Americans’ sentiment about the <a href="http://dailywire.com/topic/economy">economy</a> is more pessimistic than at any time in the past seven decades, according to the University of Michigan’s most recent Survey of Consumers.
The index reading of 50 in June reflects a severe drop since May and the lowest level since 1952, according to <a href="https://www.wsj.com/articles/consumer-sentiment-at-record-low-is-another-ominous-sign-for-economy-11656093116">The Wall Street Journal</a>, and is a key indicator of a looming <a href="http://dailywire.com/topic/recession">recession</a>.
“Consumers across income, age, education, geographic region, political affiliation, stockholding and homeownership status all posted large declines,” Survey of Consumers Director Joanna Hsu said in a statement, per <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2022/06/24/economy/consumer-sentiment-final-read-june/index.html">CNN</a>. “About 79% of consumers expected bad times in the year ahead for business conditions, the highest since 2009.”
The influential survey has seen a <a href="https://fred.stlouisfed.org/series/UMCSENT">significant decline</a> beginning in the spring of 2021, when inflation started to <a href="https://fred.stlouisfed.org/series/CPIAUCSL#0">rise</a> beyond the roughly 2% level seen over the last few decades. As of May, the Consumer Price Index (CPI) has <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/inflation-reaches-8-6-setting-new-four-decade-high">risen</a> 8.6% year-over-year — the highest <a href="http://dailywire.com/topic/inflation">inflation</a> rate witnessed since the 1980s.
“As higher prices become harder to avoid, consumers may feel they have no choice but to adjust their spending patterns, whether through substitution of goods or foregoing purchases altogether,” Hsu added. “The speed and intensity at which these adjustments occur will be critical for the trajectory of the economy.”
To contend with skyrocketing inflation, the <a href="http://dailywire.com/topic/federal-reserve">Federal Reserve</a> increased <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/federal-reserve-takes-most-aggressive-action-to-fight-inflation-in-three-decades">interest rates</a> earlier this month by 0.75% — the largest rate hike increment since 1994. The central bank already <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/the-fed-jacks-key-rate-up-half-point-as-inflation-surges">hiked rates</a> by 0.5% in May — the largest such increase since 2000 — after a 0.25% rate hike from near-zero levels in March. Interest rates are now at 1.5% to 1.75%, with <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/expect-higher-unemployment-as-federal-reserve-tackles-inflation-warns-top-policymaker">more increases likely</a> on the way.
Fears of a recession have gripped American consumers and businesses. Last week, a bout of <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/wall-street-sees-worst-carnage-since-2020">stock market selloffs</a> caused the Dow Jones Industrial Average and the Nasdaq Composite to fall 4.8%, while the S&amp;P 500 was down 5.8% — marking its worst week since 2020, according to <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2022/06/16/stock-market-news-futures-open-to-close.html">CNBC</a>.
President Joe Biden, however, said in a recent interview that a recession is by no means “inevitable” and told Americans to <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/biden-claims-recession-not-inevitable-tells-americans-they-shouldnt-believe-economist-warnings">wait before concluding</a> that economists’ forecasts are true.
“They shouldn’t believe a warning. They should just say: ‘Let’s see. Let’s see which is correct.’ And from my perspective, you talked about a recession. First of all, it’s not inevitable,” Biden told Associated Press reporter Josh Boak before pointing to a survey taken last year to allege that households have robust savings.
Meanwhile, Biden has deflected on the issue of rising price levels, <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/biden-claims-inflation-is-worse-everywhere-but-here-thats-not-even-close-to-true">claiming</a> that “Putin’s Price Hike” — a reference to the Russian invasion of Ukraine and its role in soaring <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/gas-prices-hit-grim-national-average-of-5-per-gallon">global energy costs</a> — is the primary pressure behind inflation.
“High gas prices at the pump, energy, and food prices accounted for around half of the monthly price increases, and gas pump prices are up by $2 a gallon in many places since Russian troops began to threaten Ukraine,” Biden said. “Even as we continue our work to defend freedom in Ukraine, we must do more — and quickly — to get prices down here in the United States.”
When questioned by a recent Harvard <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/poll-95-of-voters-say-inflation-is-somewhat-or-very-serious">survey</a> about rising price levels, 95% of respondents said that inflation is “very serious” or “somewhat serious.” A plurality — 47% — said that the Biden administration is responsible.

8C36A07C-5EC9-4000-9157-317D3523A106_1_201_a

Consumer Sentiment Plummets To Lowest Level Since 1950s

Consumer Sentiment Plunges To Lowest Level In 70 Years

Biden Administration

Economy

Inflation

Recession

Supply Chain

Remember that <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/biden-admin-brags-about-saving-americans-16-cents-on-july-4-food-our-economic-plan-is-working">$0.16</a> <a href="http://dailywire.com/topic/joe-biden">Joe Biden</a> saved you last Fourth of July? In 2022, he is taking summer <a href="http://dailywire.com/topic/gas-prices">savings</a> to a whole new level — a bit less than $16, to be exact.
Earlier this week, President Biden called for a <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/biden-calls-for-three-month-pause-to-federal-gas-tax">three-month pause</a> to the federal gas <a href="http://dailywire.com/topic/taxes">tax</a> — which sits at slightly over $0.18 per gallon of <a href="http://dailywire.com/topic/oil-and-gas">gasoline</a> — because he “understands that high gas prices pose a significant challenge for working families,” according to the <a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/statements-releases/2022/06/22/fact-sheet-president-biden-calls-for-a-three-month-federal-gas-tax-holiday/">White House</a>.
Despite the publicity that has surrounded the move, a new report from the <a href="https://budgetmodel.wharton.upenn.edu/issues/2022/6/24/three-month-federal-gas-tax-holiday">University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School</a> revealed that President Joe Biden’s proposal would save Americans a total of $4.79 to $14.31 from July to September.
Indeed, Penn Wharton Budget Model explained earlier this year that because the United States’ <a href="https://budgetmodel.wharton.upenn.edu/issues/2022/3/11/effects-of-a-federal-gas-tax-holiday">gasoline market</a> is “typically characterized by inelastic supply and inelastic demand in the short run,” there would not be a significant change in gasoline consumption spending. Savings would be most tangible in states like California, where the average cost of gas is the highest in the nation, while savings would be lowest in the Rocky Mountain and Gulf Coast regions.
The national average price of gasoline is $4.93 per gallon as of Friday, according to <a href="https://gasprices.aaa.com/">AAA</a>. In California, the average price is $6.35 per gallon; in Colorado and Louisiana, average prices are $4.91 and $4.47, respectively. Earlier this month, average costs surpassed <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/gas-prices-hit-grim-national-average-of-5-per-gallon">$5.00 per gallon</a>.
Inflation, however, cost the typical American household $3,500 in 2021, according to another Penn Wharton Budget Model <a href="https://budgetmodel.wharton.upenn.edu/issues/2021/12/15/consumption-under-inflation-costs">analysis</a>.
Sen. Joe Manchin (D-WV) said on Wednesday that he <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/democratic-senator-not-a-yes-right-now-on-bidens-proposed-gas-tax-holiday">would not vote for</a> the federal gas tax suspension since the policy does not guarantee that the amount would “penny-for-penny come off of that price.” Conservatives have mounted a similar argument.
“President Biden’s proposed temporary gas tax suspension is a band-aid solution to runaway gas prices,” Job Creators Network President Alfredo Ortiz said in a statement provided to The Daily Wire on Wednesday. “To truly show leadership and meaningfully reduce Americans’ pain at the pump, Biden must fundamentally reshape his party’s environmental policy, strongly backing the production and distribution of traditional energy. Only with vastly increased supply can gas prices significantly fall.”
Combined with state taxes, the typical American driver pays $0.571 in gas taxes per gallon, according to the <a href="https://www.api.org/oil-and-natural-gas/consumer-information/motor-fuel-taxes/gasoline-tax">American Petroleum Institute</a>.
On Sunday, Treasury Secretary <a href="http://dailywire.com/topic/janet-yellen">Janet Yellen</a> told ABC News host George Stephanopoulos that pausing the federal gas tax was <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/yellen-gives-opinion-on-pausing-federal-gas-tax-to-bring-prices-down">on the table</a> for President Biden. “Gas prices have risen a great deal, and it’s clearly burdening households,” Yellen said. “So he stands ready to work with Congress, and that’s an idea that’s certainly worth considering.”
Meanwhile, Energy Secretary <a href="http://dailywire.com/topic/jennifer-granholm">Jennifer Granholm</a> lauded the suspension as a way to provide families relief from “Putin’s Price Hike” — but also <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/energy-secretary-lays-out-the-only-way-to-avoid-high-gas-prices-and-its-not-producing-more-oil">argued</a> that the “only way out” of “boom-and-bust cycles” in energy prices is “deploying clean energy.”
“The real truth is that as long as our nation remains overly reliant on oil and fossil fuels, we will feel these price shocks again,” Granholm said. “This is not going to be the last time. The next time there’s a war, the next time there’s a pandemic or another hurricane, these extreme weather events we are experiencing — they will impact the access that we have to fossil fuels.”

