The Real Lesson from the Hunter Biden Saga: Nicholas Kristof, NY Times, June 24, 2023
“Hunter Biden, who has written about his tangles with crack cocaine and alcohol, reached a plea agreement on tax charges a few days ago that left some Republicans sputtering, but to me, the main takeaway is a lesson the country and the president could absorb to save lives. While the federal investigation appears to be ongoing, for now I see no clear evidence of wrongdoing by President Biden himself — but the president does offer the country a fine model of the love and support that people with addictions need. …” [There is “no clear evidence” because the DOJ interfered with the investigation from the onset, according to credible whistleblowers. Moreover, David Weiss, the Delaware attorney assigned by Attorney General Merrick Garland admitted that he did not have full authority to bring charges contrary to what Garland originally claimed. – Ed.]
“This is a step that will harm Israeli interests and not advance them. If someone in the prime minister’s circle thinks it’s smart to act like [Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed] bin Salman and travel to China to annoy Biden and show him that Israel has another strategic option, he’s making a serious mistake and doesn’t understand the importance of the competition between the geopolitical superpowers of the 21st century. ״ – Former IDF military intelligence chief Amos Yadlin in a series of tweets on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s plans for an upcoming trip to China. (Times of Israel, June 27, 2023)
“Make no mistake. The United States, by this action, is embracing the BDS Movement, violating a binding bilateral agreement with Israel, and creating a lose/lose dynamic whereby the people of the region — Israelis and Palestinians — will lose the most.” — U.S. Ambassador to Israel David Friedman. The Biden administration has ordered that any American government entity participating in scientific-technological ventures with Israeli companies located beyond the so-called Green Line end its collaboration. During the Trump administration, he had signed a protocol removing US restrictions from three 1970s-era cooperative agreements. (WIN, June 26, 2023)“Since the beginning of this year, Hezbollah, Quds Force and Syrian operatives have used digital currencies to receive funds from third parties, via illegal transactions. This is the first operation of its kind and scale – we have set a precedent in exposing the source of terror-funding via digital currencies. We have thwarted the transfer of millions of dollars to terrorists. By virtue of my authority as Minister of Defense, I issued an order that enabled the confiscation of said funds, as well as their transfer to the State of Israel. In doing so, we have effectively cut off the flow of terror funds via this channel.” — Minister of Defense Yoav Gallant at the third annual crypto conference hosted by the National Bureau for Counter Terror Financing (NBCTF) in Israel’s Ministry of Defense. During the event, he revealed an unprecedented operation aiming to identify and confiscate terror funds laundered by terrorist organizations supported by Iran.. (Israel National News, June 27, 2023)
“I am sitting here with my father and we would like to understand why the commitment made has not been fulfilled. Tell the director that I would like to resolve this now before it gets out of hand, and now means tonight. And, Z, if I get a call or text from anyone involved in this other than you, Zhang, or the chairman, I will make certain that between the man sitting next to me and every person he knows and my ability to forever hold a grudge that you will regret not following my direction. I am sitting here waiting for the call with my father.” — Hunter Biden on WhatsApp. (The Hill, June 24, 2023)
“I am not going to address this issue from this podium.” — John Kirby, the National Security Council coordinator for strategic communications. He refused to answer whether the WhatsApp message undermined the president’s repeated claims of ignorance about Hunter’s foreign business dealings, then he walked off. (WSJ, June 26, 2023)“I have had any number of FBI agents who I’ve worked with over the years — some of them retired, some of them still in place — who have come to me and apologized for the manner in which that investigation was undertaken. I take that seriously. These are good, hardworking people — the majority of the FBI.”– special counsel John Durham testifying before Congress. (National Review, June 21, 2023)
“We’ve gone from a president falsely accused of being entangled with a hostile foreign power to a president whose family has been financially entangled with a hostile foreign power. The same people who assured us, constantly, that the walls were about to close in on Donald Trump in the Russia investigation have endorsed, promoted, and defended Joe Biden, a man whose family business involves taking money from shady foreign actors.” – Rich Lowry (National Review, June 26, 2023)
