When entrepreneur Elon Musk made headlines with his vociferous comments supporting the H-1B visa program, the ensuing debate focused on the implications of his position on immigration. 

But this debate obscured the reason America even has such a program in the first place: its homegrown students are being poorly educated in math. 

According to federal law, the H-1B program gives visas to foreigners coming to perform services "in a specialty occupation." A specialty occupation is defined as requiring "theoretical and practical application of a body of highly specialized knowledge," plus higher education requirements. 

US 'REPORT CARD' SHOWS STUDENTS HAVE FALLEN BEHIND IN READING, BARELY BUDGED IN MATH: ‘THE NEWS IS NOT GOOD’

The program is annually capped at 65,000 regular H-1B visas, with another 20,000 for those foreigners who have earned advanced degrees from U.S. universities. 

Given Musk’s vehement support of the program, it is no surprise that a federal report states that in 2023, "computer-related occupations were the largest major occupational area, accounting for 65% of all beneficiaries [of the program]." In comparison, less than 1% of H-1B visas were given to foreigners in the social sciences. 

While much of the coverage of the H-1B debate focuses on the foreign-versus-American-worker angle, the real issue regarding H-1Bs is that the U.S. is failing to produce domestic workers with the requisite math skills required by Musk’s SpaceX and other high-tech companies. 

In 2024, a shocking 72% of eighth-grade students taking the National Assessment of Educational Progress math exam failed to score at the proficient level -- a full 6% increase over the 66% of eighth graders failing to achieve proficiency in 2019.

Why are American students doing so badly in math? The answer lies in the ineffective math instruction they are receiving. 

In the early 2010s, most states adopted the Common Core national education standards, which were touted as a cure for America’s math woes. Unfortunately, Common Core turned out to be bad medicine. 

Common Core confused many students by emphasizing indirect ways to arrive at the right answer instead of just learning straightforward mathematical operations. 

For example, in multiplying numbers, children are often asked to draw pictures instead of simply memorizing the multiplication tables. 

Michael Malione, a professional math tutor in California, said that his students were instructed by their public schools to draw and shade different areas of rectangles when multiplying fractions, rather than simply multiplying the numerators and multiplying the denominators to get the correct answer. Requiring students to learn math this way is both inefficient and ineffective. 

"We’re going to draw a picture every time we’re given 10 problems with fractional multiplication, when you could do them in your head?" Malione asks. "That’s insane." 

Malione sees students "who are completely lost and they’re not getting the step-by-step guidance early on." 

Given Malione’s experience, it is unsurprising that a federally funded study found that Common Core had significant negative effects on the math achievement of eighth graders. 

College math professors are shocked at students’ poor math skills. 

One college math instructor in the Silicon Valley lamented that the lack of algebra knowledge is "the number one deficiency and its chronic." He said, "we’re not producing the kinds of students and graduates that Silicon Valley needs."

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Sugi Sorensen, a top engineer at famed Jet Propulsion Laboratory who also tutors students in math, urged a return to proven traditional math practices, which includes mastering the basic skills of addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division through "the memorization of math facts and procedures" so that students "can perform computations quickly, accurately, and effortlessly." 

Further, math topics should be sequential, "where new concepts are built upon previously learned ones in a structured, hierarchical manner," Sorensen said. 

Finally, Sorensen recommends that math operations such as long division "should be explicitly taught and practiced until mastery," with an emphasis on accuracy. 

America has nearly 50 million K-12 students. If schools use proven math instructional methods instead of failed progressive techniques, there would be less need for H-1B visas because there would be more than enough young Americans with the skills companies need. The tech titans at Trump's inauguration should lean on schools to do just that. It is time to make math great again. 

Lance Izumi is senior director of the Center for Education at the Pacific Research Institute. He is the author of the PRI book The Great Classroom Collapse: Teachers, Students, and Parents Expose the Collapse of Learning in America’s Schools. 

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With President Trump back in office, our country’s energy security will be restored with the return to commonsense energy policies. Our country can now look forward to a future where American energy is embraced and not restricted. The American people sent a clear message in November by fully supporting a pro-energy agenda and on day one, President Trump delivered by taking decisive action to return our country to being a leader in energy security.  

First, The Trump administration will expand our onshore and offshore lease sales.

By expanding our onshore and offshore lease sales, our country can once again be a leader in domestic energy production to reduce carbon emissions throughout the world and our dependence on foreign rivals and adversaries.

FORMER TRUMP CABINET MEMBERS LAUNCH GROUP TO PROMOTE PRESIDENT'S ENERGY AGENDA

Earlier this year, under the shadow of a presidential transition, President Biden made a highly political and economically dangerous move to ban offshore oil and gas production in vast swaths of the Atlantic and Pacific Ocean mere weeks before President-elect Trump takes office.

As I recently put it on Fox Business: "If it wasn’t so serious, it’d be sophomoric." In some sense, we shouldn’t be surprised: the Biden administration has from its beginning made every effort to politicize American energy production and usage and shockingly put forth the smallest lease sale in history last year.

Offshore access accounts for 14 percent of total U.S. crude oil production with a market size of $40.04 billion. Both these figures have room to grow, with some estimates suggesting that by 2032, the American offshore drilling industry could be worth nearly $75 billion: a near 90 percent increase in value in less than a decade. This would lead, of course, to an explosion in good-paying jobs from Alaska to California to Gulf states like Texas and Louisiana.

Second, as outlined in his Energy Executive Order, President Trump pledged to lift the detrimental LNG pause.

By lifting the liquefied natural gas (LNG) pause, long overdue permits will now be expedited, and the LNG industry can continue supporting thousands of American jobs and fulfill our commitment to our allies overseas.

Despite more than a decade of market evidence and independent analyses that LNG exports benefit economic and environmental security in the United States and worldwide, former Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm wrote a memo urging caution on LNG project approvals last month.

LNG facilities have brought significant economic benefits to communities nationwide, especially along the Gulf Coast. According to a recent National Association of Manufacturers report, U.S. LNG supported the creation of over 200,000 jobs in 2023 alone.

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Despite Ms. Granholm’s alarmist rhetoric, the DOE report demonstrates environmental benefits — including lower emissions — from U.S. LNG. U.S. greenhouse gas emissions are declining relative to energy produced, stating that with unfettered LNG export approvals and no added carbon capture technologies assumed (the most extreme growth scenario), emissions would rise by only 0.05% over the next 25 years.

Third and finally, President Trump’s Energy Executive Order pledged to end Biden’s unpopular EV mandates.

Consumers will now be empowered to make their own choices regarding the cars or trucks they drive, as the federal government should not be dictating Americans’ transportation needs. President Trump’s Executive Order directs federal agencies to reevaluate these policies, including tax credits for EV purchases, federal funding for charging infrastructure and regulatory incentives that encourage automakers to shift from gas-powered vehicles to electric.

On day one, the Trump administration reversed the Biden administration’s restrictive energy policies in order to unleash American energy. President Trump’s second term will no doubt follow on the huge success of his first term, reinforcing our country as the world’s top producer of oil & natural gas and the largest exporter of liquefied natural gas.

Generation Z has now come up with another new term you’ll be hearing more about, it’s called "micro-retirement." The concept of "micro-retirement" is to take time from work while you are still young, rather than deferring all your future leisure plans to the later years of life.  

Some people just call this being unemployed for a while. Others call it taking a sabbatical from work. This new trend is sweeping through Generation Z and are they on to something smart or is this going to create an even more cratering financial effect on their financial future? 

OK. I must make a confession. At 55 years old, it’s hard to get my head wrapped around needing a big ‘break from work’ in your 20s. 

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Brittney Foley, 26, is a woman who is opting for a micro-retirement. She explained that taking smaller career breaks earlier in your life is perfect when you don’t have kids as you can quite literally do whatever you want. This is assuming you can afford it. Although, with national credit card debt at a staggering $1.2 trillion and the average credit card balance soaring past $6,000, can Generation Z really afford it? 

Brittney said, "With other people my age, there’s so much pressure to chase promotion cycles and raises, and everyone is so burnt out." Burnt out? At 26? 

This generation has decided to flip the script of how they view their own financial plan, which is live for today and don’t worry about tomorrow.  

There is a much more cynical view from people in their 20s that they will be able to afford a home, retire comfortably and reap the benefits of Social Security. So, we are witnessing a counterculture of younger people turning the retirement script upside down with this idea of having three- to six-month breaks in between their next career move. 

A very close friend of mine has a daughter who left Google recently at the age of 30. She had done very well there, rising through the ranks and building an income of almost $300,000. But, feeling the passion to live for today, she quit the job and is currently living for four months in Hawaii and then off to two months in Bali before she figures out her next career move. Is this something that Boomers and Gen Xers should have done when they were younger? 

The phrase micro-retirement was first described in "The 4-Hour Workweek," a self-help and careers guidance book published by the entrepreneur Tim Ferris in 2007.  However, most young people may not fully think about the financial consequences of these mini-retirement decisions. 

Your 401k/retirement savings: For Gen Z workers, they need to look closely at the matching and profit-sharing contributions from their company. Often, these contributions made by the employer have a vesting schedule and it could be a horrific financial move to walk away from unvested money that could have a substantial impact on your retirement balances over the long haul. 

