Authored by Jeremy Egerer via American Thinker,

Anybody who wants to explain how bad the Biden administration is has to start with COVID. 

As such, we knew a few things early on in the pandemic, and they were as follows:

1. The average age of death from the virus was in the 80s.
2. It had almost zero effect on young people and children.
3. Most people who died from it had three or more co-morbidities — that is, they were old as hell, fat as a hog, and really liked smoking, or drinking, or cancer.
4. It was in the same class of virus as the common cold.

Once we knew these things, especially the last one, the obvious thing to do was to give up.  There was no point crippling the strong for the sake of the weak when the weak depend upon the strong and most of the weak aren’t affected by COVID anyway.  We should have put the elderly on welfare and expanded Medicaid a bit and let the rest of us run loose.  No — we should have subsidized tickets to bath houses and any place kids eat that has a ball pit.

We like to say “hindsight is 20/20,” but this isn’t hindsight at all.  Hell, it was 2020.  The stuff I mentioned above was the conclusion every person with regular sight came to the second our government called most workers “non-essential.”  Yet this society was immediately cleaved in two.  All the healthy and thoughtful people were pitted against the sanctimonious do-gooders, the goose-steppers, and the hysterical weaklings.  And they beat us into submission, big time.

And Joe Biden was their champion.

Almost overnight, millions were thrown out of work, and a vaccine was made up that nobody had properly tested, which no company was liable for and, in its experimental form, until the pandemic hit, had never been approved by the FDA.  Joe Biden tried to force every American in a company of more than 100 people to take it or lose his job — around two thirds of the whole country, it turned out.  Heart attacks in teenagers went through the roof.  People had to choose between gambling their health and losing their homes.  Pfizer was completely unaccountable and made a windfall.  Mom-and-Pop stores across the nation went bankrupt, and gyms and churches were forced shut, and Walmart and Amazon made a killing.

To make up for the mass unemployment Democrats caused and encouraged, Joe decided to print more money than anyone ever did in American history — a bill worth $1.9 trillion, which singlehandedly made the dollar implode.  This made everybody in the country take a giant pay cut, effectively, and now most Americans can’t afford the groceries they were buying in 2019.  Or used cars.  Or (many times) the rent.

Some people escaped this crushing poverty: the ultra-rich, the people who broke the country, and people who broke into the country.  The border was left wide open for nearly Biden’s whole term, and depending on where they went, illegal aliens were given not only free housing and medical care, but also smartphones and thousands of dollars.

Haitians and Chinese and Middle Eastern gate-crashers were seen marching in by the thousands.  Venezuela went so far as to unload its prisons on us.  Independent journalists began spotting obvious gang members and people on the terrorist watchlist.  The Texans put up blockades, and the Border Patrol, under Biden’s orders, tore them right down.  In some places, gates were broken open to ensure that nobody was denied access.  In total, the BBC estimates (and I would say lowly) that over eight million people invaded.

Americans were disturbed by footage of hordes pouring over the border, so Biden closed the airspace so we couldn’t see it.  This was in fact his modus operandi whenever we started asking questions.  When doctors from places like Harvard and Stanford questioned the vaccine, he sent the FBI to bully Facebook into banning them and anyone who supported them — a clearly illegal move for which nobody, to my knowledge, has been prosecuted.  When Ashley Biden’s diary was going to be published, with all kinds of weird information about his behavior, the FBI raided the homes of journalists.  When his son’s laptop was found to contain incriminating information, he had the FBI bully social media again during an election season.  When his son was finally going to pay for taking quid-pro-quo bribes from the Ukrainians, or for doing crack and hookers on camera and buying guns illegally, Joe Biden pardoned him for everything he ever did over a ten-year period.  This was right after he went on TV to say “nobody is above the law” — an attack on, you guessed it, his own political rivals.

Whether or not anyone could measure up to the law, it’s clear that during Biden’s presidency, nobody could measure up to the government.  That’s because he was the DIE hirer-in-chief and made sure almost nobody, from top to bottom, was fit for command.  He sent a fat and mentally ill man, “Rachel” Levine, to run the United States Public Health Service.  He put Ketanji Brown on the Supreme Court — a woman so stupid that she couldn’t define “woman,” thinks being a street junkie is a constitutional right, and doesn’t have (quote) “a judicial philosophy per se.”  Despite her not having anything good to say, she speaks more, ex cathedra, according to the Washington Times, than all the other Supreme Court justices.

Because of Joe Biden, Pete Buttigieg, a gay man with zero experience in public transportation, is now the secretary of transportation.  Biden wanted his Cabinet to “look like America,” so he stuffed it with Jews and zero Evangelicals.  He promised us a black woman as a vice president, and the only person available was the most shrill, obnoxious, embarrassing person in the whole party.  When it became clear he had dementia, she was nominated as his successor without the public’s consent.

We could go on for hours.  When he abandoned Afghanistan — something that had to be done sooner or later — he did it so badly that not only did we lose billions of dollars of equipment, which immediately fell into the hands of the enemy, but he forgot to evacuate all our civilians, and allies, and green card–holders.  Whoopsie-daisy!

