Why Should We Have More Children?

 There is an important fact that may not be well known: nations must have a fertility rate of 2.1 – or 2,100 births to 1,000 women -- to replace its dying citizens. A fertility rate is the “average number of babies a woman is expected to have in her lifetime,” according to Professor Peter St. Onge. 

The total fertility rate for United States has been sinking further each year, but the population continues to grow through immigration. Other nations do not have that source. Japan is one example.

Last week, Japan’s government announced the country lost 861,000 people last year as the country’s fertility rate – the average number of babies a woman is expected to have in her lifetime – fell to a record low of 1.2.

For perspective, if you start with 100 million people and have 1.2 babies each, after three generations, you’re down to just 20 million people.

On a related note, over 65s now account for 30% of Japan’s population, while a new study finds there are 9 million vacant houses in Japan – about 1 in 6 homes in Japan is vacant and falling down.

St. Onge explained that the shortage of babies is driven by government policies. “Slow growth and inflation force two-income families, while mandatory government pensions remove the main historical incentive to have kids – to support you in old age.”

In the 1950s, Japanese women had on average three and a half children. In 1961, universal pensions were introduced, and the birthrate – and marriage rate – started dropping. Then came the 1970s inflation, which took the percent of young Japanese women working from 46% in 1969 to 83%.

The finishing blow is the lost-decades stagnation, which forced even married women to work to make ends meet. The percentage of married Japanese women age[s] 25 to 29 – prime childbearing ages – who were working went from 50% in 2006 to 80% today. In fact, today in Japan there are more young women working than young me working.

The government’s response has been to rearrange the deck chairs on the Titanic: One-time cash bounties, or the Left’s favorite, subsidized child care. Or, of course, importing new people.

St. Onge explained that none of the government’s responses work because “Immigrants bring their own labor shortage with them.” He said that if immigrants solved the problem, the United States could just “annex Canada and have millions of spare workers.”

Meanwhile, many European countries have tried both cash for babies and free child care, and it doesn’t work. Scandinavia, for example, has universal child care and the result is fertility rate of 1.5 in Sweden and Denmark, 1.4 in Norway, and 1.3 in Finland.

So, no, it’s not a lack of government spending; it’s the government spending itself that drives inflation and stagnant incomes to where there’s no financial cushion to start a family.

Meanwhile, government pensions reward doing the bare minimum by equalizing payments and disincentivizing hard work.

So, what should citizens do when it becomes obvious that the government cannot help a situation? Married couples can go against the bureaucracy and have more babies. “In a dynamic economy, research says men actually make more once you have kids, because you work harder. This is called the ‘fatherhood wage premium,’ and studies find it essentially covers the extra costs.” St. Onge’s parting thought: “So, while the developed world turns out the lights, it’s your kids who will inherit the earth.”

 

What Was Learned About Assassination Attempt in Senate Hearings?

Seventeen days ago, former President Donald Trump was nearly assassinated as he spoke at a political rally in Butler, Pennsylvania. Today, Ronald L. Rowe, the acting director of the Secret Service, testified before a joint hearing with the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee and the Senate Judiciary Committee. FBI Deputy Director Paul Abbate also testified at the Senate committees meeting. Fred Lucas discussed six top takeaways from the Senate hearings in his article published at The Daily Signal. 

1. ‘Cannot Defend Why That Roof Was Not Better Secured.’

Rowe and other Secret Service agents visited the site of the campaign rally in Pennsylvania after the fact. He said he climbed onto the rooftop where the 20-year-old gunman fired at Trump.

“I went to the roof of the AGR building where the assailant fired shots and I laid in a prone position to evaluate his line of sight. What I saw made me ashamed,” Rowe said during his opening remarks.

“As a career law enforcement officer and a 25-year veteran with the Secret Service, I cannot defend why that roof was not better secured,” he added….

2. FBI’s Detailed Time Line

In presenting a time line to the two Senate committees, Abbate said the FBI interviewed more than 460 people and accessed the shooter’s electronic devices.

“Thus far, though absolutely nothing has been ruled out, the investigation has not identified a motive nor any co-conspirators or others with advanced knowledge,” Abbate told the committees….

At 6:11 p.m., law enforcement radioed that this suspicious person had a gun. He fired about 30 seconds, with one bullet grazing Trump’s ear.

A Secret Service counter sniper shot and killed the gunman. Eight shell casings were found next to his body on the roof, Abbate said, so he likely fired eight rounds.

Commenting during the press conference afterwards, Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, asked; “Why didn’t they remove President Trump from the stage after spectators and local law enforcement, assigned to help protect the president, had noticed that there was a guy with a rifle on a roof?”

3. Cruz: Spokesperson ‘Lied on Behalf of the Secret Service.’

Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, pushed for more information about why the Secret Service reportedly denied requests for more security from the Trump campaign – and whether the Secret Service lied about it….

