Authored by Amie Dahnke via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours),

Diagnostic errors in U.S. hospitals are sending nearly one in four patients to the intensive care unit, according to the results of a new study.

In the cohort study conducted by a team from UC San Francisco and the University of Colorado School of Medicine, it was found that 23 percent of patients either received incorrect diagnoses or experienced delays in diagnosis. Of these cases, 17 percent resulted in temporary or permanent harm to the patient.

The study’s results are published in the January edition of the Journal of the American Medical Association.

To determine diagnostic errors, the research team looked at 2,428 records of patients who had been admitted to 29 hospitals across the United States in 2019. A little over half of the patient records were male (54 percent), and the average age of the patient was 63.9 years old. Roughly two-thirds of the patients were white.

Patient cases were reviewed by two physicians trained in error adjudications. The physicians evaluated medical records for the presence or absence of diagnostic errors or underlying process issues or faults. Any records marked for fault were then reviewed more closely to determine what, if any, harm was caused as a result of the error.

The physicians had to agree on their assessment of the error and harm caused before finalizing their review; a third physician resolved any disagreements.

In total, 550 patients experienced a diagnostic error. Of these, 436 patients suffered temporary or permanent harm or death as a result of the error. Among the 1,863 patients who died, diagnostic errors were found to contribute to 121 of those deaths, accounting for nearly one in 10.

In 116 cases, diagnostic errors resulted in extended hospital stays. The most significant risks for diagnostic error were identified as issues in patient assessment and problems related to the ordering and interpretation of tests.

“Results from our study provide impetus for rapid exploration and testing of interventions seen to reduce diagnostic errors and harms associated with ICU transfer and deaths by targeting gaps in test selection and interpretation and physicians’ ability to debias and rethink diagnoses as high-priority areas,” the research team concluded.

Case Studies Show How Errors Lead to Harm, Longer Hospital Stays

In a case involving assessment error and patient monitoring, a patient with group B strep infection in their foot was admitted to the hospital. The care team primarily focused on the patient’s meningitis and did not have a plan for treating the foot infection. Consequently, the patient was transferred to the intensive care unit due to poor blood flow and underwent surgical debridement of their foot.

In another case related to testing, a patient on long-term anticoagulation therapy was admitted to the hospital with a hematoma just days following a bone marrow biopsy. The care team resumed anticoagulation therapy on the patient’s fifth day, which exacerbated the patient’s pain and led to tachycardia, a condition characterized by a heart rate exceeding 100 beats per minute. The patient remained in this state for an additional nine hours until CT scans revealed interventional radiology was required.

In a case involving misdiagnosis, a patient who was admitted to the hospital with severe aortic stenosis died after the care team failed to recognize that the patient was in shock. The research team observed that the hospital utilized surgical services to triage the patient, who was experiencing tachycardia, instead of opting for critical care or medical services.

According to the study, “problems related to testing, such as choosing the correct test, ordering the test in a timely fashion, or correctly interpreting the results and problems with assessment, such as recognizing complications or revisiting a different diagnosis, appear to be the most important targets for safety improvement programs.”

The research team noted their study failed to capture the constant pressure on hospital care teams, such as workload and staffing shortages, which likely influence the professional standard of care.

An October 2023 report from Kaufman Hall, a health care consulting firm, confirmed that two-thirds of hospitals across the United States are operating below full capacity due to staffing shortages. Additionally, 70 percent of these hospitals report that patients remain in emergency rooms due to a lack of staffing or bed capacity.

The report includes responses from 106 hospital and health system executives.

The Chinese economy has thrown up several red flags in 2023 and now foreign investors are losing confidence in the world’s second-largest economy.

In the following graphic, Visual Capitalist’s Pallavi Rao shows foreign direct investment (FDI) inflows have hit multi-year lows, using data accessed via the Peterson Institute for International Economics and sourced from China’s State Administration of Foreign Exchange (SAFE)

ℹ️ FDI occurs when an investor in one country acquires significant and lasting financial interest in a foreign enterprise. This data includes the IPO value of Chinese companies in foreign markets.

Foreign Investors Hit “Sell” on China in 2023

Aside from a broadly slowing economy, the Peterson Institute’s analysis highlights other key reasons why FDI inflows have scaled back so dramatically this year.

Firstly, geopolitical tensions (in the form of an escalating chip war) between the U.S. and China are worrying foreign investors—many of them American-headquartered companies with a presence in China, holding back on investments in local companies.

