Attorney General Merrick Garland told Senate Judiciary Committee Ranking Member Chuck Grassley that he would not rescind the Department of Justice memo he issued on Oct. 4 directing the FBI and other federal agencies to investigate school board meetings, despite a memo from the National School Boards Association walking back its claims that confrontations at school board meetings could rise to the level of  “domestic terrorism’ and “hate crimes.”
At a hearing before the Committee Wednesday, Garland was asked by Grassley whether he would rescind the <a href="https://www.justice.gov/ag/page/file/1438986/download">memo</a> because the claims had been &#8220;<a href="https://twitter.com/NoahPollak/status/1451705222531674112?s=20">disavowed</a>&#8220; by the National School Boards Association. 
A partial transcript is as follows: 
<blockquote>GRASSLEY:  General Garland, regarding your October 4 school board memo, last week you said the memo was for [a] law-enforcement audience despite it being on your public website, as a press release. As a result of your memo, local school officials and parents may not speak up in these meetings, out of fear the federal government will do something to them, so that’s a poisonous chilling effect [on free speech]. Apparently, that letter wasn’t actually supported by [the] organization, but was sent by two unauthorized staff, so last week the organization disavowed it. Since you and the White House based your memo on this delegitimized letter, I assume you’re going to revoke your extremely divisive memo that you said was instigated because of that letter. That’s a question.
GARLAND: Senator, the memo which you referred to is one page. It responds to concerns about violence, threats of violence, other criminal conduct, that’s all it’s about, and all it asks is for federal law enforcement to consult with, meet with, local law enforcement to assess the circumstances, strategize about what may or may not be necessary, to provide federal assistance if it is necessary.
GRASSLEY: Presumably, you wrote the memo because of the letter. The letter is disavowed now. So you’re going to keep your memo going anyway right? Is that what you’re telling me? 
GARLAND: Senator, I have the letter from NSBA that you’re referring to. It apologizes for language in the letter but it continues… it’s concern about the safety of school officials and school staff. The language in the letter that they disavow is language [that] was never included in my memo, and never would have been. I did not adopt every concern that they had in their letter. I adopted only the concern about violence and threats of violence. And that hasn’t changed.</blockquote>
The <a href="https://www.nsba.org/-/media/NSBA/File/nsba-letter-to-president-biden-concerning-threats-to-public-schools-and-school-board-members-92921.pdf?la=en&amp;hash=642B7B91E0029BA4427D0F38D7054A007537160F160F">letter</a>, mentioned by both Senator Grassley and the Attorney General, was sent by two members of the NSBA. In the letter, the authors suggest that “as these acts of malice, violence, and threats against public school officials have increased, the classification of these heinous actions could be the equivalent to a form of domestic terrorism and hate crimes.” 
The letter then asks federal law enforcement to assist local law enforcement, and to use federal law, including the PATRIOT Act, to “examine appropriate enforceable actions.”
The NSBA apologized for the language used in a memo sent to NSBA members from the organization’s board of directors. 
“On behalf of NSBA, we regret and apologize for the letter,” the memo states. “To be clear, the safety of school board members, other public school officials and educators, and students is our top priority, and there remains important work to be done on this issue. However, there was no justification for some of the language included in that letter.”
“[W]e deeply value not only the work of local school boards… but also the voices of parents, who should and must continue to be hurt when it comes to decisions about their children’s education, health, and safety.”
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Merrick Garland

AG Garland Says He Won’t Rescind DOJ Memo Directing FBI To Investigate Confrontations At School Board Meetings

A Representative in the Connecticut State Legislature has resigned from his office after being arrested on federal criminal charges of defrauding the city of West Haven of over $600,000 of COVID relief funds. 
Democratic State Rep. Michael DiMassa <a href="https://www.nbcconnecticut.com/news/local/ct-state-rep-michael-dimassa-resigns-amid-pandemic-funds-investigation/2620002/">submitted</a> his resignation to the Connecticut Secretary of State, as well as <a href="https://www.courant.com/politics/hc-pol-dimassa-resigns-general-assembly-20211025-fulsr7hebbgnxdiohkdrgzttye-story.html">resigning</a> his position as an aide to the City Council of West Haven. He is accused of defrauding the city out of more than $630,000 dollars in federal funds that had been earmarked for COVID-19 relief. 
According to a statement from federal officials obtained by the <a href="https://www.stamfordadvocate.com/news/article/Feds-State-Rep-Michael-DiMassa-arrested-on-16548355.php?src=sthpdesecp">Stamford Advocate</a>, DiMassa and another unnamed individual founded a consulting firm called Compass Investment Group, LLC in January. That company then billed the city of West Haven and its ‘COVID-19 Grant Department’ for consulting services that were never performed. 
“From February 2021 through September 2021, the City of West Haven paid Compass Investment Group a total of $636,783.70,” the statement said. “It is further alleged that DiMassa made several large cash withdrawals from the Compass Investment Group LLC bank account, some of which were made shortly before or after he was recorded as having made a large cash ‘buy-in’ of gaming chips at the Mohegan Sun Casino.&#8221;
An <a href="https://www.wwlp.com/news/connecticut/state-rep-michael-dimassa-accused-of-defrauding-city-of-west-haven-of-more-than-630k/">affidavit</a> from the FBI agent working on the case describes the allegations in detail. According to the agent, “from February 12, 2021 through April 30, 2021, seven checks were made payable to COMPASS INVESTMENT GROUP, LLC from the City of West Haven and were deposited to the business account. The checks ranged in value from $11,847.50 to $87,650.0. These funds were then used for twenty-one cash withdrawals that were conducted by MICHAEL DIMASSA, ranging from $8,000 to $10,000, for a total of $178,150.”
The affidavit continues, describing how a check for $85,595 was written out to Compass Investments Group. The check was deposited on May 7, then a cash withdrawal of $8200 was made from the same bank account by DiMassa. Then, “[o]n May 7, 2021, Mohegan Sun Patron Gaming records reflect MICHAEL DIMASSA executed a cash &#8216;Buy-In&#8217; of chips for $9,800.’”
The affidavit lists several other instances where DiMassa executed large cash withdrawals and then made large buy-ins at Mohegan Sun.  
 If “DiMassa broke the public’s trust and his oath to protect and serve his constituents, and is found guilty of fraudulent activity, I am demanding that he and any other individual(s) involved be held accountable and prosecuted to the full extent of the law,” said West Haven Mayor Nancy Rossi in a statement. “If convicted, all individuals involved should go to jail.” Rossi recently announced an <a href="https://www.nhregister.com/news/article/West-Haven-City-Council-wants-more-information-16528573.php">investigation</a> into the possibility of fraud committed with money granted to the city by the CARES Act.
Connecticut State House Speaker Matt Ritter and Majority Leader Jason Rojas said in a joint statement following the arrest that DiMassa had been stripped of his committee assignments, and that they were closely monitoring the situation. “Elected officials are rightly held to a high standard of conduct and trust,” they said. “Even the slightest hint of wrongdoing bruises that trust.”
“The allegations against Mike DiMassa are serious and very troubling,” wrote Connecticut Governor Ned Lamont in a statement. “If the allegations are true, he has not only broken the law but also betrayed the public trust. He had no choice but to resign. The citizens of West Haven and all of Connecticut deserve honest government.”
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Medicine and vaccine, packaged in  glass ampoules for injection. Medicine and money background. Coronavirus. Covid-19 vaccine

