Posts on Saturday, December 20, 2025

A leading contender to become President Trump’s next Federal Reserve chair said the administration expects larger tax refunds and higher take-home pay next year, as many Americans continue to express concerns about affordability."We are going to see the biggest refund cycle ever in the history of America, and people are going to get massive refund checks," National Economic Council Director Kevin Hassett said in an interview on FOX Business' "Varney & Co." on Thursday. "We're expecting just that part of it alone to be worth a couple-thousand-dollar refund … the numbers are striking."During his Wednesday evening address, President Trump said the administration expects "the largest tax refund season of all time"

Calvin Coolidge inaugurated two important presidential traditions related to Christmas. In 1923, Coolidge became the first president to light the National Christmas Tree. Then, four years later, he wrote the first official presidential Christmas message to the American people. “President Coolidge and his family helped make Christmas a truly public White House tradition,” the White House Historical Association observes. The first tree lighting attracted more than six thousand people to the Ellipse and drew extensive media coverage. Thanks to burgeoning mass communications—“radio, illustrated magazines, and newsreel coverage”— “the First Family’s celebration of Christmas became a vital part of our national yuletide festivities.”

The penny-pinching Manhattan Psychiatric Center administrator who greenlit the release of the deranged Macy’s stabber has a long history of mental illness herself – and made her decision on the recommendation of a “temporary” shrink, The Post has learned. Caitlin Stork, clinical director of the center on Wards Island, tried to kill herself twice as a teen and battled bipolar disorder, which was treated with lithium and the antipsychotic Seroquel, she told the Charlotte Observer in 2003. The 43-year-old Ohio native relied on the advice of a temporary shrink, or a “locum tenens” psychiatrist hired on a contract basis, in releasing alleged stabber Kerri Aherne earlier this month,

It’s an imperfect solution, but Republicans likely need to do a temporary extension of Obamacare subsidies while they get fixes up and running. This week, the House passed a bill full of vital health-insurance reforms (the Lower Health Care Premiums for All Americans Act), but several GOP moderates also end-ran Speaker Mike Johnson to keep alive hope of some bipartisan deal that would extend the COVID-era subsidies that make the existing system affordable for middle-class Americans who have no better choice as the law now stands.

US Central Command released footage from Operation Hawkeye strikes against ISIS militants and facilities on Friday night. “Tonight, U.S. and Jordanian forces struck 70+ ISIS targets in Syria with 100+ precision munitions. Peace through strength,” CENTCOM said on X. This is one of 10 operations conducted in Syria and Iraq since the December 13 ambush in Syria, which left multiple American service members injured and two soldiers and a civilian interpreter killed. Twenty-three terrorist operatives have been killed or detained, according to CENTCOM. “We will continue to relentlessly pursue terrorists who seek to harm Americans and our partners across the region,” CENTCOM Commander Admiral Brad Cooper said.

As we reported, the board of the Kennedy Center voted to add President Donald Trump's name to the Center after the efforts he made to help restore the renowned arts venue. [snip] But it's a bit like the craziness over the White House ballroom. Trump gets a ballroom for free that the nation can use forever, and Democrats attack. Adding Trump's name is their current excuse for melting down, and folks on the right are enjoying tantrums. The hot takes on the left were something to see, starting with this guy who said he was a resident of Washington, D.C., but thinks "democracy died today" because of this.

Officials in Joe Biden's Department of Justice and FBI considered a criminal investigation into then-Sen. Krysten Sinema (I-Ariz.) for purported campaign finance law violations after she left the Democratic Party, according to emails reviewed by The Post. (snip) Sinema's chief of staff, Daniel Winkler, expressed concern when reached for comment that the probe was pursued for "partisan political reasons," including punishing the former senator for refusing to support scrapping the 60-vote legislative filibuster. The email exchanges began in response to the Post's Feb. 1, 2024 report on Sinema's six-figure campaign spending on a security detail, luxury hotels, cars, and concert tickets (snip.)

Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy’s pregnant daughter had a bad travel experience Thursday morning, and she’s letting everyone know about it on social media by blasting the TSA and their “rude,” handsy ways. In her tweets, she described the frustration that so many of us feel when we are forced to go through the annoying, often dehumanizing ritual of emptying our bags, taking off our shoes, or possibly even being pulled over for a pat-down.[snip] Yes, I bet all of us have had the experience of rude, power-drunk agents barking orders at you and treating you as if you’ve somehow committed a crime.

Religious animal sacrifices may soon be conducted by your neighbor in his backyard on the other side of the little fence you share, or perhaps in the condo down the hall from yours. Try not to let the animal’s screams bother you — that would be racist. You see, there’s a small town in Michigan called Hamtramck. For generations, it has been an enclave of Polish immigrants and their descendants. They danced to polka music, ate pierogi, and so on. They were Polish-Americans. They blended right in — as well as our Irish-Americans and Italian-Americans and Chinese-Americans.

The U.S. House Committee on Homeland Security has released an updated report highlighting terrorism threats to Americans (snip) after holding a hearing on Tuesday during which the Director of the National Anti-Terrorism Center Joe Kent testified that the NCTC had identified at least 18,000 known or suspected terrorists who were released into the U.S. during the Biden administration (snip.) The NCTC has also added roughly 35,000 narco-terrorists to the federal Terrorist Screening Database since he's been in office.

