Happy Thursday!

Today’s Brew is thick and rich, so let’s get pouring.

Big Day for Supreme Court: Hearing Arguments About Efforts to Remove Trump From Ballot Via 14th Amendment

Today, the Supreme Court will be hearing oral arguments in Trump v. Anderson, hopefully settling once and for all whether Donald Trump can be kept off state election ballots via the 14th Amendment. We talk more about it in Resolute: “Nikki Second to ‘None,’ RNC Chair Stepping Down and SCOTUS Sits for Trump Ballot Case.”

And while we’re talking about Constitutional amendments and presidents …

Huh? Biden Isn’t Addressing Nation About Air Strikes to Avoid Escalation of War by Iran? Or is It Because He Can’t Remember the Name “Hamas”?

We remarked Tuesday in Resolute the oddity of Joe Biden not addressing the nation to announce and explain the retaliatory attacks against Iranian-backed militias. We’ve now been given an explanation … or a curious spin. Three senior administration officials tell Politico “He’s been driven by concerns that delivering a major speech could escalate tensions with Iran and spark a larger regional conflict.”

Presidential historian Julian Zelizer said a behind the scenes approach may work in contrast to President Trump’s “out front” manner, but there’s a danger in that strategy. “The danger is the perception is less ‘here is the person who is governing and being cautious,’ but rather ‘here is a person who is not in control.’”

Besides, who needs a “major speech”? A simple, matter-of-fact statement from the podium of what happened and why isn’t going to rouse anybody.

But perhaps that is the problem. Simple, matter-of-fact statements are now beyond the president’s capacity. The other day, Joe Biden was offering a simple update on our hostages still being held by Hamas. And the Commander-in-Chief completely blanked on the name of “Hamas.” In a time of war.

Imagine if in the middle of World War II, Franklin Roosevelt could not remember who the Nazis were.

The American media is still running cover. As of 11 a.m. ET Wednesday, if you googled “Biden forgets Hamas” all the top videos of this moment are from foreign media sources. Put it another way: The world knows what’s going on with Biden.

This is not to mock the man, nor is this about election politics. This is about the safety and security of our nation right now. Democratic candidate Dean Phillips gets it. “I admire our President. I voted for him and campaigned for him. He has visited my home and been gracious to my family and our country. But shame on all of you pretending everything is ok. You are leading us – and him – into a disaster, and you damn well know it.”

I’m attacked for being honest and saying the quiet part out loud – the part DC insiders only do in private.

I admire our President. I voted for him and campaigned for him. He has visited my home and been gracious to my family and our country.

But shame on all of you pretending… pic.twitter.com/OdaKvW7vbc

— Dean Phillips (@deanbphillips) February 6, 2024

We have service members dead. We have Americans held hostage by terrorists. We have militias throughout the Middle East lobbing rockets and missiles towards our forces, and unknown numbers of terrorists crossing into our country every day. Confusing dead French presidents is one thing. Losing track of an enemy that vows to kill us?

If the 25th Amendment wasn’t written for such a time, why’d they waste the ink?

UPDATE: During a Wednesday fundraiser in New York, Joe Biden recounted talking to German Chancellor Helmut Kohl at the 2021 G7 summit, Fox News is reporting. Kohl died in 2017. This comes just days after he said he spoke to French Prime Minister Francois Mitterrand at that same summit. He died in 1996. While confusing Mitterrand with Macron is bad, at least they’re both men and you can see tripping up on the name. The German Chancellor at the summit was Angela Merkel. Fox News calls it his “latest gaffe.” These are not gaffes. This is serious and dangerous cognitive decline. 

Congress, Where Are You?

Section 4 of the 25th Amendment has a little phrase you don’t hear much about. And perhaps you should pay attention to, Rep. Phillips.

Whenever the Vice President and a majority of either the principal officers of the executive departments or of such other body as Congress may by law provide, transmit to the President pro tempore of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives their written declaration that the President is unable to discharge the powers and duties of his office, the Vice President shall immediately assume the powers and duties of the office as Acting President. (Emphasis Ours)

So even if Kamala Harris and the Cabinet sit on their thumbs rather than due their Constitutional duty under Section Four, Congress can create “a body” that can determine whether the President is incapable of discharging his duties.

Doesn’t Congress owe our bravest and finest currently in harm’s way, or the hostages held by Hamas, to at least try?

Transgender Day Care Worker Sexually Abuses Baby … Avoids Prison

Reduxx has a story that will give you acid reflux. A trans-identifying male who sexually abused a baby girl while changing her diaper avoids prison after a plea deal. Witnesses testified that the worker, who goes by the name Maria Childers, was rubbing the baby’s genitals, remarking, in part, “she likes it. It makes her day.” Yet with the help of a transgender lawyer, Childers has pleaded down to a Class A misdemeanor sexual misconduct and the 1st Degree Criminal Abuse charges were dropped. Childers was sentenced to a year, but the judge withheld sentencing. If Childers abides by the court’s conditions for 6 months, he may avoid any prison time, with his criminal record expunged.

Meanwhile, a couple in Montana who fought against their teen daughter being transitioned against their will tells Gateway Pundit they’ve been told they face imminent arrest when they return home. The story of Todd and Krista Kolstad, and how Montana Child Protect Services took custody their 14-year-old daughter and brought her to Wyoming for transition treatment, is the stuff of horror movies.

What are we supposed to do about this madness? Our friends at the Daily Signal launched a new Transgender series Wednesday to help offer answers. “Part 1: What is Rapid Onset Gender Dysphoria and Why Does It Matter?”

Two-Pages is All Rachel Levine’s Got to Back Up Quest to Mutilate Children?!

Here’s the good news: Those warring on behalf of the destructive trans ideology have little real ammo. For example, you know how Deputy HHS Secretary Admiral Rachel Levine runs around insisting that “gender-affirming care” is “necessary for transgender youth? Daily Wire reports that Levine’s office admits it has a mere two pages of evidence to back up its claims. Watchdog Protect the Public’s Trust demanded under FOIA “records of scientific evidence, studies, and/or data to support the Assistant Secretary’s claim that ‘gender-affirming care is medically necessary, safe, and effective for trans and non-binary youth,’” as well as for “records of surveys of medical professionals regarding the value and importance of ‘gender-affirming care’ for minor children.”

They got back a two-page brochure — not even a scientific study — called “Gender Affirming Care and Young People.”

Two pages isn’t science. It’s a bumper sticker with footnotes.

 

Al Perrotta is the Managing Editor of The Stream, co-author, with John Zmirak, of The Politically Incorrect Guide to Immigration and co-author of the counter-terrorism memoir Hostile Intent: Protecting Yourself Against Terrorism.