Three Things You Need to Know – February 28, 2018

Bringing a Gun to a Knife Fight

Dave watched from his window as his neighbors argued.

Expletives ripped through his thin apartment walls.

The fight escalated quickly.

Punches were thrown. Fists were flying.

Dave caught a glimmer of silver out of the corner of his eye.

One of the men had a knife and was about to use it.

Dave rushed to his bedroom and opened the bottom drawer, made his choice, and calmly walked outside.

Dave approached the men and just stood there.

His presence immediately caused the two men to forget all about their fight.

The knife-wielding man attempted to flee the scene but was caught by police moments later.

The other neighbor was rushed to the hospital for his stab wounds and is expected to make a full recovery.

All because Dave brought a gun to a knife fight.

As a certified firearms instructor, Dave had a collection of guns to choose from—but he grabbed his AR-15 because it’s just a bigger gun.

He believes that the “intimidation factor definitely played a part in stopping the fight.”

No shots were fired. That was never Dave’s intention.

He said, “The AR-15 is my weapon of choice for home protection. It's light, it's maneuverable. If you train and know how to use it properly, it's not dangerous. And this is just a perfect example of good guy with an AR-15 stopped a bad guy with a knife. And there were no lives taken, so, all in all, it was a good day."

Dave saved a life that day because he is a responsible gun owner.

There are people like Dave all over the country.

Let’s remember that the good guys with guns are the majority.

Michael Wolff Does Europe

Remember Michael Wolff? The “journalist” who hung out in the lobby of the White House until he gathered enough dirt to write “Fire and Fury”?

He’s been on an international tour to promote his book and, well, things haven’t gone quite as smoothly for him as they did here in the U.S.

During an interview with an Australian TV news show, Wolff was asked about his recent comment to Bill Maher, saying he was “absolutely sure” that President Trump is currently having an affair. Wolff was doing the interview from London and he suddenly claimed he couldn’t hear the Australian interviewer’s question because something was wrong with his audio connection. Oddly, he heard everything clearly up to that point of the interview. Later, the Australian news show posted footage from their London studio showing there were no audio problems.

When Wolff was on Bill Maher’s show, he encouraged the audience to “read between the lines” of a passage in Fire and Fury, where he includes suggestive language about Trump and U.S. Ambassador to the UN, Nikki Haley. When a British TV interviewer tried to clarify Wolff’s innuendo about Trump, Haley, and other possible affairs, Wolff said, “I assume. I assume because this is Donald Trump and I think that’s an absolutely fair assumption.”

I’m pretty sure that’s the first thing they teach in journalism school – do not assume anything. Even when it involves Donald Trump. Wolff stands by his own journalism though, saying there’s “no difference” between the journalism in Fire and Fury and books by Bob Woodward.

What is Michael Wolff hoping to accomplish here, besides racking up book sales?

After a rough few days of being asked uncomfortable questions by European journalists, Wolff has had enough of the heat. He canceled a BBC interview yesterday, saying, “the tour has taken its toll.”

You know what else is taking its toll? Assumptions, by the Left and the Right, about each other. We’ve pulled up the anchor of reason and we’re sailing straight into the choppy waters of accusation and innuendo. We’re more capable than this. We must stop assuming the worst about each other. We must work to fix reason back firmly in her seat. Yes, question with boldness, but pursue truth, instead of just a win for your team. We need a lot less Fire and Fury, and a lot more Honor and Humility.

Jared Kushner's Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day

Jared Kushner and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day. Tuesday was not kind to the President’s son in law. Kushner must have felt as if he was living out in real time the day made famous in the popular Judith Viorst children’s book. Where as Alexander “went to sleep with gum in his mouth and woke up with gum in his hair,” Kushner went to sleep with a Top Secret clearance and woke up with it downgraded to Secret. That’s a pretty big deal considering he’s been tasked with “bringing peace to the Middle East” and reworking trade deals. Essentially this means that most of his high level work will now have to be put on hold.

But Kushner’s day was only just beginning to turn sour. Media reports began coming in stating that officials from four different countries had discussed ways that Jared Kushner might be manipulated. Sources told the Washington Post that these “ways of manipulation” included taking advantage of Kushner’s complex business arrangements and his family debt.

Ok, so that sounds bad. But let’s pump the brakes for a second. First of all, Kushner may STILL eventually get a Top Secret Clearance. He’s just been downgraded to Secret in the meantime. The process to obtain a Top Secret clearance can be quick or extremely long depending on how much information the investigators have to go through. The top two things that tie up a Top Secret clearance are: Meetings with foreign nationals and financial debt. Kushner has a lot of both. For anyone waving the “You see! He’s guilty!” flag, just remember that this process is normal. Waiting over a year for a Top Secret SCI clearance is not uncommon at all.

