Category Archives: Federalist

South Dakota Republican Gov. Kristi Noem claimed in a podcast interview published Thursday she never planned to sign a transgender sports bill to protect female athletes.

Noem was pressed over the debacle that began to sink her political stardom on the Clay Travis and Buck Sexton Show. Sexton brought up the issue in the context of the governor turning down piece after piece of legislation that protected individual liberties from vaccine mandates and erasure of womens sports.

By the way, you said you would sign the trans bill, and then backed off of it, we know that happened, Sexton said.

That is not true, Buck, Noem responded, months after she reneged on that exact pledge.

In South Dakota, were celebrating #InternationalWomensDay by defending womens sports! Noem wrote in a March 8 post responding to the successful passage of the Womens Fairness in Sports bill. Im excited to sign this bill very soon.

The next week, Noem issued a style and form veto of the legislation which would have barred males from competing among female athletes. Noem sent the bill back to the legislature with edits that would gut the laws mechanisms for enforcement. The changes were rejected by the South Dakota House of Representatives.

Noem changed her position on the bill after intense lobbying by the state Chamber of Commerce and other powerful business groups, raising hysteria the legislation would provoke a corporate boycott. The governors own advisers include business leaders who opposed the bill.

After she effectively vetoed the legislation she had promised to sign days earlier, the governor who ascended to GOP stardom for her adamant rejection of coronavirus lockdowns tried to save her political ambitions with claims the law as written would have invited an avalanche of unwinnable litigation.

Ive been bullied for the last year by liberals, Noem said on a Fox News appearance with Tucker Carlson, later framing herself as a victim of cancel culture as grassroots opposition tanked her influence within the GOP. Im not going to let anybody from the NCAA, from any big business, Im not even gonna let conservatives on the right bully me.

Federalist Staff Writer Jordan Davidson branded Noems claim of cancellation as, merely a mask for the fact that a once-up-and-coming politician favored for a national stage is learning that her actions have consequences, especially when she backtracks on her word.

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Noem Falsely Claimed She Never Planned To Sign Women's Sports Bill - The Federalist

General Kenneth McKenzie Jr. told reporters Thursday military evacuation efforts in Kabul depended on Taliban protection after a pair of ISIS suicide bombings killed at least 12 U.S. servicemembers and dozens of civilians.

We expect those attacks to continue and we are doing everything we can to prepare for those attacks, McKenzie said at a Pentagon press briefing. That includes reaching out to the Taliban who are actually providing the outer security at the airport.

According to Politico, U.S. officials have shared intelligence with Taliban officials identifying those who have been cleared for evacuation.

Thursdays military casualties are the first since two service members were fatally shot in February last year, where six others were wounded in the same operation. Afghan authorities told the New York Times another 30 to 40 were confirmed dead from the blasts in Kabul that wounded another 120.

U.S. forces are scheduled to leave the country on Aug. 31, a deadline the Biden administration haspledged to maintain at the Talibans red-line demand despite thousands poised to remain stranded under terrorist rule.

While the U.S. has depended on Taliban cooperation for evacuation efforts, the radical Islamist group has prevented people from accessing the airport, and said Tuesday it would prohibit Afghan passage.

How many Americans are still in Afghanistan is unclear. Secretary of State Anthony Blinken put the estimate at1,500on Wednesday.

The United States has evacuated more than 82,000 people from the country since Aug. 14, thevast majorityof whom have been qualifying Afghans. The U.S. embassywarnedAmericans to disperse from the airport Wednesday over the terror threat which came to fruition one day later.

Because of security threats outside the gates of Kabul airport, we are advising U.S. citizens to avoid traveling to the airport and to avoid airport gates at this time unless you receive individual instructions from a U.S. government representative to do so, read the alert.

Despite the warnings, U.S. Marines continued to process those trying to enter the airport anyway and land a seat on an evacuation flight leaving every 45 minutes.

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Commander Says US Military Is Relying On Taliban Protection In Kabul - The Federalist

The Republican Party of Virginia filed alawsuitThursday against the Virginia State Board of Elections and the Virginia Department of Elections, asking the courts to remove the states gubernatorial candidate Democrat Terry McAuliffe from the ballot for failing to sign a required form declaring his candidacy. This means the former Virginia governor might not be getting his old job back any time soon.

The Virginia Republican Partys lawsuit also contends that McAuliffesDeclaration of Candidacycontains signatures from two individuals claiming that they witnessed McAuliffe sign the Declaration despite his signature appearing nowhere on the face of the document.

When asked about the lawsuit by Fox News, McAuliffe campaign spokeswoman Christina Freundlich said the former governors campaign submitted the required paperwork and that the suit was a desperate Trumpian political move to force McAuliffe, who is consistently leading in the polls, out of the race.

In the past, however, enforcement of election laws and procedures has been carried out irrespective of political party. In 2019,Republican candidate Nicholas J. Freitas was forced to run as a write-infor Virginias House of Delegates after failing to submit the required paperwork to the Board of Elections by the deadline.

For all their cries that the lawsuit is a desperate Trumpian move, the Democrat Party itself works very diligently every election cycle to win on technicalities and kick legitimate third-party candidates off the ballot.

In the 2020 election, Wisconsin Democrats disenfranchised the Green Party presidential ticket. They did this apparently because many people believe Trump carried Wisconsin in 2016 because Green Party candidate Jill Stein won more votes than Clintons margin of defeat. In 2020, the Green Party filed double the necessary number of signatures to be on the ballot yet was illegally disqualified by the Wisconsin Election Commission on an absurd interpretation that violated Wisconsin law.

Ironically, when McAuliffe was the chair of the Democratic National Committee, 2004 third-party presidential candidate Ralph Nader alleged that the DNC engaged in groundless and abusive litigation to bankrupt his campaign and force him off the ballot in 18 states.

While the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit ruled that Naders allegations exceeded the statute of limitations in 2009, Nader and former members of his campaign maintain that McAuliffe employed crooked politics.

In her book The Myth of Voter Choice in a Two-Party Tyranny, Nader aide Theresa Amato who managed his 2000 and 2004 presidential campaigns revealed how McAuliffe tried to bribe Nader to stop campaigning in key states. According to Amato, McAuliffe allegedly offered Nader an unspecified amount of money, presumably in the form of contribution checks from big Democrat donors, if he avoided campaigning in 19 battleground states.

Free and fair elections are the cornerstone of our democracy, and Terry McAuliffes clear violation of the law severely jeopardizes the integrity of our elections in Virginia, Virginia Republican Party Chairman Rich Anderson said in a Thursdaypress release.

For decades, Terry has used his political connections and proximity to power to avoid consequences for his reckless behavior and disregard for people and laws, but no amount of political favors and back-slapping can refute the fact that McAuliffe is a fraudulent candidate and cannot be Virginias next governor, Anderson stated.