Your ability to earn the same income … or more: The strategy of micro-retirement assumes you’ll be able to re-enter the workplace quickly and at the same income or more. Part of growing your income, bonuses and potentially company stock is often tied to your tenure with a company.  

It’s unknown yet how employers will view someone who has two, three, or four breaks in their resume to micro-retire and whether they will want to hire that person knowing they could quit in a couple of years after the employer invested tons of time and money training that new employee. 

Your Social Security: While some Gen Z workers believe they will never see a dime of Social Security, it’s important to account for how a break in your income will affect your long-term Social Security. It’s likely the full retirement age for those in their 20s will be past the age of 67, but having gaps of income could make your overall Social Security lower down the road and impact your overall retirement. 

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Debt: What’s most worrisome aspect of this new trend is the debt that younger workers in America may take on to achieve a mini retirement. Most people in retirement aren’t jet-setting around the world and often these micro-retirement breaks are partnered with exotic vacations or luxury travel which could increase the debt load on younger people. 

This new trend that emerged on TikTok sees Gen Z workers from around the world vowing to take periodic breaks from the office to protect their "mental health" — despite being several decades away from the retirement age. 

On one hand, I’ve done financial plans for many people in their 40s and 50s who are seeking an early retirement to start to enjoy their hard-earned money and savings. However, many of those people often worry about running out of money, so they’ll extend the amount of time they work another five or 10 years to be sure they have enough retirement savings to do whatever they want to do in retirement. In some cases, health issues that arise like a bad knee or hip or something even more consequential may stop them from fully enjoying the assets that they have saved up. 

You could say it’s irresponsible to not focus on saving and planning for your future to just enjoy every nickel and more that you have in the bank today. 

You are not only applying a much narrower window of achieving retirement success with micro-retirement, but it could also cost America billions of dollars to take care of people who didn’t save because they wanted to spend their money today. Are you ready to bail out people for their future retirement like people got bailed out for college loans? 

So, who has it right? Those of us that toil away, max out our 401(k), pay down our house quicker and save that bucket list for when we retire? Or does Gen Z have it right with the attitude that tomorrow is never promised, who knows when we will have a COVID-19 like event again? You should just sit back, assume you’ll work forever, and soak up as much fun as you can when you are in your 20s and 30s? Time will tell if this is another fad, or it will become a staple of how people live in the future.  

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Sometimes in life, it is only once a crisis passes that we can truly see just how awful and harmful it was. This week, in these pages, Joseph Wulfsohn offered a long read, detailing the prevarications of the mainstream media in the Joe Biden era, and its complicity in the lie of the century.

You should read the whole damning thing, as only now journalists begin to admit their duplicitous role in propping up Biden. I applaud Wulfsohn for persevering. I would have thrown a coffee mug through my laptop about halfway through writing it out of sheer anger.

SHIELDING BIDEN: JOURNALISTS SHED LIGHT ON THE MEDIA'S COVER-UP OF A WEAKENED PRESIDENT

The story begins at the beginning with the cover-up of the Hunter Biden laptop, and here is what Marc Caputo, then at Politico, had to say about his coverage of the first son's crime-scene-on-a-hard-drive being quashed:

"...I wrote what would have been a classic story…That story was killed by the editors. And they gave no explanation for that either," Caputo said on the "Somebody's Gotta Win" podcast.

I’d like to offer Caputo the explanation he was denied. You see, the people who signed Caputo’s checks back then, along with 90% of corporate media, wanted Donald Trump to lose and Biden to win. If that meant killing true stories and smearing honest journalists then so be it.

And it wasn’t just Politico burying the laptop. Wulfsohn has the receipts and shows that Jake Tapper and Brian Seltzer, who both still pontificate from CNN daily, also hid the story, as did NPR, and almost every major newspaper in the country that isn’t called the New York Post.

As bad as the lies surrounding the laptop were, they paled in comparison to what would come next, an all-out, no-holds barred effort by the liberal media to conceal Biden’s obvious and dangerous mental decline. 

Just weeks before Biden’s disastrous debate performance, NBC News was warning its viewers not to believe their lying eyes about Grandpa Joe’s decline, writing, "Experts have warned that while advanced technology like generative artificial intelligence can spread misinformation, so-called ‘cheap fakes’ that often use only minor or selective editing can be more effective at spreading false narratives."

Never forget that they really tried to pull this on you.

And do not accept the Johnny-Come-Lately excuses we now hear from the exposed liars in the news media, such as the Manchester Guardian’s David Smith, who said recently, "There was perhaps, even on an unconscious level, the notion that if you focus so much on Joe Biden's age, you are somehow helping Donald Trump." 

An unconscious level? What the hell does this even mean? Biden would regularly stumble around a stage shaking hands with the air and all the liberal reporters in the country just couldn’t see it because they had some Freudian mind block, or something?

Here is how The New York Times’ Peter Baker addressed the lies about Biden fitness: "It's very personal. Anybody who's had a father or mother who is aged, and you talk to them by taking away their keys, these are not easy issues…I can sit down and make the case that we did too little about it. I can make the case we did too much. I can play it either way. But the truth is, it's an important issue."

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This so-called journalist claims he can make the case that too much was made of Biden’s age in the media. It is abject madness, and it is infuriating, because it shows that they have learned absolutely nothing, and they plan to continue with their lies.

Hiding Biden’s infirmity, the fact that he was by no means actually in charge of the country, is the lie of the century. Every journalist who perpetuated it through their dishonesty or negligence should never work in the industry again.

The liberal news media, which is the vast majority of the nation’s news media, didn't just get the laptop story wrong or simply miss the signs of Biden’s decline. They intentionally misled the American people in a desperate, dishonest, and thankfully failed, effort to defeat Trump. 

That is not forgivable.

Sadly, these Democratic Party propaganda machines posing as news outlets still have no shame or self awareness, and show no signs of righting their sinking ships. But the good news is that Americans are hip to the lies now, almost laughably so.

The liberal media can continue fooling itself, giving each other awards, talking gravely about the importance of truth in the age of Trump. But they themselves are the biggest liars of that age and now the American people, thanks in part to real journalists like Joseph Wulfsohn, damn well know it.

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This summer, our beleaguered big screens will welcome the return of America’s most famous illegal alien: Superman. This much needed reboot comes as President Trump, who earned my vocal support, is rebooting our country’s immigration policy and culture more broadly. 

The changing story of our first superhero offers a mythological mirror on the challenges we’re confronting as a nation, from without and within. What should it mean to be and become an American? How do we see ourselves, as heroic or villainous? And how might we forge a new way forward? I have a few ideas plucked straight from the political forbidden zone. 

Post-Truth, Social Justice, and the Anti-American Way 

Baby Clark Kent crash-landed in America during our last major wave of immigration in the 1920s and 30s. And like so many new Americans, including my own Italian great-grandparents, he embraced his new home with gusto, coming to our defense against the Nazis and then the Communists. His motto reflects our highest values: Truth, Justice, and the American Way… at least it used to. 

U.S IMMIGRATION WEBSITE STOPS ACCEPTING APPLICANTS FOR BIDEN PROGRAM IN TRUMP CRACKDOWN

The last part of our famous Kryptonian-American’s super-slogan, "the American Way," fell out of favor in recent decades with the rise of anti-heroism and so-called "critical social justice." Academia, entertainment, and the news media made it their full-time jobs for decades to portray America and our history as the world’s greatest supervillain.

Every aspect of American culture has been under siege. Our kids are now taught that our real birth as a nation wasn’t 1776 with the Declaration of Independence, but 1619 with the arrival of the first slaves in an effort to portray a previously universal, and despicable, practice as uniquely American. So much for "truth".

Having defeated the Nazis and the Soviets in wars both hot and cold, most on the left and even some on the right now see the US as a too-often belligerent force on the world stage. Even Superman himself, in Frank Miller’s bold and bleak 1986 graphic novels, was reduced to a cynical super-weapon of the military industrial complex, destined for defeat by the Dark Knight. Justice died in darkness too. 

Our world-leading economic growth is decried as a scourge on the planet, producing a "climate crisis" that threatens to extinguish all mankind. Make that personkind, since the basic definitions of man and woman have come under assault, and with them, our kids mental health and future fertility much to the convenient satisfaction of those same climate alarmists. 

And finally, pulling a page from the 2000 Superman comics, we’re told that Donald Trump is our real life Lex Luthor, a corrupt billionaire fascist supervillain turned-president. 

It should come as no surprise that poll after poll has found that patriotism, especially among young Americans, has completely collapsed. Axios found that only 18% of 18-34-year-olds are "extremely proud" to be American. That’s down from 85% in 2013 before the woke reign of terror ramped up. A 67% drop! That same timeframe has also seen a complete collapse in perceived race relations in America, for similar, and similarly fraudulent reasons.

One of the ironies of our modern era is that as our elite has poisoned our patriotism at home, we’ve also seen more people flood INTO this country from abroad than ever before in our history! While blue-haired banshees on TikTok and silly "studies" professors bash America at every turn, millions of poor and huddled masses, (mostly) yearning to be free, have flooded into our alleged hell-hole. It’s a stark reminder that while we’re building a wall to keep people out, actually hellish countries wrecked by communism and its various "progressive" cousins have historically had to build walls to keep their own people IN.

