FBI Arrests Suspected NGO Face-Shield Foot Soldier In L.A. Riots
One day after FBI Director Kash Patel told Just the News, “The FBI is investigating any and all monetary connections responsible for these riots” in Los Angeles.
United States Attorney Bill Essayli, a top federal prosecutor in Los Angeles, announced on X that Alejandro Theodoro Orellana was arrested by FBI agents “on an allegation of Conspiracy to Commit Civil Disorders (18 USC 371) for distributing face shields to suspected rioters on Tuesday.”
“We are moving quickly to identify and arrest those involved in organizing and/or supporting civil disorder in Los Angeles,” Essayli said.
ARRESTED: Alejandro Theodoro Orellana was arrested this morning by @FBILosAngeles on an allegation of Conspiracy to Commit Civil Disorders (18 USC 371) for distributing face shields to suspected rioters on Tuesday. We are moving quickly to identify and arrest those involved in… pic.twitter.com/Ase8kxupfp
— U.S. Attorney Bill Essayli (@USAttyEssayli) June 12, 2025
The Trump administration has launched an urgent effort to investigate the command-and-control structures behind a network of rogue Democratic-aligned non-governmental organizations (NGOs), which officials suspect are serving as the organizational backbone of the anti-ICE riots erupting in Los Angeles, with risks of nationwide unrest.
Put another way, the civil unrest is being characterized as a Marxist-inspired, color revolution-style mobilization effort—one that squarely targets the president and exhibits alarming insurrectionist behavior.
X users have profiled Orellana, and some allege he was part of a paramilitary organization called “Brown Berets.“
Brown Berets is not classified as a terrorist organization by any U.S. government entity today—neither by the State Department (which keeps the list of Foreign Terrorist Organizations) nor by the FBI as a domestic terrorist group.
What internet sleuths are saying:
BREAKING – The man seen distributing tens of thousands of dollars worth of face shields in Los Angeles to rioters has been identified as Alejandro Orellana, a known member of the Brown Berets, a radical Latino paramilitary group that are currently embedded in cities across the… pic.twitter.com/Qms9o13z4O
— Right Angle News Network (@Rightanglenews) June 11, 2025
Brown Berets are showing up elsewhere.
🚨SAN ANTONIO, TEXAS🚨Radical Brown Berets are waving Gay Mexican flags and wearing face masks that translates to “Screw ICE.” Antifa has also been spotted.
On Monday, Mexican Senate President Gerardo Fernández Noroña publicly displayed an 1830 map of Mexico during a press conference, emphasizing that Mexico once held sovereignty over California, Texas, and much of the modern-day U.S. Southwest.
Noroña’s gesture could be viewed as a nationalist provocation, subtly reinforcing irredentist intentions at a time when foreign nationals and dark-money-funded, Marxist-aligned NGOs are sparking civil unrest in Los Angeles—widespread looting, arson, and violent clashes with both local and federal law enforcement.
All in all, Orellana was likely just a foot soldier. It’s time for the federal government to get serious about investigating the NGOs, donors, and Democratic Party operatives who appear to be waging hybrid warfare against the American people—deliberately fueling nationwide chaos in an attempt to undermine the president.
Trump Calls Musk A “Friend” While Discussing EV Mandates
Update (1338ET):
After The Wall Street Journal and The New York Times pushed out headlines on Wednesday suggesting a possible end to the Musk-Trump feud, President Trump confirmed the cooling of tensions by calling Elon Musk a “friend” while speaking to reporters ahead of plans to abolish California’s vehicle emissions standards.
Trump praised Musk for not demanding any favors ahead of the administration’s move to eliminate EV tax credits.
The president said Musk was okay with ending the credits and letting the market determine supply and demand, confident he could outperform competitors such as legacy OEMs in the EV space, Rivian, and Lucid.
🚨 JUST IN: President Trump praises Elon Musk for NEVER asking for favors regarding the EV mandate
Trump credited Elon for saying “as long as I’m on the same plain as everybody else, we’ll do good and make a better product.”
We also suspect Musk understands that the catastrophic climate crisis pushed by leftist corporate media is a hoax. At the end of the day, Tesla remains a superior product, and will outperform competitors without relying on government mandates.
Tesla shares briefly popped on Trump’s “friend” comment…
President Donald Trump on Thursday announced that he’s signing a trio of resolutions reversing California’s 2035 ban on the sale of new gas-powered cars.
