U.S. Representative Matt Gaetz Introduces Bill To End ‘Unqualified Birthright Citizenship’

by Brett Rowland | The Center Square

Something’s Wrong

By: Bill O’Reilly

Did you see Senator Mitch McConnell freeze in front of the TV cameras yesterday? I mean, literally freeze.

Something’s wrong.

And not just with the Senate minority leader. Senator Dianne Feinstein can’t even walk down the hall, and a bunch of other powerful elected folks are in their cups.

But by far, the most concerning senior citizen in the country is President Biden. The strategy now is pretty much limit him to two canned speeches a week and multiple naps. We report his event calendar every day, and there’s usually little on it. Yesterday, he did a podcast with a guy named Jay Shetty. That’s it.

Cognitive decline is a fact of life, but when it befalls powerful people - people can get hurt. I do not believe Joe Biden understands what’s happening on the border, in the economy, or even what his son Hunter did.

That’s plenty scary.

Mr. Biden is cloistered by his ambitious wife and White House security. No one can evaluate what’s happening in the Executive branch. He will only do cupcake interviews (hello, NBC News) and avoids clarifying anything because he simply can’t clarify anything.

The man says he wants to run again. Run for what, Mr. President? When’s the election? Where’s your campaign staff?

Maybe Jay Shetty knows.

U.S. Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Fla.

(The Center Square) – U.S. Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Fla., introduced a bill Tuesday that would deny automatic citizenship at birth to children born within the United States whose parents are not U.S. nationals.

The measure excludes “aliens lawfully admitted as refugees or permanent residents or performing active services in the U.S. Armed Forces,” according to the congressman.

Gaetz introduced the “End Birthright Citizenship Fraud Act of 2023” in the U.S. House of Representatives to end what he called “unqualified birthright citizenship.”

“Birthright citizenship has been grossly and blatantly misapplied for decades, recently becoming a loophole for illegal aliens to fraudulently abuse our immigration system,” Gaetz said in a statement. “My legislation recognizes that American citizenship is a privilege – not an automatic right to be co-opted by illegal aliens.”

Gaetz said the measure was needed to ensure “that citizenship is not treated as a loophole to be exploited but rather a privilege to be earned when legally migrating to our country.”

The measure would amend the Immigration and Nationality Act.

“The United States is one of two developed nations that currently grants automatic citizenship so expansively to children born within its borders,” according to the text of the bill. “Unqualified birthright citizenship provides a strong incentive for illegal immigrants to cross the southern border of the United States.

The text of the bill said illegal immigration comes at a cost for U.S. taxpayers: “Illegal immigrants who crossed into the United States to give birth, often return to Mexico, sending their children across the border daily to attend American public schools, crowding out American students and taking advantage of American tax dollars.”

Caldara: Polis’ Secret Police Come For Your Gas-Powered Lawn Mower

by Jon Caldara, Complete Colorado Page 2

Gov. Jared Polis has his own secret police.

They create their laws without the approval or even review of any of our directly elected representatives.

We must live by their edicts or be punished as they see fit.

The governor has sole tyrannical authority to appoint his secret police, just like Stalin.

OK, maybe that’s a bit of an overstatement. Maybe.

Since we just celebrated the Fourth of July, it’s worth remembering our forefathers dumped a bunch of tea into a harbor to protest “taxation without representation.”

So, the idea that we directly elect our representatives to make policy decisions is an indispensable, foundational American value.

When one guy appoints his cronies–stooges we don’t directly elect–and those thugs make decisions we must live by, well that’s the opposite of representative government.

Even if we did elect that guy to sign or veto bills, it brings us a lot closer to why we threw a bunch of tea into a harbor when he does an end-run around our representatives.

Let’s take our state legislature, as overwhelmingly progressive as they are. They considered a bill to prohibit the sale and even advertising of devices with “small, offroad engines” — such as lawn mowers and leaf blowers. And they refused to pass it.

Attention — I repeat: our duly elected representatives, who were sworn in without Capitol riots, insurrections or nothing, these ultraprogressive legislators declined to outlaw gasoline-powered lawn mowers and leaf blowers.

So controversial, so disliked was the idea of banning these items the Democrat who wrote the bill had to pull the anti-lawn mower/leaf blower language out of his Senate Bill 22-138 for it to survive.

