Category: Opinion

House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy appeared on “Fox & Friends” Monday and responded to a conversation between President Trump and Georgia’s Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger. During the call, Trump insisted that he won Georgia in the 2020 presidential election and urged Raffensperger to “find” enough votes needed to reverse the state’s results.

The president reportedly said, “All I want to do is this. I just want to find 11,780 votes, which is one more than we have. Because we won the state.”

Georgia certified election results show that President-elect Joe Biden won the state by 11,779 votes.

“We have to make sure that our elections are accountable, have integrity, and are safe,” said McCarthy. “The president’s always been concerned about the integrity of the election and the president believes that there are things that happened in Georgia, and he wants to see the accountability for it.”

“Does anybody in America think the last election was done well?” he added while noting that some races in New York have still not been called.

“What has happened here in this last election because of COVID, people just sending ballots out to anyone who’s on the rolls. These rolls have not been cleaned up,” McCarthy said and pointed out that “this isn’t the first time this has happened.”

“If we really want to unite this nation, that’s what the house should be doing and the Senate,” he continued. “This should never happen again in the future.”

Representatives Jim Jordan and Mo Brooks are leading a group of Republicans to object to the certification of the presidential election results. Saturday night House Republicans held a rare conference to discuss their goal of overturning several states’ Electoral College results this week.

Brooks said 50 people were apart of the conference call including Jordan, Trump, and White House chief of staff Mark Meadows. He added that congressional members on the call represented only “some” of those in Congress who support challenging the results of the Electoral College.

Just one day after the 117th Congress was sworn in and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi was narrowly re-elected, a leading super political action committee that backs House Republicans is targeting vulnerable Democrats in the 2022 midterm elections.

On Monday the Congressional Leadership Fund announced their plan to spend five-figures to run digital ads in 21 congressional districts against Democratic lawmakers who supported the re-election of Nancy Pelosi.

“When liberals like Pelosi push their radical agenda, we know who to blame,” says the narrator in the spots.

#2022 is here and Democrats better BUCKLE UP.

CLF launched new ads in 21 districts targeting vulnerable Dems who supported @SpeakerPelosi for Speaker.

DETAILS ➡️ https://t.co/8o1oa2ZjVI pic.twitter.com/vbVYVHxZzc

— Congressional Leadership Fund (@CLFSuperPAC) January 4, 2021

Instead of expanding their majority, the Democrats lost nearly a dozen seats in the recent elections, and the party holds a 222-211 majority in the chamber over Republicans. In New York State on House election has still not been called, and a mostly GOP district in Louisiana is vacant because Representative-elect Luke Letlow recently passed away from COVID-19.

Included in the group of 21 Democrats target in the spots are Representatives Ron Kind, Cheri Bustos, Haley Stevens, and Sean Patrick Maloney who is the incoming Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee chair.

Democrats lost on average about 25 House seats in the midterms election allowing Republicans to regain the majority in the chamber, which they lost in the 2018 midterms.

“Every lawmaker who supported Nancy Pelosi either by name or by cowardly hiding behind a vote of ‘president’ is directly responsible for enabling Pelosi and all of her dangerous agenda,” said leadership fund President Dan Conston.

Conston anticipates that “Democrats will spend the next 24 months of their short-lived majority explaining why they sold out to Nancy Pelosi and the socialist left.”

Senators Lisa Murkowski and Pat Toomey are clashing with fellow Republican lawmakers who have vowed not to vote to certify President-elect Joe Biden’s victory.

Ted Cruz is leading the senators opposed to certifying the results from key states like Pennsylvania unless an emergency 10-day audit is conducted by an electoral commission. Toomey, however, defended his state claiming Trump’s loss was “explained by the decline in suburban support.”

“A fundamental, defining feature of a democratic republic is the right of the people to elect their own leaders,” said Toomey. “The effort by Senators Hawley, Cruz, and others to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election in swing states like Pennsylvania directly undermines this right.”

He also accused Republicans’ efforts to object to an Electoral College vote of an “effort to disenfranchise millions of voters.”

Murkowski is distancing herself from the opposing group of Senate Republicans saying she “swore an oath to support and defend the Constitution.”

“I will vote to affirm the 2020 presidential election,” she stated. “The courts and state legislatures have all honored their duty to hear legal allegations and have found nothing to warrant overturning the results.”

My statement regarding the upcoming meeting of Congress to formally count the votes of the Electoral College and certify the 2020 presidential election: pic.twitter.com/Bk8jd21Emr

— Sen. Lisa Murkowski (@lisamurkowski) January 2, 2021

Cruz and other senators say the November presidential election “featured unprecedented allegations of voter fraud and illegal conduct.”