President Trump has arrived to sign a declaration barring California’s EV mandate – which he says has been a “disaster” which would have damaged American automakers. pic.twitter.com/wJ2M2p7kPV
— Bernd Debusmann Jr (@BernieDebusmann) June 12, 2025
President @realDonaldTrump announces new executive order eliminating the California EV mandate:
“We officially rescue the U.S. auto industry from destruction by terminating California’s electric vehicle mandate once and for all.” pic.twitter.com/oZYh4OsoTk
The move was announced earlier in the week by Rep. Kevin Kiley (R-CA), who wrote on X that Trump would sign his resolution “to reverse California’s absurd ban on gas-powered cars.”
On Thursday, President Trump will sign my Resolution to reverse California’s absurd ban on gas-powered cars. https://t.co/dZUwq7rnFX
The resolutions, which were co-authored by Sen. Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV), finalize Trump’s months-long effort to rescind California’s authority to sect stricter electrification rules for passenger vehicles and commercial trucks, along with higher standards for heavy-duty diesel engines.
During Trump’s first term, his EPA revoked a version of California’s vehicle emissions rules through an 18-month regulatory process, however Republicans’ May vote to expedite the rollback through Congress marked the first time that California’s waiver approvals have been considered subject to the Congressional Review Act (CRA) since President Bill Clinton signed the law in 1996.
California Attorney General Rob Bonta has vowed to fight the decision, saying in May that he plans to sue once Trump signs the resolutions.
We’re guessing Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) is secretly relieved…
California mandates 100% EVs by 2035. They’re at about 12% now and already have blackouts. 🤦🏻♂️ pic.twitter.com/y7Qy8iVPP7
Stellar 30Y Auction Stops Through Amid Jump In Foreign Demand
After a medicore 3Y auction to start the week, a solid 10Y auction yesterday, jittery traders were left with just one Treasury sale this week, arguably the most challenging one: today’s $25BN 30Y auction. In retrospect, there was no reason to worry because demand for today’s paper – especially among foreign buyers – was stellar any way you look at it.
Let’s take a look: starting at the top, the auction priced at a high yield of 4.844%, up from 4.819% last month and the highest since January; more importantly the auction stopped through the When Issued 4.859% by a solid 1.5bps, a reversal to last month’s 2.6 bps, and the second biggest through since November.
The bid to cover rose to 2.430 from last month’s 2.314, was the second highest since January which also put it above the six-auction average of 2.392.
The internals were even more impressive: foreign demand was solid with Indirects awarded 65.2%, up from 58.9% and the highest since January. And with Directs taking down 23.4%, down from 27.2% if above the recent average of 22.3%, Dealers were left with just 11.4$, the lowest since November as there was little need for them to step in considering solid demand.
The market response was favorable, with 10Y yields dropping near session lows of 4.34% – below where the 10Y traded ahead of last week’s solid NFP report – before retracing some of the move, because today’s auction notwithstanding, the US is still facing an avalanche of long duration to find Trump’s Big, Beautiful Bill.
A man was convicted by a federal jury of wire fraud and entering a secure area of an airport under false pretenses after posing as a flight attendant to obtain dozens of free flights over six years, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida said in a June 10 statement.
Tiron Alexander, 35, was convicted on June 5 and faces up to 20 years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000 for wire fraud and up to 10 years and a fine of up to $250,000 for entering the airport’s secure area.
He is scheduled to be sentenced on Aug. 25.
According to an October 2024 indictment, Alexander worked for an unnamed airline from Nov. 30, 2015 onwards, though his role was not disclosed.
The indictment states that he was never a flight attendant or pilot.
At the time of his employment at the airline, airline pilots and flight attendants were entitled to certain travel privileges based on their position, seniority, and tenure, the indictment states.
“These privileges included the ability to obtain no-cost flight reservations on their employer airline and other airlines with which their employer airline maintained reciprocal interline travel agreements,” the indictment states.
According to court documents and evidence presented at trial, between 2018 and 2024, Alexander posed as a flight attendant for airlines and booked free flights on an airline carrier’s website that were reserved solely for pilots and flight attendants.
Alexander booked and flew on 34 flights with one airline without paying for them, the U.S. attorney’s office said in a statement.
“Over the 34 flights, Alexander claimed through the airline carrier’s website application process—a process that required an applicant to select whether they were a pilot or flight attendant and provide their employer, date of hire, and badge number information—that he worked for seven different airlines and had approximately 30 different badge numbers and dates of hire,” the U.S. Attorney’s Office said.
Evidence presented at trial showed Alexander also posed as a flight attendant on three other airline carriers.
In total, Alexander booked more than 120 free flights by falsely claiming to be a flight attendant, the U.S. Attorney’s Office said.
According to the indictment, Alexander entered a secure area of Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport in Broward County on or about July 22, 2020.
