Commentary: Electric Transmission Buildout Could Cost Americans Trillions of Dollars

Electric Grid

Though windmills and solar panels get the headlines, the big energy topic in Washington is electric transmission. Whether it is Congress’s newfound interest in permitting reform, the U.S. Department of Energy’s new Grid Deployment Office, or the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission’s (FERC) upcoming final rule on transmission planning and cost allocation, how to build and pay for long-range transmission to connect generators to customers is considered the final piece in the quest to meet net-zero goals.   

Like so many issues in Washington, the need for more transmission lines is accepted without question and the costs are not considered. But for American consumers, especially low-income and elderly, as well as small businesses and energy intense manufacturers, building new transmission lines could result in much higher monthly bills and leave them on the hook for stranded assets.

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Percentage of LGBTQ Americans Has More than Doubled in Just a Decade, Poll Finds

LBGTQ supporters

The number of Americans identifying as lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender or queer has continued to rise in the last several years, reaching nearly 8% of the country’s population, according to a Gallup poll released Wednesday.

In 2012, only 3.5% of United States citizens aged 18 years and older identified as LGBTQ and in 2020, the number increased to 5.6%, according to Gallup. As of this year, the number has jumped to 7.6%, with over half of the LGBTQ population identifying as bisexual, at 57.3%, and around 1% of Americans identifying as gay, lesbian or transgender, respectively.

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Poll: A Majority of Americans Support Building the Border Wall

Border Wall Construction

A new poll suggests that more Americans than ever before support the idea of building a wall along the southern border, as the mass migration crisis rages out of control and has cost more American lives.

According to the Washington Free Beacon, the latest poll from Monmouth University shows that 53% of respondents support building the wall, while 46% oppose it, marking the first time ever that a Monmouth poll has shown majority support for the proposal. While more Republicans and independents support the wall than in past years, Democratic support for the idea has fallen.

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Commentary: For Electricity, Americans Deserve More Choices

Electric Grid

Amid a polarizing presidential election, areas of common ground are rare, especially around energy. President Joe Biden has labeled climate change as “the only existential threat humanity faces,” and outlined an agenda to reach net-zero carbon emissions by 2050. Meanwhile, his would-be Republican challengers have pledged a different course, with the frontrunning campaign of former President Donald Trump pledging to “maximize fossil fuel production” and roll back funding for Biden’s landmark 2022 Inflation Reduction Act. 

A step back from the daily partisan back-and-forth reveals an idea with something for everyone to support: increasing choice when it comes to where consumers get their energy. A commitment to freedom and creating our own destinies is quintessentially American. Yet most of our citizens have zero control over their power provider and the cost of their energy, and very few politicians on either side of the aisle say anything about it. 

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Commentary: Illegal Immigration Creates a New Slave Caste

Farm Workers

Belatedly, the southern border crisis is getting the attention it deserves.

There’s wall-to-wall coverage in the legacy and conservative press, independent documentaries proliferating on the subject, a Tucker Carlson interview with Bret Weinstein attracting over 15 million views on X, and President Joe Biden blaming Trump for a failed bill that involved the border crisis.

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Biden Cancels Another $1.2 Billion in Student Loan Debt

In yet another move circumventing the Supreme Court on the question of student loan debt, Joe Biden announced the cancellation of approximately $1.2 billion in student loan debt for about 153,000 borrowers.

As reported by ABC News, the Biden Administration made the cancellation official on Wednesday, including a draft email that will be sent to all of the borrowers in question. The email will read, in part: “Congratulations — all or a portion of your federal student loans will be forgiven because you qualify for early loan forgiveness under my Administration’s SAVE Plan.”

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Mortgage Applications Fall as Interest Rates Remain High

Paper Work

Mortgage applications sank last week as high prices and rising mortgage rates have increased unaffordability for average Americans, according to data from the Mortgage Bankers Association.

The total volume of mortgage loan applications for homes declined 10.6% in the week ending Feb. 16 compared to the previous week when seasonally adjusted, while the purchase index fell 10% in that same time, according to a release from the MBA. The drop in applications follows an increase in the average interest rate for a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage for homes under $766,550 to 7.06% from 6.87% the week prior, intensifying housing unaffordability.