These are very serious questions, and the McAuliffe campaign seems to be claiming that Terry McAuliffe doesnt have to follow the law like everyone else who runs for office in Virginia,saida spokeswoman for Glenn Youngkin, McAuliffes Republican opponent. We will be closely monitoring the situation to ensure all legal requirements are followed.

Evita Duffy is an intern at The Federalist, co-founder of the Chicago Thinker, and a senior at the University of Chicago. Follow her on Twitter at @evitaduffy_1

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Terry McAuliffe Didn't Follow VA Election Law And Should Be Off The Ballot - The Federalist

George Mason University Professor Todd Zywicki isnt a pushover to anti-science COVID-19 policies. Zywicki has natural immunity to the virus, and thanks to his own hard work and that of his legal team, Zywicki has been granted a medical exemption from his employers vaccine mandate. Hes also created a blueprint for others to potentially follow suit.

George Mason University (GMU) tried to penalize Zywicki for possessing the wrong type of COVID immunity, but he wasnt having it. As a law professor beginning his 24th year teaching at Virginias largest four-year public university, Zywicki enjoys well-documented, robust natural immunity from COVID because he already contracted and fully recovered from the virus last year.

My immunologist says that my antibody level is comparable to somebody whos been vaccinated, Zywicki told The Federalist. The science is quite clear that natural immunity is at least as effective as the most effective vaccines, meaning 90-95 percent, which the Pfizer and Moderna claim they have, clearly more effective than a less effective vaccine like Johnson & Johson, which is only 66 percent. And its not even a serious discussion whether its more protective than Sinovac and Sinopharm.

Clinical studies from the Cleveland Clinic, Israel, and England support these assertions. Natural immunity is a powerful, long-lasting defense against COVID, and Zywicki said it protects against a greater array of variants than the vaccines on the market. The protection afforded by vaccines is reportedly waning, and breakthrough infections are spreading globally.

When GMU tried to coerce Zywicki into getting vaccinated anyway, he had his lawyers at the New Civil Liberties Alliance file suit against GMU on his behalf. Zywicki also slammed his employers broad vaccine mandate via a Wall Street Journal op-ed, in which he argued that theres no justification for a coercive violation of [his] bodily autonomy.

Thanks to his willingness to stand up for his convictions, Zywicki himself wont have to get vaccinated this fall, he wont be subject to disciplinary action, and hell be able to hold office hours and attend in-person events. Zywicki must maintain six feet of distance from others and get tested for COVID on a weekly basis, however, meaning there are still strings attached to his medical exemption.

For some reason, the science isnt enough for GMU. Strangely, despite solid scientific evidence, GMU continues to refuse to recognize that Covid-19 vaccination is medically unnecessary for ALL students, faculty, and staff with naturally acquired immunity demonstrated with antibody testing, Zywickis legal team said in a press release.

Zywicki said that according to his employers blanket policy, employees who dont receive religious or medical exemptions must get injected with a vaccine thats been approved by the World Health Organization.

As Zywicki put it, employees who receive the low-quality Chinese vaccines such as the Sinovac vaccine, which the WHO concluded was only 51 percent effective at preventing symptomatic disease, and the Sinopharm vaccine, which has performed so poorly that some countries are systematically revaccinating their populations with higher-quality options, meet GMUs vaccine requirements. But unless they receive an exemption, GMU employees with natural immunity do not meet such requirements.

After Zywicki got shingles this spring, he had an epiphany. When I recovered I said to my doctor OK, now that Ive recovered from shingles, should I get the shingles vaccine? he recollected. [My doctor] looked at me, and he was kind of thinking, How could somebody as stupid as you possibly be a professor of anything? He said, like he was talking to a kindergartener, Well, no, you obviously dont get vaccinated for a virus right after youve recovered from the virus.

He says, Look, heres your antibody levels [for] the shingles virus. You are protected from getting reinfected by the shingles virus for a long time. And then he said, And if you get vaccinated, you have a really high risk of hyper-inflaming your immune system, Zywicki continued. I walked out of his office and I said to myself, COVID is also a virus. And Ive had COVID. I should find out what my antibodies levels are. I should find out whether its necessary and safe for me to get vaccinated.

Zywicki quickly concluded that he shouldnt get the COVID vaccine. Its really not that complicated. So whats the counterargument? [T]here is no counterargument, Zywicki said.

Zywicki said that those who possess natural immunity have been largely excluded from vaccine clinical trials, meaning that any claims about the safety of vaccinating people with natural immunity are predominantly speculative. Zywicki also said, Clinical evidence has suggested that COVID survivors suffer more frequent and more serious side effects from vaccination than those who have never been infected, presumably because their healthy immune systems are prone to hyper-inflammation.

It is irresponsible, it is vicious, to force college students who have recovered from COVID to then go get vaccinated, Zywicki said. We know the baseline risk is really, really low. Its already an open question as to whether the risk-benefit for a younger person even makes sense, considering their low baseline risk. Now add to that, they not only have the baseline risk, theyve actually gotten COVID and recovered and they have natural immunity. That is as close to bulletproof as you are ever going to find.

Moreover, Zywicki said that the younger you are, the more likely to have a severe adverse reaction to vaccination.

And so the lesson here is clear, Zywicki continued. Its completely wrong for somebody like me to get vaccinated after [developing] natural immunity. My immunity is durable [and] more resistant, he emphasized. [And] with respect to college kids its literally just sick to do this to college kids who have natural immunity to make them get vaccinated indiscriminately.

The American establishment has decided, for whatever reason, [that] this is the agenda they want to push. And they are going to force it on people, the corporations, the universities the Democratic politicians are going to do it, Zywicki reflected.

As Democrats continue to push vaccine mandates, more than 700 American colleges and universities have already taken that step. The University of Virginia disenrolled 238 of its students days before classes resumed because they werent in compliance with the universitys vaccine requirements. Meanwhile, countless corporations are similarly coercing their employees into getting the jab. Thanks to Democrat Mayor Bill de Blasio, New York City recently became the first major U.S. city to announce plans for medical segregation via vaccine passports.

The public health community now has become completely compromised, Zywicki lamented. In terms of pushing bogus information designed to do this, we all know about the ongoing censorship of people who want to talk about vaccine side effects. People feel crushed under the wheel, [they feel] that the entire machine is just grinding over them.

The medical journals are now suppressing and refusing to publish very, very high-quality studies that do not comport with the narrative that they want to push, which is indiscriminate mass vaccinations, Zywicki argued. The medical societies and establishment are now threatening to take away the licenses of doctors who they deem to be spreading misinformation about vaccines. Were talking about a system of control and censorship that all of these institutions have just fallen in line with.