Where was Biden when our cities were getting burned down by Black Lives Matter?  Why did Antifa rioters get their charges dismissed after attacking federal buildings and officers — half of all charges, according to The Wall Street Journal?  And why were the Proud Boys locked up for trying to stop Antifa?  Why did he commute almost all the sentences on federal death row but not pardon Daniel Penny for protecting women on a subway train?  Joe Biden pardoned former Pennsylvania judge Michael Conahan, who sent falsely convicted children to for-profit prisons in exchange for kickbacks.  He left Enrique Tarrio in prison for trying to defend people from rioters.

His whole career has been helping everyone but the talented, the upright, or the American majority.  Biden canceled our Keystone Pipeline while approving the Nord Stream pipeline from Russia to Germany.  Newsweek said that at the same time he restricted domestic oil and gas production, causing prices to soar, he asked OPEC and Russia to make more oil so we could reduce our prices.  The New York Post says FEMA couldn’t find funding for victims of Hurricane Helene — our second deadliest hurricane in the last 50 years, which closed 400 roads and destroyed entire towns — because they’d already spent $1.4 billion on illegal aliens.  Israel, from October 2023 to October 2024, got a record $17.9 billion in military aid.  According to the Government Accountability Office, since 2022, Ukraine has gotten $174 billion.  According to U.S. News, we send foreign aid to more than 180 countries, and FEMA said nobody could find the money for our hurricane victims.

An important question might be asked here.  How much of this is really Joe Biden’s fault?  This is the guy we caught, on camera, in his first days after the election, mumbling I don’t know what I’m signing here when he was green-lighting executive orders willy-nilly.  Biden garbles more sentences than Lil’ Pump.  If he’s not directed off the stage, he could get stuck on it.

Like the line between the sovereignty of God and our own free will, we’ll probably never know, until the Final Judgment, who was really responsible.  But Biden is the guy we elected to take the blame for it.  He chose to be there.  The whole Democrat party said for years that he was in great shape.  So I say hang him out to dry.  He’s a coward, a sleazeball, a crook and a pardoner of crooks, an embarrassment to the already embarrassing Pope Francis, a horrible public speaker, both a profligate liar and a constant dupe, a prosecutor of truth-tellers and truth-publishers, the enemy of unborn children, a defender of everyone’s border but his own, a burden to the hardworking and the virtuous, a friend to the untalented and the envious, a sniffer of women and children, an incapable father, a consistent and regrettable clown, and a stain on the great legacy of this nation.

Jeremy Egerer is the author of Prejudices — a collection of questionable essays on Substack.

What genius retail executive mind could have figured this one out – that locking up merchandise in stores actually makes its more difficult for honest, paying customers to get to, and buy what they want?

Walgreens – facing a significant drop in year-over-year earnings – just announced plans to close 450 more stores nationwide, according to Futurism/The Byte. 

Efforts to curb “shrink” — losses from theft or fraud — included increased security measures, such as locking merchandise in containers requiring staff assistance.

However, these measures proved ineffective and counterproductive, frustrating customers.

CEO Tim Wentworth said on the company’s earning’s call: “It is a hand-to-hand combat battle still, unfortunately.”

“But it does impact how sales work through the store because when you lock things up. For example, you don’t sell as many of them. We’ve kind of proven that pretty conclusively,” he continued. 

The report says that Walgreens is struggling with rising prices, which are making it harder for consumers to afford products. The company faces challenges in its retail business due to inflation and higher interest rates, leading to more cost-conscious shopping and changes in purchasing habits.

In 2021, Walgreens faced backlash for closing five stores in San Francisco, citing “organized” shoplifting, though police records showed only 23 incidents between 2018 and 2021.

During a 2023 earnings call, Walgreens CFO James Kehoe admitted the company may have over-invested in security to address theft, acknowledging the company had perhaps exaggerated the problem. This suggests Walgreens has often used theft concerns as a cover for deeper issues within its retail operations.

Authored by Travis Gillmore via The Epoch Times,

Former Oakland Mayor Sheng Thao and three other defendants were charged by federal prosecutors in an eight-count indictment unsealed on Jan. 17 alleging the group participated in a bribery and corruption scheme that sought to benefit a company with nearly $90 million in city contracts. 

The recently recalled Thao, who was arraigned during a 10:30 a.m. court hearing in Oakland, pleaded not guilty to six charges and was released on a $50,000 bond. 

Thao and Andre Jones, described in charging documents as her “longtime romantic partner,” and businessmen David Trung Duong and Andy Hung Duong, father and son, respectively, are charged with a litany of crimes.  

“The public deserves honesty and transparency from City Hall,” first assistant U.S. Attorney Patrick D. Robbins said in a statement.

“When elected officials agree to a pay-to-play system to benefit themselves rather than work for the best interests of their constituents, that breaches the public trust.” 

He said communities relying on leaders for critical government services are hurt by their misdeeds. 

“The public needs to know it can trust those in charge of City Hall to work for the best interests of the people of Oakland,” he said during a press conference announcing the indictment.

“This public trust is broken when elected officials agree to a pay-to-play system to benefit themselves.” 