President Biden Delivers Remarks On The Battleship Iowa In Los Angeles Harbor

Report Shows How Much Biden’s Gas Tax Suspension Would Save The Typical American

Biden's Gas Tax Suspension Would Save Americans Between $5 And $14

Gas Prices

Gas Tax

Joe Biden

Oil and Gas

Many politicians are given cheat sheets by their staff to remember talking points and to help them stay on schedule, but observers noticed that President Joe Biden&#8217;s notecard on Thursday was filled out with a little more detail than normal.
Kate Hyde, a writer and commentator, flagged that Biden revealed the back of his notecard, showing instructions for how to act and to whom he should ask questions during meeting union and private sector leaders to discuss the new Federal-State Offshore Wind Implementation Partnership.
Biden began the meeting by saying he was &#8220;disappointed&#8221; by the Supreme Court&#8217;s decision released Thursday that upheld the Second Amendment and struck down a New York concealed carry law. As the video shows, one side of the card was written in what appears to be his own handwriting, while the other side had text with step-by-step instructions on what to do while in the room.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
“YOU take YOUR seat” <a href="https://t.co/zczauxI0op">https://t.co/zczauxI0op</a> <a href="https://t.co/c2Zg6ZSxHL">pic.twitter.com/c2Zg6ZSxHL</a>
&mdash; Kate Hyde (@KateHydeNY) <a href="https://twitter.com/KateHydeNY/status/1540080907444523011?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 23, 2022</a></blockquote>
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Thanks to a Getty Image of the incident, readers can see that the text reads as follows:
Offshore Wind Drop-By Sequence of Events 
<ul>
<li>YOU enter the Roosevelt Room and say hello to participants </li>
<li>YOU take YOUR seat</li>
<li>Press enters</li>
<li>YOU give brief comments (Minutes) </li>
<li>Press departs </li>
<li>YOU ask Liz Shuler AFL-CIO President a question</li>
<li>Note: Liz is joining virtually.</li>
<li>YOU thank participants.</li>
<li>You depart.</li>
</ul>
In reaction to the photo, Greg Price, a conservative digital strategist, sarcastically remarked, &#8220;Joe Biden isn&#8217;t senile, guys. His handlers just have to give him step by step directions for every single thing that he does.&#8221;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
Joe Biden isn&#39;t senile, guys. His handlers just have to give him step by step directions for every single thing that he does.
h/t <a href="https://twitter.com/KateHydeNY?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@KateHydeNY</a> <a href="https://t.co/JaKZMLv64V">pic.twitter.com/JaKZMLv64V</a>
&mdash; Greg Price (@greg_price11) <a href="https://twitter.com/greg_price11/status/1540086506030768128?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 23, 2022</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
Popular Twitter user and podcast host Comfortably Smug tweeted, &#8220;Holy s*** This is unreal&#8221;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
Holy shit
This is unreal <a href="https://t.co/K0Caz0tQDo">https://t.co/K0Caz0tQDo</a>
&mdash; Comfortably Smug (@ComfortablySmug) <a href="https://twitter.com/ComfortablySmug/status/1540089091575914496?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 23, 2022</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
This is not the first time that Biden has been caught using a notecard with verbatim instruction. In late March, Biden was photographed with talking points on what to say about Russian President Vladimir Putin.
&#8220;Biden had to have ‘I was not articulating a change in policy’ written verbatim on a notecard so he wouldn’t screw it up… and he still screwed it up,&#8221; the GOP&#8217;s Jake Schneider tweeted.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
Biden had to have “I was not articulating a change in policy” written verbatim on a notecard so he wouldn’t screw it up… and he still screwed it up <a href="https://t.co/OvEwlHQVry">pic.twitter.com/OvEwlHQVry</a>
&mdash; Jake Schneider (@jacobkschneider) <a href="https://twitter.com/jacobkschneider/status/1508584855440969735?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 28, 2022</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
Biden has made it a habit to mess up certain talking points, only to have the White House walk back his statements.
During that same press conference where Biden got busted with Putin talking points, the commander-in-chief was <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/none-of-the-three-occurred-biden-denies-making-foreign-policy-gaffes-that-white-house-walked-back">asked</a> point-blank about several foreign policy gaffes relating to Russia. While in Europe in late March, the president appeared to tell U.S. troops that they were headed to Ukraine, suggested that the U.S. might retaliate with a chemical weapon if Russia used one first, and alluded to the possibility of regime change in Russia.
Each time, the White House had to issue clarifications after the president’s comments — but when Fox News&#8217; Peter Doocy asked Biden about the clarifications, he appeared to be completely unaware that his team had amended any of those statements, asking Doocy, “What’s getting walked back?”
Doocy asked Biden if he was “worried that other leaders in the world are going to start to doubt that America is ‘back’ if some of these big things that you say on the world stage keep getting walked back?”
“What’s getting walked back?” Biden responded.
“Just in the last couple days … it sounded like you told troops they were going to Ukraine, it sounded like you said it was possible the U.S. would use a chemical weapon, and it sounded like you were calling for regime change in Russia, and we know …” Doocy said before Biden interrupted.
The president interjected, denying that had happened at all, “None of the three occurred.”
According to the Baltimore Sun, the purpose of Thursday&#8217;s meeting was to <a href="https://twitter.com/baltimoresun/status/1540004786522685443?s=20&amp;t=AOJMXD8TTczDYvA0epG5Kw">launch</a> a &#8220;formal partnership with 11 East Coast governors, including Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan, to boost the growing offshore wind industry, a key element of President Joe Biden’s plan for climate change.&#8221;
That fact might get overshadowed by the president&#8217;s instruction list.