During the GOP press conference after the hearing, Sen. Markwayne Mullin, R-Okla., said he thought the Secret Service still wouldn’t hold itself accountable for the security failures in Pennsylvania.

“All we’re asking the Secret Service is to give us their briefing,” Mullin said. “What did they break down? Where are the failure points? Because if you cannot admit you did something wrong, you’re destined to do it again.”

4. Durbin Pushes Gun Control

Senate Judiciary Chairman Dick Durbin, D-Ill., used the hearing to push the need for more gun control….

5. ‘No Explanation’ for Why Shooter’s Drone Worked and Secret Service’s Drone Had ‘Technical Difficulties’

Before the Trump rally, the shooter surveyed the site using a drone. Yet, the Secret Service said its drones would not work in the area.

Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, asked: “Can you explain why the shooter’s drone worked?”

Rowe replied: “There was no counter-UAS [unmanned aerial system] present.”

Cornyn asked: “You had a drone system but you had bandwidth problems. The bandwidth was adequate, apparently, for the shooter’s drone, but not for the Secret Service. Can you explain that?”

Rowe replied, “I have no explanation for it, sir.” …

At the press conference afterward, Cornyn said the Secret Service’s failure to answer that key question was “another one of their multiple points of failure.”

6. Ron Johnson: Lack of Transparency ‘Very Unfortunate’

Sen. Ron Johnson, R-Wis., pointed to the photos displayed by Rowe earlier in the hearing, and questioned why the Secret Service waited so long to share them.

“I appreciate these photos today,” Johnson said. “These things could have been released in days and a whole lot more information as well.” …

Johnson pushed for more transparency and asked for transcripts of related FBI interviews.

“Does the Secret Service use encrypted communications at events?” Johnson asked….

Rowe agreed, saying, “Moving forward, I’ve directed we will not start recording those.” …

Johnson, referring to Trump’s Florida home, asked: “Was there ever requested additional coverage for Mar-a-Lago?”

Rowe replied: “We have provided additional resources to Mar-a-Lago.”

Lawmakers, Johnson said, “need to find out literally second by second what happened.”

 

Was Kamala Harris Involved in the Bloodless Coup?

 My VIP for this week Vice President Kamala Harris who became the preferred Democrat to become the Democrat nominee for President. This post is not so much about Harris because I consider Kamala to be a poor excuse for a leader, let alone the leader of the Free World. However, her so-called coronation has revived the enthusiasm of the Democrat Party. So, we should go back in time to get some perspective.

Millions of Americans have known for four years that Joe Biden was senile, but Democrats voted for him anyway. However, the fact of his senility became too apparent to ignore after he debated the Republican-nominee for President Donald Trump. This meant that Joe had to go.

Rumor has it – and it is only a rumor with no proof – is that Barack Obama gave Biden an option: you can take the easy way out or the hard way out.

As I understand, “the easy way or the hard way” means that Joe could step down “voluntarily,” or he could be forced out using the Twenty-Fifth Amendment. Biden chose the “easy way,” but made Obama regret both options. Joe endorsed Kamala Harris to replace him, not because he considered her to be the best person for the job but because he wanted to jab Obama in the eye.

The truth about what happened is not known publicly, so all we have to go on is rumor. However, Josh Hammer at The Daily Signal as well as other people call the operation a “bloodless coup” by the “Democratic Party ruling class.” 

The Democratic Party ruling class’ bloodless coup of their own democratically elected presidential nominee, who also happens to be the nominal sitting president of the United States, is one of the most astonishing political developments of my lifetime. Joe Biden, though clearly physically and mentally impaired, has sought the presidency for quite literally longer than I have been alive. Biden had been defiant ever since the June 27 presidential debate debacle that he was not going anywhere, despite overwhelming pressure from party elites and sycophantic media lap dogs demanding he do precisely that. He has a Lady Macbeth-like wife who craves power and he has a felonious son in desperate need of a presidential pardon.

Yet the coup succeeded. Biden became the first incumbent president to not seek reelection after his first term since Lyndon B. Johnson in 1968.

Biden made the much-anticipated announcement not with a solemn Oval Office address – that came three days later, and he didn’t even explain his decision. Rather, he issued a bedridden tweet – from a personal, not even official, account.

It’s the equivalent of divorcing your wife over text message. As if that weren’t crazy enough, the announcement came smack in the middle of a five-day period in which Biden was not publicly seen, and during which he experienced an unspecified medical emergency. Suspicious much?

The Democrats’ decision to coup their own president is a curious one on the political merits.

Hammer said to “hold aside the galling hypocrisy of the purported party of ‘democracy’ in trying to remove Trump from ballots in at least two states and to put him in prison for lawfare.

Hammer told us to “hold aside the self-proclaimed party of ‘democracy’ feigning ignorance over how its overheated rhetoric” planted the seeds for the attempted assassination of Trump.