According to the indictment filed by the grand jury on Jan. 9, in the weeks before Thao was elected mayor in November 2022, and after taking office, she offered influence and city contracts to the Duongs in exchange for campaign support and financial gain. 

Thao agreed to purchase units from the Duongs’ housing company, extend a contract with the Duongs’ recycling company, and allow the Duongs to select candidates for certain city appointments. 

In exchange, the Duongs allegedly paid $75,000 to fund a negative mailer campaign against Thao’s political rivals, founded websites attacking her opponents, and made $95,000 in payments through Jones to benefit him and Thao. 

After taking office, Thao allegedly used her power in office to allow the Duongs to appoint unnamed “high-level” city officials and asked her staff to tour the housing company.  

The indictment also alleges the group discussed a $3 million bribe payment if the city purchased 300 housing units from an unnamed co-conspirator’s company. The housing company stood to earn about $90 million, according to the indictment. 

In an attempt to conceal the payments, the arrangement was allegedly for the money to be paid as wages to Jones for a no-show job, and fake invoices were created, among other maneuvers.

Prosecutors allege improprieties involving a trip Thao took to Vietnam in July and August of 2023 with the Duongs, which cost tens of thousands of dollars and was partially paid for by the Port of Oakland. 

The unnamed co-conspirator was appointed to a city position and received $1.4 million from entities associated with Duong, according to the indictment.

Among the agencies involved in what is described as an ongoing investigation is the Internal Revenue Service’s Criminal Investigation Division. 

“The alleged crimes committed against the citizens of Oakland by former Mayor Thao and her co-conspirators are a clear breach of public trust and cannot be tolerated,” Linda Nguyen, special agent in charge for the division’s Oakland field office, said in a statement.

“Public corruption schemes are rooted in greed and typically leave a money trail behind.  [Our division] specializes in following that trail and building cases that lead to justice.” 

FBI agents also helped unravel the scheme, including raiding Thao’s Oakland home in June 2024. Thao was recalled in November 2024.

“Our communities are entitled to leaders who act in their best interest, free from the shadow of corruption,” Dan Costin, special agent in charge for the FBI, said in a statement.

“Today’s actions demonstrate our resolute determination to protect the integrity of our government and ensure accountability for those who betray the public’s trust.” 

U.S. postal inspectors were also involved because the scheme allegedly involved mail fraud. 

President Trump on Monday gave a ‘full pardon’ to over 1,500 political prisoners who were involved in the Jan. 6 riot.

🚨 President Trump has pardoned approximately 1500 January 6th political prisoners of the Biden era pic.twitter.com/LwL2S7l5Ft

— Trump War Room (@TrumpWarRoom) January 21, 2025

Earlier in the day, Trump told a yuge crowd at the Capitol One Arena that he was going to “release our great hostages,” referring to the Jan. 6 prisoners.

“As soon as I leave, I’m going to the Oval Office, and we’ll be signing pardons for a lot of people, a lot of people,” Trump continued.

Proud Boys leader Enrique Tarrio, who was convicted of seditious conspiracy, is currently being processed for release from FCI Pollock, a medium security federal prison in Louisiana, NBC News reports. Tarrio had been sentenced to 22 years in federal prison after his conviction.

“He is being processed out,” said his attorney, Nayib Hasssan. “We do not know what type of clemency he is receiving.”

A U.S. Navy corpsman was administratively reprimanded last year after he attempted to access President Biden’s medical records, according to a new report from CBS.

On Feb. 22, at the Naval Medical Readiness and Training Center at Fort Belvoir, Virginia, a Navy corpsman sat at his desk amidst the hum of computers and quiet chatter. Nearby, a licensed civilian nurse and an Army soldier worked.

The routine setting took a turn when a colleague left her workstation, her Common Access Card (CAC) still logged in. This smart card, about the size of a credit card, grants access to secure military networks and facilities.

The group began discussing the security risk of unattended CACs, with one person noting the potential for misuse: “Someone could maliciously use your CAC when you walk away.”

Spurred by “curiosity” and this conversation, the corpsman accessed restricted files. According to a Naval Criminal Investigative Service (NCIS) report obtained by CBS News through a Freedom of Information Act request, the low-ranking sailor attempted to access the president’s medical records.

The investigation led to a nonjudicial punishment for dereliction of duty under the Uniform Code of Military Justice. The corpsman, whose identity was withheld, was demoted from E-3 to E-2, given 20 days of extra duty, and had pay reduced by half for six months. An E-2 with two to three years of service earns about $2,260 monthly.

The CBS report says that during a discussion about the risks of unattended CAC accounts, someone suggested such access could be used to view the president’s medical records. Curious, the Navy corpsman tested this by searching “Joseph Biden” in the Genesis Medical Health System. A single record appeared, with a matching birthdate verified via Google. The file was accessed for about 20 seconds, revealing minimal information, including a doctor’s name, which didn’t match publicly available details.

Realizing the seriousness of his actions, the corpsman closed the file. A female colleague advised him to self-report, but he delayed. Another coworker reported the violation first. The corpsman later confessed, citing curiosity and denying any intent to save, share, or document the record.

