Glenn's Prep Notes 12/3/2012

Every morning, Glenn's producers put together stories and research for Glenn to review before he discusses the plan for the radio and television shows. Below, you can see the stories that the producers put together for him this morning. Some of these stories will end up on radio and television, some will not - but now you can get more insight into what shapes Glenn's show each and every day:

#1 Abbas 'Victory Speech': Jerusalem 'Eternal Capital of Palestine'

#2 PA president vows to pursue efforts to end the split between Gaza, West Bank, dedicates UN "victory" to late PA president Arafat.

#3 Obama punts to Congress over repercussions for UN Palestine vote

#4 NYC's famous Stage Deli closes, owner cites rent

#5 Obama’s Now Borrowed More Than All Presidents from Washington to W

#6 USDA: Meat, Poultry Prices to Rise Even Higher in 2013 -- Thanks to Drought

#7 Egypt’s Top Court Has Suspended All Its Work Indefinitely Due to ‘Psychological…Pressures’ From Islamist Protests

#8 Mexico's Enrique Peña Nieto assumes presidency amid protests

#9 Hillary Clinton: Israel has ‘lack of generosity … lack of empathy’ for Palestinians

#10 Muslim Brotherhood ‘paying gangs to go out and rape women and beat men protesting in Egypt’ as thousands of demonstrators pour on to the streets

#11 Atheist victory in California as surf city loses its nativity display

#12 Bahrain police deploy teargas at anti-Kim Kardashian protest

#13 Saying No to College

#14 MSNBC: Those of us in ‘nerd land’ think Obama is ‘channeling the Godfather’

#15 New fish species named for Obama

#16 Taliban suicide bombers attack US-Afghan air base in Afghanistan

#17 Democrats, Republicans Diverge on Capitalism, Federal Gov't

#18 Teachers Flock to Northwestern University for 'Marxist Conference'

#19 City: Give Us Your Guns, Get A Free Flu Shot - And A Wegman's Gift Card

#20 The Chart That Keeps Ben Bernanke Up At Night

#21 Is This Why Americans Have Lost The Drive To "Earn" More

#22 We Have Reached a Major Turning Point in Central Bank Intervention

# 23 UK doctor testifies that under socialized medicine, sick babies are sent home to die

#24 UK Doctor Admits To Starving Babies To Death, Using ‘End-Of-Life’ Care

From Mercury One's Soapbox

Q: “Who is the Vice President of the United States?” Actual Answer: “Bin Laden?” A group called “Lunch Scholars” showed just how ignorant American students are by asking simple questions such as, “Can you name one Democratic candidate in the 2012 presidential campaign?” “In what war did the US gain its independence?” and “Can you name all the countries that border the United States?” What is more shocking than the simplicity of these questions is the number of students that simply didn’t know the answers. What are kids being taught in schools if they can’t answer these questions?

 

Zombies Aren’t Exactly What You Should Be Preparing for, But If It Gets You Prepared… The Second Amendment Foundation has found that fears of a Zombie Apocalypse are actually in part driving increased gun sales. Gun and ammo manufacturers are taking advantage of this trend and releasing zombie targets and special “zombie cartridges” for shotguns. Protecting yourself against zombies is ok, but what about the original reason for American gun ownership, protecting yourself against an out of control government?

Another Government Program to Save the Environment Turns Out to Be Bad For Engines. The AAA has come out against the EPA mandated ethanol blend called E15. They claim that only 12 million cars on the road today are built with the ethanol fuel in mind and its use in any of the almost 230 million other cars and trucks on the road can damage the engine and even void the manufacturer’s warranty. So unless you are driving a 2012 or 2013 General Motors vehicle, a 2013 Ford or a Porsche made after 2001, check that the gasoline you are pumping isn’t E15.

Implementing the “For the ones who opposed us, they will get what they deserve” Policy. Just before the presidential election last month, Valerie Jarrett essentially said if you aren’t with us you’re against us, and if you are against us we will come after you. It looks like that wasn’t just an empty threat, as the Department of Health and Human Services has released a new set of rules that includes a 3.5% premium tax on any state that refuses to set up a state insurance exchange and instead opts for the federal exchange. The number of states currently opting for the federal exchange sits at 17, with Arizona deciding against a state exchange last week.

There is Always an Open Desk. Returning God to the Classroom. Those who would keep God kept from schools cite the first amendment and the “separation of church and state” as their legal ground. In doing so they show their ignorance to both history and to our founding documents. The first amendment simply states, “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof,” and the line “separation of church and state” appears nowhere in our founding documents, only in a letter from Thomas Jefferson to the Danbury, CT Baptist congregation. Until 1962, prayer in school and even Bible classes were common, and perhaps the downward spiral that the US has seen since the 60’s is not merely a coincidence.

