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Biden axes nominee overseeing home appliance crackdown after Joe Manchin’s opposition

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The White House abruptly withdrew its pick to oversee energy efficiency regulations, including those targeting natural gas-powered stoves, after Sen. Joe Manchin’s, D-W.Va., opposition.

In an unexpected announcement, the White House said it had pulled Jeff Marootian’s name from consideration to lead the Department of Energy’s (DOE) Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE), which crafts appliance regulations and standards. Marootian’s nomination was jeopardized after Manchin canceled an Energy and Natural Resources Committee vote to advance the nomination to a full floor vote in May.

“While I supported Mr. Marootian’s nomination in December, since then the office he’s been nominated to lead has proposed stove efficiency rules that I’ve raised concerns about,” Manchin told Fox News Digital in a statement at the time.

“While I appreciate that these rules would only apply to new stoves, my view is that it’s part of a broader, administration-wide effort to eliminate fossil fuels,” he continued. “For that reason, I’m not comfortable moving forward with Mr. Marootian at this time.”

BIDEN ADMIN CRACKS DOWN ON ANOTHER POPULAR HOME APPLIANCE

Jeff Marootian, President Biden’s pick for Assistant Secretary for Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy at the Department of Energy, testifies during a Senate confirmation hearing in November. (Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee)

Following Manchin’s comments, the White House hit back at the West Virginia Democrat, saying it stood by all of its nominees.

“The president stands by his well-qualified nominees to do the important work of DOE,” a White House official told Fox News Digital on May 18.

BIDEN ADMINISTRATION’S WAR ON APPLIANCES IS JUST GETTING STARTED

Marootian was first nominated to take the helm at the EERE office in July 2022 after serving as special assistant to President Biden and, prior to that role, director of the Washington, D.C., Department of Transportation. The position has been vacant since Daniel Simmons, who led the office throughout the Trump administration, departed the DOE in early 2021.

DOE Secretary Jennifer Granholm then hired Marootian as her senior adviser for energy efficiency and renewable energy in September. His confirmation hearing before the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee took place in November, and he was reported out of committee in December, but his nomination stalled at the end of session, forcing Biden to renominate him in January.

Jennifer Granholm

Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm speaks during a news briefing at the White House on Jan. 23. (Alex Wong/Getty Images)

Granholm said last year that Marootian would be a “natural fit to lead the Department’s largest applied energy office” and help the administration meet its “bold clean energy goals.” Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee Ranking Member John Barrasso, R-Wyo., though, opposed the nomination, saying Marootian was more qualified for a Transportation Department role.

Since Marootian was hired to advise Granholm on energy efficiency and since his nomination was returned to the White House, the DOE has pursued a number of energy efficiency regulations impacting many household appliances including gas stovetops, which many consumer advocates criticized regulatory as overreach. 

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“It’s just spreading to more and more appliances. It seems that almost everything that plugs in or fires up around the house is either subject to a pending regulation or soon will be,” Ben Lieberman, a senior fellow at the Competitive Enterprise Institute, previously told Fox News Digital.

“Consumers aren’t going to like any of it,” he added. “These rules are almost always bad for consumers for the simple reason that they restrict consumer choice.”

Source: https://www.foxnews.com/politics/biden-axes-nominee-overseeing-home-appliance-crackdown-joe-manchins-opposition

Politics

Congressional Progressive Caucus PAC backs candidate who signed ‘Black New Deal’ demanding reparations

The House’s leading progressive political arm is throwing its weight behind a candidate who signed onto a “Black New Deal” that contained radical demands such as reparations, eliminating school officers and stopping criminal enforcement during the pandemic, Fox News Digital has found.

The Congressional Progressive Caucus PAC, whose House counterpart is guided by Reps. Pramila Jayapal of Washington and Ilhan Omar of Minnesota, wired $5,000 to California Democrat candidate Lateefah Simon’s campaign in early August, according to recently released filings. 