So, as we just learned, the governor’s unelected secret police might just outlaw the mowers despite our elected representatives’ expressed votes. Who are these Stasi?

They are call the Air Quality Control Commission. They are as powerful as the unelected, all-governor-appointed Public Utilities Commission, the good mafioso folks who continue to raise our electric rates for their buddies at Xcel. And “mafioso” power isn’t an overstatement. For both these two commissions (even that sounds mobbed-up) answer to only one Don. Don Polis.

All this begs a simple question: A legislature that’s willing to ban shopping bags should be more than willing to criminalize the preferred choice of violent drug lords when they’re gardening — those gas-powered, assault leaf blowers.

So why have a faceless committee of thugs do the dirty work?

Simple: because the anti-fossil fuels mob under the Gold Dome doesn’t want their fingerprints on the murder, we hire nameless thugs.

Even Polis can wash his hands of this and claim that “regulators” made this unpopular decision, with most not asking the follow-up question, “you mean your hand-picked regulators made the decision, Governor?”

It’s one of the many, many ways our “libertarian” governor continues to say he tries to “keep government off the backs of Coloradans.”

The recommendation that the commission will use to consider this ban comes from the Regional Air Quality Council. But by their own numbers, they admit this lawn equipment doesn’t create any ozone problems.

According to RAQC, lawn and garden equipment adds 2.5 ppb (parts per billion) to our “summertime ozone concentrations.” Yet natural and background sources, like plants and wildfires (including a lot from out of state) create 48.6 ppb.

It’s worth remembering Gov. Polis rescinded previous Gov. John Hickenlooper’s application for a waiver to the EPA for noncompliance on ozone because, duh, it had nothing to do with anything Coloradans did.

So, because the governor yanked that waiver the EPA is requiring a reformulation of our gasoline costing us about $0.50 more a gallon. And recall Polis wrote a letter to the EPA “outraged” that they were doing so, but took no responsibility for being the cause of it (sensing “hey, it wasn’t because of me” theme?).

And by the end of the year, in opposition to our elected officials vote, Polis’s crew may well ban gardening equipment.

The legislature did give a 30% cash incentive (more of your tax money, less of your TABOR refund checks) for folks to buy electric lawn equipment. That might help homeowners but does nothing for small businesses who need powerful, long-lasting equipment.

These companies are often owned and almost always employ minorities, particularly Hispanics. You know, the people Democrats say they work for.

Jon Caldara is president of the Independence Institute, a free market think tank in Denver.

Why Coloradans Aren’t So Sure About A Property Tax Cut

by Andrew Kenney

Hart Van Denburg/CPR News Townhomes fronting Cheeseman Park in Denver, March 28, 2023.

When likely voters first hear about Democrats’ plan to rearrange billions of dollars of taxes, a narrow majority of them like it, a recent survey found. About 54 percent of voters said they supported Proposition HH after learning its most basic details.

But as they learned more, the poll found that support weakened — showing Colorado may be heading for a tough fight this fall over property taxes, schools, local governments and, of course, TABOR refunds.

“You’re in tossup territory,” said pollster David Flaherty of Magellan Strategies. “The electorate currently is highly uninformed about it. When they hear the top-line message, they generally like it. When they hear a lot of the details, they dislike it.”

What the 10-year Colorado property tax proposal would mean for you

The online poll included about 660 likely voters. First, the respondents were asked to read the language that will appear on their ballots this November.

The measure was written by the Democratic legislature. Its text focuses on the idea that the measure will “reduce property taxes,” and “use a portion of the state surplus” to minimize the impact of the cut on schools and other districts.

That ballot language got the support of about 54 percent of respondents. Another 34 percent said no, and 12 percent were undecided, with a margin of error of about 4 percent.

But the survey then told the respondents more about different parts of the measure.

Most notably, Proposition HH will raise the state’s annual spending cap. After 10 years, the general fund could be up to $2.2 billion larger as a result of Prop. HH, with the extra money mostly going to schools to ensure their finances aren’t affected by the property tax cuts, and similar but more limited money for cities. The measure could also increase school spending, if the economy is strong.

The idea of raising the TABOR cap is popular among Democrats, the poll results suggest, with 65 percent saying it actually improved their opinion of Proposition HH. But Republicans despised the idea, with about 75 percent saying it turned them against the measure.

