“This represents the most favorable budget agreement Republicans have achieved in over a decade‚” wrote Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) in a “Dear Colleague” letter over the weekend announcing his latest capitulation to Joe Biden.Hmmm … where have we heard that bromide from GOP leaders before? Seven months ago‚ Johnson’s predecessor‚ Kevin McCarthy‚ said his debt ceiling deal was “the largest cut that Congress has ever voted on” — even though it led to a $2.6 trillion increase in debt in a little over six months. Knowing that‚ maybe Johnson’s “best in a decade” hyperbole is an improvement. Sadly‚ no. It’s the same Orwellian spending cut McCarthy forged. Worse‚ it locks in the McCarthy-Biden debt ceiling deal that led to the fastest expansion of the national debt in American history. After refusing to fight on his first budget deadline in November‚ then selling out his conference on the National Defense Authorization Act in December‚ Johnson has one goal in mind heading into the twin January 19 and February 2 funding deadlines: Avoid a government shutdown at all costs. Forget about the shutdown of our border‚ culture‚ economy‚ and liberty. In Johnson’s estimation‚ we must keep every agency of this government funded no matter what. Well‚ when you telegraph the message to Democrats that you will not allow a single budget deadline to lapse — or even an authorization deadline to lapse‚ such as with defense and FISA — not surprisingly‚ Republicans have no leverage. Democrats pretty much get everything they want. Every. Single. Time. Over the weekend‚ Johnson made a deal with the White House to pass a budget for the remainder of fiscal year 2024 along the lines of the 2023 debt ceiling agreement. The deal will allocate $886.3 billion for defense and $772.7 billion for nondefense programs‚ for a total of $1.658 trillion in discretionary spending. The agreement locks in an additional $69 billion in nondefense spending McCarthy accepted in a “side deal” with the White House in May that was not written into the law suspending the debt ceiling. It\xe2\x80\x99s even worse than we thought.\n\nDon\xe2\x80\x99t believe the spin. Once you break through typical Washington math‚ the true total programmatic spending level is $1.658 trillion \xe2\x80\x94 not $1.59 trillion.\n\nThis is total failure. — (@) Johnson is using the oldest trick in the book to sell his conference on the deal by claiming he is cutting spending to offset the agreement top-lines‚ avoiding automatic scheduled cuts. But the trouble is that the spending cuts are actually “rescissions” that claw back $6.1 billion in unspent pandemic aid and $20.2 billion in IRS funding. That’s money that wasn’t needed anyway — and we could have secured those savings for free. Following the principles of “Art of the Deal‚” Democrats appropriated ungodly sums of money for 80‚000 IRS agents in the 2022 Green New Deal bill‚ knowing it would be impossible to hire so many IRS workers even their wildest dreams. This gave them ample negotiating room to “give in” on new spending while still expanding the IRS to alarming levels. Ditto for the original sums of pandemic cash.With interest on the debt now approaching $1.1 trillion a year and the Treasury Department slated to conduct more bond auctions than ever before‚ Johnson’s deal is the debt crisis equivalent of spitting in an ocean. Which is likely why our good friend Mitch McConnell was quick to praise the deal. I\xe2\x80\x99m encouraged that the Speaker and Democratic Leaders have identified a path toward completing FY 2024 appropriations. America faces serious national security challenges‚ and Congress must act quickly to deliver the full-year resources this moment requires. — (@) On paper‚ Johnson’s deal would only commit Republicans to the spending levels‚ not necessarily the funding‚ of various odious policies in contention. Theoretically‚ we could still fight over the border invasion‚ the Green New Deal‚ federal persecutions‚ and transgenderism within the federal government‚ along with funding of the COVID vaccines — just to name a few of the points of consternation on the right.Johnson is making the case to Republicans that forging a spending deal would allow Republicans to “fight for important policy riders included in our House fiscal 2024 bills.” It’s clear‚ however‚ that Johnson fears a government shutdown more than he fears the government shutting down our life‚ liberty‚ culture‚ and sovereignty. He has made it clear he will not allow a deadline to lapse‚ even when it doesn’t result in a full shutdown. Johnson is unwilling to cut anything.The appropriation bills for agriculture‚ energy‚ water‚ military construction‚ veterans‚ transportation‚ and housing and urban development are set to expire on January 19. The rest of the federal government’s appropriations are slated to expire two weeks later.It’s do-or-die time for House Republicans. If they are scared of a shutdown during an invasion‚ inflation‚ and government indoctrination crisis under the stewardship of a half-comatose and unpopular president‚ there is no way they would fight through a shutdown under a Republican chief executive. This is precisely why Republicans gave Democrats everything they wanted in 2017 and 2018 when they controlled the trifecta but lacked 60 votes in the Senate. You can swap out the leadership of the Republican Congress‚ but some things never change. They forge the same deals with the same talking points every single time. Rest assured‚ they will always fight “the next time.” Until we’re ruined.