Simon is the first 2024 candidate the group endorsed. She’s attempting to fill Democrat Rep. Barbara Lee’s seat, who is running for the U.S. Senate.

“With more than a quarter century of work organizing for civil rights and social justice, Lateefah Simon is a proven leader and the best candidate to represent California’s 12th congressional district,” the PAC’s co-chairs, including Jayapal, wrote in their endorsement. “Lateefah’s track record speaks for itself – she has effected material change in her community, championing critical progressive priorities like transit justice, economic equality, and women’s rights.”

TOP HOUSE DEM ‘VIGOROUSLY’ ENDORSES ILHAN OMAR FOR REELECTION AMID PRO-ISRAEL PAC CRITICISM

Lateefah Simon

Lateefah Simon, a longtime progressive activist, is running for Congress in California’s 12th District. (Lea Suzuki / San Francisco Chronicle via Getty Images / File)

Simon, who Vice President Harris tapped to lead an initiative to reduce youth recidivism rates as San Francisco’s district attorney, is a longtime Oakland and Bay Area political activist and organizer.

The Democrat hopeful joined a cadre of liberal activists who used the pandemic to make extreme requests on public officials.

According to a letter on Justice Teams Network, which seeks to eradicate all forms of “State violence” and “criminal acts” against prisoners, the far-left coalition sought to implement dozens of radical initiatives.

In May 2020, Simon signed the letter alongside the likes of former Black Lives Matter leader Patrisse Cullors, which they had sent to elected and appointed officials with regard to concerns about how the COVID-19 pandemic impacted “Black people inequitably in Oakland and what the long-term consequences will be.”

It contained a link to its “Black New Deal,” which Simon had also co-signed, and stated that they remained committed to implementing those demands. The deal includes its most extensive list of orders, including “reparations for Black people,” which it categorizes as a long-term demand.

ILHAN OMAR CALLS ISRAEL LOBBY AIPAC A ‘RIGHT-WING’ PAC FUNDED BY ‘DARK MONEY’

Pramila Jayapal

Congressional Progressive Caucus Chair Rep. Pramila Jayapal acts as a co-chair of their PAC. (Tom Williams / CQ-Roll Call Inc. via Getty Images / File)

To the group, reparations include a laundry list of items such as “debt forgiveness, free education, free healthcare, enforcement of CA Slavery Era Insurance Registry & similar local slavery era disclosure ordinances including mandatory reporting, imposition of maximum fines & penalties, mandatory fund contribution from companies that have disclosed already, and distribution of funds to Black-led organizations serving Black populations.”

“Possibly even expand law to include profiteers from the housing/financial crisis and carceral systems,” the group wrote.

The Black New Deal also pushed for the likes of removing police from schools and ending cash bail. During the pandemic, specifically, the group wanted the “decarceration” of prisons, “ceasing police use of pandemic to conduct raids” and no National Guard or military enforcement, among other radical requests.

The Community Ready Corps and The Anti Police-Terror Project convened “a range of Black leaders” to develop the letter and its vast list of far-left demands.

Rep. Ilhan Omar of Minnesota

Rep. Ilhan Omar co-chairs the Congressional Progressive Caucus. (Tom Williams / CQ-Roll Call Inc. via Getty Images / File)

Simon currently serves on the Bay Area Rapid Transit board of directors and is one of three candidates that the Congressional Progressive Caucus PAC has endorsed for the 2024 election cycle, according to its website.

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During the 2022 election cycle, the Congressional Progressive Caucus PAC raised more than $4 million and helped elect 17 people to Congress, the group says.

Simon’s campaign and the Congressional Progressive Caucus PAC did not respond to a request for comment.

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Politics

Hold Biden accountable for broken border; impeach Mayorkas

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President Joe Biden’s dereliction of duty at the southern border is quite literally, destroying innocent American lives — and has the potential to put thousands more at risk.  