‘YOU Take YOUR Seat’: Biden’s Notecard Has Step-By-Step Instructions For Everything, Like Walking Into Room And Sitting Down

Video Shows White House Staff Provided Biden With Step-By-Step Instruction For Federal-State Offshore Wind Implementation Partnership.

Energy

Media

White House

A former official in the Biden administration appeared to mock California Governor Gavin Newsom (D) this week when he was asked about Newsom&#8217;s apparent attempts to boost his profile ahead of the 2024 presidential election season.
The remarks come after Newsom survived an embarrassing recall election that he faced due to his handling of the coronavirus pandemic and the overall condition of his state.
Newsom, who <a href="https://twitter.com/search?q=gavin%20newsom%20patrick%20bateman&amp;src=typed_query&amp;f=top">many</a> have compared to delusional psychopath Patrick Bateman from the movie &#8220;American Psycho,&#8221; is rumored to have presidential ambitions, although he has apparently tried to suggest that he is not challenging the <a href="https://twitter.com/EWErickson/status/1540022463530258432">failing</a> Biden administration.
“Everybody is trying to be relevant for the next race,&#8221; said Cedric Richmond, a former senior Biden White House official who recently transitioned to a top role in the DNC. &#8220;I think ambition makes people do different things.&#8221;
When asked about how the Biden administration views Newsom&#8217;s attempts to promote himself, Richmond said, &#8220;I am not sure they are reading the Gavin Newsom opinion pages about his desire to be politically relevant.&#8221;
Newsom has sought to boost his profile by <a href="https://www.sfgate.com/politics/article/Newsom-goes-scorched-earth-on-DeSantis-17147621.php">attacking</a> Florida Governor Ron DeSantis (R), which effectively is political clout chasing.
DeSantis exploded on the national political during the coronavirus pandemic and is now a top candidate for the 2024 presidential election. DeSantis has earned praise from <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/bill-maher-gives-unexpected-defense-of-florida-governor-ron-desantis-from-left-wing-political-attacks">across the political spectrum</a>, from <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/elon-musk-tips-hat-toward-ron-desantis-to-be-next-president-of-the-united-states">Elon Musk</a>, and has <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/poll-from-first-republican-primary-state-shows-winds-of-gop-changing">started to beat</a> former President Donald Trump in presidential primary polling.
&#8220;Well, first I would say how many people are moving from his state, fleeing to come to mine for freedom versus vice-versa?&#8221; DeSantis <a href="https://www.foxnews.com/media/desantis-hits-back-against-newsoms-attacks-people-vote-their-feet">fired back</a> at Newsom. &#8220;And I guarantee you we win in the net — in migration, people are leaving California in numbers we&#8217;ve never seen because of his failed policies.&#8221;
On the matter of how Newsom responded to the coronavirus pandemic, DeSantis said that &#8220;this is where I think his leadership has been terrible.&#8221;
&#8220;If you look at excess mortality, California&#8217;s had a higher percentage of excess mortality since COVID started than Florida — so that includes COVID, but it&#8217;s not limited,&#8221; DeSantis said, adding that he believes that there were &#8220;lockdown deaths&#8221; caused by Newsom&#8217;s policies. &#8220;Those are deaths that his policies have caused, driving people to despair, drug addiction, lack of opportunities.&#8221;
Related: <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/breaking-democrat-andrew-gillum-charged-with-21-felonies-related-to-campaign-that-lost-to-desantis">Democrat Andrew Gillum Charged With 21 Felonies Related To Campaign That Lost To DeSantis </a>

Biden Newsom

Top Democrat Mocks Gavin Newsom’s ‘Desire To Be Politically Relevant’

2024 Election

California

Gavin Newsom

Ron DeSantis

The Biden administration on Thursday officially proposed extending Title IX&#8217;s protections to <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/transgender">transgender</a> students.
The proposed change would &#8220;protect LGBTQI+ students from discrimination based on sexual orientation, gender identity, and sex characteristics,&#8221; the Department of <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/education">Education</a> <a href="https://www.ed.gov/news/press-releases/us-department-education-releases-proposed-changes-title-ix-regulations-invites-public-comment">said</a> in a statement.
The department proposed the Title IX change on the 50th anniversary of the civil rights law, which bars schools that receive federal funding from discriminating on the basis of sex. When Title IX was passed half a century ago, it was meant to protect the rights of women and girls in educational settings. Since then, it has been interpreted to apply to other protected classes, including LGBTQ people.
&#8220;Over the last 50 years, Title IX has paved the way for millions of girls and women to access equal opportunity in our nation&#8217;s schools and has been instrumental in combating sexual assault and sexual violence in educational settings,&#8221; said Education Secretary Miguel Cardona said in a statement.
&#8220;As we celebrate the 50th Anniversary of this landmark law, our proposed changes will allow us to continue that progress and ensure all our nation&#8217;s students – no matter where they live, who they are, or whom they love – can learn, grow, and thrive in school,&#8221; Cardona said.
Along with the changes on transgender students, the proposed rules would also overhaul the process by which schools handle sexual assault and sexual harassment allegations. The overhaul would nix changes made by the Trump administration that were intended to make the process more fair for accused students. While campaigning for president, President Joe Biden said the Trump administration&#8217;s changes &#8220;shame and silence survivors&#8221; and vowed to scrap them.
The new rules will &#8220;restore vital protections for students in our nation’s schools which were eroded by controversial regulations implemented during the previous Administration,&#8221; the education department said Thursday in a <a href="https://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ocr/docs/t9nprm-factsheet.pdf">fact sheet</a> accompanying the proposed rule.
&#8220;Those regulations weakened protections for survivors of sexual assault and diminished the promise of an education free from discrimination,&#8221; the department said.
The new rules would rollback constitutional protections for students accused of heinous crimes, including the right to a live hearing, to cross-examine their accuser and the witnesses against them, and allowing a &#8220;single investigator&#8221; model that allows a single person to act as investigator, judge, jury, and executioner. This model would also prevent accused students from learning the evidence against them, such as what the accuser and witnesses are specifically accusing them of, and allow schools to keep individual testimonies hidden, making it more difficult for wrongly accused students to file a lawsuit to protect their civil rights.
Courts have consistently upheld civil rights for accused students in recent years, and legal challenges to the Trump administration&#8217;s regulations all failed.
In 2016, the Obama administration <a href="https://www.politico.com/story/2016/05/obama-administration-title-ix-transgender-student-rights-223149">issued</a> guidance saying Title IX protections also apply to a transgender student&#8217;s bathroom preference. The next year, however, the Trump administration <a href="https://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2017/02/22/516664633/trump-administration-rescinds-obama-rule-on-transgender-students-bathroom-use">reversed</a> that guidance, saying the issue should not have been dealt with at the federal level and that there &#8220;must be due regard for the primary role of states and local school districts in establishing educational policy.&#8221;
Over the last year, parents have raised the alarm about biological males in girls bathrooms at school. In some cases, even elementary schools have <a href="https://abcnews4.com/news/nation-world/parents-push-back-against-elementary-schools-trans-bathroom-policy-olentangy-school-district-gender-inclusive-restroom-title-ix-lgbtq-transgender-students-single-sex-spaces">adopted</a> policies allowing transgender-identifying boys to use the girls bathrooms, prompting parents to complain at school board meetings.
The Biden administration did not address what the new rules would mean for transgender students competing on the college sports team of their preferred gender, an issue that has <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/lia-thomas-teammate-competitor-blast-title-as-illegitimate-in-wake-of-fina-transgender-restrictions">sparked</a> national debate in recent months.
The proposed rule is slated to be published in the Federal Register and will be open for public comment for 60 days afterwards. If approved, the policy would not take effect until next year at the earliest.