Democrat Connecticut State Rep. Resigns After Allegedly Stealing $600k In COVID Relief Money

COVID-19

More than 150 families have hired private security to patrol the streets of San Francisco, amidst a rash of home burglaries and car break-ins.
Patrol special officer Alan Byard was <a href="https://www.foxnews.com/us/san-francisco-families-dont-feel-safe-hire-private-security">hired by the families</a> to patrol the Marina district, an upscale neighborhood at the northern tip of the city, known for its history as the staging area of the 1915 Panama-Pacific International Exposition. Patrol special officers are private security guards whose functions are overseen by the San Francisco Police Commission.  
&#8220;It’s a nice area down here, people are afraid of what’s been going on,&#8221; said Byard. &#8220;They want a safe place to raise their kids. In the last year, I’ve had 10 of my clients move out of the city.&#8221;
&#8220;We don’t feel safe in our neighborhood,&#8221; resident Katie Lyons, told CBS SF, via Fox News. &#8220;And we have an alarm, we have cameras on our property, but we want the extra security of having someone have eyes on our place.&#8221;
For a monthly fee of $65 per family, Byard spends his nights in his car, patrolling the neighborhood from 8 p.m. to 5 a.m., on the lookout for suspicious activity. He told the outlet that he has more than doubled his residential client base since the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic, from 70 families to 150, just in the Marina District neighborhood. The most common problem in the neighborhood was car break-ins, he said, but petty theft and burglary were also common occurrences.
Lyons noted that she refuses to walk around the city at night, especially not carrying a purse. &#8220;Especially at night, I don’t walk with a purse, I’ll drive, or I’ll take an Uber, and it’s beginning to become a daytime problem too,&#8221; she said. She also noted that she often sees stolen property outside her home.
Allan Brown, a 20-year resident of the Marina District, had a depressing response when he was asked by the outlet whether crime had recently increased. &#8220;Oh absolutely, absolutely,” he said. “This place used to be – nothing would ever happen here.&#8221; 
Instances of car burglary have continued to occur. Fox News reports: “The city’s Central District, which includes tourist hot spots such as Fisherman&#8217;s Wharf and Chinatown, struggled with a staggering 753% increase in car break-ins from May 2020 to May 2021.”  
A <a href="https://twitter.com/GrindFaceTV/status/1450690350129958912?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1450690350129958912%7Ctwgr%5E%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&amp;ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.foxnews.com%2Fus%2Fsan-francisco-families-dont-feel-safe-hire-private-security">video</a> posted to Twitter on Oct. 20 and shared by Fox News shows an individual breaking into cars in the Fisherman’s Wharf neighborhood in the middle of the day, stealing items from inside cars before being chased off by the owner of one of the cars. In <a href="https://twitter.com/LyanneMelendez/status/1450537156045205505?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1450537156045205505%7Ctwgr%5E%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&amp;ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.foxnews.com%2Fus%2Fsan-francisco-families-dont-feel-safe-hire-private-security">another</a> instance, a couple visiting from Seattle had the rear window of their car smashed, just a few blocks away from where San Francisco Mayor London Breed was announcing a reward of up to $100,000 for information leading to the arrest and conviction of organized car burglars.
The city is also dealing with a rash of brazen shoplifting incidents. As previously reported by The Daily Wire, Walgreens has been <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/walgreens-now-closing-stores-in-san-francisco-following-retail-theft-spike">forced</a> to close 5 stores in the city because of shoplifting, with one location reportedly losing as much as $1000 worth of merchandise per day.
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San Francisco D.A. Chesa Boudin

San Francisco Families Hire Private Security To Patrol Neighborhood Amid Property Crime Spike

