Month: November 2023

Faithful Catholic Colleges See ‘Unprecedented’ Enrollment Numbers, Financial Support

Michigan Star Staff
Catholic University of America

As most collegiate institutions grapple with disappointing enrollment, a slew of faithful Catholic colleges are reporting surprising enrollment numbers and financial support.

Their success is heralded by the Newman Guide, a list of higher education options consulted by Catholic parents throughout the world, as evidence of the positive impact that authentic Catholic education has upon society. The Newman Guide recognizes colleges that are determined to provide a thoroughly faithful Catholic education (and removes colleges from the list when they fall short).

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As Inflation Worries Investors, Wall Street Is Buying Up American Soil

Michigan Star Staff

Wall Street is moving to buy up U.S. farmland in hopes that it will be a safe bet to hedge against inflation and concerning economic conditions, according to Reuters.

Investment funds have accumulated over a million acres of farmland in the U.S., a small part of the 900 million acres in the U.S. but significant for the market when looking at the pace of acquisitions, according to Reuters. The move from investors is drawing the concern of some, including lawmakers, who see the quick constraint on supply as a barrier for the next generation of farmers who can’t buy at the elevated price.

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Detroit Unions, Casinos Reach Tenative Agreement to End Strike

The Center Square
Workers on Strike in Detroit Casino Workers

The Detroit Casino Council has reached a tentative agreement for a new five-year contract with MGM Grand Detroit, MotorCity Casino, and Hollywood Casino at Greektown after a 32-day strike.

The unions will continue to strike until the members ratify the proposed settlement.

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Commentary: America Must Lead on Oil and Gas

Michigan Star Staff
Trans-Alaska Pipeline

Fifty years ago this week, legislation authorizing construction of the Trans-Alaska Pipeline passed both houses of Congress and was signed into law by President Richard Nixon. 

The whole process took all of five days.

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Commentary: UN Undermines Parental Rights by Pushing Gender Ideology

Michigan Star Staff
UN General Assembly

On Dec. 10, the United Nations will celebrate the 75th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, a document drafted in the aftermath of World War II under the leadership of American first lady Eleanor Roosevelt.

Much has changed since then, including the world body’s understanding of children and of parental rights.

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Commentary: The Surprising Christian Values in ‘The Exorcist’

Michigan Star Staff

In his four-out-of-four review of William Friedkin’s The Exorcist, film critic Roger Ebert wrote that the picture “transcends the genre of terror, horror, and the supernatural.” However, Ebert did not address perhaps the most compelling element of the 1973 classic horror film: that buried deep within the gruesome story of a demon-inhabited 12-year-old girl is one of the most authentically theological films ever made.

The protagonist of The Exorcist is not, as one might expect, either the possessed Regan MacNeil or her mother, Chris (each of whom take up a majority of the screen time). After all, neither of them complete a character arc during the film.

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Christian, Pro-Life Groups Push to Reauthorize Biden’s ‘Reimagined’ AIDS Program Promoting Abortion

Michigan Star Staff

Several Christian organizations have supported full authorization of an AIDS relief program even though the money has gone to organizations that advocate more abortions abroad. 

In several public statements, President Joe Biden’s White House has called for promoting abortion abroad, frequently in references to the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief, better known as PEPFAR. 

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Hunter Biden Kept Afloat with Millions from Father’s Democratic Donors After Foreign Money Dried Up

Just the News

When Hunter Biden’s foreign business deals began drying up amid his recovery from addiction and his father’s 2020 presidential campaign, he tapped a rich new source of money that has kept him afloat: Democratic supporters of Joe Biden’s presidential campaign, according to hundreds of pages of documents reviewed by Just the News.

Evidence gathered by federal and congressional investigators show Hunter Biden collected over $6 million since his father began running for the presidency in 2020. The assistance flowed predominantly from prominent Democratic donor and respected Hollywood lawyer Kevin Morris, whom the first son reportedly befriended at one of his father’s fundraising events, according to The New York Times. 

