☕ Daily Brief: Biden's push to legitimize Syrian Islamists
Also, the largest pardon in modern history
Editorial Team
December 12, 2024
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Please pray for this critical case at the U.S. Supreme Court
United States of America v. Skrmetti will decide whether states can pass laws that protect children from harmful puberty-blockers and irreversible body-altering surgeries.
WHAT WE'RE WATCHING
📝 Biden issued the largest pardon in modern American history. President Joe Biden pardoned 39 individuals and commuted nearly 1,500 sentences in a sweeping act of clemency, just days after his controversial pardon of son Hunter. Biden’s massive clemency order paves the way for Donald Trump to issue vast pardons, making it harder for Democrats to oppose without appearing hypocritical.
🚨 Possible Iranian drones were reportedly flying over New Jersey. Rep. Jeff Van Drew (R-NJ) claimed that Iranian drones, some the size of small cars, have been flying near critical US infrastructure, including the Verrazzano-Narrows Bridge and Trump’s Bedminster golf club since early November. The Pentagon denied claims that the drones were Iranian or launched from a "mothership." At the same time, New Jersey officials confirmed they were not connected to the US military or a major tech company. Despite appearing not to pose any credible threat, the state remains uncertain about their exact origin.
🕵️♀️ RFK Jr. is pushing for his daughter-in-law for a CIA role. Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is lobbying for his daughter-in-law, Amaryllis Fox Kennedy, to become deputy CIA director. Kennedy believes Fox could uncover CIA involvement in the 1963 assassination of his uncle, President John F. Kennedy, and potentially release classified documents.
✌️ FBI Director Wray resigned just ahead of Trump’s return. Christopher Wray resigned as FBI Director on Wednesday, seven years into his 10-year term. Wray, who angered Trump with the 2022 Mar-a-Lago raid, faced mounting pressure, including a “no confidence” letter from Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-IA).
WHAT WE’RE HEARING
Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), in response to the UnitedHealthcare CEO’s murder, said, “Violence is never the answer, but people can be pushed only so far.”
John Bolton does not believe Kash Patel has the “integrity and fitness” to be FBI director.
Progressive CNN commentator Van Jones observed, "There are people out there that are getting 14 million streams and we’re on cable news getting 1-2 million … Donald Trump understood that and we didn’t.”
Sen. John Fetterman (D-PA) gave his full endorsement to Elise Stefanik for US ambassador to the United Nations.
First Lady Jill Biden appeared to mock Kamala Harris by going on about “joy.”
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IN THE LOOP
Time Magazine named Donald Trump as the 2024 Person of the Year.
President-elect Trump invited Chinese President Xi Jinping to attend the inauguration.
The Biden-Harris DHS announced extended work permit renewals for migrants despite most new jobs going to migrants in recent years.
A motorist was killed during a police response to a bomb threat at the home of Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA).
The most clicked link in our last newsletter was WNBA superstar Caitlin Clark telling TIME Magazine she had white privilege.
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MY THOUGHTS
A Weak Generation
Good morning. The nation has been fixated on the Luigi Mangione story. So have I.
He was a bright, athletic, adventurous kid from an elite family, with everything going for him. But at some point, after a serious injury, something changed. Maybe he snapped. Maybe he was radicalized. Maybe both.
What we do know is that Mangione decided his old life was gone. He channeled his pain and anger into an unthinkable act: murdering the CEO of UnitedHealthcare, whom he irrationally blamed for his struggles. The full details are still unfolding.
I grew up in Baltimore, very close to Mangione. He was a year younger than me. We didn’t know each other, but our lives had parallels — growing up in the same area, Greek life in college, a computer science major. His story hits close to home.
How does someone with so much potential lose everything and resort to such evil? It feels too easy to say he just snapped. Hardships are real, and his were both physical and psychological. Anger toward healthcare companies, often justified, often not — is also real.
There’s something deeper at play here — a societal shift that enables and even celebrates this kind of descent… there was a wave of young people openly celebrating this act on social media.