NCIS launched an investigation, discovering no link between the corpsman and political motives or hacktivist groups, though a reverse image search on his Instagram profile hinted at potential Anonymous imagery. Searches on his laptop included terms like “Biden” and “Anonymous.” His devices, seized and analyzed, were eventually returned.

The accessed record was later confirmed to be non-legitimate. The president was informed quickly, undergoing an unrelated physical two days after the investigation began, where he was deemed “fit for duty.” The corpsman faced disciplinary action but cooperated fully throughout the inquiry.

Authored by Jeff Carlson and Hans Mahncke via TruthOverNews.org,

In contemporary political discourse, the term “deep state” frequently arises as a catch-all phrase to describe the entrenched bureaucracy and unseen forces that shape U.S. governance. Washington, D.C., is often portrayed as the epicenter of this so-called deep state, where power dynamics operate independently of electoral outcomes. Some also refer to it as the “blob.”

While it is true that U.S. governance is steered by unelected and unaccountable entities, such as the military and intelligence complexes, the concept of the “deep state” can oversimplify the complexities of governance in Washington, D.C. It can also serve to deflect accountability from those most responsible for the damage inflicted on our country.

The deep state may appear to be a monolithic entity. However, it is, in reality, a complex web of human actors with genuine agency. Among these individuals, Barack Obama stands out as a pivotal figure whose influence and legacy have significantly shaped the political landscape over the past 17 years.

In this concluding piece of our series on Barack Obama, we explore his instrumental role in shaping U.S. policy, not just during his own presidency but also during Trump’s first term and the Biden presidency – sometimes referred to as Obama’s third and fourth terms – and how this unfortunate era may now be approaching its end.

Agency

Obama exemplifies the concept of agency within what is usually referred to as the “deep state.” His presidency not only brought about significant division and policy shifts but also laid the groundwork for a network of fanatical loyalists and ideological allies, many of whom have remained entrenched in both governmental and non-governmental institutions. These figures, many of whom are former members of the Obama administration, have undermined democracy and the will of the people across multiple presidencies.

Obama’s post-presidential endeavors—such as his political advocacy, mentorship of rising Democratic leaders, and the fact that he was the first former president since the dying Woodrow Wilson to remain in Washington—highlight his ongoing influence. Unlike the faceless bureaucracy typically associated with the term “deep state,” Obama embodies the reality of its true nature: not a monolithic entity, but a network of individuals, like him, who shape policy and public opinion, often from behind the scenes.

A closer examination reveals that many individuals who served under Obama have remained active in government roles through multiple administrations. Key figures in intelligence, defense, and other critical sectors often retain their positions or reemerge in different roles, reinforcing the perception of undemocratic continuity in American governance.

This phenomenon is not unique to the Obama administration. Historically, Washington has witnessed the recycling of officials and advisors across different presidencies, giving rise to an insider class that operates with a high degree of autonomy from the will of the people. But Obama undoubtedly took things to a new level. Here are some examples.

The Names of Permanent Washington

Antony Blinken was Deputy Secretary of State and Deputy National Security Advisor under Obama before becoming Secretary of State under Biden. He continued disastrous Obama policies, ranging from Iran to Ukraine.

Jake Sullivan cosplayed in various national security roles under Obama before becoming National Security Advisor under Biden. In between those jobs, he was pivotal in pushing the Russia collusion hoax. While he may no longer hold a government position, his wife, Margaret Goodlander, was recently sworn in as a new member of Congress.

Victoria Nuland seeded the Ukraine war in 2014 when she was Assistant Secretary of State under Obama. She later became Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs under Biden. She too played a key role in advancing the fraudulent Russia collusion narrative. Nuland’s husband, Robert Kagan is a commentator at the Brookings Institution and was, until recently, a fervently anti-Trump editor-at-large at The Washington Post.

Susan Rice shifted from National Security Advisor and U.N. Ambassador under Obama to Director of the Domestic Policy Council in Biden’s administration. Rice infamously attempted to cover up Obama’s involvement in weaponizing the government against Trump through the Russia collusion hoax, particularly Obama’s role in the dismissal of General Michael Flynn.

Mary McCord was Assistant Attorney General under Obama, a position from which she too played a role in advancing the Russia collusion narrative. Later, she became legal counsel to the U.S. House of Representatives during the sham January 6th inquiry. Most recently, she has been trying to derail the appointments of Pam Bondi as Attorney General and Kash Patel as FBI Director. Her husband, Sheldon Snook, worked for Chief Justice John Roberts from 2014 to 2020. In December 2020, he authored an anti-Trump article in the left-wing rag, The Atlantic.

Lisa Monaco, another Russia collusion hoaxer, was Homeland Security Advisor under Obama and became Deputy Attorney General under Biden. She effectively led the Department of Justice’s lawfare campaign against both President Trump and the January 6 protesters.

John Carlin held a national security role under Obama and returned to the Biden administration as Deputy Attorney General to help Monaco to pursue Obama’s lawfare agenda.

Janet Yellen transitioned from Chair of the Federal Reserve under Obama to Secretary of the Treasury in Biden’s administration.