The situation at the southern border has degraded for years, if not decades. Yet, it shows signs, after four years of marked improvements under President Donald Trump’s administration, of sinking into a full-blown catastrophe.  

Americans are desperate for accountability, and it may be time for Congress to employ the full weight of constitutional action against the president and appropriate officials if they will not uphold their oaths of office. 

LEAKED IMAGES SHOW BIDEN ADMIN’S PLANNED ICE ID CARD FOR ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS

Last month, it was revealed that the FBI has been attempting to track down members of a group of illegal migrants who were allowed to enter the country after requesting asylum. It was not until Department of Homeland Security (DHS) officials cleared these migrants (as is standard protocol for thousands of illegal aliens every day), that the FBI discovered the connection of an ISIS-affiliated smuggler who was facilitating these travelers’ journey into the United States.  

Mayorkas grilled by the House Judiciary Committee

Alejandro Mayorkas, secretary of the US Department of Homeland Security (DHS), speaks during a House Judiciary Committee hearing in Washington, DC, US, on Wednesday, July 26, 2023. The hearing is titled “Oversight of the US Department of Homeland Security.”  (Al Drago/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

The FBI and other officials will tell everyone that this situation is proof that the system works, and that the federal government will eventually find out who is a potential threat to this nation and track them down in the homeland.  

However, Americans who have been witnessing the breakdown of law and order at the southern border know differently. The case of this ISIS-affiliated smuggler is likely one of countless security nightmares at the border taking place every month — and the Biden administration is allowing the chaos and lawlessness to get worse, not better. 

We know from U.S. Customs and Border Protection that the border patrol has encountered 146 suspected terrorists between ports of entry at the southern border just this fiscal year alone. This number is up from 98 in Fiscal Year 2022 and 15 in Fiscal Year 2021.  

There are also thousands of aliens who are arrested by border officials every year who have criminal records from previous stays in our country. Many of these criminals have committed very serious offenses in America, and yet they migrate back to our communities. 

Lest the government again inform you that the apprehension of these suspected terrorists and criminals is Exhibit A of the system working to perfection, the number of arrests from border officials is always a fraction of the total number of individuals crossing the border. 

Since Biden took the oath of office on January 20, 2021, more than 1.5 million illegal aliens (otherwise referred to as ‘gotaways’) have escaped apprehension by law enforcement, making their way into communities across the country.  

Their identities and motives are largely unknown to everyone in our government. There could very well be terrorists, gang members and hardened criminals setting up shop in a neighborhood near you — all due to the Biden administration’s refusal to enforce the laws and secure the border. 

With facts such as these, the debate over securing our border should be largely settled. All elected officials, regardless of their party affiliation, should desire to protect their constituents and come together to do what is right for our nation’s future.  

We know from U.S. Customs and Border Protection that the border patrol has encountered 146 suspected terrorists between ports of entry at the southern border just this fiscal year alone. This number is up from 98 in Fiscal Year 2022 and 15 in Fiscal Year 2021.  

Sadly, this has not been the United States’ reality for several years. Instead of upholding their oaths of office, politicians have decided to promote radical open-borders agendas that give complete deference to cartel killers over American boys and girls.  

The time for talk is now over. It’s clear that the Biden administration will not be moved from their acquiescence of lawlessness. Members of Congress have a constitutional obligation to hold this administration accountable and to show our constituents that we will do everything in our power to protect them and their communities.  

I’ve been supportive of efforts to impeach DHS Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas. His department is at the front lines of this border crisis, and his leadership has largely contributed to the utter collapse of the rule of law at our southern border. We may not be able to immediately turn around the border crisis, but we should assign guilt appropriately to whom it is due.  

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Politics

Biden wants to destroy America’s hunting, fishing heritage to satisfy the radical left

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In just three years under President Joe Biden, our hunting-and-fishing heritage is under attack in ways we could have never thought or imagined. 