The Biden administration is also in on it. U.S. Surgeon General Vivek Murthy recently released a report encouraging Facebook, Twitter, and others to penalize, censor, and surveil COVID dissidents who promote commentary that the establishment deems to be misinformation.

Earlier this year, Facebook was reportedly suppressing posts and comments expressing doubts about the coronavirus vaccine. Meanwhile, Twitter silenced a video showing a mom discussing her daughters adverse reactions to the Pfizer shot.

Consequently, its difficult for people to get correct information. Confronted by a machine that censors scientific inquiry and incessantly promotes vaccines, Zywicki said, Most people just dont have the wherewithal to understand this.

Americans are starved for the truth and suffering. There are millions of Americans right now with natural immunity [who] are basically being forced to choose between an unnecessary medical procedure, with elevated risk, that will give them no benefit versus losing their job, Zywicki said. And I think that is really tragic and outrageous that there are so many people who are so callous and cavalier about other peoples health and well-being, that they wont even look at the science, the completely compelling science here and treat their employees, their students, whoever they are, with dignity and respect, and allow those people to consult with their doctors like I did, and decide what the right thing is when its clear that natural immunity is as good as vaccine immunity.

Zywicki is relieved by his medical exemption, but he argues the struggle isnt over. Meanwhile, the New Civil Liberties Alliance continues to explore litigation against GMU. And it welcomes input from others on public-university campuses in Virginia particularly tenured faculty who have naturally acquired immunity backed by antibody testing and whose schools are similarly disregarding the scientific facts surrounding naturally acquired immunity.

I speak for tens of millions of Americans in the same circumstances I am in, and I call on leaders across the country to develop humane and science-based approaches as opposed to one-size-fits-all policies, Zywicki emphasized.

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George Mason University Prof Who Challenged Vaxx Mandate Speaks Out - The Federalist

In college, Gilmore Girls was a staple for my roommate and me. Night before a final and too braindead to keep studying, or feeling an introverted Saturday morning? Wed hunker down with our morning coffee or evening snack as Carole Kings iconic vocals led off the opening credits. Intent on seeing our tradition through to the end, we watched every season as well as the 2016 A Year In The Life special.

As a sophomore bound and determined to earn every A and every extra credit point available, I related to early Rory. I admired her because everyone loved and respected her, and she was consistently the mature one beside her flighty and spontaneous mother Lorelai. But by the end of the series (and even more so by the end of A Year In The Life), I couldnt stand her.

Rory took the love and respect of the people around her and squandered it. Used to being revered, she took for granted that her view was always right, opening herself up to glaring moral blind spots (like, infamously, sleeping with Dean and wrecking his marriage).

As her sense of self-importance grew, so did her sense of self-pity. Anytime she didnt get what she wanted (even as a 32-year-old in the 2016 special), she threw a tantrum worthy of a spoiled teenager. With narcissism came painful smugness toward everyone who wasnt in the elite, Yale-educated, pampered shoes of Rory Gilmore.

Rory dreamed of becoming a journalist, and the original shows treatment of the media establishments atmosphere when it aired (2000-2007) is interesting because its a vestige of the self-serious, Walter-Cronkite-esque media world in which CNN was still assumed to be objective and fair.But the corporate media establishment is no longer Walter Cronkites turf, and its arc toward the self-inflated, pompous, and out-of-touch cabal it has become today is remarkably akin to Rorys fall from grace.

Like Rory, the corporate press used to be respected. Just like Miss Patty and Taylor Doose and Babette and the rest of the town running to Rory for her opinion on the latest town festival, America looked to journalists for the final word on what was happening around the country and the world. Outlets were trusted, assumed to be knowledgeable, and taken as reliable.

Then, just as Rory took that respect for granted and stopped earning it, the corporate media got complacent. They still see themselves as the hallowed arbiters of truth they were once thought to be, but instead push politically efficient lies and propaganda with the smug assumption that Americans will buy it because they said so. The pages of Twitter are now just as much an echo chamber as Rorys self-congratulating mind.

Just a few examples: Defenestrating conservatives for suggesting the Wuhan coronavirus could have come from a lab leak, only to (months later) quietly backtrack after realizing those suggestions might have been right. Covering up and lambasting as false news about Hunter Bidens incriminating laptop right before the 2020 election, only (again) to eventually have to stealth-edit those claims. Standing in front of a burning city and calling the riots involved mostly peaceful.

Targeting Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis in a baseless smear campaign that even the Democrat mayor of Palm Beach County called intentionally false. Cheering what a competent, expert job Joe Biden would do in withdrawing from Afghanistan, then looking like idiots when he completely botched the withdrawal. Lying about what happened in Lafayette Park in June 2020 and inventing scandal after scandal to bring down former President Trump.

The corporate press, like Rory Gilmore, will not be unconvinced of its own omniscience, even as example after example proves how wrong they usually are. Instead, they award themselves accolades. The corporate media, after all, are democracy defenders just ask the Washington Posts Perry Bacon Jr. Meanwhile, they touted as actual hard-hitting news the love affair they carried on with now-disgraced New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, including the giggly segments with giant Q-tip props that Cuomo did with his CNN anchor brother.

Then, like Rorys tantrums of self-pity when she decides she doesnt want to go to Yale anymore or has boy troubles or shoots her own career in the foot or gets upset that the man shes cheating with (Logan this time) is engaged to another woman, the corporate press has its meltdowns. There was the time a sitting U.S. senator wrote an op-ed in The New York Times calling for the military to help control the violent riots that swept the country for an entire summer, and NYT staffers complained so loudly about the article putting them in danger that the paper retracted the article post-publication. Just recently, there was the time the Associated Press put out a baseless hit piece on DeSantis and got Twitter to suspend DeSantiss press secretary when the story met blowback.

Finally, theres the noxious looking down on everyone else. Rory looks down her nose at everything from a solid job offer at a newspaper she doesnt deem elite enough to the wisdom of the people around her. Meanwhile, the media establishment shrugs off as unenlightened rubes the hardworking Americans who either voted for Donald Trump, live somewhere between the coasts, still believe in God, acknowledge boys and girls are different, or heaven forbid all four.

They also get morbid glee out of mocking the deaths of COVID-19 patients who chose not to get injections, and haughtily appear to think taking selfies of themselves getting the shot is the key to convincing the rest of the country to do the same. As The Federalists Emily Jashinsky noted,These sort of legacy media journalists think of their audience as sheeple who must take instruction from us.

Unfortunately, that attitude permeates the corporate press far beyond the topic of vaccines. Like Rory, the media establishment sees itself as the golden darling, unfazed by the dumpster fires its constantly setting by its willful ignorance and brassy arrogance.

It was always Rorys dream to become a journalist. Whether she succeeded, sitting at the editorial desk of the nearly-defunct Stars Hollow Gazette, is up for debate. Whats glaringly obvious, though, is that in the meantime, the modern corporate media became Rory Gilmore.