Ron Klain moved from Chief of Staff to Vice President Biden to White House Chief of Staff under Biden.

John Kerry served as Secretary of State under Obama and became the Special Presidential Envoy for Climate under Biden.

Denis McDonough went from White House Chief of Staff under Obama to Secretary of Veterans Affairs under Biden.

Samantha Power, who was U.N. Ambassador under Obama, became the Administrator of USAID under Biden.

Jen Psaki worked as Deputy Press Secretary and State Department Spokesperson under Obama before becoming White House Press Secretary under Biden.

Amos Hochstein, who helped Hunter Biden cover up his family’s corrupt entanglements in Ukraine, was Obama’s Special Envoy for Energy Affairs. He was rewarded with a similar role under Biden.

Alejandro Mayorkas was the Director of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services and Deputy Secretary of Homeland Security under Obama before becoming Secretary of Homeland Security under Biden.

Jerome Powell served as a Federal Reserve Board Governor under Obama, became Chair under Trump, and retained the role under Biden. He’s been printing money recklessly to maintain the illusion of a thriving Biden economy.

David Shulkin was the Under Secretary of Veterans Affairs under Obama before serving as the Secretary of Veterans Affairs under Trump until he was finally fired in 2018.

Norm Eisen transitioned seamlessly from his roles in the Obama Administration, including serving as Ambassador to Czechia, to leading lawfare operations against Trump at establishment front organizations such as the Brookings Institution.

Others, like Obama’s two key intelligence officials, John Brennan and James Clapper, may not have held official roles in subsequent administrations, but they were placed in highly influential legacy media outlets—Brennan at NBC and Clapper at CNN—where they could shape public discourse. Not surprisingly, it was these two men who led the infamous intelligence community letter falsely claiming that Hunter Biden’s laptop was a Russian disinformation campaign. Their actions played a pivotal role in undermining Trump’s chances in the 2020 election.

There are many more names, including figures such as Anthony Fauci, who were part of the unelected government before Obama’s presidency and remained in their positions afterward.

We could go on, but the point is clear: Permanent Washington is not a faceless “blob,” but a network of interconnected elites.

Trump

Donald Trump’s presidency, characterized by its outsider status posed a significant challenge to this established order. His election in 2016 was seen by many as a populist revolt against the entrenched Washington elites. However, the mechanisms of the deep state—or more accurately, the entrenched bureaucracy and long-standing networks—proved resilient and dangerously effective. It didn’t help that many of the individuals mentioned above, along with others, remained in Washington in government or quasi-government roles, actively working to undermine Trump’s presidency.

Trump’s second term presents a unique opportunity to challenge the entrenched system and potentially bring about seismic shifts in the political landscape. Whether he will be able to permanently disrupt the continuity of Washington elites or merely cause a temporary shift in power remains uncertain.

The challenge is certainly formidable. Institutional inertia runs deep, and the sophisticated networks of influence, built over decades with figures like Obama at the helm, are firmly entrenched, as are the military and intelligence complexes that operate behind the political scenes. The first step is to hire the right people and on that front Trump 47 seems to be doing a lot better than Trump 45.

There will be no fifth term for Obama—not for a while, anyway. The veil has been lifted, and Republicans are no longer falling for the same tricks. Obama’s political standing also took a significant hit from his vocal support of the disastrous candidacy of Kamala Harris. However, that doesn’t mean he won’t try to mount a comeback. His cordial interaction with Trump at President Carter’s funeral hints at possible plotting.

While our national nightmare may be ending with Biden gone and Obama out of the picture—at least for now—we must remain vigilant to ensure history does not repeat itself.

Texas’ top electricity regulator issued a “Weather Watch” from Monday morning through Thursday, citing “extreme cold weather” and the potential for snow, which could send electrical demand soaring across the state. 

According to the National Weather Service, snow is forecasted to begin in Houston on Monday evening and accumulate to upwards of 4 inches by Tuesday. After the snow, frigid temperatures are expected to sweep in, bringing dangerously cold conditions that could jeopardize the power grid and energy infrastructure. 

“Weather Watch goes into effect today through January 23 due to forecasted extreme cold weather across the ERCOT region, higher electrical demand, and the potential for lower reserves,” the Electric Reliability Council of Texas wrote on X, adding, “Winter precipitation is also expected across parts of the state. Grid conditions are expected to be normal.”

TXANS Update—1/20/2025: An ERCOT Weather Watch goes into effect today through January 23 due to forecasted extreme cold weather across the ERCOT region, higher electrical demand, and the potential for lower reserves. Winter precipitation is also expected across parts of the…

— ERCOT (@ERCOT_ISO) January 20, 2025

Tony Fracasso, a senior branch forecaster at the US Weather Prediction Center, said, “It’s a significant storm for so far south.” 

“It looks like almost the entirety of Texas has some chance of wintery precipitation,” Fracasso noted. 

The early alert issued by ERCOT implies that extreme cold could pressure the power grid. ERCOT stated that peak electricity demand is expected to rise over the next two days, reaching about 77.2 gigawatts. Even though ERCOT predicts high demand, it anticipates having sufficient supply to meet demand. 