And so, here we are as Americans, just like Superman at the start of his newest big screen trailer: face-down in the snow, beaten, and bloodied.

A Dark Night for America

"Make America Great Again" resonates with voters because so many Americans believe that our country is no longer great. Too many think we never were. Let’s be clear: our country DOES face a flood of very real problems, each one is impacted by immigration, though the outcomes are subject to good-faith disagreement. 

Last fall, I quixotically released a Hamilton-style musical, Battle of the Borders, that brought all of these issues on both sides and more to life with the production value of a summer superhero blockbuster. In working through the details of the immigration debate, I found my own views shifting, though I remain more pro-immigration than many of my fellow Trumpian travelers. 

Millions of working-age men have left the labor force even as some measures suggest that a majority of new jobs have gone to immigrants. Yet many (maybe most) economists agree that immigration is a net contributor to growth and a powerful tool for countering inflation. 

Crime is up across the country, yet some statistics suggest that immigrants, including illegals, commit less crime than native-born citizens. That’s cold comfort to the victims of violent illegal gang violence. And how much should anyone trust these government statistics in the first place, given recent FBI revisionism? 

Our opioid epidemic is a humanitarian disaster destroying millions of lives and flooding our streets with the desperate and homeless. But a big beautiful wall on our southern border won’t change the demand-side of the equation. Plus, our nation’s history of alcohol prohibition has lessons we shouldn’t be so quick to forget. 

Meanwhile, cities across the country have seen their schools, hospitals, and shelters pushed beyond capacity by the Biden-era wave of illegal mass migration. Remember, our last big wave of immigration, when Kal-El first arrived in Kansas, took place before the dawn of the progressive welfare state.

When even the Democrat mayor of Gotham City, Eric Adams, is warning that migrants will destroy the city, we should probably take notice. 

Our Complicated Culture Matters Most

None of the immigration-related issues we face cut as deep for the future of America as our changing culture, which as Andrew Breitbard noted is upstream of politics and policy. And this is where my friends on the right proclaiming "culture matters" need to clarify: which culture? 

Buchanan-style populists like to point to our white, Western European history as a guide for our future. But that Europe is a distant memory. A look at the beliefs of our mostly-white, politically engaged elite should give every patriot serious pause. I’m afraid the W in WASP now stands for "woke". 

Consider that it mostly wasn’t Latin American immigrants who tore down statues of Abraham Lincoln during the BLM riots in 2020 or dressed a George Washington statue up as a Hamas fighter in 2023. Those were our native-born and bred, college-indoctrinated kids who did that! While they were burning American cities after their Starbucks shifts, 55% of Latino men were busy voting to re-elect Mr. MAGA himself.

Mindset matters more than skin color or country of origin. 

Put bluntly, I’d gladly welcome two hard-working new Americans from Mexico in exchange for every one native-born America-hating gender studies graduate from Harvard. I’ll welcome ten more graduates from Guatemala’s Universidad Francisco Marroquín before considering a single censorious, terror-sympathetic Oxford Anglo. 

My point here is simple. We shouldn’t expect newcomers to assimilate into America and WANT to be American… if our native culture despises our country! The woke warriors have told us and our kids that we should hate America. Their nihilistic cries for "land back" and "reparations" might as well say: come on in and strip us for parts! We deserve it! 

What a self-defeating mantra for newcomers to embrace! If that is our "way", we won’t be a country for much longer. Luckily, that tide is finally turning, if slowly.

A New American Way on Immigration 

Most people, including President Trump, believe we need continued immigration into America. Immigration in general has historically been good for our country and still can be. But the past four years of black market open borders through willfully neglecting the law was never tenable or just. 

Biden and Harris encouraged millions of people to skip the line, come to America through the back door, and remain in the shadows with an unstable and uncertain future. And they’ve let thousands of seriously "bad hombres" in along the way. That’s a supervillain move if I’ve ever seen one, complete with Joker-style laughter.

Protecting our citizens and sovereignty is the most basic function of government. I support President Trump’s efforts to restore the rule of law at our borders. I also hope that success in that effort will lay the foundation for a more honest debate over the legal path for future American immigrants. That will involve making political compromises in an era of polarization. 

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So here’s a potential policy compromise to consider: let’s prioritize more and easier permanent legal residency and in exchange, tightly restrict full citizenship and voting rights to natural-born Americans alone, along with universal voter ID like every other major civilized nation with same day vote counts. 

While restricting the franchise to natural-born citizens may be political Kryptonite, it would help depoliticize immigration by eliminating migrants as a voting bloc up for grabs. No more Tammany hall style vote-buying by left-wingers or reactionary right-wing restrictions for fear of an imported electorate! And besides, why should any newcomer get to change the rules of the game they just joined? If you don’t like our rules, don’t come to play.

One thing is crystal clear: the immigration debate is fundamentally a debate about the future of American culture. Who are we, as a nation? Which values should we cherish, promote, and expect newcomers to assimilate in to? What is "The American Way"? We shouldn’t just drop that from our super slogan. We need it and need it well-defined. 

We don’t need to reinvent this wheel. America’s creed is the best of Western Civilization: Freedom. Individual responsibility. Religious liberty, rooted in Judeo-Christian values. Opportunity. Identity-blind equality under the law. Local authority. Voluntary association. 

This is what Truth, Justice, and the American Way means to me. This is what newcomers should be expected to embrace. And here’s hoping that, like Superman, it’s about to make a comeback.

When I think of the farmers I grew up around, I think of resilience and stewardship. These are people who rise before the sun, work tirelessly to feed not only their families but all of us and endure hardships most of us cannot imagine. Yet the headlines about America’s farming recession remind us of just how much they shoulder — and how little recognition they often receive. 

As an actor, recognition finds you whether you want it or not. While the work is meaningful, it can pale compared to the daily hours, grit and commitment farming families dedicate daily. There is no craft services table waiting for them — they are feeding everyone else.  

Farming is not just a job — it is a calling. Theirs is often an unnoticed sacrifice, from the long hours and rising costs to the unpredictable weather and policy challenges. A single bag of corn seed now costs $230, nearly double the price of a few years ago. Combine that with declining crop prices, and farmers must navigate a system stacked against them. Yet they persevere because their work feeds millions and sustains communities. 

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My great-grandfather, Gulbrand Nelson, left Norway to settle in Wisconsin before moving to South Dakota, where our family farm still stands today. That upbringing instilled in me the importance of values, tradition and faith — ideals I see fading as time passes. If we let them fade long enough, they will vanish. 

I’ve been blessed in my career with the ability to do things I believe in. At this stage in my life, it has become all the more important to work on projects that matter to me and the legacy I will leave to my children, grandchildren and those who have entrusted me with their viewing time over the years.  

My family's heritage inspired me to take on one such project called "Green and Gold," a film that reflects the spirit of farming families and their struggles today. The project embodies what I value most: resilience, stewardship, and legacy. It is a tribute to the farmers who quietly hold our country together. 

Growing up near farming communities, I saw firsthand what that perseverance looks like: long days in the fields, families working through mechanical failures or harsh weather, and a deep-rooted pride in their labor. Those experiences shaped my values and the stories I want to tell. 

When I was offered the opportunity to be part of "Green and Gold," I knew it was more than a role — it was a chance to honor the legacy of farming families. The film highlights their resilience and quiet strength, reminding us of their vital contributions to our country. 

Farmers are America's backbone. Their stewardship of the land reflects faith, responsibility and commitment to something greater than themselves. Yet, they are often left to face economic and policy challenges alone. This farming recession is not just a farming issue but a national one. Rural communities are struggling, and the ripple effects will touch us all. We must do more than recognize farmers in times of crisis. We must advocate for policies that support them, invest in rural infrastructure, and champion their contributions to our everyday lives.  

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Beyond the economic struggles, farming takes an emotional toll. In conversations with farmers, while preparing for "Green and Gold," I heard pride in their work and concern about the future. Who will carry on their legacy? Will their children want to inherit the struggles that come with it? These are not just questions — they are the realities shaping rural America today. 

We owe so much to our farmers. They feed us, clothe us and sustain our economy. Their work is woven into the fabric of our history, yet their voices are often absent from national conversations. By telling their stories — on screen and off — we can honor their contributions and address their challenges. 

Take a moment to reflect on the farmers behind the meals you eat and the clothes you wear. Support your local farmers’ markets, advocate for policies that uplift them, and express gratitude for their tireless work. 

I have walked down many red carpets in my career, surrounded by accolades and recognition. Yet, may these words, in even the smallest way, serve as an amber wave of gratitude to honor farming families across our great land. 

Thank you, farmers. 

Washington Capitals and NHL superstar Alex Ovechkin is on the cusp of breaking a scoring record many believed would never be broken: the 894 goals scored by Wayne Gretzky over his illustrious career.

As of this writing, Ovechkin sits at 875 goals. Only he, Gretzky and Gordie Howe are members of the 800-goal club. With only 30 games left in the season – he missed 15 games this year with injuries – it will be tough, but not impossible to eclipse Gretzky’s record this year.  

That said, if he does not, there is not a person in hockey who does not believe Ovechkin will break the record early next year and go on to score over 900 goals. A record I predict will never be broken.

