Diogenes-Light: Trump Labels McConnell ‘a Stupid Person’ for Refusing to Eliminate Filibuster

BY JACK CROWE

July 19, 2021

Good morning and welcome to the News Editor's Roundup, a weekly newsletter that will ensure you're up to date on the developments in politics, business, and culture that will shape the week's news cycle — as well as those that might escape mainstream attention.

Trump Labels McConnell 'a Stupid Person' for Refusing to Eliminate Filibuster

In an interview with Vanity Fair published on Monday, former President Trump slammed Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R., Ky.) for defending the filibuster during his presidency, when Republicans held a slight majority in both houses of Congress.

"He's a stupid person," Trump said of McConnell. "I don't think he's smart enough."

"I tried to convince Mitch McConnell to get rid of the filibuster, to terminate it, so that we would get everything, and he was a knucklehead and he didn't do it," he added.

Federal Judge Blocks DACA Program, Orders DHS to Cease Approving Applications

A federal judge issued an injunction on Friday ordering the Biden administration to cease accepting applications to the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program.

The Department of Homeland Security "violated the [Administrative Procedure Act] with the creation of DACA and its continued operation," Judge Andrew Hanen of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas wrote in a ruling on Friday. "The DACA memorandum and the DACA program it created are hereby vacated and remanded to the DHS for further consideration."

Senior Biden Officials Say COVID Lab-Leak Theory as Plausible as Natural Origin: Report

Senior Biden administration officials, including national security adviser Jake Sullivan, now view the theory that the novel coronavirus leaked from a laboratory as equally plausible as a natural origin, CNN reported on Friday evening.

The report comes midway through a U.S. intelligence community review of the hypotheses for the origins of the pandemic, ordered by President Biden in May. While intelligence agencies are still divided as to whether the coronavirus first infected a human in nature or in a laboratory, the lab-leak theory has received renewed credibility in those agencies, one source familiar with the review told CNN.

"There has been a shift in their point of view," the source said.

College Republicans Poised for Splinter after 'Stolen' Election

The election is over, but the stakes are still quite high.

Courtney Britt, the candidate who incumbent College Republican National Committee Chairman Chandler Thornton hoped would succeed him, triumphed today over Judah Waxelbaum. Only about 60 percent of CRNC affiliates cast ballots, though: A consequence of the maneuvering detailed earlier this week by National Review.

In her acceptance speech, a less-than-a-minute address kept short as a courtesy to delegates who had already spent nearly seven hours on the call, Britt purported to be excited to work with "all" state federations.

Border Patrol Seize Record Amount of Fentanyl in June

Federal agents seized a record 1,060 pounds of fentanyl in June, U.S. Customs and Border Protection announced Friday.

More fentanyl was seized in June 2021 than in the last three Junes combined, the Daily Caller first reported.

CBP reported 109 seizures in June with an average of 9.7 pounds per seizure. That number was down from 132 seizures in May.

Protests Erupt at Los Angeles Spa over Transgender Access Policy

Dueling protests erupted in front of a Los Angeles spa Saturday over the establishment's transgender access policy.

The demonstration was sparked by a video that was posted earlier this month, in which a customer complained to the Wi Spa workers after they allowed a biological male to expose his penis in the women's area of the spa. The business stood by its policy of admitting transgender clientele, spurring objections, the Los Angeles Times reported.

Protestors both opposing and supporting the spa's position convened in LA for a rally that turned unruly, after some participants started hurling smoke bombs and other objects at police, Detective Meghan Aguilar, a spokeswoman for the LAPD, told ABC News.

Surgeon General Urges Social Media Platforms to Confront COVID Misinformation 'Wildfire'

Surgeon General Vivek Murthy on Sunday urged social media companies to confront and snuff out the COVID misinformation "wildfire" circulating on their platforms.

"This is about the health of Americans and the reality is that misinformation is still spreading like wildfire in our country, aided and abetted by technology platforms," Murthy said on Fox News Sunday. "I have been in dialogue with a number of technology companies in good faith efforts to express my concerns to them and where they have taken positive steps. And some of them have, I've acknowledged that, as we should do, but what I've also said very clearly to them, privately and also publicly, is that it's not enough."

Biden Admin Blames China for Microsoft Email Hack

The Biden administration blamed China for the hack of Microsoft Exchange servers that compromised tens of thousands of computers in March of this year, in statements to reporters on Monday.

The administration has so far declined to impose sanctions on China over the hack. In addition to the Microsoft Exchange hack, the administration also accused China of working with "criminal" hackers to target companies for ransom.

"We have raised our concerns about both this incident and the [People's Republic of China's] broader malicious cyber activity with senior PRC Government officials, making clear that the PRC's actions threaten security, confidence, and stability in cyberspace," a White House fact sheet stated.