My thoughts? My generation has grown up coddled — financially and socially — with fewer traditional values than any before them. At the same time, they lack the family and community structures that once supported individuals through trauma.
Without religion or a sense of higher purpose, my peers turn to politics as their source of meaning. And when politics becomes their religion, it can justify even violence in the name of righteousness.
There’s no excusing Luigi’s evil actions. But his story, and the reactions to it, reveal deep cracks in our society. We’re in desperate need of a course correction — one that restores values, community, and a sense of purpose before more potential is lost to anger, despair, and violence.
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WASHINGTON
Biden moves to legitimize an Islamist terror group
President Biden is reportedly working to remove Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) from the US Foreign Terrorist Organization list. HTS, which evolved from Al-Qaeda and ISIS, recently overthrew Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad. Biden’s move would lift the $10 million bounty on HTS leader Mohammad al-Julani and open the group to international aid and recognition.
Former CENTCOM commander and retired general Frank McKenzie warned that HTS and al-Julani could open the floodgates for more violent groups. “We could have an Islamic State arise there, which will have profound negative implications across the region,” McKenzie cautioned. HTS’s leader claims to be ideologically moderate, but many are skeptical.
The move is similar to one the Biden-Harris administrated pulled in 2021, when they removed the Houthis from the terror list. Just a short time later, the Iran-backed terror group began attacking shipping vessels sailing through the Red Sea. The administration then re-designated the Houthis as terrorists.
Biden’s heavy focus on foreign policy is striking as his administration nears its end, with President-elect Donald Trump set to take over in January.
Trump has already been meeting with world leaders as they prepare for him to take over next month, including during his recent attendance in Paris at the re-opening of the Notre Dame Cathedral. While President-elect Trump and First Lady Jill Biden were in attendance, Joe Biden was not.
Biden has increased US action in Syria following the toppling of its government, launching airstrikes against ISIS fighters freed from prisons while working to legitimize HTS as a workable replacement for Bashar al-Assad. All this comes as Donald Trump says he wants to drastically reduce US involvement overseas, including in Syria, saying, “This is not our fight.”
Last month, Israel and Hezbollah agreed to a shaky ceasefire deal set to expire just as Trump takes over — the Israelis expect Trump to re-arm them to continue their war. Incoming National Security Advisor Mike Walz is convinced that “everyone is coming to the table because of President Trump.”
Instead of laying low until the end of this term, Biden is aggressively advancing his geopolitical goals, potentially stifling Trump’s ability to reverse the effects of his decisions.
COMMENT OF THE DAY
“Thuggery must be met with impartial, effective police force, convictions, and jail time. This is terrorism, when any segment of society can be attacked with impunity. Leftist DAs need to be civilly sued and impeached.” — Alc Cookeville
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OUR QUESTION TO YOU
📊 Which do you think has the most radicalizing effects on young people?Results will be in Monday's newsletter |
POLL RESULTS FROM YESTERDAY
What change would you like to see to the US healthcare system?
🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩 👨💼 More Private Options (682)
⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️ 🏥 More Public Options (89)
⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️ 🇺🇸 Nationalized Healthcare (41)
🟨⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️ 🩺 Other (comment) (174)
🟨⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️ 🤔 Unsure (144)
👨💼 Private Options: “We need to get government out of the healthcare system.” — Paul
🏥 Public Options: The insurance and health care companies have made it impossible for us lower middle class citizens to survive without the Affordable Care Act. I am conservative in most of my voting, but we need help, and I do believe healthcare is a fundamental human right.” — Sophia
🇺🇸 Nationalized: “Not free healthcare but more of a system like Australia where everyone pays a small percentage of their income into Medicare and then everyone has private healthcare but it’s subsidized by the govt so it doesn’t make you broke if your sick.” — Mellissa
🩺 Other: “Better benefits/lower premiums for good health. I feel cheated by paying a high premium to be part of a risk pool for those who don't care about their health when I take care of myself and rarely get sick.” — Jill
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