North Carolina Clashes With U.S. Over New Public Restroom Law

Biden Officially Proposes Extending Title IX To Transgender Students

Department of Education

Education

LGBTQ

Title IX

Transgender

Transgender Athletes

The U.S. Department of <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/education">Education</a> settled a class action lawsuit arguing that the agency was ignoring students’ <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/student-loans">loan cancellation</a> claims — a move that resulted in the nixing of $6 billion in debt.
The case — Sweet v. Cardona, formerly Sweet v. DeVos — represented 264,000 people constituting the “current borrower defense backlog,” according to a press release from the <a href="https://predatorystudentlending.org/news/press-releases/landmark-borrower-defense-settlement-to-cancel-over-6-billion-in-student-loans-for-200000-borrowers-release/">Project on Predatory Student Lending</a>. The group’s 2019 <a href="https://predatorystudentlending.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/Complaint.pdf">lawsuit</a> contended that for-profit schools such as Corinthian Colleges and DeVry University “delivered worthless products that left students with thousands of dollars in debt, damaged credit, and depleted access to further student aid” while lying about prospects for high-paying jobs.
Education Secretary <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/miguel-cardona">Miguel Cardona</a> lauded the settlement, which the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California will independently review before approval.
“Since day one, the Biden-Harris Administration has worked to address longstanding issues relating to the borrower defense process,” Cardona said in a <a href="https://www.ed.gov/news/press-releases/statement-us-secretary-education-miguel-cardona-sweet-settlement">statement</a> about the settlement. “We are pleased to have worked with plaintiffs to reach an agreement that will deliver billions of dollars of automatic relief to approximately 200,000 borrowers and that we believe will resolve plaintiffs’ claims in a manner that is fair and equitable for all parties.”
Earlier this month, the Department of Education <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/bidens-education-department-issues-largest-single-student-debt-cancelation-in-agency-history">canceled debt</a> from former attendees of Corinthian Colleges, which filed for bankruptcy in 2015. The move forgave $5.8 billion in debt among 560,000 borrowers.
More broadly, the Biden administration is weighing various proposals to nix student debt for citizens at large. Last month, <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/bidens-plan-to-cancel-10000-in-student-debt-would-not-be-enough-for-black-borrowers-naacp-chief-says">The Washington Post</a> reported that the White House was weighing a plan to scrap $10,000 per borrower earning up to $150,000 per year. However, several Democratic lawmakers — such as Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) — have repeatedly pressed Biden to cancel student loan debt of up to <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/aoc-spars-with-biden-over-canceling-student-debt">$50,000 per borrower</a>.
Schumer has <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/this-cpac-footage-is-nuts-progressives-blast-pelosi-for-saying-student-debt-forgiveness-is-a-bad-idea">argued</a> that “all President Biden has to do is flick his pen” to erase the $50,000 sum. Earlier this week, Schumer <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2022/06/22/bidens-mind-is-open-on-student-loan-forgiveness-schumer-says-.html">sought to dismiss</a> the “awful myth” that student debt “concerns the wealthy or the Ivy League” rather than “working-class people.”
However, data suggest that student loan cancellation tends to <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/six-groups-who-lose-if-joe-biden-forgives-college-loans">benefit wealthy Americans</a>. Almost one-third of student debt is owed by the wealthiest 20% of households, while 8% is owed by the bottom 20%, according to a paper from the <a href="https://www.brookings.edu/research/student-loan-forgiveness-is-regressive-whether-measured-by-income-education-or-wealth/">Brookings Institution</a>.
Meanwhile, Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) has characterized the student debt crisis as a “racial justice issue.”
“African-Americans borrow more money to go to school, more money while they’re in school, and have a harder time paying it off when they get out of school,” she <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/warren-says-that-canceling-50000-in-student-loans-is-a-racial-justice-issue">told</a> CNN anchor Don Lemon last year. “Canceling $50,000 of student loan debt would help close the black-white wealth gap for people with student loan debt by twenty-five points. And for Latinos, by twenty-seven points.”
Likewise, National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) President Derrick Johnson <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/bidens-plan-to-cancel-10000-in-student-debt-would-not-be-enough-for-black-borrowers-naacp-chief-says">argued</a> last month that $10,000 in student loan cancellation is not enough for black borrowers, since black Americans “are the only people who have student debt higher than their median annual income.”
As of the first quarter of 2022, Americans owed $1.75 trillion in student loans, according to the <a href="https://fred.stlouisfed.org/series/SLOAS">Federal Reserve</a>.

