Month: November 2023

Commentary: Young People Turn on Biden over Stagnant Wages and Inability to Launch

Michigan Star Staff

Young voters were one of the core coalitions that installed President Biden in the White House, supporting him by a twenty-four-point margin in 2020. Peering deeper into the data, young voters have been slowly drifting away from Democrats in each election since 2012. That drift has rapidly accelerated in the past three years as economic issues have become paramount for young adults. New polling suggests Biden is on track to lose double-digits with voters under thirty compared to the 2020 election, and economic issues are at the center of the problem.  

Stagnant wages, crippling inflation, a housing affordability crisis, the importation of cheap foreign labor, and an absurd regulatory environment that stifles small business growth are issues all Americans face, but young people are hit particularly hard in Biden’s economy.

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Groups Disagree over Line 5 Shutdown Impact

The Center Square
Man grinding a large pipe on a worksite

Is the Line 5 pipeline an essential source of energy or is it an environmental hazard?

Since 2019, Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer and Attorney General Dana Nessel have sought to shut down Line 5, which has been pumping about 540,000 gallons of hydrocarbons daily across the lakebed of Lake Michigan since 1953. Whitmer and Nessel say they fear a spill similar to the 2010 oil spill near the Kalamazoo River – the largest inland oil spill in U.S. history.

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UK Museum Says Roman Emperor Was Trans, Will Be Referred to as ‘She’

Just the News

A U.K. museum says that Roman emperor Elagabalus was a transgender woman and it will refer to the third-century ruler as “she.”

The North Hertfordshire Museum said it wants to be “sensitive” to the reported preferred pronouns of Elagabalus, who ruled from A.D. 218 to A.D. 222 before being assassinated at the age of 18, according to The Telegraph.

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Commentary: Argentina’s First-Ever Libertarian President

Michigan Star Staff

Voters in Argentina have elected a libertarian as president for the first time in their history. On Sunday, Argentina had its second round of voting, and Javier Milei received 55.69% of the vote against the Peronist Sergio Massa’s 44.31%. In a country that suffers 143% annual inflation and a poverty rate hovering around 43%, Milei has a long and difficult road ahead.

Milei’s win marks the first time in 40 years that someone outside Argentina’s two largest parties was elected. La Libertad Avanza, Milei’s 3-year-old political party, finally broke through the entrenched and archaic political apparatus. In a tweet back in June, Milei stated that Argentina was choosing between the old politics and the new ideas. During his presidential campaign, Milei pledged to tackle Argentina’s inflationary unhealthy economy by dollarizing the peso and minimizing government spending.

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Commentary: New Biden Rule Applies Transgender Standard to Foster Care

Michigan Star Staff

Transgender orthodoxy may soon become a litmus test for parenthood, according to the logic of a new policy working its way through the Department of Health and Human Services under President Joe Biden.

A new rule in HHS’ Administration for Children and Families would apply the idea that any lack of “affirmation” constitutes a form of child abuse to foster care placements. Once that idea takes root in foster care, child protective services agencies might start applying it more broadly.

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Commentary: The Five Types of Traditionalists

Michigan Star Staff

All traditionalists share a few hallmark traits. Among them are traditional morals, a burning desire for government reform, and a strong distaste for progressive societal values. As with any sect, though, sub-stereotypes exist. In traditionalists circles, there are five types of people. Not a single traditionalist doesn’t fit into one of these boxes. (Or at least, that’s how it seems. Could it be possible that sticking everyone into a box doesn’t capture the whole person?)

What are these types? And how does each stand out as unique?

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Biden Admin Preparing to Finalize Barrage of Methane Regulations

Michigan Star Staff

The Biden administration is gearing up to finalize a host of emissions rules and regulations in the coming months, E&E News reported Wednesday.

The rules and regulations are all focused on methane, a greenhouse gas that is more potent, but dissipates more quickly, than carbon dioxide, and align with the administration’s commitment to attacking climate change with a “whole-of-government” response. The Biden administration is aiming to finalize the slew of methane regulations in the coming months ahead of the 2024 election, which would make the rules more difficult for a potential Republican administration to scrap should President Joe Biden lose, according to E&E News.

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Biden Impeachment Inquiry Builds Evidence

The Center Square

The impeachment inquiry into President Joe Biden is gaining momentum as more evidence comes out to back allegations that the president himself financially benefited from the overseas business dealings of his son, Hunter.

