The Fed Hasn’t Done Enough to Beat Price Inflation

Money Metals News Service
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The Fed Hasn’t Done Enough to Beat Price Inflation

(Mike Maharrey, Money Metals News Service) Price inflation was supposed to be dead and buried months ago. But it’s doing just fine, thank you very much. The January Consumer Price Index report makes that pretty clear.

Sure, the Federal Reserve managed to knock inflation down. But it was never out. As a CNBC headline put it, “Inflation just won’t go away.”

The fact of the matter is the central bank never did enough to make it go away.

And it probably never will.

In December, headline CPI went up from 3.1 to 3.4 percent. The mainstream financial pundits assured us it was a blip on the radar — transitory if you will. The January data makes it harder to believe that narrative.

After December’s surprise increase, annual CPI fell back to 3.1 percent in January, according to the latest BLS report. The fact that the annual number came down could be spun as good news, but considering the projection was for a steeper fall to 2.9 percent, it’s hard to crank up a celebration. And the decrease just brought annual price inflation down to its November level.

It’s fair to argue that one or two months of data don’t tell us a lot. So, what is the trend?

Hotter, not cooler.

If you annualize the CPI over the last three months, it comes to 4 percent, up from 3.3 percent.

The 6-month annualized CPI is 3.7 percent, up from 3.2 percent.

On a monthly basis, consumer prices rose 0.3 percent, equaling the December gain. That was a steeper increase than the projected 0.2 percent.

Now consider this: prices have gone up over half a percent (0.6 percent) in just two months.

Things look even better for the inflation monster when we consider core CPI. This is supposed to be a better metric because it strips out more volatile food and energy prices.

In January, core CPI rose 0.4 percent, and it was up 3.9 percent on an annual basis. The monthly number was up from 0.3 percent last month, and the annual number was unchanged. The projection was for a 0.3 percent month-on-month gain with the annual number falling to 3.7 percent.

As was the case with the headline number, the trend in core CPI looks good for team inflation. It has been hovering in the 4 percent range since July. That’s double the mythical 2 percent target.

To put the monthly core CPI increase in perspective, it would need to average just under 0.17 percent per month to hit the 2 percent annual target.

The Fed claims to be data-dependent. Well, the data tells us that any talk of inflation’s demise was premature. No matter how you slice, dice, or massage the numbers, nothing indicates the Fed is anywhere near winning this fight.

And keep in mind, inflation is worse than the government data suggest. The government revised the CPI formula in the 1990s so that it understates the actual rise in prices. Based on the formula used in the 1970s, CPI is closer to double the official numbers. So, if the BLS was using the off formula, we’re looking at CPI closer to 6 percent. 

And using an honest formula, it would probably be worse than that.

“The much-anticipated CPI report is a disappointment for those who expected inflation to edge lower allowing the Fed to begin easing rates sooner rather than later,” LPL Financial chief global strategist Quincy Krosby told CNBC. 

“Across the board numbers were hotter than expected making certain that the Fed will need more data before initiating a rate cutting cycle.”

The markets made that disappointment clear. After all, they’re desperate for a fix of their easy-money drug. With price inflation alive and well, the Fed will likely delay the party. So, the markets threw a tantrum.

The stock markets sold off Tuesday. The Dow was down over 524 points. The S&P 500 slipped back below 5,000, shedding nearly 1.4 percent. And the NASDAQ fell 1.8 percent.

Meanwhile, bond yields – i.e. interest rates – rose and the dollar reached its almost two-month high above 104.70.

Gold plummeted, testing the $2,000 per ounce support.

Of course, hope springs eternal. The stock market rallied on Wednesday, and the S&P 500 reclaimed 5,000. A USB Wealth Management analyst told Bloomberg, “The ‘hot’ inflation data do not change our base case for a soft landing.”

Despite the recent data, deep down, everybody still seems to believe the Fed has successfully beaten price inflation down. 

Or maybe it’s just wishful thinking. Regardless, the consensus still seems to be rate cuts are coming – if a few months later than hoped for. And to be fair, that’s what the central bankers over at the Fed told us.