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Americans Unhappy with Biden’s Handling of Immigration

Illegal Immigrants

Immigration has become a toxic issue for President Joe Biden, with many voters citing it as their top problem with the president, according to newly released survey data.

Gallup released the poll, which was taken in January and found that only 41% of Americans approved of the job Biden is doing as president while 54% disapprove. Among those disapproving of Biden’s work, 19% cite immigration as the reason, far more than any other specific issue.

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Commentary: Increasing Security Along the Southern Border to Illegal Immigration Is Top Priority to Americans

Illegal Immigrants

With a tidal wave of illegal immigrants crossing the southern border under President Biden daily and Congress locked in a battle over border security, zealots pushing open borders are becoming increasingly out of touch with the American people.

Under Biden’s reckless Open Borders agenda, nine million illegals have entered the country through the southern border, including 1.8+ million who escaped Border Patrol and are presumably living in the U.S. without documentation.

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Commentary: Democrats are Hitting the Panic Button over Biden’s Mental Fitness

Joe Biden

In 1979, when President Jimmy Carter delivered his infamous “malaise” speech in which he laid out all the daunting challenges facing our nation, the president said that America was suffering from a “crisis of confidence.”

Fast-forward 45 years and our country is once again facing a crisis of confidence, this time under the failed leadership of President Joe Biden.

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Commentary: Why Are Fewer Americans Celebrating Valentine’s Day?

Valentine's Day

Fewer Americans are planning to celebrate Valentine’s Day in 2024 than in years past.

America isn’t totally losing its love for the saccharine holiday, though. In fact, spending on Valentine’s Day gifts—for everyone from a significant other to one’s cat—has increased.

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Americans Increasingly Turning Away from Political News as 2024 Election Nears

The American public is focusing less and less on political news in recent months, even as a crucial presidential election draws nearer.

According to Axios, Americans are instead turning back to consumption of non-political content such as sports and entertainment, indicating a decline in political interest that spiked in 2020 ahead of that year’s presidential race. While numerous events in 2020, such as the nationwide race riots and the lockdowns as the result of the Chinese Coronavirus, led to increased political engagement and culminated in record-high voter turnout, there have been fewer major events in the lead-up to 2024.

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Commentary: Avoid These Four Costly 401(k) Mistakes

Ford Stokes

As you near retirement, you must make smart choices with your 401(k) plan. This is especially important for baby boomers born between 1946 and 1964. For a secure retirement, avoiding mistakes and maximizing growth opportunities is crucial. Here are some common mistakes people make with 401(k) plans and solutions to improve retirement prospects.

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Full-Time Work Is Being Replaced by Part-Time Jobs as Americans and Businesses Struggle

Uber Driver

Since June 2023, Americans have been increasingly employed in part-time positions, with a subsequent decline in full-time work, according to data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS).

The number of Americans working part-time in January grew by 96,000 compared to the previous month, while full-time employment sank by 63,000, according to the BLS. The change in the types of employment follows a trend toward part-time employment that has been increasingly exacerbated since June 2023.

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Home Sales in 2023 Were the Lowest in 28 Years as Affordability Crisis Plagued Americans

Home Owners

Sales for existing homes, which make up a majority of the housing market, slumped to the lowest level since 1995 as rising prices and sky-rocketing mortgage rates increased unaffordability, according to the National Association of Realtors (NAR).

Existing home sales sank 1.0% in December compared to the previous month, falling 6.2% annually, with 4.09 million homes being sold for the year, according to a report from the NAR. The slump in sales follows a year of rising prices due to inflation, constrained supply and sky-high mortgage rates, which at one point neared 8%, suppressing demand and Americans’ ability to buy in the housing market.

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Poll Finds Americans Worried About National Debt

Congress Spending

Americans are worried about the national debt, according to the results of a new poll.