The Transportation Security Administration investigated Alexander’s case. It is unclear when Alexander was arrested or if he has legal representation.
The Epoch Times contacted the Department of Justice for comment but did not receive a response by publication time.
US CPI, even weaker-than-expected 0.1% m-o-m headline and core and 2.4% and 2.8% y-o-y, wasn’t the main event. Neither was President Trump again calling for the Fed to cut 100bps at its next meeting to lower US debt-servicing costs (when our Fed-watcher Philip says it will cut 25bps in September, then stop.) Instead – again – it was geoeconomics and geopolitics.
The ECB’s Lagarde used a platform at the PBOC to state that “coercive trade policies are not a sustainable solution to today’s trade tensions” — in the same way violence is never a solution to violence?– and are “far more likely to provoke retaliation and lead to outcomes that are mutually damaging” – which is exactly where the threat of violence can come in. Was that aimed at the US or China though? She also added, “That means both surplus and deficit countries must take responsibility and play their part.” Was that aimed at China and Germany as well as the US?
Trump tweeted an unwritten “framework” based on the unwritten Geneva “consensus” would see Chinese students back at US universities and rare earths provided to US firms “up front”, with China facing a 55% US tariff and the US a 10% China tariff. However, the Wall Street Journal says the rare earths are only for six months. It seems this on-off process will continue until one side builds a Harvard or the other gets now-weaponised rare earth processing in place (as Bloomberg puts it: ‘China Hit World’s Pain Point on Trade – and Will Do So Again’). Guess which is easier?
Trump also said he’ll set unilateral tariff rates within two weeks for countries not negotiating in good faith, while Treasury Secretary Bessent added the 90-day tariff pause could be extended for those who are – and that China can’t export its way to prosperity and must prove it’s a reliable trade partner.
Russia offered to help Iran remove the weaponized parts of its nuclear programme and build its civilian reactors. That looks a quid pro quo for the US stepping back on support for Ukraine, toppling other dominoes in the Great Game at the expensive of Kyiv and Brussels.
However, that was eclipsed by the US announcing the removal of non-essential staff from its Iraqi and regional embassies and military bases, the former having been placed on high alert with emergency action committees activated after Iran’s defence minister said they would strike those targets if attacked. Moreover, US Senator Cotton stated: “Today @SecDef confirmed that Iran’s terrorist regime is actively working towards a nuclear weapon. For the sake of our national security, the security of our allies, and millions of civilians in the region this cannot be allowed to happen.” Western intel sources also reportedly state Iran has exploited negotiations to actively diminish the potential impact of military strikes on its nuclear sites.
As such, there are press reports the US will announce the end of Iran nuclear talks within hours. That only appears to leave one option – albeit with the Russian offer in the background, perhaps. None of this is a cheap bluff, if that’s what it is; it’s a card you play knowing it’s costly and only works once… unless it’s an essential move because of expected developments.
To say oil, up around 4% at the time of writing, is not where it would be if an attack on Iran were to transpire is an understatement – if it’s not just US military bases and embassies that Iran hits in response. Welcome to one of the key, stacked, geopolitical, binary scenarios I’d flagged for 2025 as The Year of Living Dangerously.
As if that were not enough, the Pentagon also announced it’s reviewing the AUKUS defence treaty as it can’t build enough nuclear subs (or ships) to provide Australia with them ahead. That’s awkward for those who think stuff just appears and don’t get that, as with rare earths, it doesn’t – with disastrous supply-chain consequences. We now see the same dynamic in the world’s military hegemon – it can’t make enough of what it needs. That’s why –alongside structural reforms– it needs to bring back industrial production. Yet the same people who lambaste the US for doing that, “because markets”, also lambaste it for not protecting them everywhere for free. Just as awkwardly, this US move comes just after Australia’s PM Albanese said he wouldn’t be bossed around on defence spending by the US and, alongside the UK and New Zealand, sanctioned two Israeli ministers in a way the US didn’t like.
The message is clear: the US can step back from defending Australia (and New Zealand) just as it has from Europe if the latter won’t step up at a far higher cost than Australia or New Zealand are currently budgeting for.
At the very least, the US seems to be insisting that Canberra pledges to use any US subs vs China in a potential war over Taiwan. Do that and maybe Australia can keep AUKUS – yet they will likely pay a high price elsewhere, including on trade; and if they don’t, they will have to pay an even higher price for defence, at the very least – the US could squeeze Australia (and New Zealand) in many ways, just as it can Europe. In short, it looks like the D for Decision Day I have long warned of may finally loom Down Under after years of have-your-cake-and-eat-it-ism.