Ultimately, the respondents were split on the proposal: 43 percent said they supported it after taking the survey, 46 percent opposed it, and the rest were undecided. That’s the statistical equivalent of a tied game, since the difference is smaller than the survey’s margin of error.

The measure could easily pass or fail, Flaherty said.

Prop. HH is a top priority for Gov. Jared Polis and other leading Democrats. They have positioned it as their response to eye-popping increases in property tax bills this year. But it also could be the biggest change to TABOR in nearly 20 years, with some Democrats hoping it will raise school funding levels in the long term.

The challenge for Democrats will be explaining why a property tax cut should come with so many other conditions, Flaherty said.

“Its complexity is what weighs it down. That’s the No. 1 thing at this time,” he said.

Prop. HH is supposed to be about property taxes — but it could also change the future of TABOR and schools funding

Voters this November will likely skew older and wealthier, since it is an off-year election that doesn’t include any of the federal or state-level races that attract younger voters, Flaherty said. Many of those likely voters would benefit from the property tax cut, especially since it comes with expanded benefits for seniors. But they’ll also be more conservative than the rest of the state, making it tougher to sell them on TABOR changes.

A conservative coalition, Advance Colorado, is suing to keep the measure off the ballot, arguing that it’s unconstitutional because it touches too many subjects. Advance Colorado is also preparing a political campaign against the measure.

Prop. HH still has more support than it has opposition, said Michael Fields of Advance Colorado, who will head up the group’s opposition campaign. “All the work is still in front of us, but there’s a clear path to defeating it.”

The measure’s supporters also are gearing up their own campaign. But neither the “yes” or “no” campaigns have reported any fundraising or spending yet, with the election fight not expected to truly begin until Labor Day, early in September.

“It’s really critical that we pass it so that the state can be on a stable financial path and respond to this very critical moment for small businesses, for homeowners, for renters, for homeowners,” said state Sen. Chris Hansen, a Democratic sponsor.

That will include clear explanations of how all the moving parts could affect voters, from TABOR refunds to property taxes, he pledged.

“I think we’ve been doing a lot of work around how to communicate this clearly to the voters,” he said.

Loveland Archaeological Society, Inc. A Colorado Non-Profit Corporation

Presents the 2023

Loveland Stone Age Fair

Featuring Displays of Prehistoric Artifacts

Saturday, September 23rd - 9:00 AM to 6:00 PM

McKee 4-H, Youth & Community Building 5280 Arena Circle, Loveland, Colorado 80538

Public is Welcome! Admission is FREE! NON-COMMERCIAL - NO BUYING OR SELLING OF ARTIFACTS ** PROGRAM **

Saturday, September 23rd, 1:00 P.M.

Dr. Randy Haas

Assistant Professor of Anthropology, University of Wyoming

** FREE ARTIFACT IDENTIFICATION **

***STONE AGE FAIR SPONSORS***

The Loveland Archaeological Society, Inc.

ARC Air Compressors

Bob Grand, Publisher of the Lost Creek Guide and ourtowncolorado.com

Dr. Grayson Westfall, Dr. Laura Brunner, Anna, and Jackson Westfall

Mr. Joe Mosier

Rick Miller, Miller & Law, P. C.

STONE AGE FAIR – a Northern Colorado Tradition Since 1934

Total Cost of Crime in Colorado was $27.2 Billion, Equivalent to $4,623 per Coloradan, Costing the State Numerous Jobs

Study analyzes the economic impact of increasing crime rates and their effects on the overall state economy

Denver, CO – Today, Common Sense Institute (CSI) issued a new study analyzing the economic impact of increasing crime rates and their effects on the overall state economy.

“If Colorado continues on its current crime trajectory, our economy could be severely impacted with total costs of crime reaching $27.2 billion in 2022, equivalent to $4,623 per Coloradan,” said Kelly Caufield, CSI Executive Director.

The report provides an in-depth analysis of Colorado’s economy by examining the state’s crime rates. Of concern, summer homicides have spiked, with an 18% increase in the murder rate from the first half of 2022 to the first half of 2023. This has led to substantial societal costs, as each murder comes with a price tag of $8.8 million.

Additionally, the analysis shows that Adams County and the City & County of Denver account for 40% of all crimes. Such high crime rates come with both tangible and intangible costs, severely impacting the state’s economy.

