Which branch of federal government has failed most profoundly in the current crisis?

Passing time in a tightly packed airport coffee shop recently, I ended up in conversation with a thirty-something couple sitting only inches from me. I was coming from Mexico City and they were going there. After the usual banter, I asked where they were from and learned they were New Yorkers moving out of that city. They didn’t offer a reason and I didn’t press for one. They asked me what I did for a living and I explained that I was a writer currently investigating how cartels were smuggling people into the US. I say I was chatting with this couple, but it was really only with her. He said nothing the entire time. But he listened intently as she asked questions. “You travel a lot? Where have you been?” “Well, so far this year, I’ve covered the WEF in Davos, researched Karl Marx in London, went to Gaza with the IDF…” “You’ve been to Israel?” She interrupted. “We’ve been there. What do you think of the war?” I guessed that here our conversation would end unhappily. They were New Yorkers, so almost certainly heavily propagandized lefties. But I pressed on. “Almost everything you hear in Western media is wrong…” “You mean it’s a lie. How?” “Oct 7 was not just a Charlie Hebdo-style terrorist attack. It was an act of war. More than 7,000 Hamas terrorists penetrated the frontier at more than 100 points. Inspired by Islam, they had been instructed to r8pe, behead, torture, and kidnap men, women, and children.” He still said nothing, but leaned forward, eyes narrowing. “Who helped them do it?” She asked. “Iran was the biggest supplier, but North Korea, China, and Qatar mostly. The UNRWA also played a role. Weapons and matériel were stockpiled in Egypt and smuggled into Gaza through tunnels.” “You know that?” “I know that. Trust me.” That led to a discussion of President Sisi, the Muslim Brotherhood, and my standoff with Egyptian State Security in Cairo. Still, I had no real gauge for where they stood politically. She asked if I had written anything on the subject, so I pointed her to my article for The Federalist connecting the dots between Egypt, USAID, Gaza, and my swatting. A woman sitting nearby, leaned over and said, “Forgive me for eavesdropping on your conversation, but this is fascinating.” We all chatted a bit longer and I left. About 30 minutes later I was standing in line at the gate waiting to board my flight when the husband appeared. “Pardon me, but I had to come find you.” He was full of emotion. He indicated that he and his wife were Israelis who had lived in NYC but were now fleeing Mamdani’s third world sh*thole. “You are a man who needs the protection of angels,” he said, and then presented me with a Jewish holy book. “We want you to have this. I pray it protects you.” With that he turned and walked away. Gentile and fierce Protestant that I am, I was nonetheless deeply moved. It seems they had read the article and, catching a glimpse of my work, felt my life was in danger. For my own part, I was aware that the same ideology that threatened me, was the same one that threatened them, forced them to move, and imperiled their native land. I’m often amazed by the people the Lord puts in my path when I pause long enough to look around and notice them.

I had the honor of introducing Virginia’s own @davematthewsbnd and @TimReynoldsTR3 at @farmaid last night! First time Farm Aid has been hosted in Virginia Beach!

Ten months before Israel declared independence, French intelligence told David Ben-Gurion of a British-Arab plot. Arabist officers in Cairo and Baghdad were working with Iraqi strongman Nuri al-Sa‘id to incite a full-scale Arab war against the Jews. The invasion would eventually come the day Britain ended the Mandate. At the time, the goal was to force London to reverse the evacuation and keep British bases, pacts, and influence. They pushed “Greater Syria” and an “Oriental Bloc.” Chaos, they thought, would make Britain indispensable again. The French had penetrated the Syrian government and the British legation in Beirut. They handed Ben-Gurion real-time reporting that later writers dismissed as his “paranoia.” It wasn’t. The same networks later helped push King Farouk of Egypt into the war with promises of advanced weapons from British Suez depots. British officers commanded the Jordanian Arab Legion and kept its supply lines open. By May 1948, French sources warned Ben-Gurion the Arab states had decided on a coordinated invasion the day the Mandate ended, betting on Jewish shortages in heavy weapons and air power. This is one of the least-discussed dimensions of 1948: field-level British intelligence running a parallel policy that helped turn a civil war into a multi-front regional war.

There were some people from Netherlands in our church this morning who are flying back tomorrow & have to check their souvenirs to make sure they aren’t from Judea/Samaria-possible 6 yr prison term. A Nativity set from Bethlehem could put you in prison! Insane!

We just introduced a constitutional amendment to require every federal judge to be a natural born AMERICAN citizen. 🇺🇸

The Netherlands is now enforcing its ban on goods from Israeli villages at the airport, including items carried in passengers’ personal luggage. Passengers arriving at Amsterdam from Tel Aviv have reportedly been searched for products originating in Israeli villages in Judea and Samaria, East Jerusalem or the Golan Heights. The rules cover even gifts and souvenirs. Dutch Customs says prohibited goods can be seized, while intentional violations can be referred for criminal prosecution. Dutch prosecutors have said deliberate violations can carry a maximum penalty of up to 6 years in prison.

BREAKING: The Supreme Court allowed the Trump administration to resume its expanded voter citizenship verification program, which lets states use Social Security records to check voters' citizenship. Justices Sotomayor, Kagan, and Jackson dissented.

Weird that Nick Kristoff's blockbuster rape dogs report had zero follow ups from the news desk at the New York Times or, for that matter, any other media outlet. The story was widely shared as true and then buried and never spoken of again.

Arlington’s Commonwealth’s Attorney testified that her office has a DUI policy specifically for DACA recipients. In a small number of cases, prosecutors have considered changing a DUI to a different first-degree misdemeanor so the defendant can renew DACA status. (We don’t have first-degree misdemeanors - they are called Class 1 misdemeanors - surprised an elected prosecutor doesn’t know that). She says the defendant is still held accountable and the original DUI charge remains visible. But DACA status is a factor in the plea resolution, one that an American citizen charged with the same offense cannot invoke. Should immigration status affect which crime appears on a defendant’s record? Source: Dehghani-Tafti deposition, p. 89, lines 6–22.

Harvard President Alan M. Garber ’76 slammed the White House’s bid to politicize the approval of National Institutes of Health research funding as “unprecedented” during a Tuesday Zoom call with alumni. @HugoChiassonn and @EliseSpenner report. thecrimson.com/article/2026/…