Hammer said to “hold aside that purportedly ‘democratic’ party deposing its own presumptive elected nominee” instead of allowing the people to choose their own nominee.

Hold all that aside. Because even on its own terms, the coup of Biden for cackler-in-chief Kamala Harris is going to spectacularly backfire on the Democrats.

This does not mean that Democrats and the mainstream media will not work overtime to “define” Harris. They are already trying to erase internet information about her radical ways. The changes began with trying to convince Americans that Harris was not the Biden-appointed “border czar.” She was. The “bigger problem for Democrats is that Harris is not an unknown commodity. On the contrary, she is a very well-known commodity – one who just happens to be about as popular with the American public as venereal disease.

Harris’ current average approval rating is under 38%, and an NBC News poll last June found her to be the single least popular vice president in American history—only 32% of Americans had a positive view of her, putting her 17 points underwater.

Harris is definitely not a desirable choice for President of the United States. However, there are Americans who would vote for Harris to avoid voting for Donald Trump. Their hatred for Trump precludes the idea that a person can vote for the policies that are good for the United States rather than constantly thinking about themselves, how they feel, and what would be good for their family.

Mosiah was a wise king who lived in ancient America. He saw many of the problems that come from a monarchy and persuaded his people to change their government to be a democracy. The following verses in Mosiah 29 share some of his persuasive words.

25 Therefore, choose you by the voice of this people, judges, that ye may be judged according to the laws which have been given you by our fathers, which are correct, and which were given them by the hand of the Lord.

26 Now it is not common that the voice of the people desireth anything contrary to that which is right; but it is common for the lesser part of the people to desire that which is not right; therefore this shall ye observe and make it your law – to do your business by the voice of the people.

27 And if the time comes that the voice of the people doth choose iniquity, then is the time that the judgments of God will come upon you; yea, then is the time he will visit you with great destruction even as he has hitherto visited this land.

I would fear for the future of the United States because I personally know too many intelligent, good-hearted, praying people who hate Trump so badly that they could very well vote for Harris – not because she is best for the job but because she is not Trump. The only thing that gives me hope for the future of America is a latter-day prophecy that the Constitution of the United States will “hang by a thread” but will be saved by righteous people.

Should We Hire Only According to DEI?

 

The topic of discussion for this Constitution Monday is DEI. Democrats say that DEI stands for diversity, equity, and inclusion. On the other hand, Republicans have other names to stand for DEI.

Americans deserve leaders who are the best in their class, Democrats want to select leaders based on their DEI score – Are the diverse? Do they believe in equity or equality? We want the best government leaders that we can get – white, black, American Indian, or other. If a white person is the best person for the job, they should be hired.

I believe that DEI brought Kamala Harris, problems at Boeing, or problems at other companies. Companies should hire the best person possible. This would encourage other candidate to work harder in school.

Can I Know for Myself?

My Come Follow Me studies for this week took me to Alma 32-35 in a lesson titled “Plant This Word in Your Hearts.” The lesson was introduced with the following information. 

For the Zoramites, prayer consisted of standing where all could see and repeating empty, self-satisfied words. The Zoramites lacked faith in Jesus Christ – even denied His existence – and persecuted the poor (see Alma 31:9-25). By contrast, Alma and Amulek taught that prayer has more to do with what happens in our hearts than on a public platform. And if we do not show compassion toward people in need, our prayer is “vain, and availeth … nothing” (Alma 34:28). Most important, we pray because we have faith in Jesus Christ, who offers redemption through His “infinite and eternal sacrifice” (Alma 34:10). Such faith, Alma explained, starts with humility and a “desire to believe” (Alma 32:27). Over time, with constant nourishment, the word of God takes root in our hearts until it becomes “a tree springing up unto everlasting life” (Alma 32:41).

I feel impressed to write on this principle: “I can know for myself” (Alma 32:26-43). The Zoramites were not sure about Alma’s testimony of Christ, so Alma suggested that they try “an experiment” (see Alma 32:27). Experiments require desire, curiosity, action, and at least a little faith – and they can lead to wonderful discoveries!

Alma’s “experiment” involved treating the gospel of Jesus Christ as if it were a seed. A seed is planted in good soil, nourished, and given time. Alma explained that the gospel of Jesus Christ should be treated the same way.

Good soil is humility and willingness to experiment.

Seed is a desire to know the truth.

Nourishment comes in the form of prayer, scripture study, listening to the testimonies of other people.

Harvest is when faith in a doctrine or principle becomes knowledge.

Moroni, the last prophet in the Book of Mormon – Another Testament of Jesus Christ, offered a similar experiment in gaining a testimony of the Book of Mormon and The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

2 And I seal up these records, after I have spoken a few words by way of exhortation unto you.

3 Behold, I would exhort you that when ye shall read these things, if it be wisdom in God that ye should read them, that ye would remember how merciful the Lord hath been unto the children of men, from the creation of Adam even down until the time that ye shall receive these things, and ponder it in your hearts.