Elle Reynolds is an assistant editor at The Federalist, and received her B.A. in government from Patrick Henry College with a minor in journalism. You can follow her work on Twitter at @_etreynolds.

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Rory Gilmore Is Every Out-Of-Touch, Self-Absorbed Corporate Journalist - The Federalist

CLAIM

Theres no science behind masks on kids.

DETAILS

Inaccurate: There are many scientific studies suggesting that mask-wearing in schools can be an effective way of limiting transmission of the virus.Lacks context: While childrens risk of serious illness and death from COVID-19 is very low compared to adults, a certain proportion of children still experience serious illness and die from COVID-19, and cases of COVID-19 among children are increasing in the U.S.

KEY TAKE AWAY

Many studies show that the use of masks in schools can limit the transmission of the virus, especially when complemented by other preventative measures like ventilation. Using a single study that found a non-statistically significant decrease in COVID-19 incidence in schools with mask requirements compared to schools with optional masking to claim theres no science to back mask mandates overstates scientific confidence. Additionally, while it is true that the risk of serious illness and death is far higher in adults than children, children can still experience severe COVID-19 and die. The main benefit of masks in schools is to protect both children and the community at large by reducing the spread of COVID-19.

REVIEW Its back to school season in the U.S. and with rising COVID-19 case numbers, including among children too young to receive the COVID-19 vaccines, American schools have become battlegrounds over disagreements about preventative measures. Many of these disputes focus on whether masks should be mandatory or optional for children; in some cases, these disagreements have escalated to physical altercations, disorderly conduct and threats from parents who dont believe masks should be required.

Among American politicians, Florida governor Ron DeSantis is one of the more vocal critics of mask mandates. In an executive order signed on 30 July 2021, two of the reasons given by DeSantis to prohibit mask mandates in schools and ensuring parents freedom to choose masks in schools, are (a) that studies have shown that children are at a low risk of contracting a serious illness due to COVID-19 and (b) that the U.S. Center for Disease Control and Preventions (CDC) recent guidance on universal masking in schools lacks a well-grounded scientific justification.

An article in The Federalist from 24 August 2021 by Shawn Fleetwood recently addressed a CDC study on masking in schools, and crowed that the study vindicates Florida Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis because it showed that there is no science behind masks on kids.

As well show below, it is inaccurate to claim there is no science behind the use of masks for children, especially considering the surge in COVID-19 cases currently occurring in the U.S.

Critics of mask mandates in schools often claim there is a lack of scientific evidence to support the CDCs recommendation. In his executive order, DeSantis said that the CDC guidance lacks a well-grounded scientific justification. PolitiFact fact-checked this claim, and found it to be false (see here). Speaking to PolitiFact, Lynn Goldman, the dean of the Milken Institute of Public Health at George Washington University, said that what the science actually shows is that for children ages two and above, masks are not only protective but needed.

The Federalist article cited a specific CDC study that looked at mask use and ventilation in elementary schools in Georgia (kindergarten through grade 5) between November and December 2020 to support this claim[1]. This study found that the incidence of COVID-19 was 37% lower in schools that require teachers and staff to wear masks and 39% lower in schools that improved ventilation.

Because a little over half of the schools also required students to wear masks, the study also investigated whether there was a difference in the incidence of COVID-19 between schools where masks were required and schools where masks were optional. The study found that the incidence of COVID-19 was 21% lower in schools with required masking, but this result wasnt statistically significant compared to schools where mask use was optional.

Statistical significance is a method for evaluating whether a result of an experiment was due to chance or if its a real result. In the case of required vs. optional masking in schools, if the 21% lower incidence of COVID-19 had reached statistical significance, one could be confident that the result was due to the mask requirement; since statistical significance was not reached, we cant be confident the result wasnt due to chance.

For The Federalist, the lack of statistical significance appeared to vindicate DeSantis, who has been a vocal opponent of the policy due to its lack of scientific evidence. However, the Georgia school study isnt the only study to look at the effect of masking requirements in schools. In a science brief on COVID-19 transmission in schools, the CDC stated that most studies that have shown success in limiting transmission in schools have required that staff only or staff and students wear masks as one of the schools prevention strategies. The CDC listed six studies in the science brief,[2-7]. A seventh study done in Florida primary and secondary schools that looked at factors associated with student case rates of COVID-19, found that schools without mask mandates had higher student case rates (p-value: <0.01)[8].

One study cited by the CDC involved 11 North Carolina schools, representing over 90,000 students and staff, and they found low transmission of SARS-CoV-2 in schools, despite the study occurring during a time (August to October 2020) when community transmission was high[2]. Students were required to wear masks, and other prevention strategies, including routine hand-washing and daily temperature checks among others, were adopted.

When asked about how to reduce the transmission of COVID-19 in schools, Kanecia Zimmerman, the first author of the North Carolina study and a professor of pediatrics at Duke University, told Duke Today that:

There are two effective ways to do that. 1: Vaccination. 2: Masking. In the setting of schools [] the science suggests masking can be extremely effective, particularly for those who cant get vaccinated while COVID-19 is still circulating.

Compared to adults, the risk of serious illness and death in children is very low. According to the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) and the Childrens Hospital Association, as of 19 August 2021, over 4.59 million children (14.6% of all cases) have tested positive for COVID-19 in the U.S. since the beginning of the pandemic. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), as of 18 August 2021, 430 children (0 to 18; 0.07% of all COVID-19 deaths) have died of COVID-19 in the U.S.

This low risk is the basis for many arguments that measures adopted to keep adults safe from COVID-19, such as staying at home and wearing masks, provide few benefits for children and are therefore unnecessary, including DeSantis executive order.

However, as Debbie-Ann Shirley, a pediatric infectious diseases specialist at University of Virginia (UVA) Health in Charlottesville, told Science News, anything that kills more than 350 children a year is going to automatically rank in the top 10 causes. Later in the same Science News piece, Taison Bell, a critical care and infectious disease doctor at UVA Healths medical intensive care unit, provided a comparison: think about if 300 children had died over the past year from lightning strikes or from shark attacks [] We would be doing things a lot differently when it came to going to the beach or being outside when it was raining.

Moreover, the low risk of serious illness and COVID-19 deaths isnt equally distributed within the U.S. Even though pediatric COVID-19 cases tend to match the countrys demographics, children of color are more likely to get severely ill and die of COVID-19 compared to White children. Hispanic or Latino children account for over 36% and Black children account for 22% of COVID-19 deaths, despite representing only 18.5% and 13.4%, of the U.S. population, respectively.

Currently, pediatric COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations in the U.S. are rising sharply. An NBC News analysis of data released by the Department of Health and Human Services found that on 18 August 2021 an average of more than 1,200 children a day are in U.S. hospitals for COVID-19. To put that number in perspective, thats four times the number of hospitalized children in early July 2021.