 

The Fed Never Did Enough to Win the Inflation Fight

 

You have to admire the mainstream’s optimism, but the fact of the matter is inflation is alive and well because the Fed never did enough to kill it.

If the central bankers at the Fed were truly committed to driving price inflation back to 2 percent, they would be talking about additional rate hikes – not pending rate cuts.

Make no mistake; 5.5 percent interest rates are high for an economy loaded up with debt. But they aren’t high in the face of a 6 percent CPI (using the more honest 1970s formula).

Even using the current rigged CPI, the Fed’s inflation fight was relatively tepid.

Price inflation peaked at 9.1 percent in the summer of 2022. The Fed never pushed rates anywhere near that level.

Looking at how Federal Reserve Chairman Paul Volker handled the 1970s and 80s inflation is informative.

Volker went on the warpath in 1980 and raised rates to 20 percent. At the time, CPI was in the 14 percent range. CPI didn’t return to 2 percent until 1986. At that point, the average Fed funds rate was 14.35 percent. Even with that, the CPI spiked back up for several years in the late 80s and early 90s.

You’ll notice that Volker drove rates significantly above the CPI. But Powell is no Volker. You could argue that rates a modestly above CPI today, but if we were using the 1970s formula, real rates are still negative.

The Fed hasn’t been any more aggressive on the other from in the inflation fight – balance sheet reduction.

To date, the Fed has rolled about $1.29 trillion off the balance sheet. This sounds impressive until you realize that the central bank blew up the balance sheet by $4.81 trillion in only two years in response to the pandemic.

Based on the central bank’s balance sheet reduction plan announced in March 2022, it would take 7.8 years for the Fed to shrink its balance sheet back to pre-pandemic levels. That doesn’t even begin to touch the trillions added to the balance sheet in the decade after the 2008 financial crisis.

The truth is, the Fed was never all in on the inflation fight. It couldn’t swing for the fences without wrecking the economy. So, it settled for a bunt.

Now, it is fair to say monetary policy is “tighter.” But it certainly isn’t tight.

In fact, the Chicago Fed’s own National Financial Conditions Index confirms this. The NFCI came in at –0.51 in the week ending February 9. That negative number means financial conditions are historically loose.

Nevertheless, almost everybody remains convinced that the Fed has got this. They remain confident that the Fed will give them back their easy money soon and that will float the economy to the much-anticipated soft landing.

The irony is that even if they’re right (and I don’t think they are) the victory over inflation is really just a surrender.

“Winning” means going right back to the inflationary policies that got us here to start with. In other words, the markets want inflation dead so they can have inflation back.

Keep in mind that in effect, loosening monetary policy is inflationary. Rising prices are a symptom of monetary inflation. And monetary inflation is exactly what we will get when the central bank reverts to a looser monetary policy.

As I explained on the latest Money Metals’ Midweek Memo podcast, the Fed is between a rock and a hard place.

On the one hand, it can choose to stick to its guns, keep rates higher for longer, and bring down inflation. But that will almost certainly drag the economy into a crisis.

On the other hand, it can pick inflation and maybe rescue the economy.

And the reality is we may get both the rock and the hard place – stagflation.

Mike Maharrey is a writer for Money Metals News Service and national communications director of the 10th Amendment Center. Follow him at twitter.com/mmaharrey10th.

AOC Dismisses Concerns over Biden’s Age: ‘One of the Most Successful Presidents’

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AOC Dismisses Concerns over Biden’s Age: ‘One of the Most Successful Presidents’

(Headline USA) Rep. Alexandria Ocasio–Cortez, D-N.Y., downplayed concerns about President Joe Biden’s age this week, claiming he is “one of the most successful presidents in modern American history.”

During an interview with CNN host Jake Tapper on Tuesday, Ocasio–Cortez was asked whether she shared concerns about Biden’s mental fitness following a special counsel report that confirmed his mental decline. 

“I think, right now, when it comes to the president’s age, folks, are talking about how he’s 81,” she responded.

“But we have to look at, first of all, Donald Trump is around the same age,” she continued. “They could have gone to high school together. And beyond that, Donald Trump has 91 indictments.”