“The whistleblowers allege that the Justice Department consistently cut them off in seeking searches or answers related to President Biden. However, the line that stood out the most was this: “U.S. Attorney Weiss stated that he subsequently asked for special counsel authority from Main DOJ at that time and was denied that authority. If true, that means that Garland was not just hearing from experts and members of Congress calling for an appointment, but that Weiss himself also saw the need for such an appointment.” — Jonathan Turley (The Hill, June 24, 2023)“It’s not just that Clinton was not prosecuted. By the time the Obama Justice Department had finished giving immunity to Clinton’s confederates and cutting deals with Clinton’s lawyers, the case was sabotaged. The Trump Justice Department couldn’t have prosecuted Clinton even if it had wanted to. In stark contrast, the earth was scorched to get Trump, with search warrants and subpoenas used boldly. … Today’s Democratic-run DOJ, by contrast, threw Trump’s lawyers into the grand jury after convincing a friendly judge not just to strip away the former president’s attorney–client privilege but also to require a key lawyer to hand over extensive notes of his conversations with Trump to prosecutors. These notes and the testimony of Trump’s lawyers form the backbone of the Mar-a-Lago indictment’s felony obstruction charges against the former president.” — Andrew C. McCarthy. (National Review, June 22, 2023)“That it strikes our political class as a good idea to renew hostilities between Americans after more than 150 years of peace is further evidence that the current regime is pathological.” — Lee Smith on the legacy media’s glee that former President Trump was indicted under the Espionage Act, which is certain to “hasten America into open conflict.” (Tablet, June 19, 2023)
“ProPublica’s focus on recusal is the latest angle in the progressive campaign to cripple the Court’s new majority. By imposing even tenuous associations as grounds for recusal, litigants can exclude certain Justices from hearing a case. With a Court of only nine Justices, this could determine the outcome. Call it Court-thinning rather than Court-packing, but the effect would be similar.” — WSJ editorial on ProPublica’s misrepresentation of Supreme Court Judge Samuel Alito’s fishing trip to Alaska with a billionaire in 2008 and not reporting it on his annual Court disclosure form. In 2008, he was legally not required to do so, a fact ProPublica fails to mention. (WSJ, June 21, 2023)
“And why on earth should a Gotham child of Chinese immigrant parents be on the hook for harms done by white slaveowners more than a century ago in other states? All any commission can do is stoke racial divisions (a favorite pastime of power-hungry progressives) for nothing of any material use to black New Yorkers.” — Editorial on New York’s City Council passing a bill (like one already passed in the State Senate) to examine legislation to make cash payments to descendants of slaves. (NY Post, June 20, 2023)
“My hope and my theory are that America has been waiting for someone to show up who’s more interested in the big windshield of the car, and less interested in that rearview mirror. Making sure that every single person, based on their character, their grit, and their talent, can rise as high as humanly possible.” — Senator Tim Scott (Rep.-So. Car.) replying to former President Barack Obama’s cutting speech claiming Republicans employ show-blacks to falsely” validate” America. Jason L. Riley points out that blacks have been a key, monolithic force sustaining the Democratic Party, but that is changing, and Scott is feared because he represents a different opinion, to which blacks are responding. (WSJ, June 20, 2023)
“The president is sorely mistaken about the betrayal of the motherland. We are patriots of our homeland; we fought before and we are fighting now. All the fighters of the Wagner Group. And no one is going to give themselves up at the request of the president, the FSB or anyone else. We don’t want this country to go on living in corruption, deception and bureaucracy… When we were told that we were at war with Ukraine, we went and fought. But it turned out that ammunition, weapons and all the money invested in them are being stolen, and the officials are saving them for themselves, for the very event that has happened today, when someone marches on Moscow [“someone” is likely to be a reference to the Wagnerites – ed.].” — Wagner Group leader Yevgeny Prigozhin. (Pravda, June 24, 2023)
“[President Biden’s description of China’s President Xi Jinping as a “dictator” is] extremely absurd and extremely irresponsible.” — China’s Foreign Ministry, following American Secretary of State Anthony Blinken’s high-profiles visit to Beijing last week. (WSJ, June 21, 2023)
NETANYAHU CONFIRMS CHINA VISIT, SAYS US WAS NOTIFIED LAST MONTH (Jerusalem) — Prime minister tells visiting American delegation of his plans, says US will always remain Israel’s principal ally amid reports trip aims to signal impatience with Biden. (Times of Israel, June 27, 2023)
TWO ROCKETS FIRED AT ISRAEL FROM WEST BANK FOR FIRST TIME IN 18 YEARS (Jerusalem) — The rockets, which were fired from Jenin, exploded in Palestinian Authority territory. Israeli forces arrived at the scene and are investigating the incident. (Jerusalem Post, June 26, 2023)
IRAN IS ALREADY IN THE WEST BANK,’ PALESTINIAN AUTHORITY OFFICIAL SAYS (Jerusalem) –“Islamic Jihad is using Iranian money to buy weapons and loyalty in the West Bank,” the source said. “The organization is paying high salaries to its members.” (Jerusalem Post, June 26, 2023)