The group agreed that “voter fraud has posed a persistent challenge in our elections” and that “by any measure, the allegations of fraud and irregularities in the 2020 election exceed any in our lifetimes.”

The Supreme Court has refused two lawsuits from Trump’s legal team and lower courts across the country have dismissed over 50 cases.

Former Attorney General Bill Barr also denied claims of election fraud leading up to his resignation saying, “we have not seen fraud on a scale that could have effected a different outcome in the election.”

Colorado Representative-elect Lauren Boebert urged House leadership to keep a rule dating to 1967 that exempts lawmakers from a ban on firearms while inside the Capitol building in a letter signed by 82 other current and incoming Republican Congress members.

The letter comes after 21 Democratic lawmakers requested a change to the decades-old rules that would prevent Boebert from carrying her gun into work.

It appears that Boebert scored a victory as new rules presented by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi did not include a proposed ban on firearms in the Capitol.

Boebert made her point in a statement last week saying, “I refuse to give up my Second Amendment rights. I’m a 5-foot tall, 100-pound mom with four children and will be walking to work and serving in one of the most dangerous cities in the U.S. I choose to defend my family and my life with all of the force the Constitution provides.”

She added, “I will not let a bunch of gun-grabbing House Democrats take away my Constitutional right to protect myself.”

21 Democrats wrote a letter to Nancy Pelosi asking her to stop me from being able to carry on Capitol Hill.

I choose to defend my family and my life with all of the force the Constitution provides.

I’m honored that 82 of my colleagues have decided to stand with me. pic.twitter.com/OBkVuAFvv7

— Lauren Boebert (@laurenboebert) January 1, 2021

According to a letter sent by Democrats, allowing guns in the Capitol creates “needless risk for Members of Congress, their staff, members of the Capitol Police, and visitors to the Capitol grounds.”

Fellow Colorado Representative Jason Crow accused Boebert of pulling a “political stunt” and “disrespecting” Capitol police.

Crow lashed out at her in a tweet saying, “The US [Capitol police] are professionals & I have rarely felt safer. I should know. I’ve carried a gun for work. If Boebert wants to talk safety, I have legislation to discuss.”

Boebert is known for being an outspoken advocate for the Second Amendment and announced that she plans to join the House Freedom Caucus as soon as she is sworn into office.

Currently, the conservative caucus is led by GOP Arizona Representative Andy Biggs and had previously been led by former North Carolina congressman Mark Meadows who is now White House Chief of Staff.

Things are getting even more tense leading up to the Georgia runoff elections as Senator Kelly Loeffler sent out a warning to voters that a Democratic victory in her state will result in a radical agenda that will drastically change life as we know it in the United States.

Both of the Georgia Senate seats as well as control of the chamber are up for grabs on Tuesday as Loeffler faces off against challenger Raphael Warnock and Senator David Perdue takes on opponent Jon Ossoff. After November’s election Democrats gained control of the House and the White House which, according to Loeffler, means that Democratic victories in Georgia this week would result in major changes in Washington.

“It’s a choice,” explained Loeffler, “it’s a stark contrast between the freedoms — our way of life here in Georgia — or socialism, government control.”

“We know the agenda of the left because Chuck Schumer told us he was going to take Georgia and then change America. And we know that radical agenda is not just high taxes, open borders, defunding the police, government-run health care, but he has radical candidates in this race, his agents of change,” she warned.

Loeffler claims that one of those “agents of change” is her opponent Warnock, who she accuses of not accurately representing her state’s values and who would “fundamentally change this country.”

Reports from maritime security firms say a suspicious object has been discovered on the hull of an oil tanker located in the Persian Gulf off the coast of Iraq.

According to the firms, Ambrey Intelligence and Dryad Global, officials are concerned it could be a limpet mine on the MT Pola, even though the Liberian-flagged tanker received some assistance in the Persian Gulf off Basra on Thursday.

The two firms confirmed that investigations are ongoing.

The United Kingdom Marine Trade Operations, an organization that operates under the British royal navy, stated it is “aware of an ongoing situation” in the area, but did not give any more details.

The United States Navy’s 5th Fleet, which patrols the Mideast where the oil tanker is located, has not yet made any statements on the situation.

The incident comes at a time when tensions are at their highest between Iran and the United States. Back in 2019, the U.S. accused Iran of being behind several limpet mine attacks on oil tankers close to the Strait of Hormuz which is the narrow mouth of the Persian Gulf through which 20 percent of all of the world’s oil passes. Iran officials deny having any involvement.