President Biden Hosts National Teacher Of The Year Ceremony At The White House

Federal Government Agrees To Cancel Student Debt For 200,000 People

Education Department Nixes $6 Billion In Debt For 200,000 People

Miguel Cardona

Student Loans

Texas Republican Rep. Pat Fallon introduced a bill last week to request the federal government to reimburse his state for $1.5 billion in border security.
The &#8220;Lone Star Reimbursement Act&#8221; would require the Department of Defense to pay Texas back for the cost of Operation Lone Star — which was launched in response to the border surge during the Biden administration.
“As a border state, Texas is disproportionally impacted by illegal immigration, but we shouldn’t be forced to bear the entire financial burden when it comes to securing the entire country,” Fallon said in a <a href="https://fallon.house.gov/media/press-releases/congressman-pat-fallon-introduces-lone-star-reimbursement-act" target="_blank" rel="noopener">press release</a>.
“Gov. Abbott launched Operation Lone Star because of a lack of action from this administration. Texas shouldn’t be punished for Biden’s mistake and my Lone Star Reimbursement Act recognizes this,&#8221; he added.
Fellow Representative August Pfluger(R-TX) voiced his support for the proposed legislation.
&#8220;Texas has spent nearly $1.5 billion on border security &#8211; a responsibility that should NOT fall on Texans,&#8221; he wrote. &#8220;Our plan sends the invoice for the border crisis where it belongs: the President’s desk.&#8221;
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🚨I&#39;ve joined <a href="https://twitter.com/RepPatFallon?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@RepPatFallon</a> in introducing the LONE STAR REIMBURSEMENT ACT. Texas has spent nearly $1.5 billion on border security &#8211; a responsibility that should NOT fall on Texans. Our plan sends the invoice for the border crisis where it belongs: the President’s desk. <a href="https://t.co/Qmt89BkE7z">pic.twitter.com/Qmt89BkE7z</a>
&mdash; Rep. August Pfluger (@RepPfluger) <a href="https://twitter.com/RepPfluger/status/1539336822454636545?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 21, 2022</a></blockquote>
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Texas Republican Governor Greg Abbott took to Twitter on Wednesday to thank Fallon for his efforts.
&#8220;Thanks U.S. Rep. Pat Fallon for the &#8216;Lone Star Reimbursement Act,&#8217;” Abbott <a href="https://twitter.com/GregAbbott_TX/status/1539808386711277568" target="_blank" rel="noopener">wrote</a>. &#8220;It would force the Feds to reimburse Texas for the state’s border security initiative. The bill notes Texas has arrested 134,000 illegal immigrants &amp; denied entry to 16,700.&#8221;
The legislation is co-sponsored by 11 Texas Republican House members. Rep. Michael Burgess, one of the co-sponsors, argued Texas should not be forced to pick up the tab for the Biden administration&#8217;s border failures.
“The Biden Border Crisis is turning every state into a border state; however, Texas should not be bearing the sole cost to secure our southern border. I have offered amendments to appropriations bills to repay Texas for its leadership and hard work to protect Americans. I appreciate my friend Pat Fallon for joining this fight with the Lonestar Reimbursement Act,” he wrote in the press release.
Texas Republican Rep. Michael Cloud added that his state &#8220;must be reimbursed.&#8221;
&#8220;The Biden administration failed the American people by abandoning their Constitutional duty to secure our southern border. Texas stepped up, at their own expense, to do the job the Biden administration relinquished. Texas must be reimbursed,&#8221; he wrote.
Texas has already shifted approximately $1 billion in federal COVID-19 funding as part of Operation Lone Star, <a href="https://www.texastribune.org/2022/05/09/texas-federal-coronavirus-border-greg-abbott/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">according to</a> a report by the Texas Tribune. The new legislation would request funding for additional funding not already covered by federal funds.
In addition to enhanced border security along the state&#8217;s southern border, Texas has started construction of fencing along key portions of its border with Mexico.
Abbott <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/its-official-texas-border-wall-construction-begins" target="_blank" rel="noopener">announced</a> in December that the construction of the state’s border wall had begun.
“Texas has officially started building its own border wall,” Abbott tweeted.
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Texas has officially started building its own border wall.
Biden allows open border policies and refuses to enforce laws passed by Congress to secure the border and enforce immigration laws. 
Texas is stepping up to do the federal government’s job. <a href="https://t.co/K7CbIPs75p">https://t.co/K7CbIPs75p</a>
&mdash; Greg Abbott (@GregAbbott_TX) <a href="https://twitter.com/GregAbbott_TX/status/1471899869719810055?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 17, 2021</a></blockquote>
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“Biden allows open border policies and refuses to enforce laws passed by Congress to secure the border and enforce immigration laws,” the governor added. “Texas is stepping up to do the federal government’s job.”

Pat Fallon

Texas Congressman Wants Biden Admin To Pick Up The Bill For State’s $1.5 Billion Border Security

Texas Congressman Wants Biden Admin To Pick Up The Bill For State's $1.5 Billion Border Security

Border Crisis

Southern Border

Texas

<a href="http://dailywire.com/topic/energy">Energy</a> Secretary <a href="http://dailywire.com/topic/jennifer-granholm">Jennifer Granholm</a> said that “the only way” for the United States to avoid high <a href="http://dailywire.com/topic/gas-prices">gas prices</a> is to produce more green energy.
The national average gas price is currently $4.94 per gallon, according to <a href="https://gasprices.aaa.com/">AAA</a>. Earlier this month, gas prices <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/gas-prices-hit-grim-national-average-of-5-per-gallon">surpassed</a> $5.00 per gallon — more than double the $2.39 per gallon witnessed when President Joe Biden took office.
During a <a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/press-briefings/2022/06/22/press-briefing-by-press-secretary-karine-jean-pierre-and-secretary-of-energy-jennifer-granholm/">press briefing</a> on Wednesday, Granholm affirmed that the “only way out” of “boom-and-bust cycles” in energy prices is “deploying clean energy.”
“The real truth is that as long as our nation remains overly reliant on oil and fossil fuels, we will feel these price shocks again,” Granholm said. “This is not going to be the last time. The next time there’s a war, the next time there’s a pandemic or another hurricane, these extreme weather events we are experiencing — they will impact the access that we have to fossil fuels.”
Indeed, Biden <a href="https://joebiden.com/clean-energy/">favors policies</a> meant to promote green energy, such as emphasizing public transportation and electric vehicles, even as his administration canceled an enormous sale in Alaska of oil and gas lease location. He also <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/peter-doocy-asks-for-a-straight-answer-on-keystone-gets-the-runaround-from-jen-psaki">refused</a> to green light the construction of the Keystone XL Pipeline.
“We are looking at some significant challenges in the way of ensuring that American people have access to affordable clean energy,” Granholm continued, “but we’re going to use every lever that we have across the federal government to overcome these challenges.”
Earlier this week, Biden called for a three-month pause to the <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/biden-calls-for-three-month-pause-to-federal-gas-tax">federal gas tax</a> — which sits at $0.184 per gallon of gasoline and $0.244 per gallon of diesel, according to the U.S. <a href="https://www.eia.gov/tools/faqs/faq.php?id=10&amp;t=10">Energy Information Administration</a> — to contend with “Putin’s Price Hike.&#8221;
“President Biden understands that high gas prices pose a significant challenge for working families,” the White House said in a statement. “Today, he is calling on Congress and states to take additional legislative action to provide direct relief to American consumers who have been hit with Putin’s Price Hike.”
Sen. Joe Manchin (D-WV) has already indicated that he <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/democratic-senator-not-a-yes-right-now-on-bidens-proposed-gas-tax-holiday">would not approve</a> the federal gas tax suspension, as the policy would not guarantee that the amount would not “penny-for-penny come off of that price.” Other critics argue that the move will only fail to address the administration’s policies that are preventing further production.
&#8220;President Biden&#8217;s proposed temporary gas tax suspension is a band-aid solution to runaway gas prices,” Job Creators Network President Alfredo Ortiz said in a statement provided to The Daily Wire. “To truly show leadership and meaningfully reduce Americans&#8217; pain at the pump, Biden must fundamentally reshape his party&#8217;s environmental policy, strongly backing the production and distribution of traditional energy. Only with vastly increased supply can gas prices significantly fall.”
The Job Creators Network’s most recent <a href="https://monthlypolling.jcnf.org/monthly-monitor/may-2022/">Small Business IQ</a> monthly poll revealed that 76% of business owners would prefer that the United States increase domestic oil and natural gas production. Indeed, the Producer Price Index (PPI) rose <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/inflation-for-businesses-continues-at-double-digit-pace">10.8%</a> from May 2021 to May 2022, with over 70% of the month-to-month rise attributable to an increase in prices for final demand energy, according to the U.S. <a href="https://www.bls.gov/news.release/ppi.nr0.htm">Bureau of Labor Statistics</a>.