Secondly, I’m having a hard time understanding why the Washington Post ran their story that 4 countries had discussed ways that they might be able to manipulate the President’s son in law. Wait, do you mean to tell me that rival nations actually looked for ways to gain leverage over a member of the President's staff? NO WAY. I wish you could see my shocked face. This has probably happened in every presidential administration since 1776. This is not a story. Now IF, and only IF, those four countries actually tried to, or were successful, in manipulating Kushner would this be a story. But it just says they talked about it. Are you kidding me with this?

The only purpose of this story was to pile something on to the bad news of Kushner’s clearance being downgraded. It’s an irresponsible trick to manipulate people into drawing false conclusions, and it’s also a prime example for why so many people have had enough with the media. Can we stop inventing scandals? Is that too much to ask?

We may find out, eventually, that Kushner has some serious issues. I don’t know. But I know we can all empathize with his day yesterday. We’ve all had a Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day.

MORE 3 THINGS

What happened to Europe?

Once upon a time, America and Europe fought side-by-side to overthrow authoritarian regimes and resist communist dictators. Now European leaders are adopting the policies Europeans once fought against—and calling AMERICA out for "abandoning liberal democracy." But as Europeans get arrested for their speech, their elections rigged, and their religion squashed, Glenn felt compelled to notify their leaders of the truth: America didn't abandon democracy, Europe abandoned its people.

With this in mind, over the weekend Glenn authored an open letter to the leaders of Europe, calling them to return to the core values of Western democracy that we fought so hard for and to listen to the voices of their citizens who cry out for change. Glenn encouraged his audience to read his letter and spread the word:

Glenn took to X to get as many eyes on his letter as possible. He also filmed a short video in his home stressing the importance of Europe's awakening. America cannot afford to prop up NATO anymore and Europe needs to be ready to hold its weight. Big changes are coming and for the sake of the Western values we have fought so long to preserve, we want Europe by our side, ready to face the future. We must change our ways before we tear ourselves apart.

Trump's education secretary has BIG plans for the DoE

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Our education system is broken, and the Department of Education is a massive failure. But that all ends now.

It's no secret that America's school system is seriously lacking in many ways. President Trump pointed out that despite our massive spending per pupil, we are behind most of the developed world in most metrics. Our scores continue to plummet while our student debt and spending skyrocket—it's utterly unacceptable performance and America's students deserve better.

That's where Linda McMahon, Trump's pick for Secretary of Education comes in.

The former WWE CEO and leader of the U.S. Small Business Administration during Trump's first term, McMahon laid out her harsh criticisms of the DoE during a confirmation hearing on the 13th and revealed her promising plans to turn things around. McMahon described the public education system as "in decline" and promised that under her authority, the DoE would be reoriented towards student success.

Here are the top three changes to the Department of Education:

1. Dismantling the Department of Education

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From the beginning Trump's orders for McMahon were clear: oversee the end of the Department of Education.

During her Thursday hearing, McMahon clarified what dismantling the DoE would entail. As Democrats have repeatedly pointed out, Trump does not have the authority to destroy the DoE without Congressional consent, as an act of Congress created it. That is why Trump and McMahon's plan is to start by shutting down programs that can be stopped by executive action, then approach Congress with a plan to dismantle the Department for good. The executive orders have already begun to take effect, and once McMahon is confirmed she will author a plan for Congress to close the Department.

McMahon also promised that the end of the Department of Education does not mean an end to all the programs currently undertaken by the doomed department. Programs that are deemed beneficial will be transferred (along with their funding) to departments that are more suited to the task. The example given by McMahon was IDEA (Individuals with Disabilities Education Act) funding, which instead of being cut would be transferred to the Department of Health and Human Services.

2. School Choice

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In a huge win for parents across the country, McMahon pledged her support for School Choice. School Choice is the idea of allowing parents to enroll their student in any school of their choice, including religious schools and private schools. It would also mean that part or all of the funding that would have gone to a relocated child would follow them and continue to pay for their education.

This gives parents the ability to remove their children from failing schools and seek a better education for them elsewhere. A growing body of evidence suggests that the way we run our schools isn't working, and it is time to try something new. School Choice opens up education to the free market and will allow for competition.

Our children deserve better than what we can currently offer them.

3. COVID and DEI

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Trump's government-wide crackdown on DEI will ironically serve to increase inclusion in many American schools.

McMahon said as much during her Senate hearing: “It was put in place ostensibly for more diversity, for equity and inclusion. And I think what we’re seeing is, it is having an opposite effect. We are getting back to more segregating of our schools instead of having more inclusion in our schools.” She also spoke in support of Title IX, and the push to remove biological males from women's and girl's sports. In the same vein, McMahon pledged to push back against the rise of antisemitism on college campuses, which many Universities have failed to adequately address.

