Classified documents creating headache for Biden

House rebels finally gave in and elected Kevin McCarthy.

Student Writer

After 15 rounds of voting and countless concessions, California Representative Kevin McCarthy (R) was finally elected Speaker of the House. The position (previously held by California Democrat Nancy Pelosi) is typically awarded to the leader of the majority party. McCarthy, having previously served as House Minority Leader, was set to take over as speaker in the new term.

However, a few far-right hold-outs prevented McCarthy from gaining a majority in the first 14 rounds. The rebels included Matt Gaetz and Lauren Boebert, two of the more inflammatory members of the current Congress. However, Marjorie Taylor Greene and Jim Jordan, who frequently align themselves with many of the dissenters, were both staunch McCarthy supporters during voting. Of these original 20 dissenters, 19 were associated with the House Freedom Caucus, a far-right group of representatives.

Many of these “Never Kevins” cite an unsatisfactory rules package as the reason for their refusal to vote for him. However, Oklahoma’s newest Senator and McCarthy supporter Markwayne Mullin theorized on Fox News that these controversial representatives were seeking time in the limelight. Those believing the theory point to a video captured on the House floor during voting. During the 12th round of voting, Matt Rosendale of Montana cast his vote for “Kevin… Hern” before retreating to his seat with a smirk. It is this display, coupled with the fact that the dissenters appeared to not have a legitimate alternative to McCarthy, that points to spectacle over principle.

As voting wore on, several Republicans received votes from the rebels. Votes were cast in favor of McCarthy supporters Jordan, Byron Donalds, Andy Biggs, nonHouse member Donald Trump, and Oklahoma’s Hern. During the 11th round of voting, Hern received seven votes, the fourth most votes received in that round. Hern himself voted for McCarthy in every vote.

Finally, at the end of the night on Friday, Jan. 6, it appeared that McCarthy might have finally had the votes. The House had been in recess all afternoon, so that Republicans could negotiate the rules package to end the madness. McCarthy appeared very confident that he had the votes heading into the 14th round, but a shocking vote of “present” by Gaetz ended these hopes. Following the 14th round, McCarthy stood up and bee-lined for Gaetz, seemingly distraught over his vote. Soon, a large group gathered around Gaetz, seated next to ally Lauren Boebert. Many Republicans appeared to be expressing anger at Gaetz, including Alabama Representative Mike Rogers, who had to be physically restrained.

Notably, McCarthy did not need to persuade any more House Republicans to vote for him. He could have simply convinced them to vote “present” instead of for a candidate, because this brings down the overall number needed for a majority. For example, if every member of the House were voting for a candidate, McCarthy would have needed 218 votes. However, if anyone voted “present” instead, he would have needed 217.

According to reports from the House floor, Gaetz wanted to recess until Monday. The House took a vote to recess, which appeared to pass, until some sort of watershed moment occurred between the dissenters and McCarthy advocates. Many House Republicans changed their votes from “yea” to “nay”, leading until another vote. Finally, McCarthy won the vote, ending with 216 votes to Democrat Hakeem Jeffries’ 212. McCarthy was able

to win with fewer than 218 votes as a result of six Republican members voting “present”.

Despite the apparent chaos on the Republican side, Democrats remained in staunch support of Jeffries, the new leader of House Democrats. He rewarded this support by giving a rousing speech about the differences between Democrats and Republicans before handing off the gavel to newly elected Speaker McCarthy.

Most of McCarthy’s concessions have to do with the new rules package, including making it easier to oust the Speaker. Despite the shocking display of infighting the nation beheld during the Speaker vote, McCarthy seems optimistic that the House Republicans will be able to accomplish their agenda in the coming term.

courtesy wikimedia commons McCarthy holding the gavel after the fifteenth vote went through for house speaker.

Five classified documents have been found in Biden’s residence in Delaware and he now faces an investigation from the DOJ.

Erika Brock News Editor

informed of the discovery and appointed an attorney to oversee the assessment of the materials. Again, on Dec. 20, more documents were found, reported and submitted. Most recently, on Jan. 11, Biden’s attorney found another document at Biden’s home and turned it over to the government.