Americans have the national debt crisis as one of their top concerns along with war, inflation and crime. Those polled think the overspending has a direct impact on their personal security and also has an impact on the security of the United States, according to a recent study commissioned by Main Street Economics, a nonprofit group designed to educate Americans on the nation’s debt crisis.

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Commentary: The Intellectual Foundations of MAGA

MAGA Hat

Republicans are dumb. They are easily led suckers, voting against their own best interests, manipulated by dangerous demagogues. This accusation is accepted as fact by most Democrat voters and is relentlessly reinforced by the media Democrats rely on. From MSNBC, Democratic strategist James Carville says Republicans “have a lot of stupid people that vote in their primaries.”  From New York Magazine, “Is DeSantis Just Not Dumb Enough for Republicans?” From Vanity Fair, “Is the Sheer Stupidity of Republican Politics Breaking Through?”

Even some conservative columnists can’t criticize the Democrats without taking a shot at those stupid Republicans. Daniel Henninger, writing for the Wall Street Journal, characterized national politics this year as “The Stupid Party vs. the Evil Party.” As for the leader of the Republican Party, we have this from The New Republic, “Trump Is an Extremely Dumb Fascist.” And as James Carville said, “When stupid people vote, you know who they nominate? Other stupid people.”

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Commentary: Americans Embrace Religion, Reject Religious Bigotry

People Praying

More than half a century ago, Time magazine famously asked, “Is God Dead?” The black and red cover, the magazine’s first to include only text, sparked countless angry sermons and thousands of letters from readers accusing Time of engaging in tasteless nihilism, Marxist pandering, and outright blasphemy.

The question, which typified the counter-culture movement and the intellectual radicalism of the 1960s, was far off the mark both then and now. The United States has always been and remains a very religious nation despite steep declines in attendance at churches, synagogues, and mosques – trends that have captured far more headlines in recent years than the nation’s enduring faith. America is also a majority Christian nation, though other religious groups and affiliations and those identifying as non-believers are growing.

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Part-Time Jobs Are Booming Under Biden as Americans Look to Make Ends Meet

Uber Driver

More Americans are having to take part-time jobs as consumers struggle with economic factors like high inflation, while full-time employment has sunk in tandem, according to data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS).

Around 133,196,000 workers were employed with full-time jobs in the U.S. in December, which was down from 134,727,000 in November — a drop of more than 1.5 million, according to the BLS. During that same time frame, the number of Americans employed in part-time positions rose by 762,000, while the number of people with multiple jobs increased by 222,000.

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Inflation Rose More than Expected in Latest Data

Grocery Shopping

Consumer costs increased at an elevated level again in December, according to newly released federal economic data, raising new concerns about spiking inflation.

The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics on Thursday released the Consumer Price Index, a key marker of inflation, showing the cost of a range of every day goods and services for Americans rose more than expected.

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Commentary: American Achilles in the War on Terror

Military Soldiers

Professor Emily Wilson has achieved celebrity status … for translating Homer.

University students use her work, and it draws leisure readers as well. Beginning with her translation of the Odyssey in 2018 and continuing with the Iliad earlier this year, Wilson has presented as fresh and vivid material that is, admittedly, old and foreign.

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Commentary: 11 More Examples of Defensive Gun Use to Fend Off Criminals

Gun Bullets

As cities across the country reel from explosive crime rates, many politicians at the local, state, and federal levels are too preoccupied with disarming peaceable American gun owners to identify, arrest, and prosecute actual criminals adequately.  

Two masked attackers met their match last month when they attacked Los Angeles resident Vince Ricci as he walked toward the front door of his house. The pair brandished a firearm at Ricci, who pulled out his own gun and shot at the thugs, who ran away.

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Americans Sour on Big Pharma After Pandemic, Opioid Crisis: Poll

COVID Pfizer

Public opinion on the pharmaceutical industry has declined sharply over the past decade, according to new polling released by Gallup.

The proportion of Americans who believe pharmaceutical companies provide good or excellent services declined 21 points between 2010 and 2023, according to a poll released Monday. Public controversies over COVID-19 vaccines and the opioid crisis have implicated the pharmaceutical industry in recent years.