The New York Democrat refused to comment on the specifics of special counsel Robert Hur’s report, including the allegations that Biden could not remember when he had been vice president or when his late son Beau Biden died, insisting that stopping Trump from becoming president was more important.

“I know who I’m going to choose: It’s going to be one of the most successful presidents in modern American history,” she claimed. “[He] passed the Inflation Reduction [Act] that got us the American Rescue Plan that ensured that we could pass one of the largest federal investments in climate change in U.S. history.”

If Democrats don’t rally behind Biden, she said, there could be “grave impacts” on U.S. democracy.

Although a growing number of people doubt that Biden will be the eventual nominee, leftists and their mainstream media allies have recently sought to double down with talking points by insisting there would be no path for an undeclared candidate, such as Michelle Obama, to pull a last-minute bait-and-switch.

Some have also continued to press the leftist talking points that Trump would rule as a dictator, despite the fact that he previously ceded power peacefully amid widespread concern over election irregularities in the 2020 race.

The socialist “Squad” leader pushed both of these bogus claims, with no pushback from Tapper.

“If Donald Trump is elected president of the United States, we do not know if there would be a verifiable next election that has integrity,” Ocasio–Cortez said. “He already tried … what we saw on Jan. 6, he tried to overturn the results of the presidential election by force, by inciting a riot.” 

The election is “not a game,” she added, urging her colleagues to remain focused on protecting “our democracy” and “progressive values.”

Several congressional Democrats have raised concerns about Biden’s candidacy following the special counsel report, especially as a growing number of Americans cite Biden’s age as a top concern.

A new poll released this week, for example, found that 86% of Americans believe Biden is too old to complete another term.

CIA on Spying Scandal: ‘That’s Classified’

Ken Silva
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CIA on Spying Scandal: ‘That’s Classified’

(Ken Silva, Headline USA) The CIA is facing a lawsuit from journalists and lawyers who say the agency spied on them when they visited WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange while he was living under political asylum at the Ecuadorian embassy in London.

The plaintiffs filed their lawsuit in August 2022 and recently scored a victory when a U.S. district judge ruled that their case could proceed on Fourth Amendment grounds.

However, the CIA is looking to shut down the lawsuit for good by exercising its “state secret privilege”—which permits the government to block the release of any information in a lawsuit that, if disclosed, would cause harm to national security.

The CIA revealed this in a letter to U.S. District Judge John Koeltl last week.

“The CIA has concluded that answering the complaint—by confirming, denying, or stating that it is without information regarding the allegations in this case—could itself serve to reveal classified information. The CIA therefore intends to assert the State Secrets Privilege,” wrote Assistant U.S. Attorney Jean-David Barnea on behalf of the agency.

“The sole remaining claim in this case is the plaintiff’s allegation that, at the CIA’s request, the Spanish defendants illegally downloaded the contents of the plaintiffs’ electronic devices when they visited Julian Assange at the Ecuadorian embassy in London and transmitted these materials to the CIA,” Barnea added.

“Any factual inquiry into these allegations—whether they are true or not—would implicate classified information, as it would require the CIA to reveal what intelligence-gathering activities it did or did not engage in, among other things.”

The CIA sought a time extension until April 15 so it can obtain the approval of the Justice Department and the Office of the Director of National Intelligence to make its state-secrets assertion.

The plaintiffs—which include American journalists John Goetz and Charles Glass, and lawyers Margaret Ratner Kunstler and Deborah Hrbek—opposed the CIA’s request.

“Plaintiffs cannot understand how admissions, denials or the denial of knowledge—which is all a party must do in its answer to a complaint—can somehow be a disclosure of a state secret,” they said in their opposition.

However, Judge Koeltl granted the CIA’s request and gave the agency until April 15 to make a formal state secrets assertion.

Ken Silva is a staff writer at Headline USA. Follow him at twitter.com/jd_cashless.

Rapinoe Mocks Christians, Claims There Is ‘Special Place in Hell’ for Her Haters

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Rapinoe Mocks Christians, Claims There Is ‘Special Place in Hell’ for Her Haters

(Headline USA) Ex-U.S. women’s soccer player Megan Rapinoe mocked Christians and claimed her haters occupied a “special place in hell” during an interview this week, Outkick reported.