Given the increase in COVID-19 cases in the U.S. and the Delta variant, which is more contagious, the CDC now recommends universal indoor masking by all students (age two and older), staff, teachers, and visitors to K-12 schools, regardless of vaccination status. The AAP had previously made the same recommendation in July 2021. Both the CDC and the AAP stressed the importance of layering prevention strategies, also known as the Swiss Cheese Pandemic Defense. This involves a combination of different protective measures, such as masks and physical distancing, to make in-person learning safe.

Figure 1. Virologist Ian Mackay created this graphic illustration showing how combining multiple, imperfect measures provides the greatest protection against the spread of COVID-19

Though not addressed in The Federalist article, DeSantis executive order also claimed that making children may lead to negative health and societal ramifications, and that forcing children to wear masks could inhibit breathing, lead to the collection of dangerous impurities including bacteria, parasites, fungi, and other contaminants, and adversely affect communications in the classroom and student performance.

DeSantis is not the only one to claim that masks are detrimental to the health of children. In an op-ed in the Wall Street Journal published on 8 August 2021, surgical oncologist Marty Makary and pediatrician H. Cody Meissner listed a few other concerns including fogged glasses, severe acne caused by masks, and increased levels of carbon dioxide in the blood.

PolitiFact recently did a thorough breakdown of the claims about the health detriments of masks for children made by DeSantis and members of his office, concluding that masks are largely safe for children.

Among the most common claims is that masks are dangerous because they lead to oxygen deficiency and increased levels of carbon dioxide in the blood; this was previously debunked by many fact-checking organizations, including Health Feedback (see here and here). In summary, both carbon dioxide and oxygen molecules are far smaller than the filter size of face masks, allowing them to pass easily through masks, even N95s. However, this isnt the case for the virus SARS-CoV-2, which travels via droplets that get caught by the masks fabric. Health Feedback previously addressed how masks form a barrier for respiratory droplets (see here).

Another claim about face masks is that pathogens like bacteria and fungi can accumulate on them. Claims that masks wearing cause bacterial infections were also fact-checked multiple times; in a Reuters fact-check, a team from the Meedan Digital Health Lab made up of global health scientists and infection preventionists said that there was no evidence to suggest face masks can increase the chance of developing pneumonia, or any other bacterial, fungal or viral infection in the lungs.

Johns Hopkins University pediatric infectious diseases specialist Matthew Thomas debunked many claims about face masks in a 22 July 2020 post from Johns Hopkins All Childrens Hospitals Newsroom. On the topic of mold buildup on cloth masks, Thomas said that clean, dry masks will not develop mold or make you sick and that proper daily laundering of face masks removes any viruses, bacteria or respiratory secretions that may build up on the mask.

Disposing or properly washing ones mask after use can also help prevent maskne (a portmanteau of the words mask and acne). As for how to keep glasses from fogging, there are a number of solutions, but the best one is to use a well-fitting mask.

As for whether face masks can impact communication in schools and student performance, experts told PolitiFact that this is more plausible. In an opinion piece for Scientific American, David Lewkowicz, a scientist at Yale University who studies perceptual and cognitive development in infants and young children, wrote that masks may impact speech and language development because babies lip-read and use it as a visual speech cue. However, Lewkowicz also wrote that caregivers can compensate for this by following CDC guidelines when outside, but engaging in a lot of unmasked communication with babies when at home.

In September 2020, when the New York Times asked scientists who study how children use cues that masks might hinder, whether masks might impact development, all mentioned the ability of children to adapt to masks and find ways to communicate. Moreover, as Eva Chen, a developmental psychologist at Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, told the New York Times, there is no evidence that children from cultures with much more extensive face covering are any worse at recognizing faces or emotions.

In summary, while masks may impact communication, scientific evidence suggests that masks are safe for children. As the AAP, which recommends universal school masking, put it:

Face masks can be safely worn by all children 2 years of age and older, including the vast majority of children with underlying health conditions, with rare exception. Children 2 years of age and older have demonstrated their ability to wear a face mask.

Despite claims that masking children doesnt work and masks arent necessary for children, the science suggests the opposite. Evidence shows that masks are largely safe for children two years of age and older and that universal masking can limit the transmission of SARS-CoV-2 in schools.

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Multiple scientific studies suggest that masking can help limit transmission of SARS-CoV-2 in schools, contrary to claim in Federalist article -...

Its been one year since an immigrant watched every vehicle in his car dealership go up in flames, one year since Rodes Camera Shop became a pile of ashes and the country woke up to learn the name Kyle Rittenhouse after the teen killed two people. A year since businesses frantically tacked Black Lives Matter signs onto their storefronts and families spraypainted Please, kids above onto boarded-up windows hoping the mob would pass over them ominous symbols that still remain after a full trip around the sun.

One year ago, a town in southeast Wisconsin reaped the consequences of the left-ignited race war when onlookers imposed racist motives onto a police officer who had acted within his professional duty to protect the lives of a mother and her children and subsequently set a city ablaze. That one incident and the nights of violence that ensued would not only change the people of Kenosha; it would also change the politics.

It isnt that riot violence is partisan, although the 2020 summer of rage was undoubtedly fueled by the reckless race-baiting of the left-wing ruling class and carried out by Marxist so-called racial justice revolutionaries. Rather, the infamous riots that ravaged Kenosha last summer are politically significant because they unearthed the incontrovertible difference between our red and blue political leaders on upholding the law.

I think those individuals in Kenosha recognize that President Trump supported enforcing the law and supported public safety, Rep. Bryan Steil, the congressman representing Wisconsins 1st Congressional District, which is home to Kenosha, told The Federalist. And the Democrats were beholden to the far left, and in particular, those calling to defund the police and refusing to support the men and women of law enforcement.

Steil was referring specifically to Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers. Although the states top Democrat and his media sycophants have tried for the past 365 days to rewrite the events of last August, history condemns them.

With each executive decision, the governor prioritized the most radical wing of his party over law and order. In fact, Evers didnt merely respond incorrectly to the violence; he helped ignite it, blasting out anti-police statements before any facts of the Jacob Blake shooting had come to light. For example, in the hours after Blake was shot on Sunday, Evers tweeted:

We must see the trauma, fear, and exhaustion of being black in our state and our country, Evers said, stoking the flame in a video address he posted the following day. He also tweeted about his administrations legislative efforts to increase accountability and transparency in policing and endorsed statements decrying racial injustice and systemic oppression in Wisconsin communities. Lt. Gov. Mandela Barnes jumped in the ring too.

The executive came out and decided that it was incumbent upon him to be judge and jury and executioner and issued a statement that was so inflammatory, that cops across Wisconsin came out and said, We prefer you not say things like that at all, former Wisconsin Lt. Gov. Rebecca Kleefisch told The Federalist.