Chesa Boudin

San Francisco

Two groups of climate protesters were arrested en masse Monday after blocking highway traffic on opposite ends of New York City during rush hour. 
Police <a href="https://www.nbcnewyork.com/news/local/climate-protesters-with-message-for-biden-arrested-after-blocking-nyc-roads/3349461/">arrested</a> 45 protesters from the Sunrise Movement and Extinction Rebellion after the two groups used <a href="https://twitter.com/ScooterCasterNY/status/1452617529126494211?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1452617529126494211%7Ctwgr%5E%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&amp;ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fhotair.com%2Fjohn-s-2%2F2021%2F10%2F25%2Fextinction-rebellion-blocks-traffic-in-new-york-city-and-commuters-are-not-happy-n424675">vehicles</a> and <a href="https://twitter.com/ScooterCasterNY/status/1452623909061337100?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1452623909061337100%7Ctwgr%5E%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&amp;ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fhotair.com%2Fjohn-s-2%2F2021%2F10%2F25%2Fextinction-rebellion-blocks-traffic-in-new-york-city-and-commuters-are-not-happy-n424675">human chains</a> to block traffic on both <a href="https://twitter.com/ScooterCasterNY/status/1452617170635087878?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1452617170635087878%7Ctwgr%5E%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&amp;ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fhotair.com%2Fjohn-s-2%2F2021%2F10%2F25%2Fextinction-rebellion-blocks-traffic-in-new-york-city-and-commuters-are-not-happy-n424675">FDR Drive</a> and the <a href="https://twitter.com/ScooterCasterNY/status/1452625524195479561?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1452625524195479561%7Ctwgr%5E%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&amp;ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fhotair.com%2Fjohn-s-2%2F2021%2F10%2F25%2Fextinction-rebellion-blocks-traffic-in-new-york-city-and-commuters-are-not-happy-n424675">West Side Highway</a> for about an hour. 
The groups were there to protest the removal of several key climate provisions from the Biden administration’s $3.5 trillion spending package. The administration was forced to curtail or cut out several provisions because of <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/manchin-carbon-tax-not-on-the-table-for-infrastructure-bill">opposition</a> from Democratic West Virginia Senator Joe Manchin. The Daily Wire previously reported that Manchin opposed including a ‘carbon tax’ on energy production, as well as an incentive-based clean energy initiative that would aim to cut greenhouse gas emissions by <a href="https://thehill.com/policy/energy-environment/577317-democrats-scramble-for-climate-alternatives">80% by 2030</a>. 
&#8220;Biden promised to cut emissions by half by 2030 and now the legislation that can make it happen, everything that is hanging on the future of life on the planet, is hanging on what&#8217;s happening in Congress and that&#8217;s been negotiated down,&#8221; one of the protesters told NBC4 New York. 
“Dear commuters: we are interrupting traffic this morning not to annoy you, but to force the public to confront the true dangers of unchecked climate change,” Extinction Rebellion NYC <a href="https://twitter.com/XR_NYC/status/1452617031640039435?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1452617031640039435%7Ctwgr%5E%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&amp;ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fhotair.com%2Fjohn-s-2%2F2021%2F10%2F25%2Fextinction-rebellion-blocks-traffic-in-new-york-city-and-commuters-are-not-happy-n424675">tweeted</a>. “If we do not act today, if @potus does not act today, NYC will be underwater by 2100. It&#8217;s a matter of life and death.”
“We are here today to tell @potus: We won&#8217;t stand by and watch our city drown!” The organization <a href="https://twitter.com/XR_NYC/status/1452638887235538954?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1452638887235538954%7Ctwgr%5E%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&amp;ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fhotair.com%2Fjohn-s-2%2F2021%2F10%2F25%2Fextinction-rebellion-blocks-traffic-in-new-york-city-and-commuters-are-not-happy-n424675">wrote</a> in another tweet. “He pledged to cut US emissions in half by 2030, but now his climate agenda is on the brink of collapse in Congress. @joebiden must fight to fit the full climate agenda in #BuildBackBetter ahead of COP26[.]”
“Desperate times call for desperate measures,” <a href="https://twitter.com/sunrisemvmtnyc/status/1452638458720268302?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1452638458720268302%7Ctwgr%5E%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&amp;ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.nbcnewyork.com%2Fnews%2Flocal%2Fclimate-protesters-with-message-for-biden-arrested-after-blocking-nyc-roads%2F3349461%2F">Sunrise Movement</a> tweeted. “We shut down the West Side Highway this morning with @XR_NYC, @FFF_NYC_, and @JFREJNYC to demand @POTUS do everything he can to keep climate in Build Back Better. Biden leads or we drown[.]”
Police eventually <a href="https://twitter.com/ScooterCasterNY/status/1452646004130467840?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1452646004130467840%7Ctwgr%5E%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&amp;ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fhotair.com%2Fjohn-s-2%2F2021%2F10%2F25%2Fextinction-rebellion-blocks-traffic-in-new-york-city-and-commuters-are-not-happy-n424675">arrived</a> on the scene and arrested the protesters.
Climate protesters also demonstrated in <a href="https://thehill.com/policy/energy-environment/576964-activists-say-655-arrested-during-week-of-dc-climate-protests">Washington, D.C.</a>, earlier this month to demand the Biden administration take stronger action on climate change, leading to a total of 655 arrests in the week of Oct. 11-15. Fifty-five people were arrested during a sit-in at the Stewart Lee Udall Main Interior Building, home to the federal Bureau of Indian Affairs on Oct.14. Officials <a href="https://twitter.com/MSchwartz3/status/1448762928145084423">stated</a> at the time that multiple security personnel inside the buildings sustained injuries, and one security guard was hospitalized. 
A protest at the Capitol building on Oct. 15 led to <a href="https://peoplevsfossilfuels.org/friday-press-release/">90 people</a> being arrested, including a left-wing activist and podcast host who tried to strike Capitol Police officers with a baseball bat, then <a href="https://thehill.com/policy/national-security/576914-woman-with-baseball-bat-bites-capitol-police-officer-on-west-front">bit</a> an officer while being detained. It was later learned that she posted a <a href="https://twitter.com/liv_romano/status/1448992258271944707">picture</a> of herself with the baseball bat to Twitter before the protests began that day.
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Extinction Rebellion