Energy Secretary Lays Out ‘The Only Way’ To Avoid High Gas Prices, And It’s Not Producing More Oil

Granholm Calls For 'Deploying Green Energy' As 'The Only Way' Out Of High Gas Prices

Jennifer Granholm

<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/joe-biden">President Joe Biden</a> appeared to demote his <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/cdc">Centers for Disease Control and Prevention</a> director Tuesday in a humiliating snub caught on video.
Biden was speaking to a group assembled at a Washington, D.C. clinic Tuesday when he introduced Dr. Ashish Jha, the White House COVID response coordinator. Except the president did not use that title.
“You see Dr. Jha there,” Biden said, pointing him out. “He’s the guy that’s running the CDC for me these days, basically.”
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BIDEN: &quot;You see Dr. Jha, see that guy right there? He&#39;s the guy that&#39;s running the CDC for me these days.&quot;
Rochelle Walensky is the director of the CDC. Ashish Jha is Biden&#39;s COVID response coordinator. <a href="https://t.co/vmD1H4a1xk">pic.twitter.com/vmD1H4a1xk</a>
&mdash; RNC Research (@RNCResearch) <a href="https://twitter.com/RNCResearch/status/1539317098899308544?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 21, 2022</a></blockquote>
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The introduction must have come as news to Dr. Rochelle Walensky, the actual director of the CDC. She was began leading the agency on January 20, 2021. Prior to taking the high-level Biden administration job, Walensky was the top infectious diseases expert at Massachusetts General Hospital and a professor at Harvard Medical School.
Jha, who was named to his current position in April, is also a former Harvard professor.
The response on Twitter came swiftly.
&#8220;According to POTUS, Dr. Jha is “basically running the CDC” these days,&#8221; <a href="https://twitter.com/davidzweig/status/1539732341492416513?s=20&amp;t=Q8I2oPKT3g7-8Vdlt0iF-w">tweeted Fox News contributor Dr. Nicole Saphier</a>. &#8220;If the WH advisor controls the CDC, what role does Dr. Walensky have? Does the CDC have any apolitical leadership anymore? FYI, lowering the facemask negates any effect it may have.&#8221;:
&#8220;Does this mean that Jha is “basically” running the CDC for the president, or is this a giant gaffe?&#8221; <a href="https://twitter.com/texanconstitut1/status/1539437566746935296?s=20&amp;t=Q8I2oPKT3g7-8Vdlt0iF-w">tweeted TexasConstitutionalist</a>. &#8220;Well, either way, it’s horrible in its implications. And, I suppose, either way, it’s still a giant gaffe.&#8221;
The incident occurred when Biden and first lady Jill Biden visited a Washington, D.C., vaccination clinic where <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/biden-boasts-as-infants-as-young-as-six-months-now-cleared-for-covid-vaccines">children from six months to age 5 are now being vaccinated for COVID</a>. Walensky endorsed the new guidelines, although other nations are not vaccinating infants.
“This is a very historic milestone,” Biden said. “The United States is now the first country in the world to offer safe and effective Covid-19 vaccines for children as young as six months old.”
It was not the first time Biden has gotten confused about key members of his administration. In 2020, he <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/watch-joe-biden-announces-name-of-his-chosen-hhs-chief">botched Xavier Becerra’s name</a> and title when introducing him as his choice for secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services.
“For Secretary of Health and Education Services, I nominate Xavier Bacheria,” Biden said.
Last year, <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/critics-slam-biden-after-he-appears-to-forget-name-of-defense-secretary-pentagon-hes-not-there">Biden seemed to forget the name of Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin</a> while introducing him at a White House event.
“I want to thank the sec… the, the former general,” Biden said. “I keep calling him general, but my, my… the guy who runs that outfit over there. I want to make sure we thank the secretary for all he’s done to try to implement what we just talked about.”

President Biden at vaccine clinic

WATCH: Biden Delivers Humiliating Snub To CDC Director

WATCH: President Biden Says White House COVID Point Man "Running The CDC For Me"