There have been multiple instances of classified documents found in President Joe Biden’s Delaware home and Washington, D.C. office. Most recently, five more pages were announced on Saturday to have been found in his place of residence on Jan. 12. Biden now faces a Department of Justice (DOJ) investigation led by former Justice Department official Robert Hurr, who was appointed to lead this probe by Attorney General Merrick Garland on Jan. 12.

This initial investigation by the DOJ was caused by an announcement from the White House that classified documents had been found at Biden’s personal office a week before the midterm elections in November. So far, reports are that Biden and his lawyers have been cooperative with the DOJ and Hurr.

Originally, documents were found in Biden’s office and they were discovered in a locked closet just before the midterm elections as Biden moved offices. They were promptly turned over to the National Archives, as required by law. Then, on Nov. 4, the DOJ was

The review was deemed closed after this supposed final document was handed over and everything appeared to have been turned in, but then on Thursday, Jan. 12, five more pages were found in Biden’s home by Richard Sauber, a White House lawyer; officials are working to hand them over and the investigation is reopened.

The White House lawyers are confident that the DOJ investigation and Hurr review will prove that the documents were “inadvertently misplaced, and the president and his lawyers acted promptly upon the discovery of this mistake,” Sauber said in a statement.

Biden is making claims that these documents were misplaced accidentally and is planning to cooperate with officials and the DOJ as the investigations and reviews are underway. The White House says that Biden does not know the contents of the documents found in his home.

While the White House may be cooperating, they are not very open with what is happening currently with the documents to the public. According to Biden’s personal attorneys, they are working to be as transparent as possible, but still maintain the investigation’s integrity by revealing to the public information on a need-to-know basis.

Bob Bauer made a statement to CNBC, saying, “adhering to this process means that any disclosure regarding documents cannot be conclusive until the government has conducted its inquiry, including taking possession of any documents and reviewing any surrounding material for further review and context.”

Because they are classified documents, no one knows exactly what they contain, the only information news sources have been provided with is that these documents predate Biden’s term as president and are from when he was the vice president under former President Barack Obama.

Due to the reason for the investigation, critics have begun calling Biden a hypocrite. The newly elected Speaker of the House Kevin McCarthy is claiming that there is a double standard between Biden’s treatment during this investigation and the Mar-a-Lago raid of former President Donald Trump’s residence where nearly 200 classified documents were found.

There are some key differences between this search and Trump’s. Biden has been willingly handing over documents to the National Archives as they are found and is cooperating with authorities to answer their questions, whereas Trump ignored the requests from the National Archives for the documents and resisted investigation.

The investigation will be an ongoing one and information will be released as it is learned.

Food robots may seem like a wonderful convenience, but they may hide a more sinister purpose.

Editor-in-Chief

Anyone who has set foot on The University of Tulsa’s campus in the last months has no doubt encountered the new food robots. They stand at attention in front of Pat Case and frequently form a phalanx by the Student Union, waiting to receive their orders. And TU is not alone in this investment: college campi across the nation have added the machines to the list of conveniences they offer. But there wasn’t really a need to keep people from walking across campus to grab a meal. TU has a small and well-organized campus where, for the most part, no one has to walk more than 10 minutes to reach their food destination. And of course, it can provide a new convenience for those of a different level of mobility, but one look at Phillips Hall says this couldn’t have been the priority. The real explanation lies in a bit of business.

Despite the non-profit label, TU is a business. This isn’t a good or bad thing, but it’s the truth. Hundreds upon hundreds of people arrive on campus each day not as a student but as an employee. This includes the faculty that teach courses, the people that keep the Student Union going and the administrators of whom no student will ever meet the majority. It takes a lot to balance a budget with that many people expecting a paycheck, and the university has struggled with it in the recent past. To his credit, President Brad Carson seems to have the budget less precariously situated, but at the same time, cuts have come for many across campus — including The Collegian. The university is a business, and a business always shoots to increase production and minimize costs.