While Republicans will find it very difficult to get the needed supermajority to impeach Biden, the mounting evidence and media coverage would be another obstacle for Biden to overcome as he campaigns for reelection.

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Supreme Court to Consider Whether Agency’s In-House Trials Violate the Constitution

Michigan Star Staff

The Supreme Court will consider next week whether the Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) use of in-house judges violates the right to a jury trial guaranteed in the Seventh Amendment.

Congress empowered the SEC to use its own in-house administrative law judges (ALJs) to try cases brought by agency enforcement when it passed the Dodd-Frank Act following the 2008 financial crisis. George R. Jarkesy, who has been caught in the SEC’s administrative proceedings since the agency charged him with fraud relating to his investment activities in 2013, challenged that grant of power as unconstitutional.

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Illegal Chinese Pot Grows Are Taking over Maine and Law Enforcement Isn’t Stopping Them

Michigan Star Staff

Illegal marijuana grows run by Chinese nationals have sprung up all across the state of Maine, and residents say law enforcement isn’t doing enough to stop their spread.

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) identified 270 suspected Chinese illegal marijuana grow operations in the state that could be making an estimated $4.37 billion in revenue, which are often used for more criminal activities or are sent back to China, the DCNF exclusively reported in August. The DCNF visited dozens of properties identified as suspected Chinese marijuana grows by the DHS memo, as well as other locations reported to be possible Chinese marijuana grows by The Maine Wire.

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Air Force Begs Troops Booted over COVID-19 Vax to Come Back

Michigan Star Staff

The U.S. Air Force sent out a letter telling an airman booted from the service over the now-rescinded COVID-19 vaccine mandate of an opportunity to rejoin the service, mirroring similar letters sent to former Army service members, according to a copy of one Air Force letter obtained by the Daily Caller News Foundation.

A former Air Force service member who was separated for refusing the COVID-19 vaccine received the letter Sunday addressed with the recipient’s name, according to a source familiar with the matter. The letter tells former airmen they can request to have their service records amended to show that they received honorable discharges and seek reentry into the service amidst the service’s failure to meet recruiting goals.

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Professor Raises Concerns over the Effect AI Could Have on 2024 Elections

The Center Square

A University of Chicago Harris School of Public Policy professor is waving a red flag on the impact that artificial intelligence could have on next year’s elections.  

Ethan Bueno de Mesquita has written a white paper which he said provides an overview of the potential impact of generative AI on the electoral process. The paper offers specific recommendations for voters, journalists, civil society, tech leaders and other stakeholders to help manage the risks and capitalize on the promise of AI for electoral democracy in the hope of fostering a more productive public discussion of these issues.  

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Commentary: Red Warning Lights Are Flashing on U.S. Economy as 2024 Rapidly Approaches

Michigan Star Staff

As 2023 is winding down to a close, the U.S. trade in goods deficit with the world is down $101 billion for the first nine months of the year to $802 billion, an 11.2 percent decrease so far, with still three months of data left to collect for the year, according to the latest data from the U.S. Census Bureau.

Simultaneously, existing home sales measured by the National Association of Realtors are down to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 3.79 million, a 16.7 percent decrease from its Feb. 2023 level of 4.5 million, and are averaging 4.16 million for the past 12 months. Overall, existing home sales are down the past 12 months by almost 32 percent from their 2021 high of 6.12 million. That’s a lot.

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Policing Pronouns: Border Agents’ Union Lambasts Latest Biden Political Correctness Order

Just the News

The Biden Homeland Security Department’s new pronoun rules for illegal immigrants is getting lambasted by the union for border patrol agents as an unnecessary distraction during the nation’s border and fentanyl crises.

A Customs and Border Protection (CBP) memo obtained by the Heritage Foundation’s Oversight Project and made public last week imposed new requirements on an already stretched thin team of border patrol agents.

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Commentary: The Need for Authority

Michigan Star Staff

When I was 14, I wanted to be Kurt Cobain. I wanted to drop out of school, be sad and poetic, and start a rock band. I actually said this to my dad. He took me to a burger joint and heard me out. After listening to my explanations, my father said, “Son, you’re full of s***.” That simple statement was enough for me. I regained perspective and went back to being a normal teenager. My dad had fulfilled his role as the authority in my life. It was a good moment. Authority is necessary. It is an innate part of human nature, but it is in crisis today because it has been rejected. Why?