Religious animal sacrifices may soon be conducted by your neighbor in his backyard on the other side of the little fence you share, or perhaps in the condo down the hall from yours. Try not to let the animal’s screams bother you — that would be racist. You see, there’s a small town in Michigan called Hamtramck. For generations, it has been an enclave of Polish immigrants and their descendants. They danced to polka music, ate pierogi, and so on. They were Polish-Americans. They blended right in — as well as our Irish-Americans and Italian-Americans and Chinese-Americans.

A Georgia State Election Board investigation substantiated that Fulton County violated election rules in 2020 by failing to have poll workers sign required tabulation tapes for early votes in 36 out of 37 advanced voting precincts, affecting approximately 315,000 ballots. These unsigned tapes broke the chain-of-custody and certification requirements under Georgia law, which mandates signed tapes as the sole legal proof of authentic vote totals. During a board meeting on December 9th, Ann Brumbaugh, attorney for the Fulton County Board of Registration and Elections, contends that Fulton County does “not dispute that the tapes were not signed.” Oof.

To tax tips or not? That is a question that will confront lawmakers in states across the U.S. as they convene for work next year. President Donald Trump’s administration is urging states to follow its lead by enacting a slew of new tax breaks for individuals and businesses, including deductions for tips and overtime wages, automobile loans and business equipment. In some states, the new federal tax breaks will automatically apply to state income taxes unless legislatures opt out. But in many other states, where tax laws are written differently, the new tax breaks won’t appear on state tax forms unless legislatures opt in.

The Justice Department has finally begun releasing the long‑awaited trove of Jeffrey Epstein files — and the initial batch of never‑before‑seen photos and documents includes a jaw‑dropping lineup of high‑profile figures who had contacts with the notorious financier and child rapist. While the images are explosive, the DOJ has said that being photographed with Epstein doesn’t equate to criminal guilt, and many of the appearances in past photos released — including those by President Trump — are social or casual in nature. Here’s who else appears in the Epstein files: Former President Bill Clinton — New photos depict former President Bill Clinton vacationing with Epstein and his long-term partner and madam,

Brown University has been brushing off security issues for years — ignoring warnings from students, staff and even police, The Post has learned. The revelation comes after two students were killed and nine others hurt in a mass shooting at the Ivy League school that has seen critics slam the institution for prioritizing image over safety. The engineering building where the shooting took place didn’t have a swipe-card mechanism and could be accessed by anyone through the public-facing coffee shop, students said. It didn’t have security officer posted at the front either, like some other buildings do, school officials have said.

Iran uses Iraq not just as a military platform but as a financial artery, moving funds through banks, exchanging currencies, and availing itself of corrupt networks to bypass sanctions. Without pressure on Iraq to clean up these financial tributaries, Iran enjoys a back door that keeps it stomping ahead even while under international pressure. It is a door the West has left open for far too long. Lebanon's weakness has allowed the Iranian regime to turn the country into its most important forward base – felicitously right on the border of Israel.

President Donald Trump signed an executive order Thursday directing federal agencies to reclassify marijuana from Schedule I to Schedule III under the Controlled Substances Act. This shift acknowledges the drug's potential medical uses while placing it alongside substances like ketamine and codeine-laced Tylenol, which carry moderate risks of dependence. The move builds on a process initiated under the Biden administration but stalled by inaction for years. Trump emphasized that the order facilitates essential research into marijuana's benefits and dangers without legalizing recreational use nationwide. "This reclassification order will make it far easier to conduct marijuana-related medical research,"

And now, readers, we return to the story that won’t go away, the Jeffrey Epstein saga. The deceased pedophile continues to dominate headlines over six years after his death, mostly because there are rumors that high-profile individuals were involved with his exploits, and if their enemies can prove it, they can be ruined. There are also countless victims who have never received justice. Already this Friday afternoon/evening, news broke that today was the deadline Congress had established for the DOJ to release the files, and the department was doing just that. As our Ward Clark reported, Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche announced that the investigation had

Okay, John Hinderaker went and did it last week! He has abused his stewardship of TWiP and went full Die Hard Christmas Movie Denialist! As the Dude says in The Big Lebowski, this aggression will not stand, man! To restore proper balance in the universe, I am staging a coup d’tat, and am taking over this week’s TWiP. To mix movie references further, John has done a Denethor-level job as Steward of TWiP; time for the Return of the (TWiP) King! Actually, like the Gaza and (prospective) Ukraine ceasefires, we’re going to share power, and alternate TWiP each week. And so as the great John McClain

The Lancet, headquartered in Britain, was once a respected medical journal. Now, it is mostly a left-wing rag. The current issue, just out, leads with an editorial titled “2025: an annus horribilis for health in the USA.” Really? Our health has gone downhill? Has life expectancy declined? Was there an epidemic that I missed? No. The entire editorial is an anti-Trump screed. 2025 was a horrible year, not for Americans’ health, but for left-wing preferences in health care policy. Thus: Federal funding cuts had occurred under Joe Biden and mistrust in the nation’s health leaders has been waning over time, but the goal of the Trump administration

Half of $18 billion in federal welfare funds, which supports 14 Minnesota-run programs since 2018, has been lost to fraud, Assistant U.S. Attorney Joseph Thompson said during a press conference Thursday. People come from all over the world to steal millions from U.S. government Medicaid, housing, and other programs, he added. “Minnesota has become a magnet for fraud, so much so that we have developed a fraud tourism industry — people coming to our state purely to exploit and defraud its programs,” Thompson said. “This is a deeply unsettling reality that all Minnesotans should understand.”