4 And when ye shall receive these things, I would exhort you that ye would ask God, the Eternal Father, in the name of Christ, if these things are not true; and if ye shall ask with a sincere heart, with real intent, having faith in Christ, he will manifest the truth of it unto you by the power of the Holy Ghost.

5 And by the power of the Holy Ghost ye may know the truth of all things.

I have completed the experiments as suggested by both Alma and Moroni. I was sincere in my desire to know if the Book of Mormon is the word of God and if The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is truly the Church of Jesus Christ. My answer did not come immediately but six months later. However, once I had convinced the Lord that I was sincere in my wishes, I began to receive bits and pieces of inspiration. When I found my answer, I went to the Lord in prayer, and the Holy Ghost bore witness to my spirit that the Book of Mormon is true. I encourage you to try the experiment. Sincerely and prayerfully search for your answer. Once you have found the truth, the Holy Ghost will bear witness to you.

What Battles Should Parents Fight with Their Children?

Strong families develop when parents know the correct battles to fight with their children. Parents should understand that they cannot fight every battle that occurs with their child/children, so they must choose the most important battles. When families are strong, they strengthen their communities, states, and nations.

I found a post on Facebook that shared eight fights that are worth fighting with your children. Credit goes to Casci Lynn Land who gives credit to David Morris on Twitter. The eight worthwhile fights are as follow:

The Reading Fight

Make your kids read. Because reading is tied to everything from cognitive development to the ability to focus. Make your kids read now.

The Outside Fight

Make your kids go outside. The natural world teaches us things. Plus, outside there’s sunshine, fresh air, and exercise waiting for them. Most importantly, nature is full of things in short supply in our world: Discovery, wonder, peace, joy.

The Work Fight

Make your kids work. I’m saddened by how many parents don’t require their kids to lift a finger at home. There are priceless life principles you can only learn with a mop in your hand. Let sweat be their teacher.

The Meal Fight

Make your kids eat as a family. Our lives are a blur of incessant activity. Meals together are a physical pause to recover a truth so easily sacrificed at the altar of busyness. Nothing’s more important than family.

The Boredom Fight

Make your kids live with boredom. Don’t show a DVD on each car ride. Kids need unscheduled time. And, odd as it sounds, boredom is a skill. It’s hard as a parent to deal with the assault of boredom complaints. But if you give in and fill up their time with external stimuli, you’ll raise an activity addict. Make them learn how to be.

The “Me First” Fight

Make your kids go last. Not every time for everything. But enough to remember that the world doesn’t revolve around them. Take the smallest piece. Give up the remote. Do someone else’s chores. Get their least favorite choice. They won’t like it, but they need it.

The Awkward Conversation Fight

Make your kids have uncomfortable conversations with you. Sex, dating, body image, values…. Your kids will roll their eyes and resist. You will stumble and stutter. They need and want your perspective, lessons learned, and wisdom.

The Limitation Fight

Learning to live within limits is a valuable life skill. In fact, many adult problems arise from an inability to accept them. Screen time limits, dietary limits, activity limits, and schedule limits are all good.

Remember parents: you must pick your battles, so you should concentrate your efforts on the battles that are most important to you and to the future of your child. The fights listed here are good, but others could easily be added or included with these.

 

Why Do Leftists Shout for Democracy While Operating Through Coups?

The liberty principle for this Freedom Friday concerns coups being used by Leftists in politics. We hear Leftists shout for and fake fighting for “democracy,” but they operate behind the scenes through coups. Victor Davis Hanson discussed three Leftist coups taking place in the past four years as Democrats sought for and used power. 

Hanson’s first coup took place in March 2020 when “all the major Democratic primary candidates abruptly, mysteriously, and in near unison withdrew from the presidential race, ceding the nomination to Joe Biden.” It did not seem to matter that “Biden had lost the first three races in Iowa, New Hampshire, and Nevada – and only won his first victory in South Carolina. It also did not seem to matter that Biden was already displaying “obvious symptoms of serious cognitive decline” that “seemed to mount through the 2020 campaign” and “dementia continued to accelerate during his first three years as president.” Biden and his family “enjoyed the ceremonial functions of the presidency.”

The second coup took place when former President Barack Obama and his family stayed in Washington, D.C., rather than going home to Chicago or elsewhere. The coup took place when the Biden administration outsourced “the real operations to former Obama administration officials, consultants, and advisers.” When the puppet master could no longer hold up the puppet (Biden), something needed to be done.

The third coup took place because “Polls revealed an impending Trump landslide victory in November – and a massive Democratic loss of Congress.” The Democrat “machine” of “party bosses, megadonors, and Obama puppeteers went into action for yet a third time.”