Dr. Rochelle Walensky

WASHINGTON — Ahead of the 50th anniversary of the <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/title-ix">Title IX</a> federal civil rights law, <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/tommy-tuberville">Sen. Tommy Tuberville</a> (R-AL) is warning that President <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/joe-biden">Joe Biden&#8217;s administration</a> is hacking away at women&#8217;s progress in the name of gender equality.
Passed as part of the Education Amendments of 1972 and signed by President Richard Nixon on June 23, 1972, <a href="https://www.justice.gov/crt/title-ix">Title IX</a> prohibits sex-based discrimination in schools or education programs that receive federal funding. The move opened up many opportunities for women and girls to achieve in both academics and in sports.
“No person in the United States shall, on the basis of sex, be excluded from the participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any education program or activity receiving Federal financial assistance,&#8221; read the rule, co-authored by former Democratic Hawaii Rep. Patsy Matsu Mink, the first woman of color elected to Congress.
&#8221;It&#8217;s rare as a legislator that you fight for legislation you believe in and stay around or live long enough to see it come to fruition,&#8221; <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2002/09/30/us/patsy-mink-veteran-hawaii-congresswoman-dies-at-74.html">said Mink in 1995</a> as she met with top U.S. female basketball players. The former congresswoman passed away in 2002.
But the Biden administration recently announced plans to <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/education/2022/03/30/transgender-discrimination-title-ix-rule-students/">redefine sex</a> to include “sex stereotypes, sex-related characteristics (including intersex traits), pregnancy or related conditions, sexual orientation, and gender identity.&#8221; This would ban discrimination based on gender identity, indicating that schools would be prevented from prohibiting biological males from participating in women’s sports.
And critics like Tuberville say the move directly contradicts the good accomplished for women through Title IX.
&#8220;The federal government, you know, we don&#8217;t get a lot right,&#8221; Tuberville, who coached Auburn University football for almost a decade, said during a phone interview with The Daily Wire. &#8220;But they got it right when they passed Title IX.&#8221;
The Alabama senator shared that he also previously coached girls high school basketball before his career as a football coach, saying that the Biden administration&#8217;s efforts will &#8220;be devastating to women&#8217;s sports.&#8221;
And most Americans won&#8217;t agree with this move, he added, suggesting that leftist activists and policy makers are focused on gender identity and &#8220;want everybody to kind of be pretty much the same.&#8221;
&#8220;They&#8217;re trying to destroy the family,&#8221; he said. &#8220;And so expanding the definition of sex is right up their alley, and by allowing biological males to compete in women&#8217;s sports, I think that&#8217;s trying to degrade women.&#8221;
Sarah Cowart, an academic coach who grew up playing sports in Alabama in middle and high school, told The Daily Wire that she started a girls soccer team in high school because her only other option was to play on the boys soccer team — and she knew that she wouldn&#8217;t stand a chance.
&#8220;I wasn&#8217;t going to get playing time just because I knew the difference of my size, their size, their skill and speed. It just wasn&#8217;t going to happen. I wasn&#8217;t going to play,&#8221; she said. &#8220;And so I think that&#8217;s what we saw when we were able to start the women&#8217;s soccer team in high school that afforded us the opportunity to be on the same playing field with our peers.&#8221;
&#8220;When you go up against them, you are playing the hardest that you can,&#8221; Cowart explained. &#8220;And when you&#8217;re trying [your] hardest and you&#8217;re playing your hardest, but you still aren&#8217;t being successful, that kills your spirit and thinking, well, I just can&#8217;t do this at all.&#8221;
Cowart celebrated that Title IX had bestowed on her and her teammates the freedom to create and lead such a team.
&#8220;I think about it from a standpoint of accessibility,&#8221; she continued. &#8220;Had we not come together as girls, at our age, we wouldn&#8217;t have had that opportunity. We would have had to end up playing with the guys team on a JV level again.&#8221;
Controversy over biological males in women&#8217;s sports has escalated as transgender swimmer <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/lia-thomas">Lia Thomas</a>, a biological male, competed in the NCAA Women&#8217;s Swimming and Diving Championships this spring, annihilating competitors in the <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/biologically-male-swimmer-annihilates-female-competitors-in-500-free">women&#8217;s 500 freestyle</a>.
On Sunday, the International Swimming Federation (FINA), issued new restrictions on transgender swimmers, stating that only transgender swimmers who transitioned from male to female before age 12 may compete in women’s events.
“I’m very hopeful about it,” an anonymous teammate of Thomas told The Daily Wire on Tuesday of the new restrictions. That teammate was granted anonymity out of fear of backlash.
“I am incredibly happy that Lia Thomas will never be an Olympic gold medalist. I think that’s great. But this doesn’t actually fix the NCAA [National Collegiate Athletic Association],” she added.
Both Thomas&#8217; teammate and Riley Gaines, a University of Kentucky swimmer, said that they wish the NCAA would rescind Thomas’ championship title.
“I believe Lia is not the fastest female in the 500-yard freestyle, therefore I don’t think she should be awarded as a female national champion,” Gaines told The Daily Wire, adding that the NCAA “needs to take accountability.&#8221;
“FINA prioritized competitive fairness which is more than any other large governing body has done thus far,” Gaines said.
The Daily Wire&#8217;s Mairead Elordi contributed to this report.

Screen Shot 2022-06-22 at 2.54.59 PM

Ahead Of 50th Anniversary Of Title IX, Senator Tuberville Warns Biden Admin Is Hacking Away At Women’s Progress

Tuberville Slams Biden Admin For Inhibiting Women's Rights Ahead Of Title IX Anniversary

Tommy Tuberville

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/fda">FDA</a>) is poised to ban Juul Labs’ <a href="http://dailywire.com/topic/drugs">e-cigarettes</a> from the market, according to a Wednesday report from <a href="https://www.wsj.com/articles/fda-to-order-juul-e-cigarettes-off-u-s-market-11655904689?mod=e2tw">The Wall Street Journal</a>.
“The marketing denial order would follow a nearly two-year review of data presented by the vaping company, which sought authorization for its tobacco- and menthol-flavored products to stay on the U.S. market,” the outlet reported, noting that the agency’s decision could come as soon as Wednesday.
Juul — which markets itself as an <a href="https://www.juul.com/">alternative</a> to cigarettes for adult smokers — sells nicotine capsules smoked through a small device. Sales <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2018/07/02/juul-e-cigarette-sales-have-surged-over-the-past-year.html">surged nearly 800%</a> between 2017 and 2018, causing Juul to gain a 68% market share in the e-cigarette category.
The FDA’s move to ban Juul products comes months after President Biden’s Department of Health and Human Services planned to implement a $30 million grant program which allegedly would have involved <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/jen-psaki-says-crack-pipe-plans-are-false-smoking-kits-contain-alcohol-swabs-lip-balm-other-materials">handing out crack pipes</a> to drug addicts as part of safe smoking kits, according to a report from Washington Free Beacon reporter Patrick Hauf.
The Biden administration denied the plans ever involved crack pipes and fact checkers <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/mostly-false-free-crack-pipes-how-fact-checkers-debunked-reality-again">critiqued</a> the report.
Later, Hauf <a href="https://freebeacon.com/biden-administration/yes-safe-smoking-kits-include-free-crack-pipes-we-know-because-we-got-them/">obtained</a> safe smoking kits from five different cities across the United States which contained crack pipes. He reported that the kits were likely similar to the ones that would be eligible to be covered under the HHS grant. It was not known if these kits were purchased with money from the HHS grant.
Over the past four years, the FDA has been <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/fda-threatens-ban-vaping-products-due-teenage-use-kassy-dillon">seeking ways to regulate</a> e-cigarettes — especially for young consumers.
“[We] see clear signs that youth use of electronic cigarettes has reached an epidemic proportion, and we must adjust certain aspects of our comprehensive strategy to stem this clear and present danger,” then FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb <a href="https://www.fda.gov/news-events/press-announcements/fda-takes-new-steps-address-epidemic-youth-e-cigarette-use-including-historic-action-against-more">said</a> in 2018. “While we remain committed to advancing policies that promote the potential of e-cigarettes to help adult smokers move away from combustible cigarettes, that work can’t come at the expense of kids. We cannot allow a whole new generation to become addicted to nicotine.”
According to The Wall Street Journal, Juul “limited its marketing” and “stopped selling sweet and fruity flavors” in 2019, after which the company’s sales slowed.
Today, Juul denies selling to young users. “Juul Labs exists for one clear purpose: to provide adult smokers worldwide an alternative to combustible cigarettes,” according to a statement from Juul Labs CEO K.C. Crosthwaithe featured prominently on the firm’s <a href="https://www.juullabs.com/">website</a>. “We do not want any non-nicotine users, especially those underage, to try our products, as they exist only to transition adult smokers away from combustible cigarettes.”
Nevertheless, Juul has faced a deluge of lawsuits from state governments. The state of North Carolina filed suit against the company in 2019 for “designing, marketing, and selling its e-cigarettes to attract young people and for misrepresenting the potency and danger of nicotine in its products,” according to a June 28 <a href="https://ncdoj.gov/attorney-general-stein-reaches-agreement-with-juul-for-40-million-and-drastic-business-changes/">statement</a> from the office of Attorney General Josh Stein. Juul agreed to pay $40 million to the state and reform its practices to ensure that no one under 21 purchases the product.
“This win will go a long way in keeping Juul products out of kids’ hands, keeping its chemical vapor out of their lungs, and keeping its nicotine from poisoning and addicting their brains,” Stein said. “We’re not done — we still have to turn the tide on a teen vaping epidemic that was borne of Juul’s greed.”
A <a href="https://www.mass.gov/doc/juul-complaint/download">complaint</a> filed by the commonwealth of Massachusetts in 2020 argued that the company “engaged in unfair and deceptive acts and practices” by “selling nicotine products to children, adolescents, and other consumers younger than the minimum legal sales age.”
Meanwhile, the state of California <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/californias-ban-on-flavored-tobacco-sales-suspended-as-big-tobacco-funds-drive-to-repeal-law">enacted</a> a law that imposed penalties on retailers who sold flavored tobacco products — including flavored vape juice and menthol cigarettes — with $250 fines per violation. Products such as hookah, pipe tobacco, and some cigars were exempt. California voters will decide on whether to keep the law in a referendum this November, while tobacco companies such as Philip Morris USA are behind efforts to oppose the law.