Yet showing somebody is still on a sugar high, Australia reportedly thinks a new security pact with Europe, ahead of a possible FTA, is an answer. Sleep well, Aussies (and Kiwis): Spain and Germany are ready to protect you at the drop of a hat, just as you are ready to fight Russia. Even France, which had wanted to play that role, is going to be overstretched with a huge budget deficit and a lot of Europe to patrol now the Baltic states are being mentioned by Russia.
Similarly, geopolitical events have again eclipsed a careful UK government spending review assuming they wouldn’t even when everyone could see they could. In particular, yesterday’s 4-year plan only sees defence meeting at a 2.6% of GDP level from 2027 onwards, then stopping, even as NATO will require 3.5% to 5%, and a failure of AUKUS would send a further shock through Whitehall. That’s not just ‘what is GDP for?’ but ‘who is paying for that GDP?’
Indeed, Bloomberg notes ‘Britain Counts the Mounting Cost of Taxing Wealthy ‘Non-Doms’’, where “Over 4,400 business leaders have disclosed an overseas move in the last year”; and as the Telegraph bewails ‘Britain ‘surrendering Gibraltar’ after agreeing to EU passport controls’ where Brits “will have to deal with Spanish guards when they land on the Rock after deal agreed.” Yes, The Rock which once underlined British global naval dominance is now to be in the Schengen zone.
You might want to think none of this really matters compared to a 0.1%. In which case, I would suggest that is about as much of the big picture impacting on inflation that you see.
Pennsylvania is on the short list of destinations for cloud computing and artificial intelligence (AI). However, the commonwealth – thanks to ill-advised policies pushed by Gov. Josh Shapiro – remains ill-equipped to handle this emerging market.
On Monday, the governor announced a $20 billion investment by Amazon to develop data centers statewide. Though a laudable investment, the governor’s publicity stunt highlights a glaring issue: State policies make it extremely expensive to set up shop in Pennsylvania and tap into the state’s abundant energy resources.
And the governor’s proposals to address this issue will actually make things worse.
Shapiro’s policies to reduce the amount of reliable electricity are the most concerning.
Even without the new influx of data centers, electricity costs are rising in Pennsylvania. On June 1, utility companies increased rates statewide. These companies regularly adjust rates based on market conditions.
And those conditions aren’t great for ratepayers. In this year’s first quarter, wholesale prices in Pennsylvania were up 44%.
What are driving costs? It’s simple supply-and-demand economics. Supply continues to dwindle as regulations force reliable power plants to retire prematurely and force-feed more unreliable solar and wind energy into the state’s energy portfolio.
Meanwhile, demand – driven by AI – keeps escalating.
AI guzzles electricity. A ChatGPT query devours 10 times more electricity than a conventional Google query. To satiate AI’s growing power needs, conservative estimates suggest the United States needs at least 18 gigawatts of additional grid capacity by 2030 – roughly three times the annual consumption of New York City.
Tech companies have already begun to stake claims for increased energy capacity. Case in point: Microsoft’s recent reboot of Three Mile Island. Partnering with Constellation Energy, the tech giant will commandeer the once-shuttered nuclear power plant to power its growing AI capabilities with around-the-clock energy.
And while such deals are great for Big Tech, Pennsylvania households and small businesses remain stuck with ever-increasing electricity bills. Even before the recent rate hike, new polling reveals 78% of Pennsylvanians report increased energy bills over the past two years.
Meanwhile, misguided lawmakers push policies that only exacerbate the problem. For example, Gov. Shapiro’s Lightning Plan – which includes a carbon-tax scheme and mandates more unreliable “green” energy – will add about $157 billion in statewide electricity costs by 2035, according to a new report by Always On Energy and the Commonwealth Foundation. These added costs will double household electricity bills.
So long as these ill-advised policies continue to throttle capacity and generation, the grid will remain a bottleneck to future innovation in Pennsylvania.
To attract new data centers, lawmakers have also flirted with an age-old yet ineffectual solution: corporate welfare. Despite the political appeal, government favors (i.e., tax incentives and subsidies) to attract new businesses often fail.
Pennsylvania’s Independent Fiscal Office found that the commonwealth’s tax credits netted a lousy return on investment, about 25 cents on the dollar.
The best medicine is regulatory reform. Lawmakers should revise electricity regulations to account for reliability and consider all infrastructure costs associated with electricity generation. Also, energy markets need a more predictable permitting process for energy extraction and power plant construction.
Shapiro alluded to fast-tracking permitting for new data centers. Competing with neighbors like West Virginia, which recently passed a bill allowing “microgrid” districts for data centers with standalone power plants, could be beneficial. But there again, the track record of industry-specific reforms is spotty.