Climate Protestors Arrested For Blocking Rush-Hour Traffic In NYC

Climate Change

Two more Illinois sheriff&#8217;s departments have refused to provide assistance to the city of Chicago, as the city faces the potential of a police shortage due to Mayor Lori Lightfoot’s vaccine mandate. 
James Mendrick, the sheriff of DuPage County, Illinois, as well as Kendall County Sheriff Dwight Baird, have both rejected the Illinois Law Enforcement Alarm System’s request for suburban police departments to help the city of Chicago respond to emergencies. 
&#8220;It&#8217;s like a preplanned police shortage,&#8221; DuPage County Sheriff James Mendrick, whose department is already dealing with a 12-man shortage, told the <a href="https://www.dailyherald.com/news/20211019/kane-dupage-sheriffs-chicago-police-shortage-due-to-vaccine-mandate-isnt-an-emergency-for-us">Daily Herald</a>. &#8220;The lack of logic is the thing that astounds me.&#8221; 
Mendrick said that the usual calls for assistance involve SWAT teams, but they could also include patrols, K-9 units, drones, or other assistance. He illustrated his point with an anecdote about the Chicago Bears football team being suspended, and another team playing in their place. 
“The players wouldn&#8217;t know the coaches or the playbook,” he said, so in the case of an emergency &#8220;put [Chicago police] back in the game.&#8221; 
Baird also refused to send his deputies to aid Chicago, citing concerns about the treatment his officers would receive from Cook County State’s Attorney Kim Foxx if an incident should occur, according to the <a href="https://policetribune.com/illinois-sheriffs-say-they-wont-send-deputies-to-help-fill-gap-created-by-chicagos-vaccine-mandate/">Police Tribune</a>.  
“It sounds like Mayor Lightfoot is creating her own emergency with the decisions she’s making with her police force and I don’t feel that ILEAS assistance in this situation would be warranted,” said Baird. “I would help an officer out if they were distressed. But she’s bringing this upon herself.”
Their refusal comes on the heels of Kane County Sheriff Ron Hain refusing to honor the ILEAS’s request. As previously <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/suburban-chicago-police-asked-to-chicago-in-case-of-police-walkout-over-vaccine-mandate">reported</a> by The Daily Wire, Hain refused to send his deputies to the city because of the city’s progressive political agenda, as well as the vaccine mandate, which neither Hain nor Mendrick has imposed on their deputies.
 “I believe the polarization between the community and police is only reinforced by current Chicago politics,” said Hain in a <a href="https://www.facebook.com/kanesheriff/posts/244075987766709">statement</a>. “I will not send my personnel to Chicago unless an officer is under direct duress because I cannot support this slanted agenda.” 
“I also will not allow my deputies to be subjected to use force in the city and be under the prosecutorial jurisdiction of the Cook County State’s Attorney. The Chicago Police Department has a dedicated force of professional humans who deserve all of the support the nation can offer. The solution is simple; allow Chicago Police to be the police, support their human resources, and operate treatment and vocational support programs led by people in uniform. This is how Chicago can halt crime and build bridges with the community like we’ve done here in Kane.”  
The city of Chicago is bracing itself for a police shortage amid a showdown between the city’s police union and Mayor Lightfoot over the mayor’s vaccine mandate. 
As The Daily Wire previously reported, the mandate <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/chicago-police-union-president-tells-officers-to-resist-city-vaccine-mandate-requirements-hold-the-line">ordered</a> all city employees to declare their vaccination status by Oct. 15, or face unpaid leave, and recently only 64 <a href="https://wgntv.com/news/coronavirus/city-data-64-of-chicago-police-employees-reported-vaccination-status/">percent</a> of police department employees had actually turned in their vaccination records. The head of the Chicago police union previously warned that Chicago could see as much as a 50% drawdown because of the mandate, and has told his officers to “hold the line” in opposing the mandate. The union and the city are currently involved in competing <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/chicago-mayor-lightfoot-and-police-unions-sue-each-other-over-vaccine-mandate">lawsuits</a> over the vaccine rules.
Lightfoot is adamant that contingency plans are in place, but already she has stripped <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/chicago-mayor-lightfoot-and-police-unions-sue-each-other-over-vaccine-mandate">21 officers</a> of their police powers and <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/chicago-police-restrict-time-off-for-cops-as-mayor-threatens-to-put-half-the-force-on-unpaid-leave-over-vaccine-mandate">restricted</a> time off requests in the wake of the shortage.
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Lori Lightfoot

More Illinois Sheriffs Departments Refuse Request To Staff Chicago Streets During Possible Police Shortage

Chicago

Chicago Police

Crime

Vaccine Mandate

A gallon of gasoline is now $7.59 in one town in California, as gasoline prices across the nation rise to the highest levels in seven years. 
According to <a href="https://abc7.com/highest-gas-prices-in-the-country-gorda-ca-california-price-of/11149187/">KABC 7 Los Angeles</a>, a gas station in the town of Gorda, California, located along the Big Sur coast, is charging $7.59 per gallon of regular gasoline, and $8.50 for a gallon of premium. The reason? According to <a href="https://www.wptv.com/news/national/why-is-a-gas-station-in-california-charging-7-60-per-gallon">WPTV 5</a>, the town, located on Highway 1 in Southern California, has only one gas station, and the nearest gas stations are 40 miles to the North and 12 miles to the South. As such, the station can charge exorbitant prices. 
WPTV reports that in July 2019, the town’s lone AmeriCo gas station charged as much as $11.75 per gallon. 
Even though prices at the Gorda gas station are incredibly high &#8212; far above average, even in California &#8212; gas prices around the state and around the country continue to rise. 
Gas in Monterey County, California, where Gorda is located, is currently at $4.60 a gallon, just slightly above the California average of $4.53, according to <a href="https://gasprices.aaa.com/?state=CA">AAA</a>. The national average price for a gallon of gas is currently $3.36, up 5 cents from last week, and up 16 cents from earlier this month, when gas rose to $3.20 per gallon. That was the highest recorded price for a gallon of gasoline since 2014, as previously <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/gas-prices-now-highest-since-2014-amid-supply-concerns">reported</a> by The Daily Wire. 
The current price is still a fair distance from the record high of $4.11, set in 2008, but is even further away from the national average at the same time last year, when gas was just $2.16 per gallon, per AAA.
“Compared to the price of gas a year ago, it now costs consumers about $17 more to fill up their vehicles,” AAA spokesperson Andrew Gross said in a <a href="https://gasprices.aaa.com/sorry-folks-but-the-cost-of-gasoline-is-still-going-up/">statement</a>. “That’s the cost of a large pizza with toppings. And unfortunately, it doesn’t look like drivers will be finding relief at the pump any time soon.” 
GasBuddy concurred with AAA. They <a href="https://www.gasbuddy.com/go/jump-at-the-pump-continues-gas-prices-continue-pushing-7-year-highs">recorded</a> gas prices at $3.30 last week, citing the increase in crude oil prices due to increased demand and OPEC nations maintaining their production quotas. 
“The national average closed the week by climbing to yet another fresh seven-year high, as the price of oil continues to drag gas prices along for the wild ride, leaving motorists on empty,” said GasBuddy head of petroleum analysis Patrick De Haan, in a statement. “With OPEC holding back oil production and strong global oil demand, the situation will no doubt pave the road with even higher gas prices in the weeks ahead. Until several bottlenecks ease, including supply chains and low global inventories of oil, natural gas and coal, we’ll be stuck feeling the pinch of rising oil and gasoline prices. The bad news is that for now, all I see is the upward trend at the pump continuing into the weeks ahead with no sign of relief just yet.”
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Consumer Confidence Falls On Surging Gasoline Prices