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Mortgage Applications Increase to Six-Week High

Michigan Star Staff

Applications for mortgages ticked up to a six-week high for the week ending on Nov. 17 in a sign that the housing market might become more accessible to average Americans following rising prices and high mortgage rates, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA).

The number of mortgage applications increased by 3% compared to a week earlier when seasonally adjusted, according to a press release from the MBA. The increase in volume follows a decline in the average interest rate for a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage, which fell to 7.41% from 7.61% in the same time period.

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Small Business Owners Report Lower Consumer Spending Going into Holiday Season

The Center Square

Newly released survey data shows that small businesses are pessimistic about their retail sales going into the holiday season.

The Main Street Merchant Report released Tuesday by Alignable, a network of thousands of small businesses, are not optimistic about their sales for small businesses this weekend.

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Report: Economic Recession Coming for the U.S.

The Center Square

A new economic analysis of the U.S. economy projects a recession around the corner.

An international nonprofit, The Conference Board, has released its Leading Economic Indicators report, which projects into the next year for the U.S. economy. That analysis, among other things, projects high inflation, high interest rates and declining consumer spending.

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Tlaib Faces Michigan Bar Complaint for Alleged Antisemitism, Spreading ‘Terrorist Propaganda’, Lies

Just the News

Rep. Rashida Tlaib faces a formal complaint asking the State Bar of Michigan to open an investigation into the Michigan Democrat, an active member of the state bar, over her alleged “repeated false statements, anti-Semitic comments, and spread of foreign terrorist propaganda” following Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack on Israel, which resulted in about 1,200 deaths.

“Attorney Tlaib’s public statements have shown a complete disregard for the truth and serve only to enflame anti-Semitic hatred rather than promote the ends of justice,” the Coolidge Reagan Foundation, a free speech nonprofit, wrote in the complaint Monday to the Michigan bar.  

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Commentary: Europe Needs to Embrace Western Civilization Again

Michigan Star Staff

For the first time in a millennium, Europe no longer plays a critical role in promoting Western civilization nor in world history at large.

Ostensibly it should. Some 750 million people live on the European subcontinent.

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Commentary: 13 Traditionalist Gift Ideas for Kids

Michigan Star Staff
Opening Presents

Christmas is just around the corner! We often look forward to the holidays with heaps of joy … and maybe a little trepidation. There can be so many presents involved, particularly given the numerous people and parties. It can be a lot for anyone to deal with.

But presents can’t just be ignored: Children love gifts, and they find so much joy in the simple act of opening sparkly, wrapped boxes. Plus, presents are a great opportunity to share traditional values with children. But instead of opting for the “more is more” mentality of mainstream culture, let’s embrace the mantra “fewer but better.” Let’s explore alternative gift ideas that not only support traditionalist values but also won’t overwhelm children, parents, or our wallets.

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Report: New York City Saw 254 Percent Increase in First-Time Shelter Seekers in 2023

The Center Square

The city of New York homeless population increased by 73% in fiscal year 2023, according to a report put out by the city comptroller that sheds more light on the asylum seeker crisis.

The number of homeless within the city jumped from 46,675 in FY 2022 to 80,724 in FY 2023, according to the report. The city’s fiscal years begin July 1.

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Commentary: Five More Stupid Things the Left Demands You Believe

Michigan Star Staff

It wasn’t the last column in this space — that one took a detour because somebody had to address the manifest awfulness of Nikki Haley — but the one before that introduced you, dear reader, to what might become an ongoing series.

Because the Left in America is now built on the failed proposition that magical thinking, the imagination of a human race that acts nothing like the current one does, can reflect reality if only enough time, money, and effort (and blood, because it always comes down to blood) are poured into the mix.

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Texas AG Launches Fraud Investigation into Media Matters

Michigan Star Staff

On Monday, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton (R-Texas) announced that the state would be launching a fraud probe into the far-left publication Media Matters.

As reported by the Daily Caller, the probe comes after Media Matters released a report on Thursday accusing the social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter, of putting anti-Semitic content next to advertisements. Although subsequent studies have proven this to be mostly false, multiple major corporations, including Apple, Disney, and IBM, have announced their plans to boycott advertising on the site.