Nearly a year ago, Pennsylvania passed the Streamlining Permits for Economic Expansion and Development (SPEED) program to create an expedited permit review and approval process associated with energy production. Today, SPEED remains under development. Shapiro’s call for expedited permitting for data centers appears to be yet another half-measure that won’t accomplish much.
Pennsylvania can’t afford to stop with just one industry. Regulatory reform must be comprehensive and universal, freeing up all economic sectors from onerous red tape.
Pennsylvania, with more than 160,000 individual regulations and restrictions throttling genuine economic development, is one of the most-regulated states. Research suggests a 36% cut in regulations would yield 1% growth in Pennsylvania’s GDP, according to a report coauthored by the Competitive Enterprise Institute and the Commonwealth Foundation.
Before Pennsylvania’s Wyoming Valley can become the next Silicon Valley, the commonwealth must rethink its strategy. Lawmakers must cut red tape, not blank checks to big corporations. Moreover, they must unleash affordable energy, not shackle it with climate-alarmist policies. Without genuine regulatory and energy reform, the commonwealth won’t be able to power the future and will be left in the dark.
Picnic Or Not, Rand Paul Reveals The One Thing That Will Secure His Vote For Trump Tax Bill
Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) continues to be a prominent holdout against President Donald Trump’s ambitious “Big, Beautiful Bill,” drawing frustration from the White House. However, the Kentucky Republican – who was reportedly disinvited and then reinvited to the annual White House picnic – has indicated he could ultimately support the legislation if a key condition is met: removing the debt ceiling increase from the bill.
In a Tuesday interview with Charlie Kirk, Paul voiced concerns over the federal government’s reliance on omnibus spending bills or continuing resolutions, calling them a “terrible way to run government.” Paul also criticized GOP leadership in both the House and Senate for failing to deliver on promises of fiscal responsibility, accusing them of prioritizing political expediency over conservative principles that they claim to uphold.
“It’s going to be an omnibus or a continuing resolution. It’ll be all the bills crammed together. It’s a terrible way to run government.But then we would ask them at that point, all right, you promised us you were going to do better. And once again, this isn’t an accusation against the president,” Paul told Kirk. “This is an accusation against GOP leadership on both sides.I’m saying, I don’t believe them or trust them. So, in three months, we’d get another bite at the apple and we’d say, all right, what have you done? And they would say, oh, we’re going to do it next time. And that’s what they say.”
“Right now, from Speaker Johnson, we hear he’s going to be conservative after the 2026 elections. The Senate has made it not just $4 trillion in borrowing, they want to do $5 trillion in borrowing, and they’ve explicitly told us it’s to get through the 2026 elections without talking about the debt,” the senator added. All of these things were conservatives would oppose, but now they, because they support the president so much, they’re willing to look the other way. I like the president. I like him personally.”
Paul then took aim at the recurring pattern of massive, last-minute spending bills that combine multiple legislative priorities into a single package. “It’s all the bills crammed together,” he said, arguing that this approach lacks transparency and accountability. He expressed frustration with Republican leaders who, he claims, repeatedly defer meaningful reforms with vague promises of action after future elections. “Right now, from Speaker Johnson, we hear he’s going to be conservative after the 2026 elections,” Paul remarked skeptically.
“I was his biggest defender against two impeachments. We’ll do it again. I’ve supported his nominees, but I’m just not going to go against all principle to support $5 trillion in borrowing because I don’t know who we would be or where we would be of a movement if nobody opposes this,” Paul said. “I’ve told them I will vote for the bill. Separate out the debt ceiling so I don’t have to give up all of my principles and I’ll vote for the bill.“
Despite Paul’s opposition, House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) remains optimistic that Congress can pass the sweeping bill by July 4, despite ongoing challenges in the Senate. “We certainly hope, I believe, we can still meet that,” Johnson told reporters Monday. “It’s up to the Senate, the bill’s in the Senate’s hands now. But I spoke with Leader Thune as recently as last night, he’s feeling very optimistic.”
“I think it’s gonna go pretty quickly,” Trump added.
Meanwhile as noted above, Rand accused the White House of “immaturity” and “petty vindictiveness” on Wednesday after he and his family weredisinvited from the annual White House picnic held with members of both parties.
“The level of immaturity is beyond words,” said Paul, adding that he’s “lost a lot of respect” for Trump.
“It’s just incredibly petty,” he told CNN Wednesday evening. “I’m arguing from a true belief and worry that our country is mired in debt and getting worse. And they choose to react by uninviting my grandson to the picnic. I don’t know. I just think it really makes me lose a lot of respect I once had for Donald Trump.”