Ovechkin is a phenom; the human equivalent of a brick wall at 6-foot-3 and 240 pounds; and arguably one of the top five players ever to skate in the NHL. The other four in my opinion are Gretzky, Howe, Bobby Orr and Mario Lemieux.

INSIDE PUTIN’S MINDSET: WHAT TEAM TRUMP CAN EXPECT FROM MOSCOW WHEN NEGOTIATING OPTIONS ON RUSSIA-UKRAINE WAR

Ovechkin also has that elusive "It Factor," which has made him world famous. Most especially in his native Russia.

Way back in the day as a teenager, I had a dream to play in the NHL. I was fortunate enough to get invited to one NHL camp and several minor league camps. Only a complete lack of talent and a knee injury kept me from realizing that dream. But it was the love of hockey that inspired me to follow the truly amazing career of Ovechkin. 

Years later, I executed a 180 away from sports and somehow ended up as a writer in the White House for two presidents, an official at the Pentagon, director of communications for former Sen. Bob Dole, a vice president of a well-known government relations firm, and a principal at the then largest law firm in the world, where I specialized in politics and government relations.  

TRUMP CALLS ON PUTIN TO MAKE A DEAL, END ITS WAR AGAINST UKRAINE OR FACE MORE ECONOMIC PRESSURE

And it is because of that background, that I have been viewing Ovechkin through a totally different prism. 

Anyone who has remotely followed the life and career of Ovechkin knows that he is a man of character. He is renowned for being a great husband, father, friend, teammate, and a giving philanthropist. 

He is also renowned for loving his native Russia and her people. As he should.

Today – quite sadly – we live in a very polarized country and world where far too many people operate from personal and ideological silos separated from all others. As one who has worked in politics at a fairly high level, I will confess to not being a fan of either political party.  

PRO-RUSSIA, PRO-CHINA RADICALS MARCH AGAINST TRUMP: ‘PROUD TO IDENTIFY AS A SOCIALIST’

My "Party" for the last 15 years or so has been the "commonsense" Party. I strongly believe it is in the best interest of all of us to speak to each other in a civil manner while seeking out shared interests and solutions.

Over the last three years, one of the subjects that has become politicized and polarized is the war in Ukraine. This is not the forum to have a back and forth on that subject. That acknowledged, I will venture to say that we as a people and as a nation must make it clear that the people of Russia are not our enemy. Unfortunately, over the last three years, we have witnessed a number of athletes from Russia treated as the "enemy" by some.

Because of the war in Ukraine, some have chosen to rhetorically attack Ovechkin for his friendship with Vladimir Putin. While it’s always easy – especially in the age of social media – to attack someone on the floor of the "arena" from the peanut gallery in the stands or from 30,000 feet up, it’s also almost impossible to know the facts, the history, or someone’s heart from that distance.

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Judgments of Putin aside, I find it admirable that Ovechkin – while making it clear multiple times that while he is not political, he does love his country and does not want to see war between Russia and Ukraine – has refused to walk away from his friendship with the Russian president.

And like it or not, it is that decision, along with his fame, charisma and personal generosity, which have made Ovechkin a beloved figure in Russia.  

Today, as I operate from under my political hat, I am always scoping the landscape to assess who might be the best candidate for the Democrats and the Republicans come 2028. JD Vance for the Republicans. No idea for the splintered Democrats. 

It is from under that same hat that I look at the landscape of Russia with the understanding that at some point, Putin will stand aside. And then what? Who might fill such a tremendous vacuum?

As someone who does have a fairly deep understanding of politics, all I can say is that Alexander Ovechkin checks a great many boxes. Never say "never."

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Fresh from bringing us stories like "Hailey Bieber Is Reviving the Pantless Trend in 2025" and "Let a Pair of Zany Sunglasses Revive Your Winter Style," Vogue writer Hannah Jackson decided to rip into First Lady Melania Trump’s official White House portrait.   

"The choice to wear a tuxedo—as opposed to a blazer or blouse—made Trump look more like a freelance magician than a public servant. It’s perhaps unsurprising that a woman who lived in a gold-encrusted penthouse, whose fame is so intertwined with a reality-television empire, would refuse to abandon theatrics—even when faced with 248 years of tradition."  

The problem for Jackson is that the rest of us have eyes. Melania Trump looked incredible in her portrait. Her outfit rang business with a feminine touch. This isn’t the same woman we knew during the first Donald Trump administration. She has a look of resolve in her eyes that she didn’t before. She has seen how nasty people can be, and she’s ready to take them all on. She will look beautiful doing it. 

TRUMP FAMILY DYNASTY BRINGS ROYAL FLAIR TO WHITE HOUSE

Vogue and its staff didn’t seem to mind the collapse of 248 years of tradition during the last administration while the president pardoned his family and his staff covered up that he was mentally incapacitated. But a tuxedo jacket they simply cannot abide! 

It’s not because Vogue doesn’t cover non-fashion issues either. In 2020, they had pieces sympathetic to defunding the police and in summer of 2024, they featured First Lady Jill Biden on their cover, shortly after President Joe Biden’s disastrous debate that ended his candidacy, and fawning over Jill Biden when she was getting massive criticism for celebrating his debate performance.  

There’s no denying that Melania is a fashion icon, but in this populist moment she is that specifically for the people. When she wore skinny jeans and a beanie on day two of the new Trump administration, the internet exploded with joy that skinny jeans were officially back. She sets trends and Vogue can’t stand it.  

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Vogue’s outburst is particularly because they’ve lost so much influence. Their echo chamber conversations about fashion don’t resonate with the rest of us. Who is wearing the absurd looks on their pages? No one. But skinny jeans and a beanie we understand, and Melania’s outfits are both glamorous and accessible. Vogue hates that. The whole point of their fashion world is to leave people out. Who wants the masses wearing the wildly expensive and weird clothing they promote? They certainly don’t. 

During the first Trump administration, Vogue was criticized for never putting Melania Trump, or Trump’s daughter Ivanka Trump, who was then in the administration, on its cover. The former model would have been a natural choice, but Vogue magazine is home of the ultimate mean girls, and they like it that way. Anyone who doesn’t agree with their liberal politics is out, of course. You have to march in lockstep, or you don’t get in the club. They wear pink on Wednesdays and no, you can’t sit with them.  

But things have changed and now no one wants into their club. They’ve lost influence and they know it. It’s a different time and the people who have spent the last four years bullying others into using specific language or having just the right positions are no longer in charge. 

A different Vogue writer, Christian Allaire, spent time attacking Ivanka, who is not in this administration, for her inauguration ball gown, saying "Given politicians often embed their outfits with powerful or meaningful choices—see Dr. Jill Biden’s patriotic wardrobe in shades of red, white, and blue—Trump’s wardrobe appears to be built on artifice and aesthetics instead." The most artificial and aesthetically obsessed magazine in the world should really think twice about criticizing "artifice" in others.  

Things have changed in America since 2016, but Vogue hasn’t gotten the memo. Jackson added that "Melania Trump still struggles with sartorial messaging." The rest of us get her message loud and clear. Only Vogue is struggling to understand. 

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On Sunday, President Donald Trump whipped Colombian President Gustavo Petro into compliance by threatening 25% tariffs on Colombian goods and other economic measures for refusing to accept a U.S. military aircraft carrying illegal migrants whom Trump wanted deported back to Colombia. 

The Colombia case provides a glimpse into Trump’s mindset and how he will conduct his foreign policy from now on.

Economic warfare and "disabuse others from being tempted" will be the key tenets of Trump’s playbook for his foreign policy during his second term. And that is a stark difference from the foreign policy approach used by the Biden-Harris team and other previous administrations.

INSIDE PUTIN’S MINDSET: WHAT TEAM TRUMP CAN EXPECT FROM MOSCOW WHEN NEGOTIATING OPTIONS ON RUSSIA-UKRAINE WAR

Traditionally, before Trump, Washington has relied on ideology, appeasement, foreign aid and thoughtless use of military power when it came to international relations. This misguided albeit bipartisan approach that guided U.S. statecraft for more than a quarter of a century has made America poorer, less safe and disrespected on the world stage. Moreover, it destabilized some parts of the world, such as the Middle East.

Gone are the days when American servicemen and women will be casually deployed to democratize every nook and cranny of the world and giving their lives for someone else’s freedom. The ultimate realpolitik-minded statesman, Trump adheres to the "respect equals fear" philosophy underpinned by a purely transactional approach. The Donald is not afraid of being perceived as a bully. He seems to prefer it.

Beware Vladimir Putin, Xi Jinping, the "Rocketman" and the ayatollahs. 

To understand Trump’s "disabuse others from being tempted" doctrine, let’s take a look at Russian Czar Peter the Great, who in 1718 tortured to death his own son for allegedly conspiring against him. Seeking to modernize Russia into a European country, Peter in 1698 introduced a tax on beards, to make Russian men look and act more like Westerners. 

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The Russian authoritarian, who ruled Russia from 1696 until his death in 1725, also issued a series of imperial edicts, which mandated capital punishment conducted publicly for certain crimes, to deter criminal acts. The edict on trade mandated that "one merchant is hanged each year to disabuse others from being tempted." "Trade [in fish, sugar, and gold] is an affair of thieves," was the justification used in the decree, implying that everyone involved in trade was a thief, so to reduce theft, others must be deterred by punishing someone publicly.