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Commentary: With ‘White Christmas,’ Irving Berlin and Bing Crosby Helped Make Christmas a Holiday That All Americans Could Celebrate

Irving Berlin

Irving Berlin was a Jewish immigrant who loved America. As his 1938 song “God Bless America” suggests, he believed deeply in the nation’s potential for goodness, unity and global leadership.

In 1940, he wrote another quintessential American song, “White Christmas,” which the popular entertainer Bing Crosby eventually made famous.

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Commentary: COVID Redux

Masks People

Life is hard if you do not learn from your mistakes. With Covid, political leaders and public health authorities engaged in a series of missteps, miscalculations, and manias that amounted to an extreme overreaction to the disease.

First, statistical models overstated the risk of the disease by an order of magnitude. Then, even after these miscalculations became apparent, other extreme measures like lockdowns, mandatory masking, coercive vaccine mandates, and a million other indignities ensued. In the end, almost everyone got Covid, almost everyone survived, and, while the economic countermeasures increased our national debt by 30%, the economy soon recovered too.

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Existing Home Sales on Track for Worst Year Since at Least 2008

Existing home sales are on track for a dismal year, likely dropping 18% and on course for the worst year since at least 2008’s Great Recession and possibly the worst since 1995. 

And while prices may soften in 2024, single-family homes will remain out of reach for many Americans, National Association of Realtors Chief Economist Lawrence Yun said Tuesday in the real estate organization’s annual summit. 

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Commentary: Americans Turn on Globalists Saying Government Spending, Greed, and Global Issues Drive Inflation

A new survey reveals inflation is still the primary concern for Americans by a wide margin, and the public is beginning to turn on big government and recognize government spending and globalism as the culprits behind a dwindling standard of living.

This comes at a time when the country is poised to choose between another four years of excessive spending and an evaporating middle-class or return to an America First philosophy that strengthens the middle-class and structures international policy in our favor.

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10 Revelations That Changed Americans’ Understanding of Events on January 6

Videotape of a Capitol door being mistakenly unlocked. Photos of gallows being set up outside without any police interference. Officers exhorting protesters to storm the Capitol. Intelligence warnings of potential violence that went unheeded. Major changes to testimony.

A year after the Democrat-led House Select Committee on Jan. 6 ended it works, major new revelations have emerged from House Republicans led by Rep, Barry Loudermilk, R-Ga, about how the Capitol riot unfolded that fateful day and the security failures that occurred in the days and hours ahead of the violence.

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China is Running an Operation to Get Americans Hooked on Illegal Drugs, Former DEA Boss Warns

Fentanyl

Police operations from California to Maine have busted Chinese nationals operating illegal marijuana growing sites. U.S. officials have clear evidence China is providing Mexican drug cartels the precursor chemicals to make the fentanyl flowing into America. The Drug Enforcement Administration has substantial evidence dating back a decade of Beijing’s role in flooding U.S. cities with a wide range of addictive and harmful drugs.

Experts say there is growing evidence that communist China has launched concerted operations to hook Americans on drugs as part of a larger effort to supplant the United States as the world’s No. 1 superpower. Adding to the problem, the insecure border of the Biden era has only accelerated operations that have killed tens of thousands of Americans from fentanyl poisoning alone. The National Center for Health Statistics reported that drug overdose death rates involving fentanyl increased by 279% from 5.7 per 100,000 in 2016 to 21.6 in 2021.

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Commentary: One in Every 39 Americans Will Die of a Drug Overdose at Current Rate

Person Taking Pills

Despite the passage of state and federal laws that were supposed to reduce fatal drug overdoses, the annual U.S. drug overdose death rate has quintupled over recent decades:

Over the most current year of available data, more than 110,000 people in the U.S. died of drug overdoses, a rate of 33 per 100,000 population.

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Faith in the American Dream Plummets Under Biden: Poll

A majority of U.S. voters feel that the “American dream” cannot be achieved, according to a poll conducted by the Wall Street Journal and NORC.