Gas In One California Town Reaches $7.59 Per Gallon

California

Gasoline

A group of parents in the State of Michigan are suing Attorney General Merrick Garland over the release of a memo that could ultimately direct the FBI to investigate parents groups and individuals attending school board meetings.
The Washington Examiner <a href="https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/news/michigan-parents-sue-attorney-general-memo-directing-fbi-investigate-violent-threats">reports</a> that the conservative American Freedom Law Center is representing families in the school district of Saline, Michigan, in a <a href="https://www.americanfreedomlawcenter.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/Complaint-Saline-Parents-v-Garland-Filed.pdf">suit</a> seeking an injunction on the DOJ’s “recently announced policy … to use federal law enforcement resources to silence parents and other private citizens who publicly object to and oppose the divisive, harmful, immoral, and racist policies of the &#8216;progressive&#8217; Left that are being implemented by school boards and school officials in public school districts throughout the United States, including in the public schools in Saline, Michigan, and in Loudoun County, Virginia.” 
The suit is filed in the District Court of Washington, D.C. 
“Plaintiffs believe, and it is the law in many states, including Michigan and Virginia, as well as a fundamental right under the United States Constitution, that it is the natural, fundamental right of parents and legal guardians to determine and direct the care, teaching, and education of their children,” the lawsuit read.
“As parents and concerned citizens, Plaintiffs have a right to publicly object to the divisive, false, harmful, and immoral curricula and policies being advanced by SAS [Saline Area Schools] and LCPS [Loudoun County Public Schools]. This right to publicly criticize SAS and LCPS includes the right to do so vociferously and even stridently,&#8221; the group noted.
 The lawsuit continues, criticizing the Attorney General, Virginia Gubernatorial candidate Terry McAuliffe, and other progressives. It quotes McAuliffe’s response to a question from a recent Virginia Gubernatorial debate, in which McAuliffe said “[I] don’t think parents should be telling schools what they should teach.” 
The lawsuit continues:
<blockquote>Parents and private citizens who fund our public schools through their hard-earned tax dollars, including Plaintiffs, are rightly outraged by the notion that parents must surrender their children, under compulsion of law, to school officials who are bent on indoctrinating these young students with false, divisive, harmful, immoral, and racist dogma and ideology…
Just because parents and legal guardians are forced to send their children to public school, this does not mean that they surrender their rights as parents to direct the education of their children, particularly as it relates to religious, moral, and political issues… 
Unfortunately, many public schools, including those in SAS and in LCPS, have come under the influence and power of “progressives” who are using these publicly-funded schools to promote the divisive, false, harmful, immoral, and racist agenda of the “progressive” Left. Rather than focusing on core subjects such as reading, writing, arithmetic, and science, these schools are using their power of compulsion to indoctrinate children with a divisive, false, harmful, immoral, and racist agenda…
Parents and concerned citizens, including Plaintiffs, rightfully object to the implementation of such divisive, false, harmful, immoral, and racist policies and programs in their public schools. And these parents and citizens, including Plaintiffs, rightfully express their outrage and objections to these programs during school board meetings—meetings which are open to the public and open for public comment—and in other public forums. Indeed, school board meetings are public forums where speech touching upon matters of public concern is fully protected by the First Amendment.</blockquote>
The <a href="https://www.justice.gov/ag/page/file/1438986/download">memo</a> from AG Garland to the FBI was published on Oct. 4. In it, Garland <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/doj-fbi-investigating-disturbing-spike-in-harassment-threats-against-school-administrators">instructs</a> the directors of the FBI and the Executive Office of U.S. Attorneys, the Assistant Attorney General, Criminal Division, and the U.S. Attorneys to investigate a “disturbing spike in harassment, intimidation, and threats of violence against school administrators, board members, teachers, and staff” of public schools throughout the nation. 
The memo was written in response to a <a href="https://www.nsba.org/-/media/NSBA/File/nsba-letter-to-president-biden-concerning-threats-to-public-schools-and-school-board-members-92921.pdf?la=en&amp;hash=642B7B91E0029BA4427D0F38D7054A007537160F160F">letter</a> from the National School Boards Association to President Joe Biden asking for federal assistance “to deal with the growing number of threats of violence and acts of intimidation occurring across the nation.” 
The letter lists a number of alleged incidents of intimidation, including the June 22 arrest of Scott Smith, the father of an LCPS student, who, The Daily Wire <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/loudoun-county-schools-tried-to-conceal-sexual-assault-against-daughter-in-bathroom-father-says">reported</a>, attended the meeting to hear testimony on a proposed gender-neutral bathroom policy after his daughter was allegedly sexually assaulted during school. 
“Contrary to the Attorney General’s false assertion, there is no widespread criminality at school board meetings where parents and concerned citizens have expressed their opposition and outrage to the “progressive” agenda being forced upon their children in the public schools,” the lawsuit says. “There is no widespread threat of criminal violence at these meetings. Instead, these meetings involve private citizens expressing their opposition to harmful policies being considered by government officials [and] petitioning their government officials for a redress of grievances, as is their right to do under the First Amendment.”
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Students Return To School For In-Person Learning In Michigan