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More Unaccompanied Migrant Children Being ‘Resettled’ in Texas than Elsewhere

The Center Square
border surge

The greatest number of unaccompanied children (UACs) arriving at the U.S. border are being “resettled” in Texas.

UACs have been sent to all 50 states and two U.S. territories, including Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands, according to data from the U.S. Health & Human Services Department (HHS) and Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR), tasked with their oversight and care.

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Tucker Carlson Travels to Spain for Episode 40 of ‘Tucker on X’

Kaitlin Housler

In episode 40 of his newest production, “Tucker on X,” host Tucker Carlson traveled to Madrid, Spain, to attend a protest and sit down with the leader of the Vox political party, Santiago Abascal, described by the former Fox News anchor as “honest, principled, and completely unafraid.”

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Jim Jordan Subpoenas Bank of America over Sharing Customer Data with FBI

Just the News
Jim Jordan and Bank of America

House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan on Thursday served Bank of America with a subpoena, seeking information related to the firm’s voluntary sharing of customer data with the FBI to aid its Jan. 6 investigations.

“In 2021, BoA provided the FBI—voluntarily and without any legal process—with a list of individuals who made transactions in the Washington, D.C., metropolitan area using a BoA credit or debit card between January 5 and January 7, 2021,” the Judiciary Committee stated in a press release. “When that information was brought to the attention of Steven Jensen, the FBI’s then-Section Chief of the Domestic Terrorism Operations Section, he acted to ‘pull’ the BoA information from FBI systems because ‘the leads lacked allegations of federal criminal conduct.'”

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Moms for Liberty Revenue Grows by 500 Percent in One Year

Michigan Star Staff
Tina Descovich/ Moms for Liberty

The parental rights group Moms for Liberty’s revenue has grown by more than 500% in its second year, according to the Form 990 it filed with the IRS.

According to the Form 990, exclusively provided first to The Daily Signal, Moms for Liberty brought in $2.14 million in total revenue in 2022, while it brought in $370,029 in total revenue the year before. A significant majority of that money (92.3%) came from donations—contributions and grants. Expenses for 2021 totaled a mere $163,647, while in 2022 they rose to $1.7 million.

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Nikki Haley Meets with BlackRock CEO Larry Fink, Other Wall Street Elites

Michigan Star Staff
Nikki Haley

Former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley met with several Wall Street executives in a series of events Tuesday in her bid to be the Republican nominee for president, according to the Financial Times.

Haley attended a small meet-and-greet breakfast in New York where CEO of BlackRock Larry Fink was in attendance, followed by a fundraiser later in the day co-hosted by Gary Cohn, former president of Goldman Sachs, according to the FT. BlackRock has been criticized by conservatives in recent years for its adoption and promotion of Environment, Social and Corporate Governance (ESG) policies, which aim to invest in companies based on their commitment to social and environmental causes.

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Students Across the U.S. Are Absent Much More than Before the Pandemic

Michigan Star Staff
Teacher Classroom

Nearly 70% of students attended schools that experienced chronic absenteeism during the 2021-2022 academic year, according to data compiled by Attendance Works and Everyone Graduates Center at Johns Hopkins University.

Before the pandemic, 25% of students attended a school with high levels of chronic absenteeism, but during the 2021-2022 academic year at the percentage rose to 66%, according to the report from Attendance Works, a nonprofit focusing on absenteeism, and the Everyone Graduates Center at Johns Hopkins University, which focuses on high school graduation. Nearly 14.7 million students, or 29.7%, were chronically absent in the 2021-22 school year.

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UAW Ratifies Contract with General Motors

The Center Square

The United Auto Workers union members narrowly voted to ratify its contract with General Motors.

GM’s ratification tracker shows workers approving the contract on a 54.7% vote with nearly 36,000 votes in support, an unofficial number. The vote will end one-third of the auto strike that’s lasted about six weeks.