Approximately 36% of voters said that the American Dream – as defined by the notion that if an individual works hard, they will get ahead – was attainable, down from 68% who said the same last year, according to the WSJ/NORC poll released on Friday. Roughly two-thirds of voters feel the economy is in poor condition as inflation continues to outpace wages and prices continue to rise.

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Poll: Americans Say Schools Should Focus on Math, Reading, and Writing

A large majority of voters say that public schools should focus on the basics – math, reading, writing, science and social studies – to improve the quality of public education in the country.

That’s according to the latest The Center Square’s Voters’ Voice poll conducted in late October in conjunction with Noble Predictive Insights. The poll of 2,605 likely voters includes 1,035 Republicans, 1,074 Democrats, and 496 true Independents, and is among the most comprehensive in the country.

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Biden Admin’s Regulatory Overhaul Will Burden Americans in the Name of Fighting Climate Change

President Joe Biden’s administration finalized guidance Thursday likely to burden Americans with costlier regulations to fulfill administration priorities such as combating climate change.

Biden’s Office of Management and Budget (OMB) is enacting new guidance that would require regulators to consider priorities like inequality and climate change when analyzing the costs and benefits of regulation. The White House argued the guidance is necessary so that regulations are issued with up-to-date analysis and information.

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Poll: Most Americans Believe A.I. Will Lead to More Misinformation in 2024

A new poll released on Friday shows that a majority of Americans believe that artificial intelligence (AI) will lead to more misinformation being spread on the Internet during the 2024 presidential election.

According to The Hill, the poll from AP-NORC and the University of Chicago Harris School of Public Policy found that 58% of Americans believe AI will lead to an increase in election misinformation. Among respondents who said they have “heard a lot or some about AI” 61% believed in the threat of more misinformation.

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Poll: Americans Say Government Is Too Big, Has Too Much Power

Newly released polling data shows most American think the government is too big and has too much power.

Gallup released the new survey data, which shows that 54% of surveyed Americans say government is “trying to do too many things that should be left to individuals and businesses.” That number has stayed relatively the same since 2021.

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Mortgage Rates Soar to Highest Point in 23 Years as Americans Struggle to Buy Homes

Mortgage rates have continued to rise for the seventh straight week, reaching their highest point in over 23 years, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA).

The average 30-year mortgage rate for Americans reached 7.9% on Wednesday, up from 7.7% just one week ago, the highest point since September 2000, according to a press release from the MBA. Mortgage applications sank even further following the high rates, with application volume declining 1% from the previous week when seasonally adjusted, the lowest weekly pace since 1995.

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Americans’ Distrust of Corporate Media Climbs to Record High: Poll

Distrust in corporate media among Americans has soared to a record high, according to polling published by Gallup.

The amount of Americans who trust legacy media “a great deal” or “a fair amount” to cover the news “fully, accurately and fairly” plunged to 32%, tied for the lowest since 2016, according to the poll. The highest ever percentage of Americans — 39%— state they do not trust the media whatsoever, and this figure has consistently risen since 2018.

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More Americans Are Going Hungry as Biden Boasts About the Economy

The number of Americans who were food insecure increased from 2021 to 2022, despite President Joe Biden boasting about the success of the economy following the recent release of new economic data.

In 2022, 12.8% of American households, or 17 million households, had difficulty at some point during the year providing enough food for all members of their family, compared to 10.2% in 2021, according to a report from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). The data, which was released in October 2023, comes as Biden testifies to the strength of the American economy following substantial Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth of 4.9% in the third quarter of 2023.

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Commentary: Americans Won’t Fight for the Globalists’ Agenda

Imagining a cascade of catastrophic escalations plunging humanity into the next world war is no longer a stretch, and it could happen fast. Israel invades Gaza to destroy Hamas, and Hezbollah goes to war. America targets Hezbollah to help defend Israel, and Iran and Syria, with Russian assistance, attack Israel. Hezbollah cells strike targets within America, and Israel and America strike targets inside Iran. Russia launches a major new offensive in Ukraine with support from Belarus. China openly supports Russia and Iran with weapons. All of this is more plausible than ever.

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Poll: Support Declines for Political Involvement by Corporate America

A new survey shows that more Americans are turning against efforts by big corporations to get involved in the political process and advocacy for major political issues.

