest emitters — America included — had reduced their emissions in accordance with the Paris goals. Apparently, the $1 trillion regulatory and subsidy regime erected by President Biden’s Inflation Reduction Act had little bang for the buck.
What Agreement supporters forget is that no number of high-profile international accords can make command-control tactics work — or instill other nations with the ambition to fulfill their empty promises. The Paris Agreement is the definition of bureaucratic failure, conflating meetings, busyness, and lofty goals as success. Its only achievement is to make climate ideologues and green jetsetters feel good about themselves as they fly to international conferences. It’s no wonder President Trump withdrew. Talk is cheap. What matters is success. On that metric, the Trump administration is set to actually achieve what Paris Agreement signatories only write on paper.
Trump entered office promising to deregulate the fossil fuel industry, increase permitting for natural gas extraction, approve the construction of energy facilities like natural gas export terminals, and re-establish American energy dominance. By leaning into America’s carbon advantage and exporting clean American energy abroad, he will boost the U.S. economy, supplant dirty energy from nations like Russia and Venezuela with a clean American alternative, and lower emissions both at home and abroad, all without the jaw-dropping price tag of the failed Biden-era green agenda. We should combine these steps with efforts to actually hold the biggest polluters accountable (which are being discussed by President Trump’s cabinet). This approach would be the antithesis of the Paris Accords’ America-last strategy.
Netflix
https://twitter.com/i/status/1886570424105927139
Salesman
And he is the BEST president we've ever had, too! pic.twitter.com/1piV0tzeUg
— NRM84 (@Mappy6984) February 3, 2025
Babysit
When daddy babysits
pic.twitter.com/pp2skD9vdJ— Science girl (@gunsnrosesgirl3) February 4, 2025
Bond
Cindy picked up Jerry the meerkat.
The bond these animals have between each other is somewhat unexpected.
[📹 Ruben Lambrechts / rubenamibia]pic.twitter.com/2pRWIPE8rO
— Massimo (@Rainmaker1973) February 4, 2025
88 pounds
This sheep is covered in 88 pounds of wool. pic.twitter.com/esqZEiolmE
— Agriculture Insider (@Agriculfuture) February 4, 2025
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