Casey Anthony, the woman who in 2011 was acquitted of murdering her 2-year-old daughter, Caylee, is launching her own private investigation business in Florida. It is reported that she filed the paperwork for Case Research & Consulting Services, LLC in mid-December.

The company, which will be run out of West Palm Beach, is officially listed under Anthony’s name and has an effective date of January 1.

Anthony has been learning all about the business from Patrick McKenna, her defense team’s lead investigator during her controversial trial.

The former suspected murder has been living with McKenna in his South Florida home for the last couple of years. She has also done some work for him, performing online social media searches and other investigative work.

McKenna also acted as the lead investigator for O.J. Simpson after the football star was accused of brutally murdering his wife, Nicole Brown Simpson, and her friend, Ron Goldman, in 1994. He, too, was found not guilty but it’s widely believed that the judge made a mistake.

Casey Anthony was acquitted of her young daughter’s murder, charges of aggravated child abuse, and charges of aggravated manslaughter of a child. However, she was found guilty on four counts of providing law enforcement with false information. She only spent three years behind bars while awaiting her trial.

Once again, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell blocked quick action on larger stimulus checks for Americans and things got heated on the Senate floor when he clashed with Minority Leader Chuck Schumer.

McConnell heavily criticized the House-passed bill for $2,000 stimulus checks calling it “socialism for rich people.” The comments were a direct opposition to President Trump’s request that stimulus checks be raised from the $600 included in the $900 billion relief package the president signed into law nearly a week ago to a significantly larger $2,000.

“The data show that many upper-middle-class Americans have kept their jobs, work remotely and remain totally financially comfortable,” McConnell argued. “On the other hand, some of our fellow citizens have had their entire existences turned upside down and continue to suffer terribly. We do not need to let the speaker of the House do socialism for rich people in order to help those who need help.”

According to McConnel, the $900 billion relief package sign by Trump included “targeted” stimulus efforts.

“There are billions for targeted food assistance, billions for targeted rental assistance, and many billions of dollars for vaccine distribution so we can finally beat this virus and reopen the economy in full,” said McConnell. “These are the kinds of target emergency programs that directly help the most vulnerable. And we just poured almost another trillion dollars into them less than five days ago.”

Earlier this week McConnell introduced a bill of his own for $2,000 stimulus checks and included two other Trump priorities: forming a committee to investigate election security and repealing Section 230. He would not commit to the bill but only suggested that the Senate would “begin a process to bring these three priorities into focus.”

Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders believes McConnell’s strategy of tying the much needed $2,000 stimulus checks to a voter fraud commission and Section 230 repeal is a “poison pill designed to kill that legislation.”

Black Lives Matter chimed in on Thursday to say the $600 stimulus checks included in the new $900 billion coronavirus relief package not nearly enough to support struggling families that have been affected by the pandemic and they are demanding regular monthly checks instead.

The group posted their demand on Twitter writing, “Black families are struggling to keep roofs over their heads, food in their bellies, and healthcare covered. This isn’t about a stimulus. This is about survival. And $600 ain’t it. We demand monthly checks.”

BLM officials have not said if they had plans to approach President-elect Biden with their demand for monthly checks.

Meanwhile, House lawmakers have passed a stand-alone bill that would significantly raise direct payments to Americans included in the new COVID-19 relief legislation from a measly $600 to $2,000. The increase has the support of President Trump, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, Senator Bernie Sanders, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, and many others.

The bill has been repeatedly blocked by Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell who presented his own bill that includes $2,000 checks and a few demands of his own.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi tore into Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell for blocking $2,000 stimulus checks that are supported by both Democrats and President Trump.

The bipartisan legislation was passed by the House earlier this week to raise the direct stimulus payments from $600 to $2,000 after Trump called it a “disgrace,” but McConnell objected to a quick vote on the stand-alone legislation on Tuesday.

Pelosi called out McConnell for his heartlessness at a news conference on Wednesday, “It’s amazing to see the patience that some people have with other people’s suffering. These Republicans in the Senate seem to have an endless tolerance.”

“We urge Mitch McConnell to stop his obstruction and to bring that legislation to the floor of the Senate,” she added.

McConnell will not commit to bringing the larger checks up for a vote. However, he has presented a new bill that would link the $2,000 checks to two other controversial pieces of legislation. One being the formation of a committee to investigate Trump’s election security claims and the other is repealing Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act.

“Those are the three important subjects the president has linked together,” McConnell pushed. “This week the Senate will begin a process to bring these three priorities into focus.”

Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer said this was just McConnell’s latest attempt to deprive Americans of the bigger checks that they so desperately need and deserve.

“Senator McConnell knows how to make $2,000 survival checks reality,” said Schumer, “and he knows how to kill them.”