“Reports such as this underscore the significance of crime and safety policy in relation to job creation and economic influence,” said J.J. Ament, President & CEO of the Denver Metro Chamber of Commerce and a member of the CSI Board. “It’s crucial that both policymakers and the general public understand the immediate and longterm economic implications of high crime rates. This knowledge allows for a balanced evaluation of benefits and drawbacks, thereby enabling more informed decision-making processes.”

While crime rates have been soaring in recent years, the study emphasizes that the situation can change rapidly with effective crime prevention policies and strategies, as evidenced by certain counties’ successful attempts in reducing crime rates.

“Our analysis sheds essential light on the intricate relationship between crime rates and economic prosperity. It is our hope that these critical insights inform and inspire effective strategies, driving a stronger and safer Colorado for all,” said CSI Senior Economist Steven Byers.

Other key findings include:

● Crime rates would have to be reduced significantly to lessen the cost of crime. For every 1% decrease in the number of crimes the state adds 474 jobs and $56.2 million to GDP

● If crime went to zero, insurance premiums could decrease by 25%, leaving $1.71 billion more in consumers’ pockets, and lead to an increase in GDP by $5.62 billion

Common Sense Institute is a non-partisan research organization dedicated to the protection and promotion of Colorado’s economy. CSI is at the forefront of important discussions concerning the future of free enterprise in Colorado and aims to have an impact on the issues that matter most to Coloradans. CSI’s mission is to examine the fiscal impacts of policies, initiatives, and proposed laws so that Coloradans are educated and informed on issues impacting their lives.

For full report: https://commonsenseinstituteco.org/the-cost-of-crime/

Congress Must Empower Law Enforcement to End the Fentanyl Epidemic

by Ambassador Callista L. Gingrich

This week, an 18-year-old college-bound wrestler died of a suspected fentanyl overdose at his home in California. Last week, an 11-year-old overdosed on fentanyllaced marijuana in Louisiana. In May, two 17-year-olds died from fentanyl overdoses at Fayette Ware Comprehensive High School in Tennessee, just hours before the school’s graduation ceremony.

“Fentanyl is killing all of our kids, it’s affecting all of our families,” California’s Fresno County District Attorney Lisa Smittcamp said. “It doesn’t discriminate by race, color, religion – it’s affecting everybody.”

As Drug Enforcement Administration Administrator Anne Milgram confirmed, “Fentanyl is the single deadliest drug threat our nation has ever encountered.” In 2022, more than 109,000 people died from drug overdoses, according to a U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimate, the majority of which are linked to synthetic opioids. This staggering figure emphasizes the prevalence of fentanyl in the drug supply as overdose deaths surpassed 100,000 for the second year in a row – and for the second time on record. Further, for 18- to 49-year-old Americans, fentanyl poisoning is the leading cause of death, surpassing heart disease, cancer, homicide, suicide, and other accidents.

But these are more than just facts and figures – behind these numbers are daughters, sons, sisters, brothers, mothers, and fathers.

As I wrote in November 2021, “Unless we stop the flow of these deadly drugs into the United States and provide law enforcement and first responders with the necessary tools and resources to combat this crisis, lives will continue to be tragically lost.”

While fentanyl precursors primarily come from China, the illicit deadly products are most commonly manufactured by Mexican drug cartels, smuggled across the U.S. southern border and distributed to American communities.

The DEA classifies drugs into five categories, known as schedules, with Schedule I substances defined as “drugs with no currently accepted medical use and a high potential for abuse.”

Last month, Bloomberg Law reported, “Classification of fentanyl as a Schedule I drug is the biggest measure to help address the synthetic opioid crisis in the US.”

Reporting on a June 21 House Energy and Commerce Health Subcommittee hearing, Bloomberg Law also reported, “Scheduling fentanyl would give the DEA authority to infiltrate and prevent the trafficking of the substance, ensuring it doesn’t cross borders and fall into the hands of violent street gangs.”

Currently, various fentanyl-related substances are temporarily classified as Schedule I drugs under the Controlled Substances Act, but there are numerous pieces of legislation in Congress that would make the temporary scheduling order permanent.

In March, Sens. Tom Cotton and Lindsey Graham introduced the Protecting Americans from Fentanyl Trafficking Act. And last week, Congressman Anthony D’Esposito (R-NY) introduced its companion bill in the U.S. House of Representatives. In May, the U.S. House of Representatives passed the HALT Fentanyl Act, and the bill was received in the Senate.