Kleefisch was talking about a letter the presidents of four different law enforcement organizations in the state sent to Evers on Aug. 27, four days after the Blake shooting, asking the governor to discontinue and refrain from making statements about the Blake shooting until the facts of the case were investigated because they said he was putting police in danger. They said his comments were premature, judgmental, inflammatory and only add[ing] to the anger and divisiveness of an already dangerous situation.

Everss rhetoric just shows a governor who is completely out of touch with Regular Wisconsinites, Kleefisch said, noting a nationwide poll from Marquette University showing 80 percent favorability toward police. Hes particularly out of touch with the needs of people in crisis, like the folks in Kenosha who desperately needed help.

But it wasnt just the Democrats race-baiting commentary that fueled the citys fiery nights. It was also Everss lack of leadership and refusal to deploy adequate National Guardsmen or federal back-up, despite pleas from local leaders all the way up to the president of the United States.

Kenosha county board members formally requested 1,500 National Guard members on Aug. 26, a request Evers did not accommodate. In fact, more than 24 hours after the Blake shooting, during the second night of rioting, Evers sent only 125 guardsmen, saying it was the best he could do. Thats fewer than he deployed for crowd control last month for the NBA finals in Milwaukee.

The National Guard wasnt his only option, however, as Steil explained. Beyond simply deploying guardsmen for crowd control, the governor could have requested federal assistance to fill a more traditional law enforcement role, such as U.S. marshals, FBI agents, or people from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives to handle arson issues. Thats why, hearing the pleas of Kenoshans, the congressman called the White House switchboard and worked his way up until he got on the phone with Trump to request assistance.

Well, Bryan, your governor hasnt called me, Steil said, recalling Trumps response to his request. Let me get this straight, Bryan. You want me to call your governor? And thats exactly what the president did.

Despite the White House extending a hand, however, the Evers administration turned it down that is, until the fatal Rittenhouse shooting, which happened exactly one year ago last night. Thats what it took for Evers to accept help from the Republican president. In fact, the official response from the governors office was that he would not need federal assistance in response to protests, but would welcome additional federal support and resources for our states response to COVID-19.

Donald Trump was the man who showed leadership in the throes of riots and crisis, Kleefisch said. In fact, Tony Evers did not even show up in Kenosha until four days after the fact. Two men had to lose their lives and 50 businesses had to be destroyed in order for Tony Evers to bother showing up.

Evers eventually relented, accepting federal help and upping the National Guard count to 500 troops, after an estimated $50 million dollars in property damage affecting 100 businesses (with 40 of them now out-of-business for good), three people shot, and two of them dead. Steil said that if Evers had accepted help sooner, the Rittenhouse shooting on Tuesday night of that fiery week for sure wouldnt have happened.

Nobody should have been on the streets on Tuesday night, nobody, Steil said. They should have had sufficient resources and enforced a curfew and all of this. Everything that occurred on Tuesday night could have been avoided.

To this day, Evers defenders say he fulfilled all requests for assistance we received via official channels, but his detractors say, Who cares?All it would have taken was the governor turning on the news or answering a call from a concerned citizen to know that his public relations prattle about official channels wouldnt be enough to protect his constituents in Kenosha and their livelihoods.

Talk to them, figure out what they need, Steil said. Youre the governor, you get to decide whether or not something is needed or not in the end. And clearly, the evidence is overwhelming that for three nights in a row, he failed to provide sufficient resources.

Evers version of official channels is mind-boggling, Kleefisch added. This is the same man who permitted a secret recording of legislative leaders. I wonder if he thinks things like that are somehow official channels.

Evers office did not return The Federalists request for comment.

None of this bodes well for Wisconsins governor, who will be up for reelection next November. Despite the medias best efforts, evidence shows many of the states voters are fed up with crime and with leaders who arent willing to crack down on it. For instance, in the inner city of Kenosha, now-President Joe Biden fared worse than expected in the 2020 presidential election, losing the purple county by 3 percentage points.

Even Democrat voters are concerned about crime. A 2022 Democratic primary poll conducted last month in Kenoshas neighbor Milwaukee showed that lowering crime and increasing neighborhood safety are top issues for even blue voters.

Election results are about more than riots, however, and in the 2022 gubernatorial race, theyll be based on Wisconsins 72 counties, not just battered Kenosha. But polls show crime concerns are much bigger than isolated riots. According to the Marquette University poll, 69 percent of registered Wisconsin voters think crime is rising nationwide, with 43 percent saying it is higher in their communities.

If you take a look at what has happened in Wisconsin over the last year, youve seen a drive-by shooting in the Wisconsin Dells, waterpark capital of the world, right? Youve seen a shooting two blocks off of State Street, where we like to advertise the worlds largest outdoor farmers market right by the Wisconsin State Capitol. You saw a state senator beat until he was unconscious and left on the Capitol lawn while rioters destroyed statues and tried to firebomb the City County building, Kleefisch said. Even the NBA championship celebration was interrupted by shootings.

These are the news cycles that our everyday Wisconsinites are watching, Kleefisch continued. And to see this type of thing bleed into everyday conversations is a sad change from what we saw just a few short years ago, and I think it is a direct result of the abdication of leadership and the weakness of Gov. Tony Evers.

Everyday Wisconsinites are watching, and like the Kenoshans whose windows are still boarded, they wont soon forget.

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Kenosha Is A Liability For Democrats Because They Let It Go Up In Flames - The Federalist

Circling back to the bloody crime scene on the ninth floor of a posh Manhattan apartment building, the no-nonsense police detective encounters a motley crew of amateur sleuths: a 20-something woman flanked by two men in their 70s, all residents of the Upper West Side property. They engage the detective about forensics until she stops them.

Look, this is suicide, she says with annoyance. Which podcast are you all hooked on? I swear, if I meet one more true-crime nut

Halfway through the premiere episode of Only Murders in the Building, a 10-part mystery series premiering August 31 on Hulu, this moment encapsulates its tone: tense drama with tongue-in-cheek self-awareness. Comedy legend Steve Martin and writer/producer John Hoffman (Grace and Frankie on Netflix) ironed out a serialized dramedy with a mix of magnetic personalities and wild twists that keep adding layers of complexity.

Fans of Steve Martin and Martin Shorts comedy schtick from 1986s Three Amigos, to two Father of the Bride movies, to multiple live tours in recent years will feel right at home, as the set-up gives them maximum opportunity to play off each other. Its also the longtime friends first TV show as co-stars, reflecting a years-long trend of big stars migrating to the small screen.