By executive order, Trump has already put all foreign aid on hold, worldwide, including to Ukraine. Only Israel and Egypt were exempted. He threatened tariffs on China, insisted on buying Greenland, suggested making Canada the 51st state, and told Putin to end his "ridiculous" war in Ukraine or face more sanctions. The bombastic commander in chief warned Hamas and implicitly its backer Iran that "all hell will break loose" if the hostages in Gaza are not released.

All of this rhetoric is intended to unbalance our enemies and make clear that America is serious about its own security and prosperity first. It will no longer lecture Putin how to treat Russians or Xi Jinping how to govern China. But it will unleash the full force of economic warfare, if they don’t fall in compliance.

Trump is also signaling to U.S. partners, such as some NATO members who haven’t fully paid their membership dues, that America will no longer be taken advantage of. He will likely enforce his request that NATO dues are raised to 5% of GDP instead of 2%.

Trump is thinking big. He wants to transform the way America conducts its foreign affairs and even military strategy. Thinking is Trump’s lifelong credo. "I like thinking big, I always have. To me, it’s very simple. If you’re going to be thinking anyway, you might as well think big," he declared in 1987, well before entering politics, when promoting his book "The Art of the Deal."

What kind of deal Trump will be able to make depends on how well Trump and his team understand how Putin, Xi and the ayatollahs think and what drives them. For most of them, their national interest, goals and ambitions surpass economic concerns. Let’s hope that Team Trump understands how these foreign leaders and their people think. They don’t think like Americans.

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On President Donald Trump’s first day back in office, he signed an executive order entitled "Ending the Weaponization of the Federal Government," responding to the Biden administration’s lawfare against him. Democrats still harshly criticize that E.O.

On Nov. 15, 2022, former President Donald Trump announced that he again was running for president. On Nov. 18, Attorney General Merrick Garland appointed Jack Smith as special counsel to investigate and prosecute Trump, a historical first because prosecuting a former president and the leading presidential candidate of the major opposition political party shattered two centuries of legal norms and tradition. 

Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, recently said that Biden’s "Justice Department’s infected with political decision-making, while its leaders refuse to acknowledge that reality."

Trump consistently and correctly criticized the Biden administration’s politicization and weaponization of government. He must now fundamentally choose whether to allow the Democrats’ wrongful lawfare against him to naturally end.

SHOULD PROSECUTORS BE PROSECUTED FOR THEIR LAWFARE CAMPAIGN AGAINST TRUMP?

Unfortunately, the Biden administration’s last-minute machinations, such as politicized special counsel reports and Biden’s blanket pardons for his family, friends and political allies, signal that Democrats likely will not stop lawfare and weaponization until they are turned against them. 

Biden’s statement accompanying his pardons showed that he knew lawfare was wrong: "baseless and politically motivated investigations wreak havoc on the lives, safety and financial security of targeted individuals and their families… being investigated or prosecuted can irreparably damage their reputations and finances."

If Democrats disavowed lawfare and committed to never doing it again, Biden’s last-minute pardons would have been unnecessary. Instead, they indicate that Democrats still want lawfare, expect tit-for-tat Republican-led investigations of Democrats, and anticipate that Trump perhaps will pardon his family, appointees and political supporters when he leaves office.

NEW YORK LEGAL LAWFARE CIRCUS AGAINST TRUMP IS CONSTITUTIONAL THREAT THAT MUST BE DISMISSED

Democrats recently signaled their commitment to lawfare when they attacked Pam Bondi during her confirmation hearings about "future weaponization" at DOJ. They intend to do the same at Kash Patel’s upcoming hearings for FBI director. 

Their questions followed Special Counsel Jack Smith’s pointless report, where he inaptly claimed that he would have convicted Trump for J6 but for the 2024 election. Smith is wrong because he ignored the Supreme Court’s Trump immunity case and cases such as Fischer, McDonnell, and Yates, all of which stripped away the heart of Smith’s charges. Ironically, Smith was the lead prosecutor in McDonnell; the Supreme Court ruled against him, 9-0.

Furthermore, Smith’s report futilely cited the Trump dissenting opinions and the lower courts’ denials of presidential immunity, even though the Supreme Court rejected them; this reveals Smith’s bias and poor legal judgment. 

THE PUBLIC REJECTED LAWFARE WHEN THEY RE-ELECTED TRUMP

Smith’s report implied that the Supreme Court was wrong: "no court had ever found that presidents are immune from criminal responsibility for their official acts, and no text in the Constitution explicitly confers such criminal immunity on the President." The Supreme Court, however, never before had to rule on presidential immunity because no DOJ ever prosecuted a former president.

Perhaps Smith takes comfort from legacy media outlets which supported him. For example, The Washington Post noted that Smith’s report "seems to make a point to offer a subtle but pretty unmistakable rebuke of the Supreme Court and its role in sparing Trump a possible conviction."  Smith’s duty as a special counsel, however, is to obey the Supreme Court, not ignore or "rebuke" it.

Customarily, special counsel reports are dry, boring, factual documents.  Smith filled his with politically tinged allegations that he cribbed from his indictments and the congressional J6 committee. 

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He so strenuously claimed that he and his office were "unbiased," "neutral," and "professional" such that he "doth protest too much, methinks" as per Shakespeare’s "Hamlet," Act 3, Scene 2. No previous special counsel felt the need to repeatedly declare his own fairness and disinterest; none ever prosecuted a former president and the leading candidate of the main opposition party.

Worse, Smith dropped an "October Surprise" when he filed a huge J6 court brief shortly before Election Day, one-sidedly reciting unflattering allegations against Trump. It wrongly claimed, among other things, that Trump directed "an angry mob to the United States Capitol to obstruct the congressional certification of the presidential election and then leverage rioters’ violence to further delay it" and that Trump "resorted to crimes."

Smith violated DOJ’s internal rules, which state that federal prosecutors "may never select the timing of any action, including investigative steps, criminal charges, or statements, for the purpose of affecting any election or for the purpose of giving an advantage or disadvantage to any candidate or political party." 

It appears that Pam Bondi will be confirmed as attorney general. She and President Trump can right our DOJ and criminal justice system, but only if the Democrats admit that their lawfare and weaponizing the government were wrong and backfired on them. 

Sadly, it may be that Democrats have to be shown that investigations and prosecutions can descend on them just as easily as they did on Republicans in order to drive a stake into lawfare’s heart.

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The views expressed in this article are the writers' own.

After the disastrous foreign affairs failures of the Biden administration, many Americans were left wondering how a Trump administration could possibly correct course. Well, it’s finally Trump time, so here’s what one should expect.

In many ways, today’s Donald Trump resembles the one we saw in 2016. Now, as then, Trump is neither an isolationist nor an imperialist; rather, he pursues an America-first policy tempered by realism and the understanding that sometimes one must break a few eggs to make an omelet.

Similarities aside, though, the Trump of 2025 is not the same as the Trump of 2016. Today’s Trump is one of the most battle-tested leaders on the world stage, and he’s bringing that experience to bear on changing world circumstances.

While America faces the same enemies – Russia, Iran and China – those enemies are weaker than ever because of their own reckless imperial overreach. Moscow struggles to make headway on its fronts in Ukraine and beyond, Iran is stuck watching Israel take down its minions, and China faces economic woes and a tarnished global brand.

TRUMP'S TRIUMPH: FIRST WEEK PROVES PRESIDENT RIGHT IN ALL THESE WAYS

All this weakness gives Trump space to accomplish his foreign policy agenda.

First on the table is killing the Green New Deal – a completely unrealistic, unachievable policy that only benefited America’s enemies. While Iran and Russia sold fossil fuels and China bought them at cut-rate prices (and cornered the market on the sale of green technologies), the rest of the world was heading for energy poverty.

Trump plans to change all that by heading up a global campaign for reliable, affordable, abundant energy. In declaring a national energy emergency, he paved the way for America to unleash its vast oil supply more cheaply and efficiently than ever – a policy that will enable the U.S. to compete in and transform the global energy market.  

Next, Trump will restore the long-standing American tradition of peace through strength. He’s already instructed his new secretary of Defense to this end, ordering him to implement more bayonet drills and fewer drag shows. He’s warned America’s enemies to stop warmongering or risk facing consequences for their actions.

HERE'S HOW REPUBLICANS SHOULD FOLLOW THROUGH WITH THEIR TOUGH TALK ON IMMIGRATION

Even before taking office, Trump’s team helped negotiate a ceasefire agreement between Hamas and Israel. Now he’s working to secure a similar peace deal between Russia and Ukraine.

Trump believes in putting America first, and he knows that wars (in addition to the harm they cause to innocents) are bad for business – and that means they must stop.

Similarly, Trump is putting an end to America’s endless bankrolling of other countries, demanding instead that those countries step up and start pulling their own weight. He’s informed NATO members that they need to start contributing 5% of their GDP to national defense instead of relying on the U.S. to take care of them.

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Instead of throwing taxpayer money around, Trump says it’s time to start throwing America’s weight around. That means no more underwriting the U.N.’s globalist agenda – unless, of course, it’s in America’s best interests to do so.

Nor does Trump plan to continue allowing weaknesses and backdoors in America’s own backyard. Trump’s "new Monroe Doctrine" isn’t about establishing American imperialism, but rather about ensuring American safety.