“As freezing temps blanket Texas, the power grid is performing better than ever,” Governor Greg Abbott wrote on X Sunday evening, adding, “There is ample supply of power available to meet your needs.”

As freezing temps blanket Texas, the power grid is performing better than ever.

There is ample supply of power available to meet your needs. pic.twitter.com/2mpxNHoKNm

— Greg Abbott (@GregAbbott_TX) January 20, 2025

Besides potential grid strains, frigid temperatures could curtail natural gas supplies due to the freezing of oil and gas wells and pipes, known as “freeze-offs” by energy analysts. 

On Tuesday, West Texas temperatures will average around 29F. Through Saturday, average temperatures in the oil-rich Permian basin will remain below the 30-year average of 47F for this time of year. This cold could disrupt oil and gas output by freezing water in wells and pipelines. 

Ahead of the snow, Houston Airports announced that flights at George Bush Intercontinental Airport, William P. Hobby Airport, and Ellington Airport will be suspended on Tuesday morning. 

The storm is expected to blanket snow across the  Gulf Coast and Deep South coastal areas. 

Meteorologist Tony Pann questioned if this wintery weather for the Gulf Coast was a “once-in-a-lifetime event“…

ONCE IN A LIFETIME SNOW EVENT? It’s possible along the Gulf Coast early this week! 👇 Could be 3″-4″ in New Orleans! It’s likely that has not happened for over 100 years. The system could bring a little light snow to Ocean City, MD early Wednesday AM. ❄️🚂 pic.twitter.com/FUoAiKiyNR

— Tony Pann (@TonyPannWBAL) January 20, 2025

Here’s our latest reporting on the polar vortex and energy markets:

• Goldman: “Cold January” & “Record LNG Demand” Drive Upside Risk In Natty Prices

• Incoming: “Big Dumps Of Cold Air. Reminiscent Of 2013/14 Winter”

• Doesn’t Fit MSM Narrative: Parts Of US Could Rival Coldest January Since 1977

• Polar Vortex, Back-To-Back-To-Back Winter Storms Target Eastern Half Of US

Where did global warming go? Please come back. 

Authored by Victor Davis Hanson via American Greatness,

In his last address, Joe Biden offered a Parthian shot at “oligarchs” and the dangers these “billionaires” pose to the republic. At the same time, left-wing senators hammered Trump cabinet nominees on the grounds that they would be too complacent in the face of a supposed takeover of the country by Trump’s “billionaires” and their “oligarchy.”

Many things could be said about Biden’s farewell address, but I will limit them to three.

First, Biden was attempting to copycat the warnings of outgoing president and iconic war hero Dwight D. Eisenhower.

Some 64 years earlier—on January 17, 1961, the near day of Biden’s “farewell address,” a departing Eisenhower warned of a new “military-industrial complex” threat to the republic that had grown out of World War II and was cresting during the ongoing Cold War of the 1950s.

The fear, as Ike outlined it, was that a new small tech-corporate elite would sell the country on all sorts of expensive weapons and programs to ensure a near-permanent condition of hyper-military readiness and national insolvency.

This resulting “garrison state” would make the arms merchants and technocrats rich but also exhaust the U.S. treasury in the process. What would follow for the American people was a government octopus that demanded ever higher taxes while spending money in ways increasingly unknown or irrelevant to the public interest.

Eisenhower worried the grandees of the military-industrial complex—ex-generals revolving into defense contractor lobbyists and board members—would redefine the ancient laws of war and peace in terms of mumbo-jumbo techno-jargon. The resulting esoterica was designed to justify budget-busting defense expenditures, without enough care that the federal government would expand while the now overtaxed and overregulated citizen would be at their mercy.

Apparently, a departing Biden sought to graft his own “oligarchy” speech onto Eisenhower’s earlier blueprint.

But Ike was speaking as a successful two-term president. And he was an iconic war hero, as the architect of the successful American role in defeating Hitler—from the beaches of Normandy to the occupation of the defeated German homeland.

The postwar president Eisenhower was worried about a new world in which new nuclear-tipped missiles threatened to turn any conventional war between superpowers into nuclear Armageddon. In other words, Americans listened to Eisenhower, given his probity, gravitas, and experience—and the dangers of the new corporate-government fusion. But they have no reason to listen to Biden.

Or to paraphrase a famous quip from 1988 Democratic vice presidential candidate Lloyd Bentsen, “President Biden, you’re no Dwight Eisenhower.” Biden was removed by his own party insiders from the Democratic ticket before he did further damage to his party as he was finishing his failing one-term presidency. He left the country in shambles, at home with hyperinflation, 12 million illegal entries, a nonexistent border, spiking crime, and destroyed deterrence abroad. He humiliated the armed forces in Afghanistan, encouraging enemies that prompted two theater-wide wars in Ukraine and the Middle East.

Moreover, after swearing he would not pardon his own son as Hunter Biden faced numerous felony indictments and convictions, Biden did just that—thereby likely preventing further investigations into the entire corrupt Biden family.

Biden leaves office desperate to sabotage his successor, extending even to the pettiest detail, such as selling off critical steel panels essential to the construction of the border wall that he suspended.