Despite twice leading the U.S. team to victory in the FIFA Women’s World Cup tournament, Rapinoe, an outspoken leftist lesbian, became a divisive figure off the field due to her offensive political statements and bullying of teammates.

That led many Americans to actively root against her and to celebrate her failure after she choked in the team’s last World Cup trip.

After an injury took her out early in her final game last year, which the U.S. Women’s Soccer team lost, the narcissistic diva claimed that it was proof there was no God.

“I’m not a religious person or anything, and if there was a God, this is proof that there isn’t, ’cause this is f***ed up,” Rapinoe said after the game.

However, Rapinoe insisted that her own worldly tormentors will be subject to divine punishment nonetheless.

She made her most recent comment on the “Pablo Torre Finds Out” podcast while addressing the injury.

“I’m, like, a controversial figure, and having people, low-key, like, celebrate it, but then also, like, be, like, so disingenuous about it, that—that part is kind of funny too,” she articulated. “I’m like, ‘Wow, you guys are in a special place in hell that you’re celebrating this.’”

She said the injury was “sad” and that she wished it “didn’t happen,” but added she doesn’t believe it took away from her career.

She also defended the blasphemous comment she made after her final game, insisting the comment was a joke and mocking those who took offense.

“Somebody needs to check on the Christians,” she said on Tuesday. “They’re not OK. They also missed the whole joke. Don’t act like you’re surprised by me being, like, making this joke about what happened or finding a dig.”

She claimed the “dig” could have been directed at anyone: “God? Myself? Religion? The world?”

Torre then chimed in to clarify, explaining that Rapinoe was, in fact, satirizing the persona of a vain, self-absorbed athlete who would project her own failures onto extrinsic factors in order to advance an anti-Christian agenda.

“I don’t think people appreciate this, ’cause everyone was deeply triggered, religiously and otherwise,” he explained. “The dig is, here is yet another athlete who thinks that proof of God is found in them winning, in good s*** happening, and if it doesn’t, then obviously God does not exist.”

New ‘National Security Threat’ Could be Russian Space Nukes, Sources Say

Ken Silva
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New ‘National Security Threat’ Could be Russian Space Nukes, Sources Say

(Ken Silva, Headline USA) After Rep. Mike Turner, R-Ohio, sounded the alarm Wednesday on a vague new “national security threat” facing the U.S., multiple sources are saying that the threat relates to a space-deployed Russian anti-satellite weapon—sparking fears that the Russian weapon could have nuclear capability.

However, skeptics aren’t buying the alarmist tone coming from Turner and other war hawks. Their warnings come as Congress debates a $95 billion foreign aid package, as well as reforms to the domestic spying bill, the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act.

“The most serious threat facing America isn’t Russian nukes in space or overseas terrorist plots, it’s the political class in Washington and our intelligence agencies that think they’re above the law,” the Federalist’s John Davidson wrote in response to the recent news.

Russia, for its part, has also criticized the talk of a new “national security threat” as propaganda. A Kremlin spokesperson reportedly called it a “trick” by the White House to get U.S politicians to approve an aid package for Ukraine.

Nevertheless, the Associated Press reported Thursday that the U.S. has gathered highly sensitive intelligence about Russian anti-satellite weapons that has been shared in recent weeks with the upper echelons of government, according to four people who have been briefed on the intelligence. Such a weapon could pose a major danger to U.S. satellites that transmit billions of bytes of data each hour.

The people, who were not authorized to comment publicly, said the capability was not yet operational. One added that intelligence officials consider the threat to be significant, but it should not cause panic.

Rep. Turner gave no details about the nature of the threat, and the Biden administration also declined to address it. Turner issued a statement urging the administration to declassify the information so the U.S. and its allies can openly discuss how to respond.

Turner has been a voice for stronger U.S. national security, putting him at odds with some Republican colleagues who favor a more isolationist approach. He has called for the renewal of a key U.S. government surveillance tool while some fellow Republicans and liberal Democrats have raised privacy objections.

And he supports continuing U.S. military aid for Ukraine in its war against Russia at a time that the funding remains uncertain because of opposition in the Republican-led House.

Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Fla., noted Turner’s positions on FISA and Ukraine in an interview with Newsmax about the supposed threat.

Several other leading lawmakers, including House Speaker Mike Johnson, have also cautioned against being overly alarmed.

The rapidly evolving threat in space was one of the primary reasons that the U.S. Space Force was established in 2019. A lot of that threat has to do with new capabilities that China and Russia have already developed that can interfere with critical satellite-based U.S. communications, such as GPS and the ability to quickly detect missile launches.

In recent years the U.S. has seen both China and Russia pursue new ways to jam satellites, intercept their feeds, blind them, shoot them down and even potentially grab them with a robotic arm to pull them out of their programmed orbits. One of the key missions of the Space Force is to train troops skilled in detecting and defending against those threats.

In its 2020 Defense Space Strategy, the Pentagon said China and Russia presented the greatest strategic threat in space due to their aggressive development of counterspace abilities, and their military doctrine calling for extending conflict to space.

The Associated Press contributed to this story.

Ken Silva is a staff writer at Headline USA. Follow him at twitter.com/jd_cashless.

Manchin Unveils Potential Running Mates Amid 2024 Speculation

Luis Cornelio
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Manchin Unveils Potential Running Mates Amid 2024 Speculation

UPDATE: Manchin announced on Friday that he would not run for president as an independent. However, he has long been known for his indecisiveness and for being prone to changes in opinion.

His run would enrage many of his former Democrat colleagues, who would regard him as a spoiler, particularly if going up against a weak and divisive candidate like President Joe Biden.

It is likely that several Democrat hopefuls are awaiting an announcement in the spring that Biden will drop out, provided he is able to broker an arrangement that will protect his son and other members of the Biden family from facing criminal investigations related to their foreign business dealings.

(Luis Cornelio, Headline USA) Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., flirted with the idea of potentially running for the presidency in 2024, disclosing a list of potential running mates during an interview with the City Club of Cleveland.

“Hypothetically, if I was picking my running mate, really who I would ask right now is Mitt Romney,” Manchin declared, before hailing Sen. Rob Portman, R-Ohio, as another potential pick.

“Rob’s a dear friend of mine,” Manchin continued. “What a good man, what a good man.”

Although Manchin has not officially declared his candidacy for the White House, he has emerged as a potential alternative to President Joe Biden, who faces challenges such as the special counsel report scandal, low poll numbers, a border crisis and impeachment threats.

During the interview, City Club CEO Dan Moulhtrip questioned Manchin about his intentions regarding the nation’s highest office—but Manchin retorted: “Guys, listen, I’m not running for anything,” he said. “I’m basically running to try to get people involved.”

Despite this denial, Manchin has been linked to potential third-party challenges against Biden and former President Donald Trump, the presumed Republican nominee for 2024.

Speaking to NBC News, Manchin declared, “Third party run, everything is on the table. Nothing’s off the table. I’m still evaluating all that. Super Tuesday [March 5] pretty much would be a deadline that tells you where you are.”

Manchin had announced in November 2023 that he wouldn’t seek re-election to the Senate. Instead, he initiated a nationwide tour called the “Listening Tour.” Coincidentally, Romney also announced his retirement from the Senate.

In a related development reported by Fox News, Heather Manchin, the senator’s daughter, launched a non-profit called “Americans Together.” The organization reportedly focuses on efforts to unite moderate voters against the alleged extremes of the right and left.

NYTimes Focus Group: Most Independent Voters Back Trump over ‘Senile’ Biden

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NYTimes Focus Group: Most Independent Voters Back Trump over ‘Senile’ Biden

(Headline USA) The New York Times conducted an interview with a focus group of independent voters from around the country this week and discovered that the vast majority were leaning toward supporting former President Donald Trump over President Joe Biden in November.

The group was made up of 13 undecided, independent voters, ranging from 22 to 64 years old. When asked what their top issues were, the voters said they were most concerned about the economy, citing the rising costs of groceries and other bills. Twelve of the 13 said they would base their vote on this issue alone.

The voters were also “deeply troubled by the crisis at the southern border, and some were concerned about the Israel–Gaza war and disliked U.S. aid to other countries,” the Times reported.