Secondly, the closure of due diligence firms (which allow foreign investors to make informed decisions on Chinese companies) along with a new national security law aimed at restricting cross-border data flows have disincentivized foreign investors from betting big if they wanted to.

Meanwhile, huge spikes in FDI inflows between 2018 and 2021 indicate the success of Chinese companies listing on American securities exchanges, which SAFE includes in its data. However, crackdowns from both Chinese and U.S. securities regulators in 2022 turned the tap off briefly. Despite the restrictions being since removed, new listings have not bounced back.

Another Red Flag for the Chinese Economy

The Peterson Institute’s comparison of gross and net FDI flows found a nearly $100 billion shortfall—which means foreign firms are selling their Chinese investments, adding yet another red flag for the economy.

This slowdown is now having a ripple effect across the region—for Japan, South Korea, and Thailand’s economies—whose export sectors rely on substantial Chinese demand. Nations in sub-saharan Africa will also feel the pinch as Chinese sovereign lending continues to fall, already past the lowest it’s been in two decades.

Meanwhile, on a broader scale, Chinese growth contributes to one-third of world economic growth, which means the global economy will miss growth projections made last year—when economists had a more optimistic view of the world’s second-largest economy.

Authored by Joshua Glawson via The Mises Institute,

There is an untold story in American monetary history. Some are reluctant even to discuss it.

I’m referring to the US Secret Service’s very own role in the destruction of sound money in America.

As constitutional, sound money in the form of physical gold and silver coins—whether minted privately or not—became an annoying impediment to expanding the size and power of the federal government, central planners began circulating unbacked paper proxies and formed a Gestapo-like police agency to enforce the scheme.

Founded in 1865, toward the tail end of the American Civil War, the Secret Service originated as a branch of the US Treasury Department.

The primary job of this federal police force was to prevent others from counterfeiting the U.S. currency, which had just been nationalized through acts of Congress via the National Currency Act of 1863 and the Coinage Act of 1864.

Together, these acts formed what are commonly known as the National Banking Acts of 1863 and 1864.

These Washington, DC laws imposed taxes with a levy court system and implemented direct taxation. This led to the country’s first income tax. The government also strengthened the establishment of the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), which had conveniently begun operation in 1862. Conjointly, these propped up the new federal fiat currency system.

From around 1837 through part of the Civil War, currency issuance and banking in America had been directed by a more decentralized network of states and free banking institutions. These entities issued banknotes that could be cashed in for standardized gold or silver coins or traded for goods and services.

During the Civil War, however, both sides issued their own banknotes to help fund their respective war efforts, often unbacked by the two monetary metals.

The Union pushed forth greenback fiat currency in Demand Notes and United States Notes. At the same time, the Confederates printed fiat greybacks in the forms of Confederate Dollars and Confederate Treasury Notes.

The number of fiat dollars in a bank and region in the new era would be largely based on population rather than gold and silver reserves, which is one reason the Union continued to encourage immigration both for fiat monetary support and war efforts.

The Union pushed to expand American territories through these Acts to increase population and issuance of government fiat money.

Since the Union and Congress sought to impose a federal fiat legal tender currency system that did not rely on tangible value and voluntarism, they needed enforcement of those laws. Those supporting laws included income taxes and establishing the IRS. The war, economic strife, and competition between currencies created various types of “counterfeit” currency.

Government officials made haughty claims that one in three fractional gold or silver coins at that time were counterfeit and did not contain their original gold or silver weight. By decreasing the amount of gold or silver in a coin, a counterfeiter could turn a profit.

Yet, these government hypocrites had no qualms about mandating that unbacked fiat currency must be considered legally equal to gold and silver coinage. Nor did they object to the illicit profit this enabled the central government to rake in.

Sadly, the US Supreme Court notoriously affirmed this devious scheme when deciding the “Legal Tender Cases,” considered by many legal scholars (including present-day Justices on the high court) to have been wrongly decided.

As such, the government changed the definition of money and citizens could henceforth be compelled to accept non-redeemable paper as equal to gold or silver coins.

On April 14, 1865, President Abraham Lincoln signed legislation establishing the Secret Service to combat counterfeit money—the non-government type, that is. Later that same day, Lincoln was assassinated, and he died on April 15.

From 1865 to 1901, the Secret Service’s main mission was to bust private counterfeiting operations. In 1881, President James Garfield was assassinated—interestingly, not too long after publicly advocating for a return to the gold standard.