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New Documentary Film Pokes Holes in False George Floyd Narratives

Michigan Star Staff
George Floyd Protesters

A sobering new documentary aims to debunk the false narratives surrounding the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis and the trial of Officer Derek Chauvin.

“The Fall of Minneapolis,” produced by Alpha News journalist Liz Collin, also examines the tragic impacts of the Black Lives Matter riots, including the collapse of law and order, that continues to this day.

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Commentary: Mounting Evidence That ‘Net-Zero’ Carbon Emissions Isn’t Achievable

Michigan Star Staff
Power Plant

Arizona State University President Michael Crow believes we are in such danger that we should amend the U.S. Constitution to empower the government to deal more expansively with climate change. Crow’s view that constitutional protections of our liberties should be eliminated when they become inconvenient wouldn’t square with the founders, but his estimate of the dangers and required remedies for our changing climate are quite mainstream in our society.

“Net zero by 2050” has become an article of faith among our corporate and academic elites, no longer requiring proof or intellectual defense. The notion that we must eliminate or “offset” all carbon emissions by mid-century if we want to save the planet is the organizing principle for ESG investing. ESG is the consideration of environmental issues, social issues, and corporate governance issues when deciding what companies to invest in. In 2022, it was mentioned more than 6000 times in corporate filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

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Trump Might Enter 2024 Election Unscathed as Court Dates Are Delayed, Legal Attacks Falter

Michigan Star Staff
Trump Courtroom

As former President Donald Trump’s legal difficulties continue to stack up, scheduling conflicts and trial delays offer relief and highlight an emerging path for him to enter the 2024 election without a conviction, should he be the Republican nominee.

Facing the strain of four separate criminal indictments while running a presidential campaign, Trump has sought to postpone trials in his cases until after the election. At least two judges — the one overseeing his Florida classified documents case and another overseeing his New York case for allegedly falsifying business records — have signaled a willingness to delay, while Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis believes the Georgia trial may not conclude until early 2025.

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Commentary: Let the Donor Revolution Begin

RealClearWire

The donor revolts at the University of Pennsylvania, Harvard University, and elsewhere are the long-overdue wake up calls that their faculty and administrators needed. The overwhelming majority of politically progressive faculty and administrators have long guarded their right to advance their cherished political causes inside and outside the classroom, while punishment has awaited those who challenge the shibboleths. Instead of the free exchange of ideas and the intellectual capaciousness that ultimately advance social justice, it is now clearer than ever that it is not social justice they have fostered but mindless ideology and hate.

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George Soros Funded Anti-Israel Groups Behind Riot at DNC HQ

Michigan Star Staff
Soros DNC

The radical anti-Semitic protest movements that were responsible for a violent attack against the Democratic National Committee (DNC) headquarters in Washington D.C. have been funded by far-left billionaire George Soros.

According to the Washington Free Beacon, the groups IfNotNow, Jewish Voice for Peace, and the Democratic Socialists of America were the culprits in the incident on Wednesday, where roughly 150 rioters blockaded the entrance to the DNC building out of protest of the party’s tentative support for Israel amidst its conflict with the Palestinian terrorist group Hamas.

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Music Spotlight: Drew Haley

Bethany Bowman
Drew Haley

The first time I heard of Drew Haley was when I interviewed a remarkable group of country vocalists in 2020 called The Highway Women. I was impressed at how good each artist was and how they easily blended their unique voices.

But like so many who got their start during a pandemic, they just couldn’t keep the momentum going without being able to get out and tour.

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Squad Members Criticize AIPAC for Reportedly Committing to Spend $100 Million to Defeat Them

Just the News

Progressive House lawmakers in the so-called Squad criticized the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) for reportedly committing to spend $100 million to defeat them.