Michigan Parents Suing Attorney General Over DOJ School Board Memo

Department of Justice

Michigan

The Biden administration has rolled back its larger spending plan after meetings with moderate and progressive Democratic lawmakers Tuesday, cutting out a number of progressive priorities in the hope of getting the bill passed.
The Associated Press <a href="https://apnews.com/article/climate-joe-biden-business-congress-environment-df8f42615e01d13faf2d913b4662d295">reports</a> President Biden met with two separate groups of progressive and moderate Congressional Democrats in private meetings Tuesday to discuss curtailing the spending plan in hopes of getting it passed. 
The AP reports: “Democrats appeared ready to abandon what had been a loftier $3.5 trillion package in favor of a smaller, more workable proposal that can unite the party and win passage in the closely divided Congress.” With just an 8-seat majority in the House of Representatives and an evenly split Senate, the Democrats need the support of their entire caucus if they want to pass any new spending measure through budget reconciliation.
Press Secretary Jen Psaki said the administration was “more confident” in the sense of “urgency” among lawmakers, noting that there was “broad agreement” that “the window for finalizing a package is closing.” Democrats have set Oct. 31 as the deadline to pass the spending bill.
Among the programs which could be scaled back or cut out altogether include tuition-free community college, a path to “permanent legal status” for some groups of immigrants, and the administration’s cornerstone clean energy plan. However, paid family leave, child tax credits, and free pre-kindergarten remain on the table, though significantly scaled back, according to the AP. 
The administration is intent on maintaining the $300 child tax credit for another year, instead of letting it expire in December as previously scheduled, but the annual income threshold has been lowered to under $75,000, or $150,000 for couples. Those thresholds could be lowered even further to appease Democratic West Virginia Senator Joe Manchin, who wants the income cap <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/biden-gets-more-bad-news-that-would-dramatically-weaken-his-3-5-trillion-social-spending-bill">lowered</a> to $60,000 and a firm work requirement included. The federal paid family leave program could also be shrunk down from a months-long payment period to as little as four weeks. 
The Biden administration’s clean energy plan also faces a massive obstacle in Manchin. As previously reported by The Daily Wire, Manchin <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/manchin-carbon-tax-not-on-the-table-for-infrastructure-bill">opposes</a> both the administration’s original plan of grants and incentives to encourage clean energy production, as well as a “carbon tax” on greenhouse gas emissions favored by progressive Democrats. 
Manchin, as well as Democratic Arizona Senator Kyrsten Sinema, have proved to be significant stumbling blocks to the passage of the Biden administration’s spending plan. As previously reported by The Daily Wire, Manchin has called the administration’s $3.5 trillion spending plan “the definition of <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/democrat-senator-deals-death-blow-to-bidens-3-5-trillion-agenda-definition-of-fiscal-insanity">fiscal insanity</a>” and set a hard cap of $1.5 trillion in new spending. 
“At some point, all of us, regardless of party must ask the simple question – how much is enough?” Manchin said at the time.
Sinema has also <a href="https://twitter.com/SenatorSinema/status/1443630876362002432?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1443630876362002432%7Ctwgr%5E%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&amp;ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.dailywire.com%2Fnews%2Fpelosi-takes-one-two-punch-bipartisan-infrastructure-deal-3-5t-spending-bill-both-likely-dead">stated</a> that she would not accept the $3.5 trillion spending figure and has also opposed proposed the administration’s <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/biden-gets-more-bad-news-from-another-democrat-senator-about-his-3-5-trillion-wish-list-report">drug pricing</a> measures, which were supposed to be included in the larger package.   
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Joe Biden

Biden Scales Back Spending Plan, Cuts Out Key Progressive Priorities

Biden Administration

Infrastructure

The Recording Academy released a rider to its production agreement that will affirm its commitment to “equity and inclusion” in hiring at all levels of production, according to a report from The Associated Press.
As <a href="https://apnews.com/article/entertainment-music-arts-and-entertainment-2cba15bcf91b8b3ab3fe9f44a662ff43">reported</a> by the AP, the Academy issued an 8-page document detailing the rider’s goals and objectives. The rider instructs the producers of the 64th annual awards show to “recruit and hire more diverse candidates backstage and in front of the camera,” from demographic groups “that have been historically and systematically excluded from the industry.” The rider was initially <a href="https://apnews.com/article/entertainment-music-arts-and-entertainment-grammy-awards-9fd5080fa9546b12d180c5d50424f136">adopted</a> in August, after Frances McDormand mentioned it during her acceptance speech for best actress at the Oscars.
Harvey Mason Jr., the CEO of the Recording Academy, expressed pride in the initiative and hope that it would “move the needle” within the industry.
“The inclusion rider is something that will provide an opportunity for people that may not have had one before,” said Mason in an interview. “That’s really important to me. I wouldn’t be here if someone didn’t give me an opportunity. I’m trying to make pathways and make sure there’s areas for people to work into a system and climb their way through.”
The rider was co-authored by writer and speaker Fanshen Cox DiGiovanni and civil rights lawyer Kalpana Kotagal, and created with the help of several groups including the civil rights activist group Color of Change; Ryan Butler, founding director of Warner Music/Blavatnik Center for Music Business at Howard University; and Recording Academy co-president Valeisha Butterfield Jones.
Kotagal told the AP that the rider will seek to improve representation and equity in four ways:
<ul>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Diversifying hiring pools, </li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Hiring benchmarks </li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Data collection and analysis </li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Strict accountability measures.</li>
</ul>
“By committing to use the inclusion rider for its 2022 production, the Grammy Awards is not only ensuring a more equitable and diverse hiring process, it is also setting an important standard for inclusivity and representation at award shows moving forward,” she said in a statement.
The 2021 Grammy awards were fraught with controversy over the lack of diversity in the nominations. Three artists <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/this-is-not-just-white-guys-with-guitars-playing-for-kids-three-grammy-nominees-decline-the-honor">declined</a> their nominations for Best Children’s Album because all the nominees were white. One of the artists, Joe Mailander of the band Okee Dokee Brothers, said he “thought that it was the strongest thing we could do, to stand with people of color whose albums are too often left out of the Grammy nominations. … This is not just white guys with guitars playing for kids. We want to welcome all different types of music to this community.” 
The Grammys also suffered bitterly in ratings. The 2021 awards program, which featured an <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/cardi-b-performs-wap-and-other-key-moments-from-the-grammys">explicit</a> performance of “WAP” by Cardi B and Megan Thee Stallion, Harry Styles in feather <a href="https://www.etonline.com/harry-styles-wore-3-different-boas-to-the-2021-grammys-and-were-so-here-for-it-162261">boas</a>, and Trevor Noah cracking jokes about the January 6 Capitol incident, took a steep dive in ratings, garnering only <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/grammy-ratings-hit-lowest-of-low-only-8-8m-tune-in-vs-19m-last-year">8.8 million</a> viewers across multiple platforms, about half of the previous record low of 16.9 million in 2006, and a decline of 10 million viewers from the 2020 Grammys, which pulled 18.8 million viewers. 
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Chicago Chapter 60th Anniversary Concert