Again, Ike had credibility; not so with Biden.

Second, until November 2024, Biden had no problems with oligarchs.

In fact, he courted and used them. And they, in turn, eagerly donated lavishly to his agenda. Multibillionaire George Soros nearly wrecked the criminal justice system by pouring millions of dollars into big-city radical district attorney races to ensure the election of left-wing ideologues who would not arrest, indict, jail, convict or incarcerate thousands of dangerous violent felons—all in pursuit of bankrupt progressive ideas like “critical legal theory” and “critical race theory”.

So happy was Biden with Soros’s nihilistic multimillion-dollar work and his lavish contributions to Biden’s two presidential runs that he awarded the Soros the Presidential Medal of Freedom.

In 2020, Meta/Facebook CEO and co-founder Mark Zuckerberg did the bidding of the Biden campaign team by pouring $419 million into Biden-related PACs and voting groups to change voting laws and absorb the work of the registrars in key states. And on the eve of the last 2020 presidential debate, it was Facebook, under pressure from Biden lackeys, that began censoring accurate news stories about the incriminating Hunter Biden laptop, in hopes of arming Biden with a credible lie.

Biden also mumbled about “censorship” and the loss of “fact-checkers.” But when the “oligarchs” who run Apple, Facebook, and Google decided to conspire to destroy upstart conservative social media platform Parler in 2021, Biden apparently thought it was wonderful. And, of course, he uttered not a peep of criticism of oligarchic-government strangulation of the market.

So why is Biden so worried about oligarchy?

The answer is as easy as it is insulting.

“Oligarchs” like Elon Musk, David Sachs, Mark Zuckerberg, Jeff Bezos, and Mark Andreesen all realized that Biden’s ruthless team was leveraging their liberalism to use these “oligarchs” as illiberal megaphones for his own power and reelection.

When they understood that the new Democratic dream was to fuse their social media and high-tech companies with the government—but under the control of left-wing anticapitalism activists to help the obsequious and punish the free-thinking—they revolted.

In other words, they realized that their freedom was endangered by the left and that the country under Biden was descending into cultural chaos.

Third, quite unlike Biden, Trump is leveraging support from “billionaires,” many of whom have not donated to his campaign and were not previously his political supporters.

His appeal to them is not, as alleged, to further the Trump one-term presidency in political terms.

Rather, Trump, in his brief four years, has enlisted “billionaires” like Elon Musk, Jeff Bezos, David Sachs, and Mark Andresen in the way that Franklin Roosevelt, in 1941-1942, reached out to his other party’s millionaire captains of industry to fuel a Depression-era-recovering economy to produce the type and number of weapons to defeat Germany and Japan, who had a near decade head start. Roosevelt essentially gave these “oligarchs” and “multimillionaires” wide latitude to produce as much as they could to win the war.

The result was that shipbuilder and aluminum magnate Henry Kaiser began mass-producing historic Liberty and Freedom cargo ships in astronomical numbers to supply our troops overseas. The neo-socialist FDR even reached out to arch-paleoconservative Henry Ford. By 1949 Ford was building one B-24 heavy bomber per hour at his innovative and gargantuan Willow Run plant.

Roosevelt also created a “war production board,” staffed by the arch-conservative capitalists—and in Biden’s terms “oligarchs”—like Charles E. Wilson, the head of General Electric; William Murphy of Campbell Soup; Matthew Fox of Universal Pictures; and others, to create a national marriage of labor, capital, media, and advisors to radically reboot the nascent war effort.

The result by 1945 was that a once stagnant and virtually unarmed nation that was surprised at Pearl Harbor, in a short four years, built a navy larger than all the ships of the major combatants combined. America’s capitalists eventually fueled a GDP larger than all our major allies and enemies together. By the end of the war, they were supplying much of the entire Allied effort with everything from aviation and trucks to fuel, radios, and rations.

Trump knows that the current multitrillion-dollar annual deficits and $36 trillion debt are unsustainable—while high taxes, Draconian regulation, and profligate spending are strangulating the economy. And Trump further realizes that our dilemma is the work of both political parties in Congress and past Democrat and Republican administrations.

Trump fears the rise of China that seeks to absorb Taiwan, coerce our friends in the Pacific like Australia, Japan, South Korea, and Taiwan, and steal our technology.

So, he further insists that in the future, the U.S. must master emerging technologies and services—such as artificial intelligence, biotechnology, cyberwarfare, cryptocurrency, drones, emerging fuels like small nuclear plants, hydrogen, and mega-batteries, and deadly new weaponry from lasers to hypersonic missiles.

In that regard, he knows that the talent that created and mastered these technologies and new services are not greedy billionaires and “oligarchs,” but, if enlisted in a common cause for their fellow citizens, could become the modern successors to Kaiser, Knudson, Ford, and Wilson.

Biden’s hypocritical parting shot at “oligarchs” should be filed with his eleventh-hour crazy pardons, his final lies about pardoning his son, and the bizarre edict that unconstitutionally, as some dictator, he could pass a 28th Amendment by fiat: all the sad end of a sadder presidency.