One State Incentivizes Single Motherhood at the Poverty Line. If you are a single mother in Pennsylvania it actually makes more financial sense to make less money, because in the long run you will make more. A single mom earning $69,000, a respectable wage, only takes home $57,045 in net income and benefits. A single mom living just over the federal poverty line at $29,000 per year (the poverty line is 23,050 for a mother and 3 children) actually will take home $57,327, that’s almost $300 more than the woman making over double her wages. To make matters worse, if that mother got a $1,000 raise (usually a good thing), she would loose up to $7,000 in benefits. Looks like the birthplace of liberty is keeping people in poverty.

What Does the UN’s Palestine Vote Actually Mean? There are more implications to the UN General Assembly’s vote to grant statehood to the Palestinian territory than a new nation being carved into a volatile area. It means that the UN would be violating it’s own charter in overruling a Security Council resolution with a General Assembly vote. It also means that a two state solution will become rule of law, something that many of the nations who voted for Palestine’s statehood do not agree with, as they do not recognize Israel’s existence. While there might legally be two states in the eyes of the UN, that is not going to stop those in Gaza and the West Bank from shelling and raining down mortars on Israel.

The Federal Government has Borrowed More Since 2009 than it did from 1789-2001. From the day George Washington was sworn in as the first President of the United States until five months into George W. Bush’s first presidential term, the United States accumulated $5,693,220,327,798.14 in national debt. Since President Obama was sworn in as the 44th President of the United States, the accumulated national debt stands at $5,696,206,400,691.90. And to top it off, Tim Geithner, the Secretary of the Treasury suggested it is time to give the president the authority to raise the debt ceiling without an act of Congress.

 

Trump's education secretary has BIG plans for the DoE

SAUL LOEB / Contributor | Getty Images

Our education system is broken, and the Department of Education is a massive failure. But that all ends now.

It's no secret that America's school system is seriously lacking in many ways. President Trump pointed out that despite our massive spending per pupil, we are behind most of the developed world in most metrics. Our scores continue to plummet while our student debt and spending skyrocket—it's utterly unacceptable performance and America's students deserve better.

That's where Linda McMahon, Trump's pick for Secretary of Education comes in.

The former WWE CEO and leader of the U.S. Small Business Administration during Trump's first term, McMahon laid out her harsh criticisms of the DoE during a confirmation hearing on the 13th and revealed her promising plans to turn things around. McMahon described the public education system as "in decline" and promised that under her authority, the DoE would be reoriented towards student success.

Here are the top three changes to the Department of Education:

1. Dismantling the Department of Education

SAUL LOEB / Contributor | Getty Images

From the beginning Trump's orders for McMahon were clear: oversee the end of the Department of Education.

During her Thursday hearing, McMahon clarified what dismantling the DoE would entail. As Democrats have repeatedly pointed out, Trump does not have the authority to destroy the DoE without Congressional consent, as an act of Congress created it. That is why Trump and McMahon's plan is to start by shutting down programs that can be stopped by executive action, then approach Congress with a plan to dismantle the Department for good. The executive orders have already begun to take effect, and once McMahon is confirmed she will author a plan for Congress to close the Department.

McMahon also promised that the end of the Department of Education does not mean an end to all the programs currently undertaken by the doomed department. Programs that are deemed beneficial will be transferred (along with their funding) to departments that are more suited to the task. The example given by McMahon was IDEA (Individuals with Disabilities Education Act) funding, which instead of being cut would be transferred to the Department of Health and Human Services.

2. School Choice

Robert Daemmrich Photography Inc / Contributor | Getty Images

In a huge win for parents across the country, McMahon pledged her support for School Choice. School Choice is the idea of allowing parents to enroll their student in any school of their choice, including religious schools and private schools. It would also mean that part or all of the funding that would have gone to a relocated child would follow them and continue to pay for their education.

This gives parents the ability to remove their children from failing schools and seek a better education for them elsewhere. A growing body of evidence suggests that the way we run our schools isn't working, and it is time to try something new. School Choice opens up education to the free market and will allow for competition.

Our children deserve better than what we can currently offer them.

3. COVID and DEI

SAVO PRELEVIC / Contributor | Getty Images

Trump's government-wide crackdown on DEI will ironically serve to increase inclusion in many American schools.

McMahon said as much during her Senate hearing: “It was put in place ostensibly for more diversity, for equity and inclusion. And I think what we’re seeing is, it is having an opposite effect. We are getting back to more segregating of our schools instead of having more inclusion in our schools.” She also spoke in support of Title IX, and the push to remove biological males from women's and girl's sports. In the same vein, McMahon pledged to push back against the rise of antisemitism on college campuses, which many Universities have failed to adequately address.

On Friday, February 14th, President Trump signed an executive order barring any school or university with COVID-19 vaccine mandates from receiving federal money. This only applies to the COVID-19 vaccine, and other vaccine mandates are still standing.

POLL: What DARK government secrets will Trump uncover?

Mark Wilson / Staff | Getty Images

Will the dark secrets of the Deep State finally see the light of day? Or will they slip back into darkness, as they have many times before?