Grammy Awards Double Down On ‘Equity And Inclusion’ With Woke Hiring Instructions, Rider Shows

Diversity Equity and Inclusion (DEI)

Grammys

Illinois State Police and the Illinois Emergency Management Agency have instructed a number of police departments in the suburbs of Chicago to contribute officers in case of a shortage of police officers, according to a report from Chicago’s WGN9 TV.
According to the <a href="https://wgntv.com/news/chicago-news/if-needed-suburban-police-asked-to-volunteer-to-help-chicago/">report</a>, an Illinois Law Enforcement Alarm System (ILEAS) coordinator sent emails to a number of suburban police departments asking them to volunteer the services of their specialist units, and what their response times would be. 
From Chicago&#8217;s WGN:
<blockquote>WGN Investigates has learned a coordinator from the Illinois Law Enforcement Alarm System (ILEAS) sent an email to a dozen police officials from Kankakee to Barrington asking them to ask members of their specialized units whether they would be willing to respond to critical situations in Chicago – and how quickly they could get there.
“To be clear, if members of the ILEAS Special Teams programs are requested, it would be for emergency situations, NOT for routine police assistance and the answering of calls for service within the city limits.  Illinois State Police and Cook County Sheriff’s Office would be tasked with the patrol needs,” the email read…
The Cook County Sheriff’s department already works with Chicago police in some targeted high crime neighborhoods. 
However, Cook County only has 300 sworn officers so their presence wouldn’t come close to filling the void that could be created if Mayor Lightfoot follows through on her threat to suspend the thousands of Chicago officers who had still not reported their vaccination status as of Monday afternoon.  </blockquote>
One department has already refused. 
Kane County Sheriff Ron Hain told WGN he would not send his deputies to the city because of the political agendas of Mayor Lightfoot and Cook County State’s Attorney Kim Foxx. 
“I will not send my personnel to Chicago unless an officer is under direct duress because I cannot support this slanted agenda,” he said. “I also will not allow my deputies to be subjected to use of force in the City and be under the prosecutorial jurisdiction of the Cook County State’s Attorney.”
The city of Chicago is in danger of a significant police shortage as the city’s police union clashes with Mayor Lightfoot over the city’s vaccine mandate. 
All city workers were <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/chicago-police-union-president-tells-officers-to-resist-city-vaccine-mandate-requirements-hold-the-line">ordered</a> to submit their vaccination status by Oct. 15, and unvaccinated workers were ordered to submit to twice-weekly COVID testing, on their own time and at their own expense, until December 31, when all city workers would be ordered to be fully vaccinated. Failure to submit vaccination records and failure to submit to testing would result in the individual being placed on unpaid leave. 
To date, only 64% of the Chicago Police Department, around 8200 people out of 12,700 total, have <a href="https://wgntv.com/news/coronavirus/city-data-64-of-chicago-police-employees-reported-vaccination-status/">submitted</a> their vaccination status to the city. Of those, just under 6900 reported that they were vaccinated, just over half the total number of employees, while some 1300 were not vaccinated. 
The President of the Chicago Police Union, John Catanzara, has told officers to “<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/chicago-police-union-president-tells-officers-to-resist-city-vaccine-mandate-requirements-hold-the-line">hold the line</a>,” saying he believes the city has no authority to mandate medical records or vaccination. The city and its police union are currently in the process of <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/chicago-mayor-lightfoot-and-police-unions-sue-each-other-over-vaccine-mandate">suing</a> each other over the vaccine mandate. 
Lightfoot was adamant that the number of non-compliant officers was low and that the city had contingency plans in place. 
“I don’t engage in a lot of hypotheticals. Obviously, we have contingency plans in place for some time,” she said. “What we’re seeing is the number of folks who are after being given the opportunities and direct order saying no is very small. I’m not seeing that there is going to be any disruption in our ability to keep our neighborhoods safe, we have to keep plugging away at this that will play itself out over the next couple days.
But to date, the mayor has already <a href="https://wgntv.com/news/19-chicago-cops-stripped-of-police-powers-for-not-complying-with-vaccine-reporting-mandate/">stripped</a> 19 officers of their police powers and has cut back on officers&#8217; ability to take <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/chicago-police-restrict-time-off-for-cops-as-mayor-threatens-to-put-half-the-force-on-unpaid-leave-over-vaccine-mandate">time off</a> in the wake of the expected shortage, which according to Catanzara, could be as much as 50% of the force.
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Protests Across Chicago For and  Against Police

Suburban Chicago Police Asked To Go To Chicago In Case Of Police Walkout Over Vaccine Mandate