Trump seeks to secure strategic waypoints like Greenland, encourage Canada to defend the Free North, and prevent China from obtaining control of the Panama Canal. That’s not building a wall around America – it’s mowing the grass and trimming the hedges.

Finally, Trump plans to put American growth first. That means tax cuts for American workers, tariffs for American enemies, and encouragement for American allies to invest in the American economy. He’s already announced significant Saudi investment in the United States (to the tune of $600 billion), and the pressure’s on for other allies to follow suit.

All told, Trump’s foreign policy sends the message that America’s back and better than ever. Friends should step up, and enemies should watch out.

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The Congress needs new revenue in order to pass a budget and unlock the reconciliation process—whether in "one big beautiful bill" or two—if it is going to accomplish President Trump’s agenda without bleeding massive and ongoing amounts of deficit spending.

The national debt is currently more than $36 trillion. We pay interest on that debt, an expenditure which is growing rapidly. And we need to pay that debt down not raise it with higher debt service. We also need new expenditures—a massive increase in procurement in the Department of Defense for example—expenditures that, if not at least partially offset by cuts to ongoing spending or new revenue, will see the debt cross $40 trillion in the president’s second term. Here are four suggestions for the GOP budgeteers:

1. Americans are thrifty. They have socked away more than $37 trillion in retirement savings in 401(k) plans and traditional IRAs. Those savings have never been taxed. They will be taxed upon withdrawal. Most savers don’t want to withdraw that money until they retire and their tax bracket drops. In fact, a lot of that will be never be withdrawn by the folks who saved it but will be passed on to heirs. So, Congress, open a one time window that allows those savers to convert those funds to Roth IRAs for a one-time flat tax of say 10% or 15% or whatever yields the present value of the deferred taxation. Get the money now for use in the budget/reconciliation process.

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2. Sell federal land and federal spectrum rights. Credit to AEI’s Matt Continetti for this suggestion. The U.S. has a lot of land and a lot of spectrum. Auction some of it. Maybe a lot of it. That will increase productivity in the country and bring in revenue.

TRUMP ADMIN TO PAUSE GRANTS, FEDERAL ASSISTANCE PROGRAMS FOLLOWING EXECUTIVE ORDERS

3. Make so-called "sin taxes" great again. In recent years, many states have legalized both marijuana and online gambling. Those are facts. They are stubborn. They were both bad policy choices, but states have the police power unless preempted by federal legislation. The Congress has no stomach for outlawing either industry, so impose a federal tax on every sale of a marijuana-related product and on every single gambling transaction over the internet. Preempt the states’ revenue streams and put the first dollars of the taxes on those activities into the federal treasury and perhaps the states will rethink these bad ideas. If not, at least the malign developments of dope and betting will help the country as a whole pay for the negative externalities of both and with the debt and deficit.

4. Enact in the new budget a 10 percent "reduction-in-force" of the federal civilian workforce and make that authorization "notwithstanding any other law or regulation." Congress built the beast of the federal administrative state. It can authorize the president to take an ax to it—no questions asked. Every business in America knows that when the books don’t balance, the workforce gets trimmed. Time for the federal government to do the same thing, difficult as it is for the employees affected.

There are four sources of new revenue to use in the first new budget. They alone will yield trillions in one-time revenue and billions in ongoing revenue without raising income taxes. C’mon Congress. Get creative.

Hugh Hewitt is host of "The Hugh Hewitt Show," heard weekday mornings 6am to 9am ET on the Salem Radio Network, and simulcast on Salem News Channel. Hugh wakes up America on over 400 affiliates nationwide, and on all the streaming platforms where SNC can be seen. He is a frequent guest on the Fox News Channel’s news roundtable hosted by Bret Baier weekdays at 6pm ET. A son of Ohio and a graduate of Harvard College and the University of Michigan Law School, Hewitt has been a Professor of Law at Chapman University’s Fowler School of Law since 1996 where he teaches Constitutional Law. Hewitt launched his eponymous radio show from Los Angeles in 1990.  Hewitt has frequently appeared on every major national news television network, hosted television shows for PBS and MSNBC, written for every major American paper, has authored a dozen books and moderated a score of Republican candidate debates, most recently the November 2023 Republican presidential debate in Miami and four Republican presidential debates in the 2015-16 cycle. Hewitt focuses his radio show and his column on the Constitution, national security, American politics and the Cleveland Browns and Guardians. Hewitt has interviewed tens of thousands of guests from Democrats Hillary Clinton and John Kerry to Republican Presidents George W. Bush and Donald Trump over his 40 years in broadcast, and this column previews the lead story that will drive his radio/ TV show today.

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We have all experienced emergencies in which adrenaline takes over; we max out the credit cards, do what has to be done in the moment and worry about the consequences later.

In western North Carolina, four months after the horrible devastation of Hurricane Helene, later is now.

Tucked into the shadow of the aptly named Smoky Mountains, this city of 95,000 is postcard pretty, yet physical scars and working crews seem to lurk around every corner of red bricks and cozy cafés.

PRESIDENT TRUMP'S VISIT TO NORTH CAROLINA ‘GAVE PEOPLE HOPE,’ SAYS REV. FRANKLIN GRAHAM

The good news is that most places, at least in downtown, are open. At the Jack in the Woods restaurant and pub on Friday evening, a sizable crowd was gathered, some from out of town, there to see a performance by the Kill Tony comedy show, another sign of returning normalcy.

I was told that the restaurant was closed for two months, then managed to get a water pump and opened with a limited menu until the water was finally turned back on.

But when I asked the bartender, one of a classic kind who seems to know everyone and everything about the town, if things felt normal, she looked at me almost shocked

"No, absolutely not," she said.

I asked her and a few other locals, including a man in his forties who works for a local school district, how much time each day they still spend either doing something hurricane-related or thinking about the hurricane. Four months later, both gave just about the same answer: "Almost all day."

In a stunning admission, the bartender told me that the day she got her electricity back was bittersweet.

"It was better obviously," she said. "But we had all been coming together in this amazing way and once I could watch TV, I just wanted to stay home."

As bad as the damage is in Asheville, in the surrounding rural areas it is much worse, which is why Mark Luckinbill and a few friends who live in Raleigh discovered a unique way to help: Installing mailboxes. Desperate to assist local communities in Avery County, Mark was told by a pastor’s wife there that they really needed heavy equipment.

"All I had was a friend, my hands and a couple of shovels," Mark told me.

Then something happened. The pastor’s wife remembered an elderly woman with no cell phone, who was terrified because her mailbox was gone. She depended on it for getting her Social Security checks and bills.

This might not make sense to urban dwellers, but in rural America your mailbox can be half a mile down a dirt road from home. The mail carriers can't just leave parcels by the side of the road.

So they built the woman a mailbox.

Mark and his friend have now been to Avery County to install mailboxes 10 times, because it was a thing that needed to be done that they had the power and ability to do. They even have a website now.

The selflessness of neighbors helping neighbors is clear here, as is the spirit of putting others first.

One local musician I spoke to was typical. When I asked if he had been hit hard, he said, "No, we mostly were fine. I mean we didn’t have power for two months and my car and my girlfriend’s car were totaled, but nothing drastic."

In Ashville, that qualifies for "we were mostly fine." He thinks himself lucky.

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I asked if insurance had allowed them to replace the cars. He said they were lucky (again) to get one to share. 

"Insurance paid," he said, "but there’s just no cars, I can’t find anything decent under $10,000."

Not long after, his girlfriend arrived, they exchanged the keys, and he said if work went too late, he’d get an Uber.

More than 138,000 vehicles were destroyed by Hurricane Helene, a good chunk of them in western North Carolina. Walking around town, even the cars that survived show water damage on their lower half, and the state Attorney General’s office has warned of scams involving the sale of badly water-damaged cars.

Compared to the loss of a life or the destruction of a home, access to a car or a mailbox might seem like small potatoes, but they add up fast, and they are a low priority for a state and federal government still swamped by the devastation.

With President Trump’s visit on Friday, and promise of more aid, there is room for more optimism in North Carolina. But the real strength here, what is ultimately going to get the good people in and around Asheville through this, is themselves, and how they care for each other. 

There is very little that is more beautiful than that, and possibly nothing that is more American.

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On Friday, January 24, President Donald Trump was expected to arrive in Los Angeles to see for himself the devastation caused by the recent wildfires, even as new, menacing fires broke out in Los Angeles County and elsewhere in southern California. 

But it's not just the fires that are out of control. So too is the political posturing of California Democrats who seem more interested in "fighting back" against our new president than putting the interests of Californians first by asking for his help. 

Gov. Gavin Newsom has railed against Trump's misinformation over the fires' causes. As usual, when the left complain about misinformation, it's really just things that are true that they don't like. It may not be comfortable for Newsom that Trump is drawing attention to the incompetence and long-term policy failures that made this disaster so much more destructive than it need have been. But Trump is right on every point. 

CALIFORNIA FIRES: ESSENTIAL PHONE NUMBERS FOR LOS ANGELES-AREA RESIDENTS AND HOW YOU CAN HELP THEM

My policy organization Golden Together just published a paper with practical ideas to help Los Angeles and our state after these fires. But the Trump visit provides an immediate chance to make things happen right now. 