There are rumors that the “machine” threatened to take away all campaign funding and even “raised the specter of invoking the 25^th Amendment to end his presidency. Biden was forced to suddenly withdraw from the presidential campaign and to endorse his Vice President Kamala Harris “as his surrogate on the ticket.”

In one moment, the choices of nearly 15 million Biden primary voters were vitiated. No delegates were consulted. No other alternative Democrat candidates were even considered.

Biden was dethroned; Harris was coronated – without much public input or even knowledge of how or why.

Democrat grandees stopped smearing Biden’s conservative critics, who had worried over his dementia. Instead, they now trumped opposition criticism of Biden’s decline.

Yet Biden most certainly did not resign his presidency. Instead, he promised to serve out his remaining six months in office.

So Democrat insiders not only removed their leading candidate, who for the prior six months had won all the 2024 primaries and almost all the delegates but insisted that Biden keep Democrats and himself in power – but only if he agreed to quit the race.

In other words and according to Hanson, a “cabal arbitrarily decided that Biden might well lose the Democrats the White House and the Congress.” Hanson continued, “So, they reversed course, now claiming his dementia was so acute as to destroy their prospects Nov. 5.” Even though Biden could not campaign well enough to win re-election, “his decline was not severe enough to imperil the American people” while he serves as President until January 20.

In addition, the machine chose Kamala Harris, a person who had not entered any primary and “never won a single delegate.” In addition, Harris “never captured a single delegate” when she ran for president in 2020.

Hanson claimed that the “same operators” ran all three coups. They used Biden until he became a liability. However, they insist that “he was still fit enough to keep the Left in power” until Harris can be inaugurated.

The most amazing fact of all the coups is that the very people conducting the coup “sanctimoniously lectured America that ‘democracy dies in darkness.’”

Can Never Trumpers Become Trump Supporters?

There are many Republicans who have been Never Trumpers, but their ranks are thinning. Utah Republican Governor Spencer Cox recently said that he would not vote for either Donald Trump or Joe Biden. Then a 20-year-old attempted to assassinate Trump. The near-death experience caused Trump to change his speech for the Republican National Convention, and Cox was impressed with the words and the delivery.

The day after the RNC ended, Cox announced that he will both endorse and vote for Trump in the 2024 presidential election. In his monthly press conference on Friday morning, Cox stated that he would “do everything I can to help” Trump win the election and unify the country.” According to Samuel Benson, this is the way that Cox explained his change of mind: 

During his news conference, Cox detailed his thinking on Trump and the 2024 election. The hinge point, he said, was Saturday’s assassination attempt on Trump. “I spent (Saturday) night distraught, worried about our nation and what we’d become and who we are,” he said. He spent the next day “in contemplation: and “prayed a lot,” and decided to write a letter to Trump detailing his thinking.

In the letter, Cox said: “I believe in our better angels, Mr. President, and I believe you are capable of being that kind of leader for this troubled nation. It is a huge burden to be placed on any person,” Cox continued, “but I want you to know that I pledge my support and I know that millions of others will rally to that kind of leadership.”

Cox expressed sympathy toward the former president in the wake of the attempted assassination. “My wife Abby and I watched in disbelief as we saw the images of the attack on your life,” he wrote. “In that moment you represented the best of America at one of our very worst times. Bloodied but not bowed. Courage – literally – under fire.”

Cox noted that Trump’s statements after the shooting showed “a side of you most of us have not seen, and it gave so many of us tremendous hope for the future of our country.”

Instead of lashing out with “hate” and “violence,” Cox counseled, Trump has the chance to “unify and save our country.”

“I fear that America is on the precipice of unmitigated disaster,” Cox wrote. “We need to turn down the temperature and find ways to come together again before it’s too late.

Cox noted that he and Trump “have some differences, and you probably don’t like me very much. And that’s OK. … I’m not writing this letter looking for a position in your Cabinet or a role on your team.”

Instead, Cox is looking for him “to do something that people have said is impossible,” he wrote:

“You have a chance to build a coalition of support that our country has not seen since Ronald Reagan. And you don’t have to compromise on a single conservative policy in order to do it. By treating President Biden with basic human dignity and respect and by emphasizing unity rather than hate, you will win this election by an historic margin and become one of our nation’s most transformational leaders. By extending an olive branch to voters who are open to persuasion and ignoring the extremists, you can solidify a legacy as one of the most important presidents in our nation’s 250-year history. You can make your success, in leading our country to a new era of peace, unity, and prosperity, the greatest way to silence your critics.”

Benson explained as follows how Cox sent the letter to Trump: he sent the letter to Rock Bordelon and Keith Mark. The two men are “leaders of Hunter Nation, an outdoor recreation and advocacy group that counts Donald Trump Jr. among its board members.” The three men were to meet at an event in Wisconsin on Monday afternoon. “Trump Jr. then hand-delivered the letter to his father, according to Don Peay, who learned about the logistics firsthand.”