When asked what they thought about Biden, the voters were blunt.

“He’s a little bit senile, and I do think if you can’t do the job, it’s time to step down,” Natalie, 22, remarked. 

“I think he’s unfit for the presidency. A president should be the commander-in-chief. And he does not appear to be a capable commander-in-chief,” Richard, 36, said.

North Carolina counselor Kim, 43, called Biden a “puppet,” saying, “That’s because I feel like he really tap-dances. I don’t know what he’s done. It just seems like he’s just throwing things out there to please almost anyone,” she claimed.

Alabama mother Yalena, 22, said she felt she couldn’t trust the president.

“The word that immediately came up was ‘disingenuous,'” she told the Times. “Nothing that is said really connects with me. I don’t feel like I’m being told the truth. I don’t feel like I’m being told anything up front.”

The voters also had negative things to say about Trump, calling the former president “egotistical,” a “narcissist,” and “disastrous.”

However, when asked whom they would rather vote for, 11 of the 13 voters said they would vote for Trump over Biden if the election were held today.

DHS Agents Hail Mayorkas Impeachment

Luis Cornelio
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DHS Agents Hail Mayorkas Impeachment

(Luis Cornelio, Headline USA) Several rank-and-file border agents have openly expressed their satisfaction with the impeachment of DHS Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, with one agent going so far as to refer to him as a “puto,” a Spanish term meaning “whore” or “prostitute.” 

In damning interviews with the Daily Caller, seven Border Patrol agents and two ICE agents blasted Mayorkas for the failure to address the widespread illegal immigration rocking the southern border.

“Fuck that puto,” exclaimed a Border Patrol agent to the Caller, while an ICE agent added: “We have laws in place that are not being enforced due to Mayorkas’ leadership. If agents and officers were authorized to enforce the laws enacted by Congress this influx would not have occurred.”

On Tuesday, House Republicans formally impeached Mayorkas on the grounds of reportedly making false statements about the security of the southern border and failing to enforce immigration laws. The two impeachment counts will now move to the Democrat-led Senate, where a conviction is considered unlikely.

“Mayorkas was a total dumpster fire who never owned up to the crisis he created with his disastrous policies. But I don’t think the Senate is gonna remove him which sucks,” another agent remarked to the Caller. 

A fourth individual reportedly described the impeachment as the right step. “It’s just embarrassing that it took 9 million+ illegal aliens invading our country…before he was finally held accountable,” the agent said. 

In Fiscal Year 2022, Border Patrol encountered over 2.2 million individuals attempting to illegally cross the southern border. Similarly, over 2 million were encountered in Fiscal Year 2023, as reported by the Caller, highlighting federal data. 

House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., defended Mayorkas’ impeachment in a statement on Tuesday.

“Alejandro Mayorkas deserves to be impeached, and Congress has a constitutional obligation to do so,” he said, likely addressing dubious claims that the impeachment violated the U.S. Constitution. 

“Next to a declaration of war, impeachment is arguably the most serious authority given to the House and we have treated this matter accordingly. Since this Secretary refuses to do the job that the Senate confirmed him to do, the House must act,” Johnson added.

Read the full Caller interview with DHS officials here.

Rep. Green Reveals Plans to Retire a Day after Leading Mayorkas Impeachment

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Rep. Green Reveals Plans to Retire a Day after Leading Mayorkas Impeachment

(Headline USA) Tennessee Republican U.S. Rep. Mark Green on Wednesday announced that he won’t run for a fourth term, pointing to the impeachment of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas just the day before as among the reasons it is “time for me to return home.”

“Our country–and our Congress–is broken beyond most means of repair,” Green said in a statement. “I have come to realize our fight is not here within Washington, our fight is with Washington.”

As chairman of the Committee on Homeland Security, Green was a driving force behind the Mayorkas impeachment push over his dereliction of duty on border security—the first impeachment of a Cabinet official since 1876.

Green’s panel conducted a months-long investigation of Mayorkas, his policies and his management of the department, ultimately concluding Tuesday that his conduct in office amounted to “high crimes and misdemeanors” worthy of impeachment.