According to a report from Slate, Democratic Reps. Cori Bush of Missouri, Ilhan Omar of Minnesota, Jamaal Bowman of New York, Summer Lee of Pennsylvania, and Rashida Tlaib of Michigan are all targets of the $100 million AIPAC spending campaign.

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Border Patrol Nabs More Illegal Aliens on Terror Watchlist in October than in Three Years Under Trump

Michigan Star Staff

Border Patrol agents arrested more illegal aliens on the terrorist watchlist in October than over the course of three years under the Trump administration, according to Customs and Border Protection (CBP) data updated Tuesday.

Border Patrol recorded 13 encounters of individuals on the terror watchlist at both the northern and southern borders of the U.S. in October alone, according to the data. Encounters of illegal immigrants on the terror watchlist between fiscal years 2018 and 2020, during most of Donald Trump’s presidency, added up to 12.

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Ex-Officer Derek Chauvin Cites New Evidence in Attempt to Overturn George Floyd Murder Conviction

Just the News

Former Minneapolis police Officer Derek Chauvin is arguing that new evidence proves he did not cause the 2020 death of George Floyd as part of an attempt to overturn his federal civil rights conviction.

Chauvin said he would never have pleaded guilty to the 2021 charge if he was aware of the theories from a Kansas pathologist with whom he began corresponding earlier this year, according to a motion filed in federal court this week, The Associated Press reported. 

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Michigan Reimbursed $119k in Alleged Food Stamp Fraud over Six Months

The Center Square

Michigan has reimbursed $119,000 worth of food stamps reported stolen from March through August 2023.

The food stamp program is a federal program operated by state health departments serving as a social safety net. Criminals steal food stamps via credit card skimmers, compromised logins and stolen identities sold on the dark web.

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Commentary: As Consumer and Producer Inflation Cools, Recession Maybe on the Horizon in 2024

Michigan Star Staff

Both annualized consumer and producer inflation decreased in October from 3.7 percent to 3.2 percent and from 2.2 percent to 1.3 percent, respectively, according to the latest data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, amid a drops in oil prices.

On the consumer side, gasoline prices dropped 5 percent in October and are down 5.3 percent over the past twelve months.

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Commentary: Two Judicial Strikes Against Efforts to Keep Trump Off Ballot

Michigan Star Staff

Two state courts, the Minnesota Supreme Court and the Michigan Court of Claims, have thrown out the attempts by anti-democratic groups to disqualify former President Donald Trump from the ballot under the 14th Amendment, at least with respect to the presidential primary election.

The attempt to take away the ability of voters to make their own decisions on Trump’s candidacy has been temporarily halted in those states.

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Congress Passes Continuing Resolution to Avoid Government Shutdown

Michigan Star Staff

Both houses of Congress have passed a bill to temporarily fund the U.S. government until early 2024, following a vote by the Senate on Wednesday, after they were unable to pass appropriations bills for the current fiscal year.

The Further Continuing Appropriations and Other Extensions Act, 2024, known commonly as a “continuing resolution” or “CR,” would temporarily fund certain government agencies — such as the Departments of Agriculture, Energy, Veterans Affairs, Transportation and Housing and Urban Development — until Jan. 19, 2024, while funding the rest of the government until Feb. 2, 2024. The bill was passed by the Senate on Wednesday by a vote of 87 yeas to 11 nays after being passed by the House on Tuesday, thus preventing a government shutdown on Nov. 17, when funding under a previous continuing resolution was set to expire.

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George Santos Announces He Will Not Run for Re-Election

Michigan Star Staff

Republican Rep. George Santos of New York’s 3rd District announced that he will not seek reelection to the House of Representatives following the release of a report by the House Ethics Committee regarding his actions.

Santos was indicted by federal prosecutors in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York for a number of alleged felonies related to his 2022 congressional campaign, including wire fraud, false statements, identity theft and credit card fraud, among others. After the House Ethics Committee released a report corroborating the allegations of prosecutors following its independent investigation of the matter, Santos announced on Twitter that he would not seek re-election to his office in 2024.