The Trump administration is gearing up to fulfill one of Trump's most anticipated campaign promises: to make the contents of the JFK files, along with other Deep State secrets, available to the public. Kash Patel, who has promised to publicize the highly anticipated files, is expected to be confirmed next week as Trump's director of the FBI. Moreover, the House Oversight Committee created a new task force headed by Rep. Anna Paulina Luna called "Task Force on Declassification of Federal Secrets," which is tasked with investigating and declassifying information on the JFK, RFK, and MLK assassinations, UFOs, the Epstein list, COVID's origins, and 9/11. This all comes after the FBI found 2,400 "new" records relating to the assassination of President Kennedy following Trump's executive order to release the files.

Glenn discussed this topic with the cast of the Patrick Bet David podcast. Glenn expressed his confidence in Trump's radical transparency—on the condition that Kash Patel is confirmed. The cast was not as optimistic, expressing some doubt about whether Trump will actually unveil all that he has promised. But what do you think? What files are likely to see the light of day? And what files will continue to linger in the dark? Let us know in the poll below

Do you think the JFK, RFK, and MLK files will be unveiled?

Do you think the 9/11 files will be unveiled?

Do you think the COVID files will be unveiled?

Do you think the UFO files will be unveiled?

Do you think the Epstein list will be unveiled?

Transgender opera in Colombia? 10 SHOCKING ways USAID spent your tax dollars.

MANDEL NGAN / Contributor | Getty Images

The government has been doing what with our tax money!?

Under the determined eye of Elon Musk, DOGE has rooted out the corruption that permeates USAID, and it turns out that it's worse than we thought. Glenn recently read a list of atrocious causes that were funded by USAID, and the list was as long as it was shocking.

Since the January consumer index report was published today, one thing is clear: eggs are bearing the brunt of inflation. That's why we illustrated the extent of USAID's wasteful spending of YOUR taxpayer dollars by comparing it to the price of eggs. How many eggs could the American people have bought with their tax dollars that were given to a "transgender opera" in Colombia or indoctrinating Sri Lankans with woke gender ideology? The truth will shock you:

1. A “transgender opera” in Colombia

USAID spent $47,000 on a transgender opera in Colombia. That's over 135,000 eggs.

2. Sex changes and "LGBT activism" in Guatemala

$2 million was spent funding sex changes along with whatever "LGBT activism" means. That equates to over 5.7 million eggs!

3. Teaching Sri Lankan journalists how to avoid binary-gendered language

USAID forked over $7.9 million to combat the "gender binary" in Sri Lankan journalism. That could have bought nearly 23 million eggs.

4. Tourism in Egypt

$6 million (or just over 17 million eggs) was spent to fund tourism in Egypt. If only someone had thought to build some impressive landmarks...

5. A new "Sesame Street" show in Iraq

USAID spent $20 million to create a new Sesame Street show in Iraq. That's just short of 58 million eggs...

6. Helping the BBC value the diversity of Libyan society

$2.1 million was sent to the BBC (the British Broadcasting Corporation) to help them value the diversity of Libyan society (whatever that means). That could have bought over 6 million eggs.

7. Meals for a terrorist group linked to Al-Qaeda

$10 million worth of USAID-funded meals went to an Al-Qaeda linked terrorist group. That comes up to be just shy of 29 million eggs.

8. Promoting inclusion in Vietnam 

A combined $19.3 million was sent to two separate inclusion groups in Vietnam inclusion groups in Vietnam (why where they separated? Not very inclusive of them). That's over 55 million eggs.

9. Promoting DEI in Serbia's workplaces

USAID sent $1.5 million (4.3 million eggs) to “advance diversity equity and inclusion in Serbia’s workplaces and business communities.”

10. Funding EcoHealth Alliance, tied to the Wuhan Institute of Virology's "bat research"

EcoHealth Alliance, one of the key NGOs that funded the Wuhan lab's bat virus research, received $5 million from USAID, which is equivalent to 14.5 million eggs.

The bottom line...

So, how much damage was done?

In total, approximately $73.8 million was wasted on the items on this list. That comes out to be 213 million eggs. Keep in mind that these are just the items on this list, there are many, many more that DOGE has uncovered and will uncover in the coming days. Case in point: that's a lot of eggs.

POLL: Should Trump stop producing pennies?

SAUL LOEB / Contributor, Chip Somodevilla / Staff | Getty Images

On Sunday, February 9th, President Trump ordered the U.S. Mint to halt the production of pennies. It costs the mint three cents to produce every penny, which Trump deemed wasteful. However, critics argue that axing the pennies will be compensated by ramping up nickel production, which costs 13 cents per coin.

In other news, President Trump promised on Truth Social that he would be reversing a Biden-era policy that mandated the use of paper straws throughout the federal government. From potentially slashing entire agencies to saying farewell to pennies and paper straws, Trump is hounding after wasteful spending of taxpayer dollars.

But what do you think? Was Trump right to put an end to pennies? And should plastic straws make a comeback? Let us know in the poll below:

Should Trump stop the production of pennies? 

Do you agree with Trump's reversal of the plastic straw ban?