President Joe Biden

Months After Crack Pipe Controversy, Biden’s FDA To Ban Popular E-Cigarette Products: Report

Biden's FDA To Ban Juul Pods: Report

Crack

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President <a href="http://dailywire.com/topic/biden-administration">Joe Biden</a> called for a three-month pause to the federal <a href="http://dailywire.com/topic/oil-and-gas">gas</a> <a href="http://dailywire.com/topic/taxes">tax</a> on Wednesday to contend with “Putin’s Price Hike.”
The federal government imposes a gas tax of $0.184 per gallon of gasoline and $0.244 per gallon of diesel, according to the U.S. <a href="https://www.eia.gov/tools/faqs/faq.php?id=10&amp;t=10">Energy Information Administration</a>. President Biden is asking for a suspension of the tax through September without interruptions to the $10 billion required to bankroll the Highway Trust Fund.
“President Biden understands that high gas prices pose a significant challenge for working families,” a <a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/statements-releases/2022/06/22/fact-sheet-president-biden-calls-for-a-three-month-federal-gas-tax-holiday/">White House</a> statement said. “Today, he is calling on Congress and states to take additional legislative action to provide direct relief to American consumers who have been hit with Putin’s Price Hike.”
Combined with state taxes, the average American driver pays $0.571 in gas taxes per gallon, according to the <a href="https://www.api.org/oil-and-natural-gas/consumer-information/motor-fuel-taxes/gasoline-tax">American Petroleum Institute</a>. While New York and Connecticut temporarily paused their gas taxes in response to the soaring energy prices, Illinois and Colorado delayed scheduled tax and fee hikes, according to the White House statement.
On Sunday, Treasury Secretary <a href="http://dailywire.com/topic/janet-yellen">Janet Yellen</a> <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/yellen-gives-opinion-on-pausing-federal-gas-tax-to-bring-prices-down">told</a> ABC News host George Stephanopoulos that pausing the federal gas tax was on the table for the Biden administration. “Gas prices have risen a great deal, and it’s clearly burdening households. So he stands ready to work with Congress, and that’s an idea that’s certainly worth considering,” Yellen said of President Biden.
Gas prices are currently $4.96 per gallon, according to <a href="https://gasprices.aaa.com/">AAA</a>. Earlier this month, gas prices <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/gas-prices-hit-grim-national-average-of-5-per-gallon">hit</a> $5.00 per gallon, rising from the $2.39 per gallon witnessed when Biden took office.
Along with the proposed gas tax suspension, however, the White House clarified that “our efforts to increase energy production in the near-term must be coupled with medium- and long-term efforts to transition our economy away from fossil fuels produced by autocrats and to clean energy.” Likewise, Yellen said on Sunday that “the way in which we can ensure reasonable energy expenses for households is to move to renewables, to address climate change.”
In recent months, multiple White House officials — including Transportation Secretary <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/buttigieg-electric-cars-will-make-it-so-americans-never-have-to-worry-about-gas-prices-again">Pete Buttigieg</a>, Energy Secretary <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/bidens-energy-secretary-on-gas-crisis-if-you-drove-an-electric-car-this-would-not-be-affecting-you">Jennifer Granholm</a>, and President <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/white-house-slammed-over-comments-on-electric-cars-fairy-dust-and-unicorns">Joe Biden</a> himself — have even argued that high prices for nonrenewable energy will accelerate a transition to green energy, especially as more Americans buy electric cars.
Meanwhile, multiple Republican lawmakers have <a href="https://www.cruz.senate.gov/newsroom/press-releases/cruz-senators-demand-commerce-secretary-stop-permitting-delays-on-existing-oil-and-gas-leases-to-boost-production">criticized</a> Biden for a “de facto ban on new drilling” achieved by “sitting idle on over 9,000 drilling permits” and millions of acres of inactive leases. Likewise, the White House faced backlash last year for <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/peter-doocy-asks-for-a-straight-answer-on-keystone-gets-the-runaround-from-jen-psaki">revoking</a> a permit for the Keystone XL Pipeline. More recently, former White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki said that the Biden administration had “no plans” to reconsider opening pipeline construction.
President Biden recently <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/biden-sends-letter-to-oil-companies-blasting-them-for-profits-demanding-they-increase-oil-production">sent a letter</a> to oil companies asking them to increase production and slash their profits.
“There is no question that Vladimir Putin is principally responsible for the intense financial pain the American people and their families are bearing,” Biden wrote. “But amid a war that has raised gasoline prices more than $1.70 per gallon, historically high refinery profit margins are worsening that pain.”

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Biden Calls For Three-Month Pause To Federal Gas Tax

Biden Calls For Federal Gas Tax Holiday

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