Then, in 1901, with the assassination of President William McKinley, and under the new presidency of Theodore Roosevelt, the Secret Service was given the additional task of defending US presidents. (McKinley’s assassination occurred a year after he signed the Gold Standard Act of 1900, which halted bimetallism by diminishing the monetary role of silver.)

The Secret Service grew from its original role of helping to ramrod a new fiat currency standard into a much larger police force that also protects the US presidents.

A full 50 years before the Christmas Eve passage of the Federal Reserve Act of 1913, Congress had already set in motion a plan to rob our nation’s monetary system of its gold and silver, slip a fiat currency into circulation, promote fractional reserve banking, stamp out state and private banknotes, strengthen the IRS, and spawn the Secret Service to help enforce it all.

The solution is to return to a free market for money—a system of competition where gold and silver are permitted to circulate alongside other forms of payment—and to remove government force from the equation.

May the best currency win.

Authored by Tom Ozimek via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours),

Former President Donald Trump on Tuesday called the Georgia election interference case against him “totally compromised” and insisted it should be dropped after a bombshell court filing accused the lead prosecutor in the case—District Attorney Fani Willis— of having an “improper” romantic relationship with her top Trump prosecutor.

A co-defendant in the case, former Trump attorney Michael Roman, on Monday filed a motion in court alleging that Ms. Willis had an “improper” relationship with Nathan Wade, a special prosecutor, and that she financially benefitted from their alleged relationship.

Mr. Roman alleged that Mr. Wade, who has played a significant role in the case against President Trump and more than a dozen co-defendants, paid for vacations with Ms. Willis while using Fulton County funds that his private law firm had received.

President Trump, who has denied any wrongdoing in the case and has called it a “witch hunt” meant to derail his 2024 White House run, said on Tuesday that Mr. Roman’s court filing revelations mean that Ms. Willis and the case are both “totally compromised” and so the case should be dropped.

“You had a very big event yesterday as you saw in Georgia where the district attorney is totally compromised. The case has to be dropped,” President Trump said on Tuesday after a hearing in Washington over presidential immunity arguments in a separate case against him.

“They went after 18 or 20 people … She was out of her mind. Now it turns out that case is totally compromised,” the former president continued.

Former President Donald Trump speaks to the media at a Washington hotel, on Jan. 9, 2024. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh)

“It’s illegal. What she did is illegal. So we’ll let the state handle that, but what a sad situation it is,” President Trump added.

Ms. Willis’s office did not respond to a request for comment from The Epoch Times, though a spokesperson for her office told media outlets that she would “respond through appropriate court filings.”

‘Improper Relationship’

Ms. Willis brought the case against President Trump and more than a dozen co-defendants under Georgia’s Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) Act, a law drafted to fight organized crime.

The indictment accuses President Trump, and 18 others, of being part of a “criminal organization” that sought to overturn the Georgia results of the 2020 presidential election by unlawful means.

President Trump and his co-defendants have denied any wrongdoing, with the former president previously calling the case a “witch hunt” and accusing Ms. Willis of corruption.

Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis speaks during a news conference at the Fulton County Government building in Atlanta, Ga., on Aug. 14, 2023. (Joe Raedle/Getty Images)

Mr. Roman, who faces seven charges in the Georgia election interference case, served on President Trump’s 2020 campaign as director of Election Day operations.

In Monday’s court filing, Mr. Roman cited “discussions with individuals with knowledge” about Ms. Willis and Mr. Wade allegedly being “romantically involved” before the special prosecutor was brought onto the case by Ms. Willis.

“Sources close to both the special prosecutor and the district attorney have confirmed they had an ongoing, personal relationship during the pendency of the special prosecutor’s divorce proceedings,” states the filing, which also accuses Ms. Willis of bringing Mr. Wade on as a special counsel without obtaining proper government authorization.

The filing further states that Mr. Wade allegedly had a “lack of relevant experience” although he was paid hundreds of thousands of dollars by the county.

More Details

Mr. Roman’s filing also accused Ms. Willis of having potentially committed “an act to defraud the public of honest services” due to what he called an “intentional failure” to disclose her alleged relationship with Mr. Wade, which she “personally benefitted from.”

Records obtained by a local media outlet show that Mr. Wade was paid over $650,000 in legal fees since January 2022 and that the district attorney is the one who authorizes it.