Paul: “I like Donald Trump, but when they want to act this way, it’s where they begin to lose a lot of America who just wonders, ‘Why does everything have to descend to this level?’”
Also takes a whack at Stephen Miller for “casually talking about getting rid of habeas corpus” pic.twitter.com/0ojRjYIIV9
On Thursday, however, Trump posted on Truth Social: “Of course Senator Rand Paul and his beautiful wife and family are invited to the BIG White House Party tonight. He’s the toughest vote in the history of the U.S. Senate, but why wouldn’t he be?”
Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has chosen eight new members for the panel that advises the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on vaccines.
The new members of the Advisory Committee for Immunization Practices (ACIP) include Dr. Joseph Hibbeln, a psychiatrist and neuroscientist who is acting chief of the Section on Nutritional Neurosciences at the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism; Dr. Robert Malone, who helped invent messenger ribonucleic acid technology; and Dr. Cody Meissner, a pediatrics professor at Dartmouth College and former ACIP member, Kennedy announced on June 11.
“All of these individuals are committed to evidence-based medicine, gold-standard science, and common sense. They have each committed to demanding definitive safety and efficacy data before making any new vaccine recommendations,” he said in a statement.
Malone said on social media platform X that he was honored to be named to the committee. “I will do my best to serve with unbiased objectivity and rigor,” he wrote.
The other new members are:
Dr. Martin Kulldorff, an epidemiologist and biostatistician who helped found Hillsdale College’s Academy for Science and Freedom.
Retsef Levi, a professor of operations management at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s Sloan School of Management who holds a PhD in operations research.
Dr. James Pagano, an emergency medicine doctor.
Vicky Pebsworth, who holds a PhD in public health and nursing, and is a regional director of the National Association of Catholic Nurses.
Dr. Michael Ross, a clinical professor of obstetrics and gynecology at George Washington University and Virginia Commonwealth University.
Levi told The Epoch Times that while he believes the outgoing ACIP panelists “applied their best judgment and did it with the very best of intentions and based on very deep expertise,” the secretary’s reforms are based on “a broader sentiment that the process by which we evaluate the safety and benefits of drugs, and specifically vaccines, can be improved and can be more transparent and also more trustworthy by the public.”
He added that he views the role of ACIP members as “giving advice based on their best judgment.”
“The advice might not be uniform, the advice might be nuanced and might be diverse. And then there are decision-makers and policy-makers that take the responsibility, and they will have to make their best judgment based on the opinions that they hear and the data that they see—they will have to make decisions,” he said.
“I think that scientists should stay in the role of analyzing the science and reflecting what the science suggests. And the same scientists should not be the decision-makers.”
Having worked with academics, clinicians, and patients in the health care system across his career, Levi said he hopes to bring his experience with data-driven frameworks for balancing “different types of risks and different types of benefits.”
He said that modern advances should now allow for “the aspect of personalization” in medicine.
“We want to think about those risks and benefits in the personalized context of individual patients or groups of patients that may have different characteristics, different desires, different wishes, different cultures,” Levi said. “And we really want to think about it in a way that will allow them to make the best choices for their own health, together with their physicians.”
Kennedy heads the Department of Health and Human Services, the CDC’s parent agency. The department on June 9 notified the 17 previous members of their dismissals.
“The Committee will no longer function as a rubber stamp for industry profit-taking agendas,” Kennedy said in a statement at the time.
The ACIP is a panel convened by the CDC to offer advice about vaccines, including childhood and adult immunization schedules.
Members “are knowledgeable in the fields of immunization practices and public health, have expertise in the use of vaccines and other immunobiologic agents in clinical practice or preventive medicine, have expertise with clinical or laboratory vaccine research, or have expertise in assessment of vaccine efficacy and safety,” according to the committee’s charter.
Kennedy told reporters in Washington this week that the new members would be credentialed scientists and doctors “who are going to do evidence-based medicine, who are going to be objective, and who are going to follow the science and make critical public health determinations for our children based upon the best science.”
Some Members Were Paid by Pharmaceutical Companies
Eight of the members whom Kennedy fired had been paid by pharmaceutical companies in the past, according to an Epoch Times review of disclosures and payment information.
Dr. Yvonne Maldonado, for instance, whose term started in 2024, received $4.6 million in research funding from Pfizer and $39,547 in payments from Pfizer and Merck in recent years. Her conflict of interest disclosures stated that she worked on clinical trials for Pfizer’s meningococcal, COVID-19, and RSV vaccines and that she abstained from related votes.