Why can't California's leftist politicians realize that Trump's promise of a new "Golden Age" for America is also a golden opportunity for the Golden State? An opportunity to recover from these fires, rebuild faster and better, and to prevent anything like this from ever happening again. 

There's been a lot of talk about federal aid to California, and whether it should have "strings attached." Ultimately, that will be determined in Congress, and as California Rep. Kevin Kiley told me in a recent interview, given California's terrible track record of wasting federal money — for example COVID-relief funds — it's vital to put safeguards around any funds that are sent to California. 

But perhaps even more important than federal money is the expertise that Trump could offer. Here are three things California Democrats could ask him for, if they could just get over their pathetic political point-scoring. 

We have a builder as president. Someone who has a lifetime professional understanding of how to build things quickly, economically and to high quality.  

California should take advantage of this unique opportunity. Ask Trump's advice about how to get the job done in Los Angeles. We have the Super Bowl, soccer World Cup and the Olympic Games all coming up in Los Angeles in the next few years. We can't afford to waste time. We need to Build, Baby, Build as well as Drill, Baby, Drill!  

Trump is, above all things, a practical leader. He's not interested in ideology, but outcomes. He just wants to get things done. I'm sure he will have incredibly useful, specific ideas about how to rebuild Los Angeles and who can help do it — listen to him! 

One of the most high-profile disputes between Newsom and Trump has broken out over water, and California's failure to supply adequate water to our cities and farmers. Trump is absolutely right about this. So-called journalists mocked Trump for talking about a "giant faucet" that sends water to southern California, which Gavin Newsom restricts in order to protect a tiny fish. But in doing so, they just reveal their own ignorance. 

Most of California's water supply is in the north of the state, much of it from rivers and reservoirs fed by the melting Sierra Nevada snow pack. Most of the population lives in the south, and there are two main supply routes bringing water there: the Delta-Mendota Canal, built and run by the federal government, and the California Aqueduct, run by the state. Each of these has a giant pumping station, close to the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta, that regulates water flow. 

In his first administration, Trump ordered the federal pumping station to increase water supply. Unbelievably, California retaliated by reducing supply from the state pumping station, in order to leave more water in the Delta. Why? They themselves admit that it was to protect salmon, and the three-inch delta smelt, a species that died out in 2020 anyway, only to be revived by biologists at UC Davis. 

Trump has issued a new Executive Order — Putting People Over Fish — to increase water supply in the federal system. California should welcome this instead of fighting it like last time. 

On both of these issues — water, and rebuilding L.A. — there is a massive self-imposed obstacle: California's astonishing, worst-in-the-nation red tape and bureaucracy.   

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In fact, this is standing in the way of getting anything done in California these days: rebuilding Los Angeles, building the new water infrastructure we desperately need, building the new homes we need to solve our housing crisis. We have the highest housing costs in America, along with the lowest homeownership. We pay the most for water, for electricity — for everything. And a huge part of the reason is the sprawling bureaucracy in Sacramento that has built up over decades of one-party rule by far-left Democrats.  

Their 'climate' extremism has become an excuse for slowing down or blocking any project. Those that manage to go ahead are hit with endless, constantly changing environmental regulations pushed by unaccountable state bureaucracies like CARB (the California Air Resources Board) or the Coastal Commission. (These two, by the way, bear the lion's share of responsibility for the devastation of the L.A. fires. It was their rules that blocked vital brush-clearing work in the area.) 

On top of the environmental extremism, we have over-the-top labor regulations, imposed at the behest of the unions that fund California's Democrat politicians. Extortionate labor costs and forced use of union labor mean many construction projects are killed because they are just not viable. And on top of that, the taxes, fees, permits and mind-boggling bureaucratic processes all add up to give California the worst business climate in America — 10 years in a row. 

Trump knows how to deal with all of this. He put Elon Musk in charge of getting rid of federal bureaucracy: now let's do the same in the state with the worst bureaucracy in America. Yes, it's time to DOGE California! 

California desperately needs a dose of common sense and competence. President Trump can help provide it — if only Gavin Newsom and the rest of his California Democrats will listen.  

CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM STEVE HILTON

HANNITY – Fox News host discusses President Donald Trump's busy first few days in office. Continue watching…

HUGH HEWITT – President Trump just issued an enormously consequential executive order. Continue reading…

THE RIGHT TRACK – Trump’s executive order is latest stride toward victory for female athletes like me. Continue reading…

WHY WE MARCH – Every human life is priceless. Continue reading…

IRON MIKE – We hope Trump will fight awful marijuana laws. Biden wouldn't bother. Continue reading…

RAYMOND ARROYO – Fox News contributor breaks down President Donald Trump's 'sparring' with the press. Continue watching…

DIE DEI – Trump's dismantling of DEI is deeper and bigger than you even know. Continue reading…

WITNESS – National Prayer Service was disturbing. Continue reading…

5 THINGS MILLIONAIRES DO – Don't wait on the Trump White House to fix your house. Continue reading…

CARTOON OF THE DAY – Check out all of our political cartoons…

On Monday, Donald Trump made history. 

Then, he immediately made policy, issuing plenty of strong executive orders to begin reforming our government and enforcing our laws subverted by the Biden administration. Republicans in Congress must do our part to support President Trump by sending a constant supply of solidly conservative legislation to be signed into law at his desk. 

During the election, President Trump made several key promises to the American people. Fortunately, Congress stands ready to deliver on these promises immediately. 

With President Trump’s leadership, we will secure our southern border, swiftly deport illegal aliens, prosecute vile criminals, and end the tyranny of unelected bureaucrats. We will bring opportunity to the hardworking families of America and achieve prosperity for the nation.

DONALD TRUMP IS OUR PRESIDENT AND DEMOCRATS HAVE NO IDEA WHAT TO DO

To start repairing the grave damage inflicted by Joe Biden, Congress should pass the SAVE Act. Doing so would prevent illegal, non-citizen voting by requiring ID to register to vote and cast ballots in federal elections. Congress should also pass the VALID Act, which forbids the Department of Homeland Security from admitting illegals and shuttling them around the country using the CBP One app.

The America First Act – which forbids giving federal benefits to illegals that the Biden administration let into our country – should also be a top priority. And of course, we must provide resources for additional border security, Border Patrol and ICE agents, and logistical operations to return millions of undocumented foreign nationals to their home countries.

Perhaps an even bigger task than building walls and battling cartels will be permanently uprooting the rogue federal employees who have become accustomed to running the government from within the deep state. 

TRUMP’S (SECOND) FIRST 100 DAYS GIVES DEMOCRATS OPPORTUNITIES

The REINS Act was crafted precisely to take control from unelected bureaucrats and return it to the people via their elected representatives. It requires that lawmaking be done by lawmakers as Article I, Section 7 of the U.S. Constitution mandates, preventing agencies from foisting expensive and destructive regulations upon the American people.

Addressing the affordability crisis for American families will require more than stopping expensive regulations. We need to let Americans keep more of their own money and invest it back into businesses and jobs by reauthorizing one of President Trump’s original policy victories, the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017. 

We should also tackle the hidden tax hitting everyone’s wallets – inflation. This means that legislators will face the single hardest decision in Washington politics: to say "no" when confronted with problematic, omnibus spending bills written in secret and not subjected to adequate debate and discussion.

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The clock is ticking. Our razor-thin majority in the House of Representatives is guaranteed for only two years, and it’s an unfortunate reality that the second year will be full of recesses for members to campaign for re-election. That means even less time for legislating. 

We cannot afford to repeat 2018, when Democrats took the House and crippled our ability to pass President Trump’s legislative agenda during the second half of his term. Republicans must act quickly. 

Fortunately, our leadership seems to have the sense of urgency it lacked eight years ago. Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., insists on a full Monday–Friday work week, and sometimes through weekends. This means no more flying home for long weekends, which was the norm under Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y.

Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., and the House have already passed the Laken Riley Act, which mandates immediate federal detention for certain criminal illegal immigrants. The Senate passed its version as soon as President Trump took office. A good start.

Over 77 million Americans returned Donald Trump to the White House after watching him endure lawfare, political persecution, endless slander by corporate media and liberal politicians, and multiple assassination attempts. If Republicans in Congress wish to earn their loyalty and share in that defiant mandate, we must immediately work to advance the MAGA agenda.

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If there’s one thing you learn playing sports, it’s persistence. Disciplining yourself to keep trying, keep practicing, keep competing. You win, a lot of times, because you kept going a little longer, kept pushing yourself a little harder, than the other people on the court or field or track with you.

I’m learning that it’s the same way with the law. You get the good laws passed – and the bad ones put away – mostly by hanging in there. You put the truth in front of enough people, plead your case to enough judges and to enough people, and there’s a pretty good chance justice will win, whether in the courtroom or the court of public opinion.

As women trying to keep men out of our private spaces and our sports, a lot of my fellow athletes and I know our days fighting for common sense aren’t done yet… but we are grateful for some big victories we’ve won just this month in court, in Congress, and, now, in the White House, with President Donald Trump’s new executive order upholding the biological reality that men and women are different and safeguarding intimate spaces for women and girls.