But something as innocuous as food robots couldn’t possibly play a part in some grander scheme. Or maybe they could. If a person working on campus wanted to take their lunch and didn’t bring anything with them, they could take a break to grab their food. Simple. They might walk across campus to Subway or they might get in their car and drive to a Wendy’s just as easily as they might eat there or take it back to an office, depending on how much time they feel they have. But sometimes work piles up, and people feel busy. Food robots provide a convenient way to grab lunch without hardly ever stepping away from a desk. Outside of the 90 seconds or so it takes to leave the office, grab the food and return to work, a person could work pretty well nonstop, eating while they continue whatever project. As work continues to accumulate, and maybe as job roles expand to include more assignments, this becomes easier and easier to do. Or maybe a late night at the office occurs from time to time. Instead of having to make it home for dinner, it seems mighty doable to crank out that last task when one doesn’t even have to leave to eat. All of a sudden, people find it easier to skip lunch breaks and stay later, which becomes a convenient practice for the university with salaried employees whose clocked hours make no difference.

And sure, this does all seem a bit much — a mountain out of a molehill. Except it has already been happening for years. Silicon Valley has become notorious for these practices. Places like Google, whose headquarters has fitness classes and juice bars, offer seemingly limitless amenities to make work seem relaxed and fun. It’s such a soothing atmosphere, a 12 hour day flies by. Corporate law offices often do the same thing. If you find yourself working with the best of the best, you might also enjoy your breakfast and lunch at the office at a price cheaper than the cost because some firms subsidize their on-site meals. The concept of providing amenities at work to make it seem less and less leavable is not new nor is it exclusive to TU or even universities for that matter.

In any case, one should absolutely enjoy the food robots whenever they like. Staying somewhere to work on homework is a bit different than staying to keep at a job, and maybe after a few drinks with friends a food delivery might seem the best option. These robots hold no inherent evil, but one should still be aware of the circumstances that make them a good investment. Use them when you’d like, but by God, take a break from your job to get lunch.

Photo by Celeste McAtee

TU partnered with Starship Technologies to bring 15 food robots onto campus on Dec. 5.

Fusion research proves it could become our next main energy source in the future, though not anytime soon.

Student Writer

Don’t get your hopes up too much. Last December, an important step in making fusion power a reality was achieved — but that doesn’t mean that fusion is right around the corner. Although this was the first time a man-made fusion experiment produced more energy than it consumed, it was done using a complicated, expensive and difficult-to-scale setup. We might see fusion energy within our lifetimes, but it probably isn’t right around the corner.

The Lawrence Livermore National Ignition Facility (NIF) in California, the site of the breakthrough, is essentially a giant laser amplifier. By using some of the largest and most powerful lasers ever constructed, they were able to superheat a capsule containing hydrogen isotopes to achieve fusion ignition — i.e. to produce more energy (3.15 MJ, or 875 Watt-hours) than the lasers consumed (2.05 MJ, or about 570 Watt-hours). However, before fusion becomes viable for large-scale energy generation, there are myriad challenges to overcome.

Actually harnessing that energy doesn’t seem like it would be too much of a problem — just boil some water to spin a turbine. However, some energy loss would take place. In order to be feasible as a power plant, a fusion reactor would need to be able to operate unimpeded for days at a time. To put that into context, the experiment which produced fusion ignition lasted for a fraction of a second and only occurred under precisely-controlled laboratory conditions, using a gargantuan laser array targeted at a cryogenically cooled chunk of deuterium and tritium about a millimeter in diameter.

It is also worth noting that although the energy produced by fusion exceeded the energy consumed by the lasers, this does not include the energy consumed by the environmental controls in the experiment or the electricity consumed by the building as part of normal day-to-day operations. Scaling this experiment up one-to-one so that it produces energy in the megawatt range would create challenges with laser amplification, cooling, etc. which we haven’t even begun

to address. To replicate this experiment, design and build a demonstration reactor and then begin wide-scale implementation of fusion power would take decades at least, if we are being optimistic.

courtesy wikimedia commons Wide-scale implementation of this experiment is still decades away with many obstacles ahead.

Fusion has a reputation for having been “30 years away for the last 70” and although this is an important milestone, it’s far from the first and it won’t be the last before the technology is ready to produce energy. Fuwe haven’t even discovered yet — and placing our hopes in fusion power, if anything, could detract from more practical and readily-available methods that we could use to wean ourselves off of fossil fuels, like

light-water reactors (LWRs). Although this is an important development and perhaps one which could attract some more attention (and investment) to the hurdles ahead, fusion could be 30 years away for another 70.

sion is sometimes seen as a “silver bullet” that would effectively solve global energy problems, but if the history of nuclear fusion research is any indication, then there are barriers to practical fusion power that