Other previous members received thousands of dollars from Sanofi, GlaxoSmithKline, Pfizer, Valneva, Merck, Janssen Pharmaceuticals, and Boehringer Ingelheim.
Most of the funding, but not all, came before the members joined the panel. Dr. Helen Keipp Talbot’s term started in 2018, and she reported receiving $7,500 in research funding and $4,662 in payments from Sanofi in 2019.
An email to Talbot returned an automated message directing requests for comment to a spokesman for Vanderbilt University Medical Center, her employer. The spokesman did not return an inquiry.
Kennedy has criticized members over their ties to pharmaceutical companies.
“The committee has been plagued with persistent conflicts of interest and has become little more than a rubber stamp for any vaccine. It has never recommended against a vaccine—even those later withdrawn for safety reasons,” he wrote in an op-ed.
The Department of Health also noted that all 17 members were appointed or had their terms renewed during the Biden administration, and that many were set to serve until 2027 or 2028. Keeping them in place would have meant that the Trump administration could appoint only a minority of members until then, limiting its ability “to take the proper actions to restore public trust in vaccines,” the department said in a statement.
Of the new members, Pagano reported receiving about $4,600 from pharmaceutical companies in recent years; Hibbeln reported receiving $338, including from AbbVie; and Meissner received less than $150 from Sanofi and another firm.
Criticism and Praise
Some doctors and health groups voiced opposition to the terminations.
The move, along with the recent narrowing of COVID-19 vaccine recommendations, “interferes with the practice of evidence-based medicine and destabilizes a trusted source and its evidence-based process for helping guide decision-making for vaccines to protect the public health in our country,” Dr. Jason Goldman, president of the American College of Physicians and the college’s liaison to the advisory committee, said in a statement.
“The decision to suddenly remove all 17 members of the CDC independent advisory committee in one sweeping move is deeply damaging to confidence in vaccines that have proven to be safe for decades and in the healthcare providers who counsel patients and their families about immunization decisions every day,” Jason Prevelige, president and chair of the board of directors of the American Academy of Physician Associates, stated.
Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-La.), chairman of the Senate Health Committee, and Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), the top minority member of the panel, also expressed concern about the move.
Others praised the dismissals, including Mary Holland, CEO of Children’s Health Defense, a group that Kennedy chaired before he became health secretary.
“The committee has been riddled with financial conflicts of interest, through research grants, stock portfolios, and patent stakes,” Holland said in a statement. “This change is critical if this committee is to have any future role in advising on vaccines without bias.”
Micron To Invest $200 Billion In America To “Reinforce” Global Chip Dominance
Micron Technology announced massive plans to expand its U.S. investments to $200 billion—allocating $150 billion toward domestic memory manufacturing and $50 billion to R&D—across Idaho, New York, and Virginia. The move aligns with President Trump’s “Make America Great Again” vision, as big tech firms ramp up investments to build data centers and reshore supply chains in preparation for what some expect to be a volatile geopolitical climate in the 2030s, with the world increasingly splintering into a bipolar state.
The $200 billion investment to strengthen America’s semiconductor industry will help to solidify U.S. technological leadership over China and create tens of thousands of jobs, revitalizing the Heartland after decades of de-industrialization driven by disastrous globalist policies by Washington elites.
Here’s a breakdown of Micron’s expansion—crucial to powering America’s AI industry:
Two cutting-edge DRAM fabs in Idaho, including a newly announced second fab.
Four planned fabs in New York, pending environmental reviews.
Modernization and expansion of the Virginia fab, supported by $275 million in CHIPS Act funding.
Advanced High Bandwidth Memory (HBM) packaging capabilities, to be developed domestically.
“This approximately $200 billion investment will reinforce America’s technological leadership, create tens of thousands of American jobs across the semiconductor ecosystem and secure a domestic supply of semiconductors—critical to economic and national security,” Micron Chairman, President and CEO Sanjay Mehrotra wrote in a statement, adding, “We are grateful for the support from President Trump, Secretary Lutnick and our federal, state and local partners who have been instrumental in advancing domestic semiconductor manufacturing.”
The expansion will enable Micron to produce roughly 40% of its DRAM in the U.S., creating an estimated 90,000 jobs. President Trump’s broader push to bring semiconductor manufacturing back to the Heartland is supported by up to $6.4 billion in CHIPS Act funding and anticipated eligibility for the Advanced Manufacturing Investment Credit (AMIC).
America’s top tech CEOs react to the Micron news:
Satya Nadella, Chairman and CEO, Microsoft:
“Strengthening semiconductor manufacturing in the U.S. will drive new innovation, create high-skilled jobs, and further American competitiveness. We applaud Micron Technology and the Trump Administration on this critical initiative to advance the country’s leadership in this vital industry.”