Mr. Roman’s filing alleges that checks sent to Mr. Wade from Fulton County and vacations that he purchased with Ms. Willis could amount honest services fraud, which is a federal crime.

“Willis has benefitted substantially and directly, and continues to benefit, from this litigation because Wade is being paid hundreds of thousands of dollars to prosecute this case on her behalf,” the filing states.

Mr. Roman’s filing states that Ms. Willis and Mr. Wade could be prosecuted under a federal racketeering statute.

Besides the public comments President Trump made on Tuesday in response to Mr. Roman’s filing, he also took to Truth Social to post that the case “should be immediately dropped” and that Ms. Willis should apologize.

Earlier court filings by President Trump’s co-defendants have alleged that Mr. Wade’s work is “void as a matter of law” because he allegedly failed to file his oath of office paperwork in time to formally join Ms. Willis’ team.

Ms. Willis’s office did not respond to an earlier request for comment on the circumstances of Mr. Wade’s appointment.

Jack Phillips contributed to this report.

Via The Cradle,

ISIS militants attacked a military bus in the Syrian desert on Tuesday, killing at least 14 Syrian army soldiers, the anti-Assad Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) reported.

“At least 14 members of the regime forces were killed” and several others wounded “in a bloody [ISIS] attack on a military bus” in the desert near the ancient city of Palmyra, SOHR said.

The organization has carried out few attacks in recent months but has stepped up its activities recently. ISIS also killed nine Syrian army soldiers and allied fighters in an attack on military posts in the eastern Syrian desert last week, according to the British-based monitor.

ISIS also claimed credit for a terror attack in Iran last week which killed 91 pilgrims visiting the grave of Qassem Soleimani, the Iranian general assassinated by the US in Iraq in 2020 and who spear headed the war against ISIS.

ISIS and its spin-off, Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (previously the Nusra Front), are widely viewed as Israeli-US proxies. The groups played a crucial role in sparking a war in Syria to topple the government of Bashar al-Assad and to divide Iraq for the sake of establishing an independent Kurdish state able export oil to Israel. 

The terror attack in Iran came amid a broader US and Israeli campaign to target leaders of the Iran-aligned ‘Axis of Resistance’. 

One day before the attack at Soleimani’s grave, Israel assassinated top Hamas leader, Saleh al-Arouri, in the Dahiyeh suburb of Beirut. On January 5, the US targeted Mushtaq Talib al-Saidi, a leader of Harakat al-Nujaba, which is part of the Islamic Resistance in Iraq and Popular Mobilization Units (PMU). On January 8, Israel assassinated a top Hezbollah commander Wissam al-Tawil in southern Lebanon.

ISIS carried out a major attack in Iran in June 2017, targeting both the Iranian Parliament and the mausoleum of Ayatollah Khomeini, killing 16.

In October 2022, ISIS militants opened fire on visitors to a important Shiite holy site in the city of Shiraz, killing at least 15 and wounding dozens.

House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) met with Taiwan’s US envoy at the US Capitol on Tuesday, after which he vowed to continue supporting the Taiwanese people against Chinese aggression.

“We stand shoulder to shoulder with the Taiwanese people,” Johnson told reporters, adding “We certainly want to help in the defense of Taiwan, which is very important. We want to deter the Chinese Communist Party and any military provocations. The U.S. stands with our friends.“

Johnson met with Envoy Alexander Yui, Taiwan’s de facto ambassador to the United States – a meeting which undoubtedly pissed off CCP authorities in Beijing, particularly after Yui said that he looks forward to “further strengthen[ing] our rock-solid friendship,” to which Johjnson replied: “We have an important relationship, and we want to strengthen that.”

As The Epoch Times notes, the CCP has been harassing Taiwan leading up to the democratic island’s upcoming presidential vote on Saturday – launching several balloons and a rocket containing a satellite over the island’s airspace. Taiwan’s foreign minister described the incidents as part of a larger pattern of aggression designed to sway voters ahead of the election.

Recall in August of 2022 when former Speaker Nancy Pelosi visited Taiwan, the CCP launched several missiles around Taiwan and cut off all military communications with the United States.

The Chinese Communist Party claims that Taiwan is a rogue province that must be united with the mainland by any means necessary. The regime has never actually controlled any part of the island, however.

For its part, Taiwan is self-governed by a democratic government and oversees one of the world’s most successful market economies. Out of respect for China’s position, the United States does not maintain formal diplomatic relations with Taiwan. The United States and Taiwan do share robust informal ties, however, including economically and militarily.