Mark gave a statement saying that Cox is “a great governor” – “A man of faith, like in Biblical times. We can and are seeing a mighty change of Heart.”

What Happened During Second Congressional Hearing on Assassination?

Members of the U.S. House of Representatives are attempting to discover why security for former President Donald Trump failed on Saturday, July 13, 2024. After the first day of grilling, Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle resigned, something that she declared for nine days that she would not do. At last, she understood the situation clearly when both Democrats and Republicans were calling for her resignation.

Today was the second day of inquiry, but Cheatle resigned earlier in the day, and other top Biden administration officials did not show up. However, Col. Christopher L. Paris, commissioner of the Pennsylvania State Police, did show up, and he provided answers to most of the questions from the committee. Patrick Yoes, national president of the Fraternal Order of Police, also provided answers to the committee. Fred Lucas at the Daily Signal had the following takeaways from the second congressional hearing. 

1. Dismissing ‘Sloped Roof’ Excuse

Paris, head of the Pennsylvania State Police, dismissed the notion that the rooftop used by 20-year-old shooter … had a dangerous slope and was too unsafe for Secret Service agents to secure….

2. Plea to ‘Reconsider’ Bill Denying Protection to Trump

Green asked the committee’s ranking member, Rep. Bennie Thompson, D-Miss., to withdraw his bill pulling Secret Service protection from Trump should the former president be sentenced to prison….

But later in the hearing, Thompson defended his legislation, saying that “the bill doesn’t mention former President Trump.”

In April, after Trump had been indicted in four separate criminal cases but before he was convicted of 34 felonies in the “hush money” trial in New York, Thompson introduced a bill that he called the Denying Infinite Security and Government Resources Allocated toward Convicted and Extremely Dishonorable Former Protectees Act, which the Mississippi Democrat also dubbed the DISGRACED Former Protectees Act.

If passed and [signed] into law by President Joe Biden, the legislation would terminate Secret Service protection for someone who has been sentenced to prison following conviction for a federal or state felony….

3. ‘Met or Exceeded All of Our Expectations’

Rep. Anthony D’Esposito, R-N.Y., asked Paris to assess local law enforcement at the Trump rally July 13, as opposed to the Secret Service.

“What do you say to those that are saying local law enforcement failed to provide adequate security at this rally?” D’Esposito asked.

“It’s my belief as I sit here, based on all the information that I have, that we met or exceeded all of our expectations for that event,” Paris replied. “Am I saying the event was a success? Obviously, it was not. Our hearts go out to those affected.”

Yoes, national head of the Fraternal Order of Police, stressed the importance of local law enforcement to back federal law enforcement.

“I would echo the fact that local law enforcement plays a huge role and must,” Yoes said. “I don’t think the federal agencies have the ability to have this event without a coordinated effort with local law enforcement.”

Earlier in the hearing, Paris explained the role of the Pennsylvania State Police the day of the assassination attempt was to “supply the Secret Service with personnel and assets that they requested.”

This involved 32 state police officers with two main responsibilities, a motorcade operation for the Secret Service’s transportation of Trump and manning and staffing security posts inside the perimeter….

He said Pennsylvania State Police are “currently conducting a criminal investigation parallel to and in concert with the FBI to identify any and all parties criminally culpable under Pennsylvania state law for the homicide and for the attempted homicides.”

4. Nagging Questions on Timeline

Later in the hearing, Gimenez asked about the timeline after law enforcement had flagged the shooter as a suspicious person on the grounds of the rally.

“From my understanding of the timeline, it’s about 20 minutes before the president came out; was that information relayed to the Secret Service?” the Florida Republican asked.

“I believe that it was,” Paris said.

“Was that relayed to the Secret Service, the team that surrounds the president himself?” Gimenez specified.

“I can’t answer that,” Paris said.

“If it wasn’t, that’s another big mess-up,” the congressman said.

Gimenez followed up by asking and answering a rhetorical question: “Who developed a plan to protect the outside of the perimeter? There’s only one agency, that’s the United States Secret Service.”

 

Who Is James David Vance?

 

2024-7-22 Who Is James David Vance?

My VIP for this week is James David Vance, otherwise known as JD Vance, the vice-presidential nominee on the Republican 2024 ticket. Vance was born James Donald Bowman on August 2, 1984. After his parents divorced, his mother remarried, and his adoption by his stepfather, his name was changed to James David Hamel. He adopted his maternal grandparents’ name when he married in 2014. J. D. Vance - Wikipedia

Vance and his sister Lindsey were reared by his maternal grandparents, James and Bonnie Vance, whom they called “Mamaw and Papaw,” because their mother was a drug addict and their father was an alcoholic. His maternal and paternal grandparents moved from Kentucky’s Appalachia to Ohio, and Vance was reared in Middletown, Ohio.