COVID-19 Vaccine

West Virginia Senator Joe Manchin told reporters that a carbon tax is “not on the board” in negotiations over the Biden administration’s proposed infrastructure and spending plans.
“The carbon tax is not on the board at all right now,” the Democrat told <a href="https://twitter.com/alanhe/status/1450477161006223374?s=20">reporters</a> Tuesday morning. When asked whether he would get behind a carbon tax in the future, Manchin repeated that the tax was not being considered.
The carbon tax is a tax on energy production which would essentially be a fee levied on greenhouse gas emissions. <a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/us/manchin-says-carbon-tax-not-board-us-spending-bill-talks-2021-10-19/">Reuters</a> describes how it works: “under a carbon tax, the government sets a gradually rising price for each ton of greenhouse gas that polluters emit, incentivizing industries to move to cleaner energy sources.” 
Progressive Democrats have floated the carbon tax as an alternative clean energy initiative after Manchin <a href="https://thehill.com/policy/equilibrium-sustainability/577311-manchin-climate-stance-threatens-to-shatter-infrastructure">opposed</a> the Clean Electricity Performance Program, a $150 billion plan to transition away from greenhouse gas emissions in the energy industry. 
The plan, which would use incentives and fines to encourage energy companies to invest in clean energy, would have aimed to cut the greenhouse gas emissions of the energy sector by <a href="https://thehill.com/policy/energy-environment/577317-democrats-scramble-for-climate-alternatives">80% by 2030</a>, but it has been scrapped because of Manchin’s opposition.  
“If the CEPP has fallen out of the package, that makes the methane and carbon pollution fees even more critical as a pathway to safety,” Rhode Island Senator Sheldon Whitehouse told The Hill. 
The carbon tax is an even more difficult get for progressives. Manchin has been <a href="https://thehill.com/homenews/senate/574175-manchin-raises-red-flag-on-carbon-tax">stalwart</a> in his opposition to the carbon tax. 
“Any type of a tax is going to be passed on to the people,” he told reporters in September. “Now if a tax is going to be beneficial to help something and give us more research and development and innovation and technology, it’s something to look at,” he said. But The Hill reported at the time that Manchin was skeptical of the benefits of the carbon tax proposal.
Manchin is not the only Democrat opposed to the carbon tax. Democratic Montana Senator Jon Tester also voiced his opposition to the <a href="https://thehill.com/policy/equilibrium-sustainability/577378-manchin-carbon-tax-not-on-the-board-for-biden-spending-plan?rl=1">proposal</a> Tuesday. 
“I’m not a big fan of the carbon tax. I just don’t think it works the way it was explained to me,” Tester said, via The Hill.
Democrats need the support of their entire caucus to pass much of the Biden administration’s domestic agenda, especially the massive <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/democrat-senator-deals-death-blow-to-bidens-3-5-trillion-agenda-definition-of-fiscal-insanity">$3.5 trillion</a> “human infrastructure” spending plan the party is attempting to pass through the budget reconciliation process. But with the Senate evenly split 50-50, Manchin’s staunch opposition to his own party’s proposals has stymied Democrats’ efforts. 
Manchin told the administration Sunday he would not support Biden’s <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/biden-gets-more-bad-news-that-would-dramatically-weaken-his-3-5-trillion-social-spending-bill">child tax credit</a> unless it included a hard work requirement and a $60,000 family income cap. Manchin has also set a hard <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/pelosi-takes-one-two-punch-bipartisan-infrastructure-deal-3-5t-spending-bill-both-likely-dead">fiscal cap</a> of $1.5 trillion in new spending, and has called the larger $3.5 trillion package “the definition of fiscal <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/democrat-senator-deals-death-blow-to-bidens-3-5-trillion-agenda-definition-of-fiscal-insanity">insanity</a>.” 
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Joe Manchin

Manchin: Carbon Tax ‘Not On The Table’ For Infrastructure Bill

The National Highway Transportation Safety Administration announced Monday it is opening an investigation into more than 600,000 Dodge Ram pickup trucks after it received complaints of fuel pump failures that could cause the engines to stall.
According to <a href="https://apnews.com/article/business-9b4d797bfc92d9a0e76b793915073ae8">The Associated Press</a>, the investigation could lead to a recall of more than 600,000 Ram 2500, 3500, 4500, and 5500 diesel pickups with 6.7 liter Cummins turbodiesel engines.
The AP reported that the NHTSA released documents Monday that the regulatory agency received two field reports and 22 complaints of high-pressure fuel pumps failing, which could lead to the engines stalling out. Fortunately, the agency did not report any accidents or injuries because of the pump failures. 
The agency reviewed the complaints and reported that when the trucks go above 25 miles per hour, the engines stop and the trucks are completely disabled. The NHTSA also said that Fiat Chrysler, the parent company of Dodge, which makes Ram trucks, had issued a warranty bulletin in November 2019, telling dealers to collect the trucks’ fuel pumps. 
The agency is launching an investigation into the why and how the pumps shut off, which models are affected, and whether the problem could involve a safety defect. Fiat Chrysler, now Stellantis, said in a statement that it is cooperating with the investigation, which could possibly lead to the affected trucks being recalled.
The current NHTSA investigation is the latest in a string of safety issues with Ram trucks. 
Stellantis was forced to <a href="https://apnews.com/article/business-b66daf35a13c8ac81d1c25a3aceb0510">recall</a> some 266,000 Ram 2500 and 3500 pickups from model years 2015 to 2020 in North America after a report found that the side cabin airbags could explode, sending shrapnel into the cab. 
According to the AP, the airbag inflators were made by Joyson Safety Systems, which had just recently bought out airbag manufacturer Takata after the company went bankrupt. Takata’s airbags used small amounts of ammonium nitrate to create a small explosion to fill them. The ammonium nitrate had been contaminated with moisture during the manufacturing process, which could lead the airbags’ metal canister to explode, sending shrapnel into the cab.
 The recall affected some <a href="https://thehill.com/policy/transportation/567856-ram-stellantis-trucks-recalled-after-reports-of-faulty-airbags?rl=1">210,000</a> Ram pickup trucks in the U.S., according to The Hill. General Motors was forced to recall over <a href="https://apnews.com/article/business-technology-7a6147cd751d5f53a7a74aea5f27a134">400,000</a> pickups because of it in July, but Stellantis said at the time that their airbags did not use ammonium nitrate.
In May, the automaker recalled more than <a href="https://apnews.com/article/business-de67e1b4718bd33f66b8010e9cdac630">500,000</a> heavy-duty trucks after it was discovered that service manuals had incorrect torque specifications for the lug nuts holding the wheels onto the wheel hubs, which could have led the wheel studs to snap and the wheels to fall off.
Another <a href="https://www.foxbusiness.com/lifestyle/ram-truck-recall-fiat-chrysler">20,000</a> trucks were recalled and owners were asked to park their trucks outside as a precautionary measure after it was discovered that the electrical relays to the trucks’ heating systems could short out or overheat, potentially causing a fire hazard. 
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John Rigolizzo