In these funhouse mirror versions of real life, Martin portrays a washed-up actor and Short a down-on-his-luck Broadway director. When a shocking death shatters their sense of safety and the building is cleared, the two meet in a cafe along with a third resident played by Selena Gomez. It turns out theyre all obsessed with the same true-crime podcast a delicious parody titled All is Not OK in Oklahoma to the point of drawing detailed maps of the crime scene and surrounding area.

Quickly deciding to launch their own crack investigation into the strange death and produce a podcast out of it, the three commence what might appear to be only a comedy of errors. Yet this suspenseful whodunit keeps viewers hooked by smartly balancing the macabre with droll amusement.

Some light spoilers follow.

Thrown into the mix of the comedy duos natural rapport, one might imagine Gomez would be a third wheel. But the singer-actress holds her own, bringing to life an intriguing character whose presence allows the shows free-flowing humor to address generational and gender differences.

A pop star who hasnt acted in a TV series for roughly a decade, Gomez shared in a recent interview how much she learned from her co-stars. They have a sense of humor thats just classic I feel like it doesnt exist anymore, she said.

Each of the trio gets moments to shine as the story grows in complexity. An unattached interior designer living in her aunts apartment, Gomez initially conceals her personal connection to the victim and raises suspicions. After the triad of investigators begins to work as a team, Martin strikes up a romance with another resident, which complicates things.

Meanwhile, Short relives some of his former hits and mishaps on Broadway in an elaborate flashback sequence. Playing to his strengths, he leans into laughs in scenes opposite comic Nathan Lane (The Birdcage), who plays a deli owner named Teddy Dimas.

When Short hawks a sponsorship for the podcast, Dimas recounts all the opportunities hed missed thanks to the plucky director. Les Mis Its such a downer, Teddy, and all over a loaf of bread.Well, it was, Short deadpans. And Hamilton! He grimaces: I said they picked the one founding father with no pizzazz. That was wrong, I guess.

Similar to later seasons of The Office, the series integrates a constellation of stars into its narrative, each gelling as part of the ensemble rather than seeming out of place. Tina Fey shows up as a character at first played for laughs who also ups the stakes.Superstar Sting seems a likely suspect at multiple points. A pity they couldnt work Tim Curry in for a cameo, considering Clue clearly provided some inspiration. Perhaps season two.

The series earns its TV-MA rating for a few moderately gory scenes and mostly for language, as characters constantly drop f-bombs. (Note this review reflects 8 episodes provided to screen.) Considering Martin and Shorts history of tamer comic material, the coarseness seems unnecessary and reinforces Disney-owned Hulus reputation as not exactly family-friendly.

Did you guys hear about that mysterious death in the park last night? asks Short to his two companions in the pilot. We could multitask a little bit, silo out a second investigation and do a second podcast. Martin stops him: No, we need to focus only murders in the building.

More than an offhand conversation that names the show, the exchange also reflects a truth about the series. Amid all the eccentric people and absurd situations, viewers find its influenced as much by Alfred Hitchcocks Rear Window as by Clue. The trio continually narrows in on the horrific crime: who had the motive, means, and opportunity? Answers lead them to a cover-up involving multiple suspects over several years.

Red herrings abound, with the final episodes not only action-packed but also emotionally resonant. Even funnyman Short waxes philosophical when hinting at how it all wraps up. I understand someone feeling theyre the victim, he said in an interview. Some people learn from their mistakes, and some people are destined to repeat them because they wont accept any fault within themselves.

Show co-creator Martin has expressed hopes that Only Murders in the Building will resonate so theyll get the greenlight for future seasons. Whether it becomes the next binge-watch obsession or a hidden gem like Hulus Hardy Boys update, the story doesnt give away its secrets easily keeping viewers guessing possible outcomes to the end.

Rated TV-MA for coarse language, some violence and mature situations, Only Murders in the Building premieres its first three episodes August 31 on Hulu.

Josh Shepherd covers culture, faith, and public policy for several media outlets including The Stream. His articles have appeared in Christianity Today, Religion & Politics, Faithfully Magazine, Religion News Service, and Providence Magazine. A graduate of the University of Colorado, he previously worked on staff at The Heritage Foundation and Focus on the Family. Josh and his wife live in the Washington, D.C. area with their two children.

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Hulu's 'Only Murders In The Building' Mixes Laughs With Thrills - The Federalist

Oregon Gov. Kate Brown just joined the ranks of Democrats proudly turning back to their old, tyrannical COVID-19 ways by mandating masks outdoors, on top of already requiring them inside.

According to Browns newest requirements, Oregonians, regardless of their vaccination status, are now required to wear face coverings outside when they cant be socially distanced. Exceptions to the rule include children under 5 years old, homeless people living outdoors (no matter how much or little physical distance is between them), and people playing sports or giving a speech or performance.

Brown previously lifted practically all statewide restrictions on June 30, including mask and social distancing requirements, making counties responsible for ensuring local public health. Before that, Oregon health officials had sought to make the states mask mandates permanent. Now, however, the governor claims mandating masks is necessary to protect the public and keep Oregon citizens safe.

The Delta variant is spreading fast and wide, throwing our state into a level of crisis we have not yet seen in the pandemic, Brown said in a statement. Cases and hospitalizations are at a record high. Masks are a quick and simple tool we can immediately deploy to protect ourselves and our families, and quickly help stop further spread of COVID-19.

While Brown claims masking has proven to be effective at bringing case counts down, and are a necessary measure right now, even in some outdoor settings, to help fight COVID and protect one another, the science is shaky.

Scientists on both sides of the discussion believe more study needs to be done about outdoor transmission, one article that hinted at an outdoor mask mandate before Browns announcement noted. Theres little research into deltas transmissibility outdoors because its so new.

There is currently no statewide vaccine mandate in Oregon but Brown is already taking steps to ensure that the COVID-19 vaccine is forced on multiple people. Last week, on top of demanding healthcare workers get the vaccine, undergo weekly testing, or lose their jobs, she expanded the states COVID-19 shot requirements to encompass all state employees. According to her order, Oregon executive branch employees must be vaccinated by Oct. 18.

These mask and vaccine mandates have been criticized by several people in Browns own state including Sandy, Oregon Mayor Stan Pulliam who, after a year of extensive COVID tyranny, is exploring a run for governor for 2022.

I find it very surprising that predominantly the same group of people that want to call conservatives racist for insisting on an ID to vote are now coming forward with these vaccine passports, Pulliam told The Federalist. This is bewildering that someone would have to go through a medical procedure of obtaining a vaccine in order to just go to a college football game people certainly should not have to take on a medical decision that used to be an American right to make for ourselves just in order to have employment.

Using the same rationale and rhetoric employed by forever-pandemic bureaucrats, Brown claimed that mask-wearing and certain mandatory vaccinations will return our kids to the classroom with minimal disruptions in a few weeks.