On Friday, February 14th, President Trump signed an executive order barring any school or university with COVID-19 vaccine mandates from receiving federal money. This only applies to the COVID-19 vaccine, and other vaccine mandates are still standing.

POLL: What DARK government secrets will Trump uncover?

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Will the dark secrets of the Deep State finally see the light of day? Or will they slip back into darkness, as they have many times before?

The Trump administration is gearing up to fulfill one of Trump's most anticipated campaign promises: to make the contents of the JFK files, along with other Deep State secrets, available to the public. Kash Patel, who has promised to publicize the highly anticipated files, is expected to be confirmed next week as Trump's director of the FBI. Moreover, the House Oversight Committee created a new task force headed by Rep. Anna Paulina Luna called "Task Force on Declassification of Federal Secrets," which is tasked with investigating and declassifying information on the JFK, RFK, and MLK assassinations, UFOs, the Epstein list, COVID's origins, and 9/11. This all comes after the FBI found 2,400 "new" records relating to the assassination of President Kennedy following Trump's executive order to release the files.

Glenn discussed this topic with the cast of the Patrick Bet David podcast. Glenn expressed his confidence in Trump's radical transparency—on the condition that Kash Patel is confirmed. The cast was not as optimistic, expressing some doubt about whether Trump will actually unveil all that he has promised. But what do you think? What files are likely to see the light of day? And what files will continue to linger in the dark? Let us know in the poll below

Do you think the JFK, RFK, and MLK files will be unveiled?

Do you think the 9/11 files will be unveiled?

Do you think the COVID files will be unveiled?

Do you think the UFO files will be unveiled?

Do you think the Epstein list will be unveiled?

Transgender opera in Colombia? 10 SHOCKING ways USAID spent your tax dollars.

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The government has been doing what with our tax money!?

Under the determined eye of Elon Musk, DOGE has rooted out the corruption that permeates USAID, and it turns out that it's worse than we thought. Glenn recently read a list of atrocious causes that were funded by USAID, and the list was as long as it was shocking.

Since the January consumer index report was published today, one thing is clear: eggs are bearing the brunt of inflation. That's why we illustrated the extent of USAID's wasteful spending of YOUR taxpayer dollars by comparing it to the price of eggs. How many eggs could the American people have bought with their tax dollars that were given to a "transgender opera" in Colombia or indoctrinating Sri Lankans with woke gender ideology? The truth will shock you:

1. A “transgender opera” in Colombia

USAID spent $47,000 on a transgender opera in Colombia. That's over 135,000 eggs.

2. Sex changes and "LGBT activism" in Guatemala

$2 million was spent funding sex changes along with whatever "LGBT activism" means. That equates to over 5.7 million eggs!

3. Teaching Sri Lankan journalists how to avoid binary-gendered language

USAID forked over $7.9 million to combat the "gender binary" in Sri Lankan journalism. That could have bought nearly 23 million eggs.

4. Tourism in Egypt

$6 million (or just over 17 million eggs) was spent to fund tourism in Egypt. If only someone had thought to build some impressive landmarks...

5. A new "Sesame Street" show in Iraq

USAID spent $20 million to create a new Sesame Street show in Iraq. That's just short of 58 million eggs...

6. Helping the BBC value the diversity of Libyan society

$2.1 million was sent to the BBC (the British Broadcasting Corporation) to help them value the diversity of Libyan society (whatever that means). That could have bought over 6 million eggs.

7. Meals for a terrorist group linked to Al-Qaeda

$10 million worth of USAID-funded meals went to an Al-Qaeda linked terrorist group. That comes up to be just shy of 29 million eggs.

8. Promoting inclusion in Vietnam 

A combined $19.3 million was sent to two separate inclusion groups in Vietnam inclusion groups in Vietnam (why where they separated? Not very inclusive of them). That's over 55 million eggs.

9. Promoting DEI in Serbia's workplaces

USAID sent $1.5 million (4.3 million eggs) to “advance diversity equity and inclusion in Serbia’s workplaces and business communities.”

10. Funding EcoHealth Alliance, tied to the Wuhan Institute of Virology's "bat research"

EcoHealth Alliance, one of the key NGOs that funded the Wuhan lab's bat virus research, received $5 million from USAID, which is equivalent to 14.5 million eggs.

The bottom line...

So, how much damage was done?

In total, approximately $73.8 million was wasted on the items on this list. That comes out to be 213 million eggs. Keep in mind that these are just the items on this list, there are many, many more that DOGE has uncovered and will uncover in the coming days. Case in point: that's a lot of eggs.