It is unclear at this time what the response will be from Beijing concerning Mr. Johnson’s meeting with Mr. Yui.

“It sure does raise interesting questions about what their intentions are; what their goals are,” said White House National Security Council Spokesperson John Kirby, who added that the Biden administration remains committed to supporting free and fair elections in Taiwan.

“We want to see a free and fair and transparent election, and we’re willing to stand by and work with whoever the people of Taiwan elect to their government.”

By Zachary Stieber of Epoch Times

Members of Congress on Jan. 10 approved a report and resolution that recommends holding President Joe Biden’s son in contempt.

A U.S. House of Representatives panel voted approve the report and resolution, which says that Hunter Biden, 53, violated federal law by refusing to appear for a deposition behind closed doors.

The vote was along party lines. No Republicans voted no and no Democrats voted yes. Republicans currently control the lower chamber, so have more members on each panel. The full House is set to take up the matter at some point in the future.

Mr. Biden declined to sit for a transcribed interview in December 2023, insisting he would only answer questions in public.

Federal law states that when people who are subpoenaed by Congress refuse to testify or provide requested documents, Congress shall refer the matter to U.S. prosecutors. The people who defy congressional subpoenas can land a prison term of one to 12 months and a fine or $1,000.

Two former advisers to ex-President Donald Trump have been convicted by juries of violating the law for refusing to comply with subpoenas.

The House Judiciary Committee voted to approve the report. The House Oversight Committee was also scheduled to hold a vote, but lawmakers were still marking its report and resolution up more than six hours after its markup started.

Markups involve discussing proposed legislation, proposing amendments, and voting on amendments.

Mr. Biden “blatantly defied two lawful subpoenas,” Rep. James Comer (R-Ky.), chairman of the House Oversight Committee, said earlier on Wednesday.

“What we’re doing here today is showing the country that Hunter will not receive special treatment due to his last name. It’s very, very simple. And he will be held to the same standard that every other American citizen would be expected to do,” added Rep. Lisa McClain (R-Mich.).

Democrats spent much of the hearings talking about President Trump. Some said they supported Mr. Biden refusing to testify in private, pointing to comments Mr. Comer made that invited witnesses to choose whether to testify in public or private.

Mr. Comer said the votes were about the subpoena and that Mr. Biden could speak in a public hearing after testifying behind closed doors.

Mr. Biden made a surprise appearance during one of the hearings, sitting briefly with his lawyers before departing.

Republicans are seeking to speak to Mr. Biden regarding his business dealings and his father’s involvement with them. They’ve obtained evidence showing bank transfers between one of Mr. Biden’s companies and the president, among other records.

“Our investigation has produced significant evidence suggesting President Biden knew of, participated in, and benefited from his family’s cashing in on the Biden name,” Mr. Comer said.

Mr. Biden told reporters in late 2023 that “my father was not financially involved in my business.” He sat in on part of one of the hearings on Wednesday, but did not attempt to speak.

White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said this week that Mr. Biden makes his own choices.

“We don’t have anything else to share beyond that,“ she said. ”He’s a private citizen, and he makes his own decisions.”

She declined to say whether President Biden spoke with his son before or after his appearance in Congress.

Mr. Biden’s appearance sparked anger.

“You are the epitome of white privilege, coming into the Oversight Committee, spitting in our face, ignoring a congressional subpoena to be deposed,” Rep. Nancy Mace (R-S.C.) told Mr. Biden. “What are you afraid of?”

A powerful winter storm swept across the country’s midsection on Monday, dumping more than a foot of snow in some areas and shutting down highways in several Midwest states. Adverse weather conditions also closed major meatpacking plants.

Bloomberg reports two major beef packers idled operations in Kansas this week as blizzard conditions left workers unable to traverse roadways. 

Cargill Inc.’s Dodge City, Kansas plant suffered a power outage, and 50 workers were stranded on a nearby highway due to road closures. 

“We realize that some employees got stuck on the road outside the plant. We are working with local authorities and have hired tow truck drivers to assist them and other motorists,” Cargill said in a statement.

Tyson Foods meatpacking plant in Holcomb, Kansas, canceled shifts on Tuesday, the company said in a statement. On Monday, employees were given hot meals and shelter because roadways were too dangerous for travel. 

Fierce winter weather likely impacted the number of cattle slaughtered in the US on Tuesday, coming in at 94,000, compared with figures one year ago of 128,000, according to US Department of Agriculture data. This is also the lowest slaughter number of the new year. 