One of those big court wins came in Kentucky, where a federal district court – ruling in the case of State of Tennessee v. Cardona – finally stopped the Biden administration’s attempt to rewrite Title IX. (Title IX was created in the early 1970s to prevent discrimination "on the basis of sex" in public schools.)

DONALD TRUMP IS OUR PRESIDENT AND DEMOCRATS HAVE NO IDEA WHAT TO DO

The Biden rule insisted that "sex" must include gender identity – so schools receiving government money had to let male athletes into women’s locker rooms, restrooms, showers, and even their bedrooms on overnight team trips.

It’s not safe, it takes away our privacy, and it doesn’t make any sense. The Kentucky judge saw all that and ruled accordingly, wiping away the Biden Title IX rule nationwide. It was a huge win, and women all over the country are celebrating. With that rule gone, now states and the federal government have the green light to carry out good policies protecting women.

More so than most, I had good reason to celebrate that court decision. Tennessee v. Cardona was my case. After years of successfully competing on my middle school track team, running the 4 x 100 relay, pole-vaulting, and throwing shot put and discus, I watched all of that go away in eighth grade. Suddenly, a boy one grade behind me identified as a girl, joined my team, started entering all my events, and eventually grew into a track-and-field powerhouse.

TRUMP’S (SECOND) FIRST 100 DAYS GIVES DEMOCRATS OPPORTUNITIES

In just three years, he displaced nearly 300 in competition, beating us more than 700 times. That wasn’t all. In between practices and events, he was in our locker rooms and beside us out on the field, watching us change clothes and making crude, sometimes threatening sexual comments to me.

Sports stopped being fun – and stopped being fair. We knew we were walking out on the track just to lose. But whenever we talked to our administrators, nothing changed.

Tired of feeling vulnerable, embarrassed, frustrated and afraid, I decided I needed to stand up for myself and for other girls. 

IT TAKES DISCIPLINE TO RESIST THE TEMPTATION OF IDENTITY POLITICS AND LEAN INTO CHARACTER. BUT IT’S WORTH IT

With the help of my attorneys at Alliance Defending Freedom, I joined the other plaintiffs in Tennessee v. Cardona – and was thrilled when the judge ruled in favor of women’s privacy and safety. Finally, someone seemed to understand what girls like me have been up against.

And finally, it looks like some people in Washington, D.C., may understand, too.

On Jan. 14, the U.S. House of Representatives passed the Protection of Women and Girls in Sports Act, which basically says that allowing males to compete on women’s teams violates the original intent of Title IX. Now that bill is headed to the Senate.

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And most recently, President Trump – on his first day in office – signed an executive order affirming the definition of sex as male and female, a major step in protecting women’s sports.

All of that is in addition to 25 states that have now passed laws protecting women’s sports, and two lawsuits – one out of West Virginia and the other out of Idaho – have asked the U.S. Supreme Court to decide the women’s sports issue for good.

After four years of barely being able to get anyone to listen to us, it’s like a dam is finally breaking. Common sense is coming back, and I’m thankful that Trump’s recent order recognizes the inherent differences between men and women.

But that’s what comes from persistence. And it gives me great hope that – as much work as there still is to do to restore women’s sports and women’s private spaces to women – we’re not alone anymore. We’ve got a lot of great players joining our team.

And we’re on the right track.

CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM ADALEIA CROSS

As we gather today for the 52nd annual March for Life – the world’s largest annual human rights demonstration – we mark a time of new beginnings. Earlier this week our country welcomed a new presidential administration, and, closer to home, our organization also begins a new season of leadership. 

It has undoubtedly been the honor of a lifetime to serve this incredible organization – and the collective millions of marchers – for the past 12 years, but I am delighted to now pass this responsibility to Jennie Bradley Lichter, with confidence that she is the woman meant to lead the March for Life and the pro-life community in this next season.  

With such exciting changes, it is also good to recall what is unchangeable; the thing that draws countless people to Washington, D.C., year after year and that which makes the March for Life great. 

I’m referring to the foundational values that anchor our efforts, remembering that all human life, born and unborn, has inherent dignity and value that deserves to be protected and supported in families, communities and by law. The unborn are the poorest of the poor, the most vulnerable, and they are worthy of every possible protection we can offer. I can’t think of a more worthy cause. 

I WANTED AN ABORTION. BUT THEN I MADE A FRIEND WHO SAVED MY BABY

This year’s theme, Life: Why We March, highlights our desire to refocus on these attractive, commonsense and basic fundamentals of life. These include the truth that each life has inherent dignity and that science shows that life begins at the moment of conception or fertilization. The heart of the pro-life movement is about providing the resources and support pregnant women and families need, and last, we need to continue to utilize the power of witness and storytelling to change hearts and minds.  

Science clearly shows that life begins at the moment of conception/fertilization. From that moment on a new human life in the womb possesses its own genetically unique DNA, different from its mother and father. At just six weeks, expectant parents can see and hear their child’s heartbeat and by 12 weeks all other organs have formed. 

REPUBLICANS CAN WIN ON ABORTION IF PRO-LIFERS TELL THEIR STORIES

These are only a handful of the many moments of gestational development that give witness to the reality that each life is unrepeatable, inherently valuable, and deserving of our love and protection.   

Tragically, we live in a culture that presents confusing messages to women in this regard, presenting the false idea that abortion is necessary to flourish and succeed. Yet the tragic reality is that 60% of women who had abortions would have preferred to give birth if they felt they had the emotional or financial support they needed. 

Women need to know that they are strong and capable, and the pro-life community will love and support them long after their child is born. That’s why there are approximately 3,400 community-based maternity homes and pregnancy resource centers across America that help women in need who want to keep their children.  

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Denying the inherent value and dignity of unborn children through elective abortion has scarred innumerable women, families and doctors, and, of course, robbed us of hundreds of thousands of innocent and precious children each year. The speakers who address the March for Life this year, from a man who survived a botched abortion to a former abortionist, have come to share their testimony and shine light on the tragedy of abortion, while serving as a beacon of hope for our future.  

Sometimes we forget that abortion impacts real people for the rest of their lives. But by boldly sharing our stories, we can remind women and families around us that their lives, as well as their child’s, are worthy of love and protection. There is strength in our voices and power in our presence. 

We march for unborn children in the womb, all of whom deserve love and life. But being pro-life goes far beyond protecting those still in the womb; we stand by and support every struggling mother and family as they welcome new life into the world. We also march for the former abortionists, those who have survived abortions, and the women who have suffered the physical and emotional pain of abortion.  

Our message is simple, direct and clear: each human life from the moment of conception deserves our respect and protection, and we are here to support those lives every step of the way. The outpouring of love and support shown by the pro-life community must serve as a guiding light in the midst of so much darkness.  

So the world continues to change as it always will, but the goals of the March for Life remain steadfast and true. We will continue to affirm the beautiful truth that unborn children are equal members of our human family, offer resources and support to women and families in need, and let our witness tell the story that every human life is priceless and the tragedy of abortion harms us all. And that is why we march.  

CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM JEANNE MANCINI

Character. I have thought about that word much lately, especially since Monday was the day we observed Martin Luther King Jr’s birthday. It was also the day of President Donald Trump’s inauguration. Hardly a day goes by when someone doesn’t quote to me King’s perhaps most famous words about not judging a man by the color of his skin but by the content of his character. However, do we truly practice seeing character these days?

I say practice because it is a skill. It takes no skill to claim an identity of immutable characteristics. All one has to do is step into the politics of that particular identity and speak in its pre-approved clichés. It also takes no skill to make snap judgments based off someone’s immutable characteristics. This requires nothing less than ignoring the individuality of the person before you and sticking them with every stereotype that comes with that particular identity.

Too often we see this kind of behavior in the cesspool of social media and from our so-called thought leaders who sit behind podcast microphones stirring up outrage to line their pockets with click-bait money. The irony is that many of them tell us to see character and yet they practice the opposite.

MLK CELEBRATION AND TRUMP INAUGURATION: WHAT ONE HISTORIC DAY MEANS FOR AMERICA

Seeing one’s character doesn’t make money.

Even I have been asked by others to see color first and foremost. When I was on the rooftop raising funds for my community center, we heard about how a white neighborhood in North Chicago had to hire security guards after the George Floyd protests because violence was going on. 

As we prepared to record that story for Fox, several people came up to me and stressed that we should make it about white people finally getting a taste of the violence that plagued our neighborhood. I resisted outright. This was not racial for me. This was about the downward spiral that the values of our city were going down into. I left race out of it and produced what I believed to be a far better and insightful story.

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It takes discipline to resist the temptation of identity politics and to dig deeper down into the character of the person or even the character of society at a given moment. When one does, one often arrives at a deeper and more profound meaning that is closer to the truth. This shouldn’t be surprising because, after all, character is human truth.

We live in the United States of America and that should mean something. If there is anything I learned from King and his long struggle for civil rights it was the lesson of striving to be a man, an individual. Those foot soldiers of his often carried signs proclaiming, "I am a Man." That was the very essence of our struggle and what was denied to us under centuries of brutal oppression.

Today I am in the middle of building a $45 million community center where our focus and the foundation of everything we do will be character. My neighborhood may be mostly Black but we are raising men and women of character and it is my hope that they will become so successful that their names mean something to you one day.

CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM PASTOR COREY BROOKS