After graduating from Middletown High School in 2003, Vance enlisted in the U.S. Marine Corps and was deployed to Iraq as a combat correspondent for six months. After leaving the military, he attended Ohio State University on the G.I. Bill and graduated summa cum laude with a Bachelor of Arts degree in political science and philosophy in 2009.

Vance worked for a state senator while going to school and attended Yale Law School on a full-ride scholarship. He was an editor of The Yale Law Journal and graduated in 2013 with a Juris Doctor degree.

Vance married in 2014 and has three young children. He received an honorary degree from Centre College in 2017.

Vance is young, only 39 years old, but he has more experience than many older people have. He experienced life with grandparents who sometimes wondered if they would have enough money to pay the heating bill or purchase food. He served in the U.S. Marine Corps in Iraq. He excelled in college and graduate school. He has been the junior U.S. Senator from Ohio since 2023. He is a politician, lawyer, and author. His training as an attorney and his experience in the military and as a businessman are great attributes to add to the Trump/Vance ticket.

What Will Be the Result of Biden Dropping Out of Presidential Race?

The topic of discussion for this Constitution Monday concerns President Joe Biden’s decision today to drop out of the 2024 presidential campaign and to endorse Vice President Kamala Harris. His decision was announced on X – rather than by personal announcement.

Democrats are calling Biden a “hero” for putting his political party and the nation ahead of his personal desires. Republicans are calling for Biden to resign from the office of President of the United States. The reasoning behind the call is that he is not fit to remain in office if he is unfit to campaign. An opinion published in the Deseret News after the announcement made the following response. 

The statement, in other words, was presidential, remarkably so because of the pain that we all know lies under the stoic words.

To call Joe Biden a hero is aggrandizement, and unfair to the true heroes in our midst, the kind who run into buildings hit by planes and pull people out of burning cars. Biden is a politician who has enjoyed a long and prestigious career that the sun is setting on. Ask the average person on the street what Biden’s biggest accomplishment in public service is, and before today, they might have struggled to answer. Now he’s most likely to be remembered, above all, for the statement he issued today and the reasons for it: doubts about his capacity to serve another four years and to win the election.

Stepping away from power is not always a sign of defeat. Our first president, George Washington, famously relinquished power twice: first, as commander in chief of the Continental Army, and later at the end of his second term as president, at a time in which he could have been elected again.

Biden’s story, of course, is much different, and in exiting, he has bestowed on the nation the sort of thing that C.S. Lewis called a “severe mercy,” putting America out of the misery we’ve all been in, to one extent or another, since the agonizing debate June 27.

It’s often said that America is so divided that we can’t agree on anything at all. The past eight days [have] shown that to be untrue. We agreed, as the Rev. Theresa Dear wrote, that none of us want to see Secret Service agents diving on top of presidential candidates under fire. And we agreed that, no matter how well meaning a person is, no matter how beloved within their party, no matter how they have performed in the past, when the time comes to step down, we should do so with dignity, and not have to be pulled off the stage with a vaudeville hook.

You could almost feel the nation exhaling in relief as the news circulated Sunday afternoon.

Many Americans were aware that Biden had cognitive problems during the 2020 presidential campaign, and he has steadily become worse. First Lady Jill Biden and other family members have propped him up, and other Democrats and the mainstream media have covered for him. However, his condition could not be hidden from the whole nation and the entire world after he had such a disastrous debate a month ago with Donald Trump.

In my opinion, Biden is a victim of elder abuse because he has only been a puppet of those who are really running the United States government. He should not have been the candidate in 2020, and he definitely should not be the candidate in 2024. For his sake, I am grateful that this decision has finally been made – no matter who actually made the decision.

How Is the Word of God Stronger Than the Sword?

My Come Follow Me studies for this week took me to Alma 30-31 in a lesson titled “The Virtue of the Word of God.” The lesson was introduced by the following information: 

The accounts in Alma 30-31 clearly demonstrate the power of words – for evil and for good. The “flattering” and “great swelling words” of a false teacher named Korihor threatened to bring “many souls down to destruction” (Alma 30:31, 47). Similarly, the teachings of a Nephite dissenter named Zoram led a whole group of people to fall “into great errors” and “pervert the ways of the Lord” (Alma 31:9, 11).

In contrast, Alma had unwavering faith that the word of God would have a “more powerful effect upon the minds of the people than the sword, or anything else” (Alma 31:5). Alma’s words expressed eternal truth and drew upon the powers of Jesus Christ to silence Korihor (see Alma 30:39-50), and they invited His blessing on those who went with him to bring the Zoramites back to the truth (see Alma 31:31-38). These are valuable examples for followers of Christ today when false messages are common. We can find truth by trusting, as Alma did, “the virtue of the word of God” (Alma 31:5).