Green has served since 2019 in the 7th Congressional District, which was redrawn in 2022 to include a significant portion of Nashville. He previously served as an Army surgeon and in the state Senate and is from Montgomery County.

Green flirted running for governor in 2017, but suspended his campaign after he was nominated by former President Donald Trump to become the Army secretary.

He later withdrew his nomination due to the misinterpretations of factually accurate statements he had made about Muslims and LGBT Americans, including saying that being transgender was a disease.

While leftists were eager to distort the remarks and take them out of context, gender dysphoria is clinically classified as a mental disorder, and many of those afflicted claim it as such in demanding that the cost of their transitions be covered under various healthcare programs.

Green also urged that a stand be taken against “the indoctrination of Islam” in public schools and referred to a “Muslim horde” that invaded Constantinople hundreds of years ago—something long regarded as historical fact in reference to the massive army, estimated at up to 120,000 Ottoman soldiers led by Mehmed II, that overwhelmed the Byzantine defenses in May 1453. A horde is defined as a large group or crowd.

After winning the congressional seat in 2018, Green once again made headlines by hosting a town hall where he stated that vaccines cause autism. He later walked back his comments but not before state health officials described the Republican as a “goofball.”

“As I have done my entire life, I will continue serving this country—but in a new capacity,” Green said Wednesday.

He did not disclose if he would run again for governor in 2026, when the seat will be up for grabs. Republican Gov. Bill Lee is prohibited from running under Tennessee’s gubernatorial term limits.

In 2022, Green’s middle Tennessee congressional seat was among seats that Republicans drastically carved up during redistricting. Those congressional maps are now facing a federal lawsuit, but that case isn’t scheduled to go to trial until April 2025.

So far on the Republican side, Caleb Stack has pulled petitions to run for the now open congressional district. Former Nashville Mayor Megan Barry announced last year that she would run for the position as a Democrat.

Adapted from reporting by the Associated Press

U.S., NATO Concerned about CCP Recruiting Their Service Members

Dmytro "Henry" Aleksandrov
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U.S., NATO Concerned about CCP Recruiting Their Service Members

(Dmytro “Henry” Aleksandrov, Headline USA) Gen. James Hecker, commander of U.S. Air Forces in Europe–Air Forces Africa (USAFE–AFAFRICA), recently revealed that China has targeted NATO countries to recruit their current and former service members.

According to the Epoch Times, Hecker, who is also the commander of NATO Allied Air Command, talked about the CCP’s recruitment efforts on Feb. 12, 2024, during a media roundtable at the Air & Space Forces Association Warfare Symposium in Colorado.

Hecker said that “there have been successful attempts” of the CCP’s recruitment “from multiple [NATO] nations,” adding that the “good news is, we found out about this fairly early on.”

“And we’ve had successes in getting some of the pilots that were involved in that kind of stuff—we’ve been able to bring them back. Mostly willingly, depending on the nation,” he said, noting that, as a result of the findings, some of the countries had to change their law to bring back some of their service members.

Hecker then said that, despite both the United States and NATO starting a public awareness campaign, China still “hasn’t stopped” its recruitment effort.

Last month, a conference called “Securing Our Military Expertise from Adversaries” was held at Ramstein Air Base in Germany, the headquarters of NATO Allied Air Command, to curb the issue of China’s People’s Liberation Army (PLA) recruiting NATO alliance service members.

A Feb. 8, 2024, statement from USAFE–AFAFRICA revealed that the military, intelligence and other stakeholders from the United States and 22 of its NATO allies and Five Eyes partners, as well as representatives from the U.S. National Security Council, attended the conference.

The CCP regime used “overt and covert recruitment” methods to target service members who are “pilots, maintainers, air operations center personnel and a variety of other technical experts from across multiple occupations that could provide insight into U.S. and NATO air tactics, techniques, and procedures,” the statement said.

“[The People’s Republic of China] recruitment of this nature primarily occurs through seemingly typical job listings, using online job sites or through headhunting emails sent straight to targeted individuals. The U.S. also notes that common red flags include jobs located in or around China, contracts that seem ‘too good to be true,’ and vague details on end customers or position duties,” according to the statement.

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