In the weeks leading up to Donald Trump’s inauguration there has been an escalation in rhetoric from Mexico and the rest of Central America in regards to the plan for mass deportations of illegal immigrants.  The prevailing message from these neighbors to the south was, initially, that they will do anything they can to make the process difficult.  Trump, expecting this response, has used the threat of tariffs as leverage to gain cooperation.  And frankly, it’s working.

Progressive Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum has been full of bluster but she is slowly and surely falling in line.  Sheibaum has been publicly combative with Trump on the issue of deportations, denying Trump’s claim that Mexico was planning to secure their border and threatening economic retaliation should tariffs be used.  She recently stated that Mexico’s policy was:

“…Not to close borders but to build bridges between governments and people”.

Whatever that means.  Analysts dealing in US/Mexico relations claim Sheinbaum is on the right track to ensure a strong ongoing relationship with Trump.  “She’s sending this message that she is a strong political leader,” said Gema Kloppe-Santamaria, a global fellow of the Wilson Center’s Mexico Institute, pointing to recent polling that shows Sheinbaum has increased her popularity to a staggering 80% approval rating, opens new tab after her first 100 days in office.  “Trump without a doubt comes with a lot of power and legitimacy, but she does as well,” Kloppe-Santamaria added. 

But does the Mexican president’s approval rating mean anything when it comes to deportation policy?  Not really.  After all, Mexico has been a parasitic element feeding on the US economy for quite some time; it’s not surprising that a large portion of the population wants the bloodletting to continue.

For example, Mexico receives billions of dollars in foreign assistance from the US every year.  In 2023 alone, the country was given over $63 billion in payoffs, right out of the pockets of American taxpayers.  This money is given to Mexico with the stated intent of “reducing irregular migration, yet illegal border crossings only skyrocketed along with subsidies.

Mexico is not alone.  Many Central and South American countries receive billions in foreign assistance from the US in the name of slowing immigration caravans.  In other words, these nations keep their borders open and allow millions of illegals to cross into the US, and then extort the US for cash to make the pain stop.  Then, when they get the money, they let even more illegals flood the border.  It’s an endless sham.

Beyond the subsidies is the exploitation of the US border as a steam valve to get rid of undesirables.  Criminals, malcontents and the poverty stricken are encouraged to migrate to the US illegally so that Mexico and other countries can avoid civil disturbances.  These corrupt governments don’t want to fix their own problems, they outsource them to the US instead. 

Border security is now a non-negotiable factor in America’s geopolitical agenda (as it should be) and the notion that the US is supposed to act as a sponge soaking up the refuse leaking out of the third world has lost all favor among native borne citizens (many legal migrants also oppose open borders).  With the majority of Americans in support the deportations are going to happen and there’s nothing anyone can do to stop them.

Trump’s tariff strategy carries real weight, especially when it comes to Mexico.  More than 80% of Mexico’s exports go to the U.S., causing much of its economy to depend on American markets. The most prominent exports from Mexico to its northern neighbor are cars and car parts, while the U.S. purchases approximately 92% of Mexican agricultural exports.  Tariffs of 10% or more could wreck the Mexican economy within months.  They have no choice but to comply.

Mexican leaders argue that tariffs will also hurt the US, claiming that this will trigger inflation.  Claudia Sheinbaum asserts that there will also be extensive job losses in the US due to tariffs and deportations.  It’s clear she doesn’t understand how these things work.

Tariffs create job opportunities by encouraging companies to bring production back into the United States so they can avoid extra import costs.  Deportations, obviously, stop millions of illegal migrant workers from gaming the system by working under the table for much lower wages compared to American laborers.  The very presence of these people drives down the overall wage rate and makes it difficult for native born citizens to find jobs.

In terms of inflation, tariffs can raise prices on foreign goods, but illegal immigrants raise prices more.  The ten million-plus illegals that have entered the US under the Biden Administration have helped to drive up housing prices exponentially.  Their demand for goods and services creates shortages in necessities and because they are often subsidized by tax dollars through welfare programs they drive up the national debt at the same time.      

Mexico remains the leading country of origin for immigrants in the U.S., representing 23% of all migrants, according to the Pew Research Center.  Not only that, but the vast majority of migrants from other parts of the world use Mexico as an open highway to the southern border and the Mexican government does little to interfere. 

This is about to change.  The Mexican president has been adjusting her tune in the past week, stating that Mexico will be preparing to accept deported migrants.  Not only migrants from Mexico, but also those not from outside Mexico (they created the crisis by not securing their own border, so now they get to clean up the mess).   

Sheinbaum announced on Friday that her administration has outlined a contingency plan for Mexican nationals expected to be deported by the incoming United States President.   During her morning press conference, Sheinbaum announced jobs and social programs for ousted Mexicans if Trump decides to carry out his threats of mass deportations when he resumes power on January 20th.  

“We have been preparing to receive Mexicans who have a space at the border and in other places so that they can have access to social programs, employment, and be able to move within our national territory to return to their places of origin…”

It’s not that Mexico has become more reasonable in the past month; these kinds of mood changes require a sharp slap upside the skull.  It appears that Mexican and Central American authorities are finally being taken behind the woodshed after years of obstinate behavior.