I feel impressed to discuss a principle found in Alma 31: “God’s word has the power to lead people to righteousness.” This chapter tells us of a group of people who were once Nephites but who had separated themselves from the Nephites.

It so happened that the Zoramites had moved to an area where they were located between the area where most of the Nephites were located and the land of the Lamanites. The leaders of the Nephites thought that a political or military solution was necessary to reclaim the Zoramites before they joined with the Lamanites. However, the prophet Alma thought that they should try “the virtue of the word of God” (Alma 31:5).

5 And now, as the preaching of the word had a great tendency to lead the people to do that which was just – yea, it had had more powerful effect upon the minds of the people than the sword, or anything else, which had happened unto them – therefore Alma thought it was expedient that they should try the virtue of the word of God.

Alma decided to take a group of missionaries to the land of Antionum, the home of the Zoramites. The missionaries included Ammon, Aaron, Omner, Amulek, Zeezrom, Shiblon, and Corianton. The first three were sons of Mosiah, and the last two were sons of Alma.

When they arrived in Antionum, the missionaries were astonished to discover how much the Zoramites had perverted the word of God.

24 Now when Alma saw this his heart was grieved; for he saw that they were a wicked and a perverse people; yea, he saw that their hearts were set upon gold, and upon silver, and upon all manner of find goods.

25 Yea, and he also saw that their hearts were lifted up unto great boasting, in their pride.

Alma lifted up his voice in prayer. He first prayed for the Zoramites that their hearts could be softened and that they could be reclaimed. He next prayed for himself that he would be strengthened and given the power to reclaim the Zoramites. He also prayed for his missionary companions that they would be strengthened and helped to be good missionaries.

The Lord heard the words of the prophet’s prayer and provided for the missionaries that they had food to eat, liquids to drink, and clothes to wear. He also strengthened them against afflictions which were “swallowed up in the joy of Christ” (Alma 31:38).

What Keeps You From Attending the Temple More Often?

Families are stronger when individuals make and keep covenants. One important way to keep covenants is to do those things that renew covenants. Members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints renew their baptismal covenants by attending sacrament meeting and partaking of the sacrament. We renew our temple covenants by going back to the temple and being proxies so that other people can receive the ordinances. Yet, there are people who do not attend sacrament meetings often or attend the temple frequently.

I was recently in a fifth Sunday meeting in Salt Lake City, and an interesting question was asked. It was something like this, “what keeps you from attending the temple more often?” I raised my hand and said the reason is convenience. There are numerous temples within an hour from the homes of the people in that ward –Bountiful, Brigham City, Draper, Jordan River, Layton, Mount Timpanogos, Ogden, Oquirrh Mountain, Orem, Payson, Provo City Center, Salt Lake, Sarasota Springs, and Taylorsville. There are more temples located within two hours, and even more temples being constructed in the area.

The fact that there are so many temples located in such close proximity could make temple seem less pressing. People may think, “I can go tomorrow” or “I can go next week.” The situation is not the same in any other area of the world. Consider the following:

·         There is only one temple in Alaska.

·         The temple was dedicated in January 1999. Previous to its dedication, the temple for Alaska was located in Seattle and required airline travel or a week in an automobile.

·         My airline travel took me home to Salt Lake City, and I always made at least one day available for temple service. My father and I would leave home early in the morning and return in time for dinner. During those hours, we did as many endowment sessions as we could fit. It was normal temple service for my father, but I tried to soak up as much temple as I could – enough to last until the next year when I traveled home.

·         The Anchorage Alaska Temple was dedicated in January 1999 and remodeled several years later.

·         This temple is closed for two weeks in the spring and two weeks in the fall with no other temples available in Alaska.

·         The temple is open Tuesday through Saturday with two sessions per day available at 10:00 a.m. and 7:00 p.m. per day except Saturday. On Saturday there are three sessions – 8:00 a.m., 12:00 p.m., and 7:00 p.m. This makes a total of eleven sessions available per week.

·         There are currently even more restrictions on attendance because a second temple is being constructed on the site. This limits the area available for parking, which limits the number of people who can attend each session.

·         My temple day is Friday at 10:00 a.m. To make sure that I get an appointment for that time, I must make my appointment by Sunday. There have been weeks when I could not attend the temple because all the appointments were gone. In addition, I can have only one endowment session scheduled at a time.

·         To obtain the appointment that I want, I must plan my temple service a week in advance.

Thus, my comment about convenience. When there are numerous temples in the area and many sessions available, people may not have to be so diligent and have to plan their temple attendance so far in advance.

With a temple so close to my home, I feel an obligation to attend often. I feel certain that this feeling comes from being without a temple for so many years and having such limitations at the current time. People who have never been without a temple may not feel the same obligation unless they are caught up in family history.

I encourage you to examine your life to determine why you are not more regular in temple attendance. I also encourage you to gain the understanding that temple attendance helps us to keep our covenants with God.