October 21, 2024
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Welcome to the news for independent thinkers
Leading the News . . .
'Stunning security failures' led to assassination attempt at Trump rally, House report finds . . . "Federal, state, and local law enforcement officers could have engaged Thomas Matthew Crooks at several pivotal moments," the report stated. Lawmakers added that throughout the afternoon, "as Crooks's behavior became increasingly suspicious, fragmented lines of communication allowed Crooks to evade law enforcement" and climb onto the unsecured roof where he would eventually open fire. "Put simply, the evidence obtained by the Task Force to date shows the tragic and shocking events of July 13 were preventable and should not have happened," the report continued. Associated Press
Politics
Trump works fry cooker at McDonald's — and MAGA faithful line up to order . . . Wearing an apron and a red tie, the former president served up some fries and political shade against his rival during a behind-the-counter stint at McDonald's Sunday, which drew a monster crowd to the Feasterville-Trevose, Pa. fast food restaurant. McDonald's has long been one of Trump's favorite chains, but his visit to the Golden Arches Sunday doubled as an effort to re-up his doubts over Vice President Kamala Harris' claims that she worked there in the 1980s. "I've now worked for 15 minutes more than Kamala," he said. New York Post
Some Jewish voters in presidential swing states reconsider their longtime devotion to Democrats . . . For Rona Kaufman, the signs are everywhere that more Jews feel abandoned by the Democratic Party and may vote for Republican Donald Trump. It's in her Facebook feed. It's in the discomfort she observed during a question-and-answer at a recent Democratic Party campaign event in Pittsburgh. It's in her own family. "The family that is my generation and older generations, I don't think anybody is voting for Harris, and we've never voted Republican, ever," Kaufman, 49, said, referring to Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris. "My sister has a Trump sign outside her house, and that is a huge shift." Associated Press
Most Americans say their families are worse off than four years ago . . . A Gallup poll finds economic concerns at a level not seen since Bill Clinton won the presidency in 1992. Gallup reported Friday that 52% of adults responding to a recent survey said they and their families were in poorer shape financially than before President Biden took office. That's the highest in presidential election-year surveys going back to 1984, and the most since 46% said the same in October 1992, the polling company noted. Washington Times
Meet Kamala Harris's Far-Left Protégé She No Longer Wants To Discuss Who Calls the VP 'Auntie,' . . . Lateefah Simon, Harris's longtime protégé, close friend, and early proponent of the "defund the police" movement, is running for Congress. But unlike Harris, Simon is proud of her progressive views. That might be why Harris, who once officiated Simon's wedding, has not endorsed her mentee. And when Harris does speak of Simon, it's not in public but rather at private fundraisers, like the San Francisco soirée she held in August. Washington Free Beacon
CBS News breaks its silence over editing allegations
Culture
In Logansport, Indiana, kids pushed out of schools after migrants swell county population by 30% . . . Thousands of migrants from Haiti and dozens of other countries have arrived in this isolated Indiana city of 18,000 in just a few years. Furious residents say they no longer feel safe in the once sleepy downtown, and their kids are being muscled out of the schools by new students who don't know English and need a lot more help. They blame Vice President Kamala Harris and President Biden. New York Post
National Security
Crises at Boeing and Intel are a national emergency . . . The U.S. still designs the world's most innovative products, but is losing the knack for making them. At the end of 1999, four of the 10 most valuable U.S. companies were manufacturers. Today, none are. The lone rising star: Tesla, which ranked 11th. Intel and Boeing were once the gold standard in manufacturing groundbreaking products to demanding specifications with consistently high quality. Not any longer. Wall Street Journal
This points to one of the major rationales for Trump's tariff plan, backed by nationalist-populist conservatives: America cannot become a country that doesn't make things.
International
Israel Killed Sinwar by Forcing Him From the Tunnels . . . Israel's military closed in on Hamas's underground labyrinth, destroying strategic tunnel complexes. The Journal found that the tactic forced Sinwar to surface. With ever-fewer places to hide, he spent more time above ground, in the Tel al-Sultan area of Rafah in southern Gaza, according to Israeli officials and Arab mediators communicating with Hamas. Israel didn't know Sinwar's exact location but it deployed forces to hunt him there. On Oct. 16, Israel's strategy to flush Sinwar out of the tunnels led to his killing, enabled by the skills of war and aided by chance. Wall Street Journal
It wasn't just dumb luck.
Portion of Israeli plan to strike Iran leaked . . . One of the documents is titled "Israel: Air Force Continues Preparations for Strike on Iran," and describes recent exercises that appeared to rehearse elements of such a strike. The second document details how Israel is shifting the placement of its missiles and weapons in case Iran responded with strikes of its own. Officials were divided over the seriousness of the leak, which did not appear to reveal any new American capabilities. The documents describe but do not show the satellite images. the leak reveals, once again, the degree to which the United States spies on one of its closest allies. New York Times
Israel strikes Hezbollah-run financial institution . . . Lebanese were surveying the damage on Monday after overnight Israeli strikes hit nearly a dozen branches of a Hezbollah-run financial institution that Israel says is used to fund attacks but where many ordinary people keep their savings. The strikes targeted Al-Qard Al-Hassan branches in the southern neighborhoods of Beirut, across southern Lebanon and in the Bekaa, where Hezbollah has a strong presence. One strike flattened a nine-story building with a branch inside it. Smoke was still rising from several locations on Monday and bulldozers were removing the debris. Associated Press
Money
Biden ends fiscal year with $1.8 trillion deficit; gross interest payments top $1 trillion . . . It was the highest budget deficit in U.S. history other than the acute emergency period of the COVID-19 pandemic. The Treasury Department reported that the U.S. paid more than $1 trillion in gross interest on the federal debt, marking the first time the federal government has crossed that grim milestone. The government did report a remarkable surge in tax revenue of nearly $480 billion, or nearly 11%, during the just-ended fiscal year 2024. Still, the revenue couldn't match the rapacious pace of spending by Congress. Washington Times
How is this sustainable?
You should also know
No, You're Not Imagining a Migrant Crime Spree . . . A Federation for American Immigration Reform study found that, on average, illegals were more than twice as likely to be in prison in California, compared with other state residents; they were twice as likely to be in prison in New York, too; in New Jersey, they were nearly four times as likely, and in Arizona, nearly five times. Among the states studied, Texas showed the smallest difference between legal residents and illegal immigrants in rates—probably, the FAIR authors theorized, thanks to tougher border enforcement, which deters immigrant criminals from remaining in the state. City Journal
U.S. trade loophole allows Chinese fast fashion to target Gen Z consumers with toxic goods . . . Chinese retailers selling "affordable" clothing, such as Shein, are flooding the U.S. market with sparkly dresses, statement jewelry and other trendy items, but reports link these products to harmful exposure. Experts say the brands exploit U.S. trade loopholes to avoid oversight and evade tariffs while targeting vulnerable Generation Z consumers. German consumer magazine Okotest found large amounts of lead, antimony and cadmium in clothing. These substances are linked to cancer and reproductive harm. Washington Times
Guilty Pleasures
Canadian man walks 38 dogs at once to break the world record . . . A canine-loving Canadian broke a Guinness World Record by taking 38 dogs on a single walk for over half a mile. Mitchell Rudy led a pack of 38 leashed pooches on a .6-mile walk to break the Guinness World Record for the most dogs walked simultaneously by an individual. The previous record of 36 dogs was set in Goesan, South Korea. UPI
Do you also have to pick up the poop to claim the title?
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