That promise of a return to in-person schooling, however, wavers as public schools and teachers unions grow increasingly concerned with virus spread. A day after Portland Public Schools announced it would require employees to get the COVID-19 vaccine, Gov. Brown announced a similar mandate for all K-12 teachers and staff in the state. While reports suggest that nearly 98 percent of PPS educators have received the shot, the district chose to move forward with verifying educators vaccine passports. Those who dont comply due to a medical or religious exemption will be subject to regular COVID-19 testing.

The decision comes after negotiations with teachers unions such as the Portland Association of Teachers which pressured the district to add vaccine mandates on top of the already-in-place mask requirements. Elizabeth Thiel, president of the PAT, also expressed support for a vaccination requirement for students.

Our schools did not have kids in the classroom for the predominant portion of the school year last year and were just to a point now where it really needs to come down to individual choice and liberty when it comes to the decision to wear masks, Pulliam said. Im not sure what the goals are that were attempting to accomplish.

Are we trying to protect the children? Well, children have been proven to be very resilient and fighting back against this virus, he added. Are we looking to protect the unvaccinated? Well, Im sorry but the unvaccinated have been educated now for several months on this vaccine. Many of them have made the personal and individual decisions for themselves not to take the vaccine and thats their American right.

Jordan Davidson is a staff writer at The Federalist. She graduated from Baylor University where she majored in political science and minored in journalism.

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Democrat Gov. Brown Proudly Drives Oregon Back To COVID Tyranny - The Federalist

Even prior to the stunning display of American failure in Afghanistan, President Biden appeared slow-witted and spineless on crucial U.S. national security matters.

For example, Biden handed Russias Vladimir Putin gift after gift: extending the START Treaty, lifting Nord Stream 2 pipeline sanctions despite bipartisan legislation and essentially surrendering Ukraine to Russia. During the Biden-Putin summit in Geneva, Biden was tougher with an American journalist than with Putin. After Bidens advisers and the first lady told the press how extensively he prepared for the meeting, he cut it short.

Biden also responded to the several major cyberattacks traced to Russiaincluding the meat processor JBS and the Colonial pipelineby handing Putin a list of critical infrastructure that was off limits. Biden claimed Putin would change his behavior if his standing was diminished in the world, showing a fundamental lack of understanding Putins motivations.

Rejoining the 2015 nuclear agreement with Iran has been Bidens top priority since taking office, and he was willing to offer Tehran almost anything for it. Tehran refused to negotiate with the United States directly, and operates with impunity in the Middle East.

In July, Iranian intelligence attempted to kidnap Masih Alinejad, an Iranian journalist, from American soil. In August, an Iranian drone attacked an Israeli merchant ship, killing two crew members. Iranian proxies targeted Americas in Syria and Iraq, and Hezbollah increased rocket attacks on Israel. It also appears Tehran attempted to close the Strait of Hormuz using sea mines.

In June, Biden proclaimed America is back with renewed commitment to our allies and partners. But North Atlantic Treaty Organization allies with troops on the ground in Afghanistan disagree as they scramble to get out their people out due to Americas hasty withdrawal. British paratroopers, prepared for face-to-face combat, have descended on Kabul to rescue British citizens.

Weakness invites aggression, so we should prepare for a tumultuous fall on the world stage. Heres what to watch for.

The Biden administration is not even aware of how many Americans are left in Afghanistan. It could be as many as 15,000. The administration canceled a Trump-era bureau overseeing protection and evacuation for American citizens in Afghanistan. Now Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin says the U.S. military does not have the capability to go in and collect large numbers of people.

President Obama ensured the Taliban understood the value of American hostages. In 2014, Obama released five Taliban commandersone of whom is currently among Taliban leadership in Kabulfor Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl, who later pled guilty to desertion and was dishonorably discharged. The abandoned Americans may be used for leverage, either by the Taliban or other extremist groups. What is unfolding in Afghanistan may make the 1979 Iranian hostage crisis may look tame by comparison.

Jihadists are relishing the idea that the United States weak and can be defeated. The anniversary of the 9/11 attacks has always posed heightened risk of terrorism. On September 11, 2012, jihadists attacked a U.S. diplomatic mission in Benghazi, Libya, killing Ambassador Chris Stevens, Sean Smith, Tyrone Woods and Glen Doherty. On August 13, DHS warned of a heightened risk from al-Qaeda, which released a new issue of its propaganda magazine Inspire for the first time in four years. The massive intelligence failure in Afghanistan does not inspire confidence in this administrations ability to keep tabs on foreign terrorists.

The administration also appears utterly incapable of stopping foreign threats. The U.S. southern border is wide open. The president claims climate change is the greatest national security threat. Attorney General Merrick Garland says white supremacy is the greatest domestic threat.

The Justice Department has called the Capitol riot investigation one of the largest in American history, even as a Reuters report claims the FBI does not believe the riot was a conspiracy to overthrow the government. Still, those who did not engage in violence or destruction have been held in isolation for six months.

It is clear the Biden administration is distracted and incapable, making deterrence and prevention that much less likely.

As Center Senior Analyst Andrei Illarionov wrote in April, Putin was not ready for a large-scale invasion of Ukraine in the spring, but he would be ready by September. Putin may be able to extract concessions from Ukrainian President Zelensky that would negate need for an invasion.

If Putin decides to invade, however, it will likely be after the Zapad-2021 military exercises in mid-September. Military exercises can mask offensive operations, and Putin has used the tactic before.

Chinese state media taunted Taiwan after the fall of Kabul, claiming the United States would not come to Taiwans aid. Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen responded by saying: Taiwans only option is to grow stronger and become more united, strengthening our determination to protect ourselves. On August 17, China held live-fire air and sea exercises near Taiwan, and sent 11war planes into Taiwanese airspace.

In March, Americas top military officer in the Indo-Pacific told Congress China could invade Taiwan in the next six years. The Washington establishment is confident the idea of an imminent risk to Taiwan is overblown, but as Center for Security Policy analyst Grant Newsham pointed out in June, the Chinese military regularly increases capabilities faster and better than western analysts assume.

In the wake of Afghanistan, Newsham wrote, Beijing is likely to challenge the United States in multiple ways. This could include confronting U.S. forces in the South China Sea, establishing bases in Africa and South America, intensify the assault on the U.S. dollar, and intensifying nuclear weapons buildup, to name a few.

In the non-Western world, might makes right. Bidens rhetoric and proclaimed compassion is meaningless, as bad actors pay attention to action. Bidens incompetence has made the world a more dangerous place.

Morgan Wirthlin is the chief of staff at the Center for Security Policy, a national security think-tank in Washington, D.C. Follow her @morganwirthlin on Twitter.

Photo U.S. Army photo by Spc. Eric Cabral/Released

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Biden's Weakness Will Result In Aggression. Here Are 4 Likely Scenarios - The Federalist