Through the weaponization of federal agencies like the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS), and even the Department of Education, the Biden administration is pandering to the anti-hunting, anti-fishing extreme flank of supporters and launching an all-out assault on our outdoors way of life. 

With the help of Biden and the federal government, activists are pulling out all stops to not only chip away at our hunting-and-fishing heritage, but to abolish it altogether.  

SINEMA JOINS GOP SENATORS ON BILL TO REVERSE BIDEN ADMIN’S CRACKDOWN ON SCHOOL HUNTING, ARCHERY CLASSES

Maintaining their promises and commitments to extreme anti-hunting, anti-gun radicals, the Biden administration last year started a process to ban lead ammunition on federal public land. Through the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, regulations were proposed that ban lead ammunition in national wildlife refuges across the country.  

father and son are hunting

President Theodore Roosevelt pioneered the North American model of conservation. Hunting and fishing remain a vital part of maintaining the outdoors. (iStock)

By all accounts, the action by the USFWS is the first step toward complete prohibition of lead ammunition and tackle on any public lands where you would hunt and fish. 

Earlier this year, the Biden administration blocked key federal funding under the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) for schools with hunting and archery programs. This federal funding cut would negatively impact millions of American students who participate in those hunting and archery programs.  

According to the National Archery in the Schools Program, 1.3 million students from 9,000 schools across 49 states are enrolled in archery courses. The number of students participating in hunter education programs in our schools is even higher.

Beholden to radical activists, Biden’s Department of Education is depriving millions of kids of longstanding educational and enrichment programs that help foster relationships with role models, build self-esteem, and develop lifelong skills that last well beyond their school years.  

In fact, according to a Forbes report, many experts are warning that defunding hunting and archery programs will contribute to the current mental health crisis. 

While some try to downplay the federal government’s anti-outdoors agenda, the threat to our hunting and fishing way of life is very real. 

It is abundantly clear that the activists who want to put an end to our outdoor heritage are determined, but they should be warned: so are we. 

We won’t take this lying down. We are resolved. And we are willing to fight. 

The Biden administration is taking the first step toward complete prohibition of lead ammunition and tackle on any public lands where you would hunt and fish. (iStock)

The International Order of T. Roosevelt is a proactive hunting-and-conservation foundation focused on protecting the rights of hunters and sustaining the North American model of wildlife conservation.  

Through our advocacy arm, T. Roosevelt Action, we are in statehouses around the country promoting the right to hunt and encouraging states to push back against this anti-hunting, anti-fishing radicalism by securing a constitutional amendment enshrining their sacred right to hunt and fish.  

Successfully establishing a right to hunt in every state will play a direct role in ensuring we can grow our sport, allow new hunters to join our ranks and protect the land that T. Roosevelt set aside for such use and charged us to use responsibly. 

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Did you know that less than half of the states in the U.S. have an explicit state constitutional right to hunt and fish? That’s right, just 23 states enjoy constitutional clarity affirming our outdoor heritage and confirming our God-given right to hunt and fish. 

T. Roosevelt Action is fighting for hunting and fishing freedom and is bound and determined to grow that number in the next couple of years. As part of that fight, we are engaging a blitz to strategically reach outdoors enthusiasts in four states, educating the public on their right to hunt and fish.  

We are working in Iowa, Ohio, Florida and South Dakota – all priority states with strong hunting-and-fishing traditions that currently lack a constitutional right to hunt and fish. 

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It was President Theodore Roosevelt who pioneered the North American model of conservation – the idea that conservation efforts are crucial to our hunting way of life, and that hunters and anglers are crucial to successful conservation. The fight against these anti-hunting and anti-fishing threats is just getting started.  

We will not allow these activists to dismantle and ultimately destroy Roosevelt’s great legacy. Join us in this fight. Stand in the arena with us and do the hard work necessary to protect your right to hunt and fish. Together, we can protect our outdoor heritage for future generations. 

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