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Macy’s Hit with Civil Rights Complaint Ahead of Thanksgiving Parade for Alleged Race-Based Hiring Practices

Michigan Star Staff

A conservative legal group filed a federal civil rights complaint against Macy’s ahead of the Thanksgiving Day parade, claiming the company is “intentionally and systematically” hiring based on race and sex.

America First Legal writes in its complaint filed Tuesday with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) that Macy’s employment practices, which include “explicit racial and other quotas,” likely violate Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.  AFL cites company documents, such as a 2019 press release on Macy’s five-point plan to advance diversity where management is instructed to “[a]chieve more ethnic diversity by 2025 at senior director level and above, with a goal of 30 percent,” to highlight how the company “has created a significant legal dilemma for itself.”

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Survey: Cost of Thanksgiving Dinner Down Slightly from Last Year’s Record High

The Center Square

Thanksgiving dinner shoppers will get a bit of a break in the pocketbook this year. 

Illinois shoppers participating in the annual American Farm Bureau Federation’s (AFBF) Thanksgiving Cost Survey reported the average cost of a traditional Thanksgiving meal is down slightly compared to last year. 

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Commentary: The Meaning of Thanksgiving Can Save America

Michigan Star Staff

Thanksgiving, according to Britannica.com, has come to “has come to symbolize intercultural peace, America’s opportunity for newcomers, and the sanctity of home and family.” This definition captures the ideals, more relevant than ever, of one of America’s favorite holidays. But these ideals are threatened, because America’s mainstream institutions have either rejected them, or have created an environment where they are no longer possible.

This is immediately obvious with the “woke” doctrine of race-based oppressor and oppressed, now promoted by academia, the media, entertainers, politicians, and corporations. Maybe the fellowship of the Pilgrims and the Wampanoag Indians is mostly fable, cruelly debunked by history.

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Commentary: Five Stupid Things the Left Would Have You Believe

Michigan Star Staff

I was on a media panel talking about what the Left has done to the Fourth Estate in America and how that damage might ultimately be repaired. And afterward, I spent a lot of time interacting with sponsors and attendees, and a common thread seemed to run through those conversations.

Namely, the multiplicity of utterly indefensible, absurd propositions that make up the narratives and constructs by which our left-wing current ruling class seeks to base its power over us.

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Commentary: Fentanyl Letters Show How Partisan Journalists Operate

Michigan Star Staff

The true danger to American democracy comes from the radical left. Just don’t expect to hear it from the mainstream media.

On Nov. 9, Americans learned that law enforcement intercepted a handful of fentanyl-laced letters intended for election offices across at least five states, including Georgia’s Fulton County. While alarming, fentanyl isn’t like anthrax – briefly touching it isn’t deadly. But ingesting it is – just ask the families of the 74,000 Americans who died from fentanyl in 2022 alone, much of it produced in China and smuggled in through President Biden’s wide-open southern border.

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Music Spotlight: David Morris

Bethany Bowman

One thing that I have learned by writing my column is that even though I prefer traditional country music, hip-hop, and rap are tremendously popular with the younger set. There have been a few country artists who have dipped their toes into the hip-hop music scene, but the most successful one I have encountered is David Morris.

Hailing from Charleston, West Virginia, country, hip-hop artist Morris is trailblazing a path by mixing trap-style beats with slide guitars, banjos with catchy hooks, and lyrical mastery with relatable lyrics. Morris has over 120 million global streams and has supported Kidd G and Jelly Roll on tour. The song, “Dutton Ranch Free Style,” recently received its RIAA Gold Certification.

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Liberal ‘Dark Money’ Groups Gave Millions to SCOTUS Watchdogs Targeting Alito, Thomas, Docs Show

Just the News

Nonprofit organizations managed by the liberal “dark money” consulting firm Arabella Advisors gave millions of dollars to “nonpartisan” Supreme Court watchdogs, new documents show, after a campaign was launched earlier this year targeting conservative Supreme Court Justices Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito for not fully disclosing their finances.

Former Clinton appointee Eric Kessler founded Arabella Advisors in 2005, and its subsidiaries include the Sixteen Thirty Fund, the Hopewell Fund, the New Venture Fund, the Windward Fund and the North Fund. 

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