Happy Wednesday!

Today’s Brew opens with a spit-take, and a shocking realization.

Mar-a-Lago Raid Shocker: FBI Was Ready to Use Deadly Force Against Trump and Secret Service

The people working in the Biden administration don’t just want to jail Donald Trump; they were okay with the FBI rubbing him out.

What else can you conclude from newly released documents connected to the Mar-a-Lago raid? Julie Kelly broke the bombshell.

Tons of new unsealed filings on classified docs case–I will try to post as much as I can (there goes the workout) but this is mind-blowing.

FBI authorized the use of deadly force at Mar-a-Lago pic.twitter.com/f0lR6UifAH

— Julie Kelly 🇺🇸 (@julie_kelly2) May 21, 2024

According to the documents, “Law enforcement officers of the Department of Justice may use deadly force when necessary.” Okay, so maybe that’s just standard boilerplate language for these orders, right? Wrong! The documents say law enforcement “will be prepared to engage FPOTUS (Trump) and USSS Security team.”

Yes, the Biden administration was fully prepared to gun down Biden’s chief rival and the Secret Service … over documents the Special Counsel now admits they had tampered with before sending them to Mar-a-Lago.

Julie Kelly summarizes: “The FBI risked the lives of Donald Trump, his family, his staff, and MAL guests for a publicity stunt to make it look like Trump stole national security files.” And Trump’s the “threat to democracy”?

Is it just me, or does the Biden administration have fewer rules of engagement against Trump than they did against the Taliban?

Biden Grabbing More Oil From Our Reserves to Drive Down Prices

The reason we have oil reserves, like the Strategic Petroleum Reserve, is to have plenty of the black gold on hand in case of a national emergency — be it a war, OPEC deciding to shut off the taps, or a natural disaster harming crucial energy infrastructure.

Joe Biden trailing in the polls is not a national emergency. And yet, the White House announced Tuesday it is siphoning off another million barrels of gasoline from a reserve in the northeast to help (artificially) bring down gasoline prices for the summer. In other words, to keep gas price rises from further sinking his campaign.

The Associated Press reports the reserve was created after Superstorm Sandy in 2012.

So days away from the start of hurricane season, Joe Biden is draining a reserve created to help deal with shortages in the wake of hurricanes because his poll numbers are low, risking Americans being left high and dry. His administration keeps telling us storms are getting more severe because of “climate change.” So are they recklessly draining the reserve in dangerous times, or is that “climate change” doom and gloom a bunch of hooey as well?

Here’s what we do know: Any decision the White House makes between now and November is geared solely for the benefit of the Biden campaign, not what’s best for America.

I’m Curious: Will the Media Be as Upset at Joe Biden’s Advice on Marriage as They Are Harrison Butker’s?

With all the hubbub over Kansas City Chiefs kicker Harrison Butker’s comments on marriage, we have to ask: Will there be a similar outcry over Joe Biden’s remarks yesterday?

“I say to every young man thinking of getting married, marry into a family with five or more daughters” (like Biden did). Why? Because “one of them will always love you. And not the same one. One of ’em will always be on your side.”

Ewwwwww…

BIDEN: “I say to every young man thinking of getting married, marry into a family with five or more daughters” pic.twitter.com/QZ4nzvone0

— Daily Caller (@DailyCaller) May 21, 2024

You’d think it’s a joke. Then you look at Hunter Biden, whose gun case is getting underway in Delaware. Jurors will be hearing from Hunter’s ex-wife Kathleen and his sister-in-law-turned-lover Hallie, Beau’s widow. The Daily Mail reported in 2021 that Hunter’s laptop shows that while he and Hallie were having their affair, he was also in a sexual relationship with Hallie’s married sister, Elizabeth.

So maybe this is the kind of advice Biden has been giving younger people for decades.

Curious: Clooney’s Wife Led Charge for ICC to Issue Netanyahu Arrest Warrant

On Monday, the International Criminal Court (ICC) announced it’s seeking an arrest warrant for Israeli President Benjamin Netanyahu, alleging war crimes in Israel’s efforts to eliminate Hamas. The ICC is also hoping to charge Hamas leaders with similar crimes.

The moral equivalence is insane, of course. However, a key lawyer who helped develop the case for the ICC is Amal Clooney. She accused Israel of “starvation as a method of warfare, murder, persecution, and extermination,” which Netanyahu vehemently and in detail denied. Clooney is married to superstar actor-producer George Clooney, who currently is set to headline a glitzy fundraiser with Biden and Barack Obama on June 15.

Publicly, Biden is rejecting the charges against Israel, calling them “outrageous.” But is he using the Clooneys to further pressure Israel? Or is he just glad to use their celebrity for the campaign cash, regardless of Clooney’s wife targeting Israel?

Meanwhile, at Harvard, student protesters are calling for violence against America. Hear them chant, “Intifada, intifada coming to America.”

Harvard University students send chilling message to Americans:

“Intifada, intifada coming to America.” pic.twitter.com/YbLhAcY05Y

— Oli London (@OliLondonTV) May 21, 2024

That’s a downer. So let’s send you out into the day with your hands held high in praise.

CeCe Winans and Roman Collins Take American Idol to Church

A couple weeks back we talked about the seeds that may have been planted in newly christened Russell Brand by ex-wife Katy Perry’s family. Perry herself got some churching Sunday night on the finale of American Idol when gospel legend CeCe Winans joined Top 12 finalist Roman Collins for an eyewatering, heart-lifting rendition of “Goodness of God” that left Perry herself in tears.

Abi Carter may have walked away as the 22nd American Idol winner. But this moment helps remind us who really wears the Crown.

See you at the next serving of Al’s Afternoon Tea.

Along The Stream

Al’s Afternoon Tea offered a look at the defense resting in Trump’s “hush money” case, plus good news for that New Jersey gym owner who defied the governor’s draconian COVID lockdown mandates.

Michael Brown shares “What the Church Could Learn From LGBTQ+ Activists About Changing the World.”

 

Al Perrotta is The Stream’s Washington bureau chief, coauthor with John Zmirak of The Politically Incorrect Guide to Immigration, and coauthor of the counterterrorism memoir Hostile Intent: Protecting Yourself Against Terrorism.