As President Joe Biden fails to address the fentanyl crisis plaguing communities across the United States, Congress must enact legislation that gives law enforcement the tools it needs to protect all Americans.

Fort Lupton Muzzle Loading Club will host the Colorado Sate Muzzle Loading Association in a State Shoot on August 11th to 13th

by Jackie Smith

With guns getting a bad rap in today’s society, this club works extremely hard to show how to safely own and shoot a firearm. In fact, FLMC’s mission is to provide members with a regulated safe place to shoot their antique muzzleloading firearms. These include two types of firearms; percussion that fires with caps, and flintlock which fires with flint and steel. You will be surprised that members range from 8 to 90 years old.

The club also hosts hunters’ education to the Adams County 4H groups. In June, they compete in a firsthand competition with a twenty-two.

Thirty-three kids practice March through July once a week shooting air rifles, twenty-two caliber pistols and rifles, and of course muzzleloaders.

In July, they compete in a county competition to qualify for state. Weld County has twenty kids that do similar to what Adams County does but includes archery, their practices are every other week.

During the state shoot August 11th-13th competitions are in subgroups; from junior (under 12) to legacy (over 75) and they will heat up the range. They will shoot at paper and silhouette targets at different distances from 25, 50, 75, to 100 yards.

Tomahawks and knives will also fly. One of the club’s favorites is the novelty shoot, with farmers market veggies. As you can imagine bits and pieces fly in the air upon impact. The crowd oohs and awes, as the vegetables explode into smithereens.

The top shooters will win prizes. Last year 60 individuals from all over Colorado and from Kansas competed, it was the most in 17 years.

Throughout the year, about once a month, the club has rifle and pistol competitions. In April, they have a “peep” shoot. It is a kind of firing line, where the shot peeps blast into nothing. After taking out a tissue and drying my tears, I am sad to inform everyone by the end of the shoot there are no peep survivors. In food for thought, I am not thoroughly convinced the “peep” shoot was the only thing contributing to the peeps demise, not one person would admit it, but I think there may have been just a little bit of peep snacking.

In November, its turkey season. With guns loaded waiting for that familiar sound “gobble, gobble” then followed by bang, bang. The turkeys are down! Not to worry, no harm comes to any real turkeys during this shoot. However, they do enjoy a Thanksgiving meal afterwards.

If you are interested in membership, it is $60 for a member, $80 for a family. Contact Vice President, Linda Preston at lprestonco@gmail.com. The range is open from dawn to dusk only for its members.

Will Joe Have to Go?

by Bill O’Reilly

Now, I don’t have all the answers, but I have more than most. We’ve been diligently investigating this potential game-changer for every American.

First of all, it looks bad for President Biden. Evidence is mounting that he knew his son and brother were taking massive amounts of foreign money and selling influence to get it.

No reasonable doubt on that. They did it and derived close to $20 million, maybe more. But where did all that money go? That question remains unanswered largely because the Justice Department and many Democrats could not care less.

In fact, strong evidence has been presented that Attorneys General Holder, Barr, and, of course, Garland tanked the Biden investigation.

But what about Joe? On Monday, I will run down the likelihood that this scandal will take him off the board.

Here are some unanswered questions beginning with, who is paying the Biden family’s legal bills? It’s not them.

- Was Joe Biden actually sitting next to his son when he shook down a Chinese Communist guy for $5 million? Hunter Biden described that scenario, but the Justice Department blocked a location search for Joe Biden on the day the damning Hunter email was sent. However, it is not beyond the grifter Hunter to lie for money, so there’s doubt.

- And why isn’t the President’s brother Jim under public scrutiny? He was a big part of the money scheme.

- Why did the wife of US Attorney Matthew Graves, who refused to investigate Hunter despite being formally asked, visit the White House 28 times? Extremely bad look that the Justice Department overlooks with enthusiasm.

What say you, Fatima Graves?

-And finally, $20 million is a colossal amount of money coming into a family for nothing. But it was not the FBI that traced the cash through a variety of shadowy banks. No, it was Republicans in the House who did the tracking because the establishment swamp in DC is corrupt and would not.

That kind of terrible behavior is the bad news. The positive development is the investigation continues at an energetic clip in Congress.

President Biden may not even know it, but I believe he’s “this close” to going down. And if he did, indeed, take Hunter’s money, he should.