“When meat plants close, protein prices can start surging if supplies run thin. Meanwhile, farmers may face lower prices for their livestock with demand for the animals disrupted,” Bloomberg noted. 

This week’s disruption at some major beef plants in Heartland appears to be short-lived. However, a massive shortage of the nation’s cattle herd has driven retail beef prices to record highs. 

The beef industry is facing persistent challenges. It may be time for automated plants.

It could be just us, but Honda’s new electric vehicle, called “Saloon,” unveiled at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas on Tuesday, seems to mirror the designs of the Lamborghini Countach from the mid-1980s. 

With that aside, Honda’s new EV will feature “new advancements in design, automated driving, connected technologies, performance, and battery efficiency,” according to a Honda press release. 

The Japanese company expects the Saloon to be released in North America in 2026. Autoblog Autocar quoted the designer Toshinobu Minami as saying the new EV would keep “90% of this appearance,” including gullwing doors, for the production model.  

Honda has previously laid out plans for EVs and fuel-cell vehicles, which will comprise 40% of its new vehicle sales by 2030, 80% by 2035, and 100% by 2040. 

As of January, Honda does not offer full EVs in the US (only hybrids). The move into full EVs comes as US EV sales for the fourth quarter of 2023 slowed, growing by only 1.3%. The slowdown comes after 5% gains in the third quarter and 15% in the April-through-June period. 

Authored by Michael Ireland & Michael Johnson, Michael Philipps via RealClear Wire,

For Americans to start seeing evidence of the Biden Administration’s Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) taking shape in their hometowns, the construction industry will need the building materials to do the work. But should a newly proposed Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) particulate matter (PM) standard take effect in the next few weeks, those materials might not be readily available over the course of the next few years. 

The actual proposed reduction may seem small, but it would be an enormous change if put into practice. Meeting this change would not only hurt local communities, but it would also thwart the Biden Administration’s flagship IIJA goals.

To comply with the lower standard, U.S. manufacturers may have to cut back hours of operation, which would lead to fewer construction materials being produced, potential layoffs at manufacturing plants and inevitable delays in construction.

In other words, if the Administration chooses to move forward with the new EPA standard, it could be hindering its own plan to revamp the nation’s infrastructurea $550 billion agenda — and the opportunities to provide building materials would be punted to the U.S. construction industry’s competitors overseas. The supplies in other countries would likely be ready and in abundance, as the U.S. enforces some of the strictest emissions regulations in the world, and America’s manufacturers follow them or are shut down.

Those in the nation’s construction industry do care and continue to take action to improve the environment and the air we breathe. For decades, the U.S. cement, concrete, and aggregates industries have spent millions on state-of-the-art technologies to adhere to EPA standards and yield more sustainable products.  

Currently, the U.S. cement industry contributes only a 0.1% share of the PM emissions being targeted, and through the efforts of regulated industry and government officials, PM emissions have been reduced by 37% during the last two decades. This downward trend will continue through programs already on the books, including the PM standards EPA retained in 2020.  

Our industries have invested heavily in efforts to make our products more sustainable because of one simple truth: we are aware of how much society depends on these materials essential in construction, and we know life would be completely disrupted without them. These materials are not frivolous or luxury items that only accommodate some of the population. They are not a fleeting architectural fad that is in vogue today and outdated tomorrow. They are likely the foundation of the home or building where you currently sit, the sidewalk under your feet, and the roads and bridges you rely on to get you where you need to go. 

For centuries, U.S. construction materials have proven to be resilient, reliable, and strong. We checked those boxes long ago. This is why our industries are focusing now, more than ever, on making them more sustainable. 

The IIJA promises $550 billion in construction projects by 2026, which means manufacturers will need to supply tens of millions of tons of their products for those projects to happen. If anything, there is a need for greater investment in U.S. building material production capabilities.

The nation’s manufacturers are well-regulated. They have been for decades. Costly new regulations would negatively impact the U.S. construction industry, ramp up sales in the U.S. for foreign competitors, and we would all witness the same presidential administration that worked so steadfastly to champion the IIJA become the very administration to stifle it.

­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­ ­­­­Michael Ireland is President and CEO, Portland Cement Association. 

Michael Johnson is President and CEO, National Stone Sand and Gravel Association. 

Michael Philipps is President, National Ready Mixed Concrete Association.