ISRAEL FIRES AT PALESTINIANS FROM AIR (Jenin) —Israeli military helicopters fired at Palestinian attackers shooting at IDF soldiers in Jenin who were conducting an arrest of two suspects in the murders of five Israelis. The use of airstrikes is exceedingly rare in such confrontations, and indicates the high risk the attacks represented. Tensions across the West Bank have been rising steadily–March to May, 2022 left 19 dead inside Israel; since the start of 2023 over 120 Palestinians, mostly military, and at least 20 Israelis and foreigners, have been killed. (WSJ, June 19, 2023)
IRAN PLAYED ROLE IN CREATION OF LIONS’ DEN TERROR GROUP, SHIN BET HEAD REVEALS (Jerusalem) — The Palestinian Lion’s Den terrorist group has been heavily influenced by Iran, Shin Bet Director Ronen Bar said, adding that they represent a new kind of organization, functioning as much on social media as in the physical world. Speaking at the Tel Aviv Cyber Week Conference, he said: “Behind this group is the long arm of Iran. Iran influences and targets young people online who are likely to move toward terror, incites them, sends them funds and provides them weapons.” (Jerusalem Post, June 27, 2023)
UKRAINE’S ENVOY TO BE SUMMONED AFTER HE BLASTED ISRAEL’S STANCE ON WAR (Jerusalem) — The Foreign Ministry will summon Ukraine’s ambassador next week, after he released a scathing statement accusing Israel of cooperating with Russia, a ministry spokesperson announced on Tuesday. “In the wake of his repeated statements against Israeli policy,” read the statement, “Ukraine’s Ambassador Yevgen Korniychuk has been summoned for a clarification which will take place on July 3 in the Foreign Ministry.” The conversation with Korniychuk will be held by Aliza Bin Noun, the ministry’s political director. (Times of Israel, June 27, 2023)
US EMBASSY IN ISRAEL SNUBS SMOTRICH, BEN-GVIR, LEAVING THEM OFF JULY 4TH INVITATION LIST (Washington) — In keeping with the Biden administration’s policy of boycotting members of the two right-wing parties, the U.S. mission to Israel left Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich and National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir off the invitation list for the American embassy’s pre-July 4th celebration in the Old City of Jerusalem. The report claimed that the U.S. mission to Israel has blacklisted all members of the two parties, along with Noam, the one-man faction which ran on a joint list with Smotrich and Ben-Gvir in 2022. (WIN, June 26, 2023)
MAJORITY OF ISRAELIS CONCERNED OVER NON-JEWISH IMMIGRATION, POLL FINDS (Jerusalem) — The majority of Israelis (62%) are concerned over the rising number of non-Jews immigrating to Israel and being granted automatic citizenship under the Law of Return, saying that the high non-Jewish immigration rates pose a threat to Israel’s future as a Jewish state, a new poll by Geocartography and published by Chotam. The poll also found that 59% of the Israeli public are in favor of amending the so-called “Grandchild Clause” of the Law of Return in which a person with one Jewish grandparent is eligible to immigrate – known as “aliya.” Conversely, 41% of the public oppose such an amendment. (WIN, June 26, 2023)
81% OF CANADIANS WANT TRUDEAU OUT OF POWER: POLL (Ottawa) — An Abacus Data survey conducted from June 6 to 11, 2023, indicates that 81 percent of Canadians want a change in government and only 20 percent want Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to stay in power. The poll questioned 2,000 adults on a range of voting intentions and found that in a federal election held right now, the Conservative Party of Canada would score 35% of the vote, the Liberals 28 percent and the New Democratic Party (NDP) 21 percent. (Post Millennial, June 14, 2023)
MAJORITY OF CANADIANS OPPOSE TRUDEAU, SAY TEACHERS SHOULD INFORM PARENTS OF CHILDREN’S GENDER CHANGE AT SCHOOL: POLL (Ottawa) — A clear majority of Canadians agree with New Brunswick Premier Blaine Higgs in believing that parents should be told if their children have expressed a want to change their gender identity or pronouns at school. A Leger poll commissioned by SecondStreet.org found that 57 percent of those asked agree with Higgs.This indicates that most Canadians disagree with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s depiction of parents as “far-right” for expecting to be informed of these consequential decisions. (Post Millennial, June 14, 2023)
HYPERSONIC OR JUST OVERHYPED? AMID RUSSIAN FAILURES, U.S. DOUBLES DOWN ON SUPER-FAST MISSILES (Washington) — Learning from the failures of Russia’s hypersonic Kinzhal missile in Ukraine, easily taken down by long-in-the-tooth American Patriot anti-missile missiles, the U.S. is taking its time to perfect its own hypersonic missile and ensure the absence of defects. These rockets travel at least five times faster than the speed of sound (Mach 5—Russia boasts variants which can attain Mach 10 and Mach 20, respectively); China is working on its own version, which it claims could destroy a U.S. aircraft carrier group “with certainty”. (Washington Times, June 11, 2023)
THE SHOULDER-FIRED MISSILE MAKING A COMEBACK (Washington) — A shoulder-fired missile—the French Thales “Starstreak”-, which travels at three times the speed of sound–is making its return in the context of the Ukraine war, after a decade-long absence. For “Ukraine War-Military”. (WSJ, June 15, 2023)