As reported by Axios, the new poll from the Public Affairs Council shows that 57% of Americans support major companies getting involved in the issue of race relations, compared to 66% who supported such efforts last year. On the issue of abortion, only 36% of Americans support the input of big corporations, down from 41% in 2022.

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Federal Law Charges Americans for Rescue Flights from Israel While Illegals Get Free Travel, Hotels

Thousands of Americans are looking to flee Israel amid fighting between the government and Hamas terrorists in the Gaza Strip. The U.S. government is moving to provide them assistance, but not for free.

Over the weekend, Hamas terrorists based in the Gaza Strip stormed a number of Israeli border towns, taking hostages, raping women and inflicting considerable human casualties, including infanticide. The Israel Defense Forces have since launched retaliatory strikes on Gaza and the conflict is ongoing. The State Department confirmed on Thursday that it was working to arrange charter flights for American citizens and their immediate family members.

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More Americans Back UAW Strikers than Automakers: Poll

More Americans support the United Auto Workers (UAW) over the major auto companies as their strike for higher wages and more benefits nears its fifth week, according to the Associated Press.

The UAW is currently engaging in a partial strike against the Big Three automakers — Ford, General Motors and Stellantis — and have expanded to 44 different plants across the country since its Sept. 15 start, most recently resulting in workers at Ford’s biggest and most profitable plant walking out of the job on Wednesday. Around 36% of Americans sympathize with the striking UAW workers, while only 9% support the automakers in the dispute, with the rest of the 53% of Americans not swayed either way, according to a recent poll from the AP’s NORC Center for Public Affairs Research.

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Americans’ Support for Arming Ukraine Dries Up as War Drags On: Poll

Support for arming Ukraine in its fight against Russian aggression has dropped among Americans across the political spectrum, according to a Thursday poll.

Only 41% of Americans believe the federal government “should provide weapons to Ukraine,” a five-point decrease since May, according to a Reuters/Ipsos survey. Though some respondents were unsure, 35% of Americans disagreed with the notion that the U.S. should be sending weapons to Ukraine.

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Poll: One-Third of Democrats Say Americans Have ‘Too Much Freedom’ of Speech

A new poll from RealClearPolitics shows that a staggering number of registered Democrats think there is “too much freedom” to speak freely in the United States.

As reported by the Washington Free Beacon, the RCP survey on Friday revealed that 34% of Democrats believe that Americans have “too much freedom” of speech, compared to just 14.6% of Republicans who believed the same. By contrast, 46% of Republicans believe that Americans have “too little freedom,” with only 22% of Democrats agreeing.

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More Americans Taking Second Jobs, Part-Time Work as Inflation Continues to Rage

An increasing number of Americans are taking up part-time work and even getting second jobs as worsening economic conditions such as high inflation have chipped away at their finances, according to experts who spoke to the Daily Caller News Foundation.

The median real weekly earnings for Americans are down 2.1% since the first quarter of the Biden administration, with data from August showing a spike in the unemployment rate and a job market that is beginning to cool, according to the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis. Due to wages failing to keep up with inflation and debt levels increasing, workers are increasingly taking part-time jobs and even second jobs in order to make ends meet, according to economists who spoke with the DCNF.

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Commentary: Recession May Be Coming After 514,000 More Americans Struggle to Find Employment

The national unemployment rate reported by the Bureau of Labor Statistics jumped from 3.5 percent to 3.8 percent in August as an additional 514,000 Americans said they could not find work in the Bureau’s household survey. Now 6.3 million Americans are said to be unemployed, the highest in more than a year.

But it did not come with a commensurate drop in the number of Americans saying they were working, which also increased by 222,000 to 161.48 million.

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Number of Americans Who View Minneapolis as Safe Place Declines

The number of Americans who view Minneapolis as a safe city has declined by 15%, according to a new Gallup poll.

A majority of Americans (58%) still view Minneapolis as a safe place to “live in or visit,” but this is down from the 73% who said the same in 2006, the last time the poll was conducted.

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