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Police Arrest Suspect in Death of Jewish Protester

Michigan Star Staff

Officers announced on Thursday that they have arrested a suspect in connection to the death of Paul Kessler.

Kessler, a Jewish man who was participating in a pro-Israel demonstration, died from a blow to the head after allegedly getting into a physical altercation with a pro-Palestinian protester. Police said that they arrested Loay Analji on Thursday morning in connection with Kessler’s death for involuntary manslaughter, according to a press release from the Ventura County Sheriff’s Department.

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Videos of People Sympathizing with Bin Laden’s ‘Letter to America’ Go Viral

Michigan Star Staff

Videos showing people reading Osama bin Laden’s 2002 letter justifying the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon went viral Wednesday evening, prompting a media outlet to delete its translation of the document.

The Guardian deleted the letter Wednesday after it had been active on the site since being published on Nov. 24, 2002, directing readers to an article from that date about the letter. Videos on the Chinese-owned social media app TikTok showed users reading the letter, Rolling Stone reported.

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Inflation Still Biting Homebuyers as Headline Number Falls

Michigan Star Staff

The price of shelter increased substantially in October despite topline month-to-month inflation remaining flat, dashing many Americans’ dreams of buying a home, according to The Wall Street Journal.

Inflation decelerated to 3.2% in October, down from 3.7% in September, owing to substantial deflation in the price of energy, but the shelter sector individually had prices increase by 5.5% for the year. Since the beginning of 2021, when President Joe Biden first took office, home prices have risen 29%, rents are up 17% and mortgage rates have neared 8%, according to the WSJ.

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Meta Is Allowing Political Ads That Question the 2020 Election — But Censoring Doubts About 2024

Michigan Star Staff

Meta’s social media platforms now allow political ads questioning the 2020 presidential election, but will censor ads questioning the 2024 election, The Wall Street Journal reported on Wednesday.

The company permits fraud claims about past elections but not current or future ones, according to its updated policy. Meta rolled out the policy after blocking certain Republicans during the 2022 midterm election primaries from releasing ads with assertions about the 2020 election being fraudulent, according to the WSJ.

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Near-Record Number of Illegal Immigrants Are Crossing the Northern Border

Michigan Star Staff

Border Patrol encounters of migrants crossing the northern border illegally hit a two-decade high in October, according to recently updated Customs and Border Protection (CBP) data.

There were 1,521 such encounters recorded in October alone, according to the data. The last time monthly encounters surpassed that number was in August 2001, when Border Patrol recorded 2,016, according to federal data.

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Commentary: NewsGuard Is a Surrogate the Feds Pay to Keep Watch on the Internet and Be a Judge of the Truth

RealClearWire

In May 2021, L. Gordon Crovitz, a media executive turned start-up investor, pitched Twitter executives on a powerful censorship tool. 

In an exchange that came to light in the “Twitter Files” revelations about media censorship, Crovitz, former publisher of the Wall Street Journal, touted his product, NewsGuard, as a “Vaccine Against Misinformation.” His written pitch highlighted a “separate product” – beyond an extension already on the Microsoft Edge browser – “for internal use by content-moderation teams.” Crovitz promised an out-of-the-box tool that would use artificial intelligence powered by NewsGuard algorithms to rapidly screen content based on hashtags and search terms the company associated with dangerous content.

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Team Trump Takes Victory Lap as Michigan Dismisses 14th Amendment Cases Against Candidacy

Just the News

Former President Donald Trump’s campaign is celebrating the dismissal of a litany of cases in Michigan challenging his eligibility to run for president again.

Trump has struggled to fend off challenges to his appearing on the ballot in multiple states. The litany of challenges have largely asserted that he was ineligible to hold public office under the 14th Amendment for having led an “insurrection” against the nation in the form of the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol Riot. He recently notched a win at the Minnesota Supreme Court allowing him to appear on the GOP primary ballot.

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