Jensen Huang, Founder and CEO, NVIDIA:
“Micron’s investment in advanced memory manufacturing and HBM capabilities in the U.S., with support from Trump Administration, is an important step forward for the AI ecosystem. Micron’s leadership in high-performance memory is invaluable to enabling the next generation of AI breakthroughs that NVIDIA is driving. We’re excited to collaborate with Micron as we push the boundaries of what’s possible in AI and high-performance computing.”
Tim Cook, CEO, Apple:
“At Apple, we’re proud to work with suppliers in all 50 states — including Micron, whose technology helps power the products our users rely on every day. This new commitment is another great example of American manufacturing leadership, and we look forward to building on our work together.”
Michael Dell, Chairman and CEO, Dell Technologies:
“Micron’s commitment to expanding U.S. memory production marks a pivotal moment for the technology industry. As a long-time strategic partner, we collaborate with Micron to develop infrastructure solutions that power AI and general-purpose computing. This investment strengthens the availability of secure, scalable and sustainable memory solutions critical to driving innovation and progress across industries.”
Matt Garman, CEO, AWS:
“Micron’s investment in expanding memory manufacturing and advanced packaging in the U.S. is a significant milestone for the semiconductor industry. At AWS, we are building the infrastructure that is powering the next generation of generative AI and high-performance computing, and memory is a critical enabler of that mission. Micron’s expansion further strengthens the domestic supply chain for key semiconductor technologies as we continue to deliver products with the performance, scale, security, sustainability, and quality that our customers demand.”
Dr. Lisa Su, Chair and CEO, AMD:
“Micron’s investment to expand its U.S. presence is both timely and strategically important. Strengthening the domestic semiconductor supply chain is critical as we accelerate innovation in AI and high-performance computing. At AMD, we value our long-standing partnership with Micron and their continued leadership in memory technology, which plays a vital role in enabling our high-performance, energy-efficient computing solutions.”
Cristiano Amon, President and CEO, Qualcomm Incorporated:
“Micron’s investment in U.S.-based memory manufacturing is a significant milestone for the semiconductor industry. As a key technology player and longstanding partner, we value Micron’s commitment to strengthening the domestic semiconductor supply chain, which is crucial for our supply chain resilience and diversification. This vital investment not only supports American innovation across a wide range of industries including automotive, and beyond, but also, ensures that critical technologies are securely and reliably available. We are proud to support this initiative, which enables the growth and sustainability of U.S. manufacturing.”
To support the growth of the U.S. semiconductor industry, Micron has committed over $325 million to develop the next-generation workforce and strengthen communities across Idaho, New York and Virginia. This investment includes semiconductor curriculum development, community college partnerships for apprenticeships, university partnerships and other programs aimed at expanding access to semiconductor careers. These ongoing efforts will be critical to building a robust talent pipeline that will support Micron’s long-term and U.S. technology leadership.
Add Micron to the growing list of big tech investments pouring into the U.S., from advanced manufacturing to data centers, as America’s industrial and digital backbone is being rebuilt and shored up ahead of the 2030s.
“Here Come The Layoffs”; Jobless Claims Rise To 8 Month High As Continuing Claims Unexpectedly Soar
The number of Americans filing for jobless benefits for the first time jumped to 247k last week (above the 239k expected) – the highest since October 2024…
A breakdown of weekly claims changes finds widespread increase in weekly claims filings, with the biggest increases in California, Minnesota and Pennsylvania,, and the biggest drops in Kentucky and North Dakota.
Commenting on the result, Southbay Research writes, “here come the layoffs” and notes that “if you expected white collar layoffs in IT, Healthcare/Pharma, and DEI, these States would probably show it”, to wit:
Continuing claims not only remained above the 1.9 million Americans level for the third week in a row, but unexpectedly spiked to the highest level since November 2021, at 1.956 million, well above the 1.190 million expected…
…with the DOGE-inspired ‘Deep Tristate’ region seeing claims surge to their highest since Dec 2021
Commenting on the report, Bloomberg’s economists write that while initial jobless claims remained elevated in early June, but only slightly higher than in the corresponding week last year, it was the “surge in continuing claims points to further downward pressure on the labor market, with newly unemployed workers struggling to find new jobs.”
Employers are cautious about growth prospects, leading to relatively a weak hiring rate and making it difficulty for those who lose jobs to find new ones.
So yes, the layoffs are coming, and meanwhile despite Musk’s obvious disappointment at the One Big Beautiful Bill’s lack of spending cuts, he can be proud that he did his part to shrink the workforce of the leviathan.