Rich Lowry bestowed on a recent column this provocative title: “Brace Yourselves: The Left Will Roil the Country Again If Donald Trump Beats Joe Biden.” No kidding! For Trump’s enemies on the left‚ Lowry pointed out‚ “saving democracy doesn’t mean upholding the rules no matter what and letting the voters decide the election and the fate of the next president. No‚ it means blocking Trump by any means necessary‚ regardless of the consequences for the rule of law‚ democratic politics‚ or faith in our system of government.”Lowry‚ who has distinguished himself in recent years as an unabashed Trump-basher‚ tried to be evenhanded in expressing his disdain. He let it be known‚ for example‚ that the left is “understandably alarmed by [Trump’s] conduct after the 2020 election and how he’s branded his political comeback as a revenge tour.” Lowry also seemed swayed by Robert Kagan’s accusations in the Washington Post that “Trump has brought the United States to the brink of dictatorship.” Joe Biden’s team is already trying to build the presidential campaign around the “January 6 insurrection” and ranting against the new Hitler who incited this supposed threat to American democracy.Still‚ Lowry advised using “the standard means of political organization and persuasion” to defeat Trump. Doing anything more drastic doesn’t sit well with this critic‚ at least not for the present. Allow me to extract from Lowry’s commentary the part that seems to me true. There is indeed an excellent chance the left will go nuts if Trump squeaks back into the presidency. Lowry is certainly correct that “the reaction will make the pro-Hamas protests that have roiled campuses and disrupted transportation nodes around the country look small by comparison.” Think George Floyd riots but on a scale that dwarfs even those! And the left will also organize throughout other hollowed-out‚ one-time Western constitutional democracies (like Germany and Canada) to drive home their dissatisfaction with the American electorate. I would expect to see our cities set aflame‚ with race-baiting Democratic politicians on hand to incite mob violence. As in the George Floyd riots‚ the corporate press here and among their counterparts in other Western countries will justify the violence as “righteous indignation” and‚ if things really become unruly‚ place the blame on “MAGA Republicans.”This organized violence will be justified on the grounds cited by Kagan‚ namely that a Trump victory will be tantamount to a fascist takeover of “our democracy.” European leaders have been bellyaching about this danger for months as they note with dismay a populist resurgence on the continent. Unfortunately‚ the right here or in Europe cannot match the weapons held by the left‚ particularly its control of education‚ the mass media‚ and the political administration. And the disadvantages besetting our side in this country also bedevil kindred spirits in other Western countries.Most significantly‚ the left can unleash violence and be sure the media will justify their action and blame it on “racists‚” “homophobes‚” and “rightist populists.” During the hardly spontaneous violence of the “Summer of Love” in 2020‚ the continuing Portland riots‚ and then the organized attempts to threaten and bully uncooperative politicians and Supreme Court justices‚ we see the left’s handiwork.Joe Biden’s team is already trying to build the presidential campaign around the “January 6 insurrection” and predictably ranting against the new Hitler who incited this supposed threat to American democracy. Of course‚ the far greater violence unleashed by the Left has been simply whited out by the media and our totally weaponized Department of Justice. In this escalating confrontation‚ the right (or non-left) is perpetually disadvantaged. Only the other side is allowed to exercise physical intimidation and unleash violence on its opponents‚ while any attempt by those targeted to protect themselves in a similar fashion is denounced by the mass media and permanent state as “racist” or “neo-Nazi.” Those police who try to protect the politically incorrect victims know they will not receive the same level of support as those who stand with the left. The border will remain open to allow millions of illegal aliens to come in‚ whom the left will then enlist for its continuing takeover.One can’t describe this subversion of constitutional government by woke globalist capitalists‚ cultural radicals‚ and entrenched political administration bleakly enough. But what seems even more important is looking for those who will resist it. In the United States‚ resistance is still possible because there has been a sizable populist pushback‚ and there is even the possibility of electing a chief executive who Lowry is afraid will engage in a “revenge tour.”Let there be a “revenge tour‚” but it must be systematic and persistent‚ no matter how destructively the left acts and no matter what forms of violence it unleashes. It is ridiculous to believe our problems will be solved by offering another Republican caretaker government that serves out its term before the left comes back (assuming it ever leaves) to wage unholy war on the normies. Vivek Ramaswamy’s suggestion to fire three-quarters of the federal bureaucracy is a good start. But the purges and defunding must go much farther to have any meaning. And if the left predictably takes to the streets‚ there should be dire consequences.

Who did the King influence? Oh‚ just the Beatles‚ Stones‚ the Who‚ Springsteen‚ Bowie‚ Elton John and countless others. Read about it‚ in their own words The post Elvis Presley: What They Said About the King appeared first on Best Classic Bands.

Picture the scene: it's World of Warcraft Shadowlands‚ and you stand before The Jailer‚ ready and primed to take him down after far too many attempts. Everything feels like it has led up to this moment; Sylvanas Windrunner and fallen Aduin are nothing when compared to the man behind the Maw's mysterious machinations. And then‚ out of the blue‚ one of the tanks quit. You'd probably want to be able to remember them‚ right? Continue reading This new WoW addon is simple‚ but an absolute must have MORE FROM PCGAMESN: WoW Dragonflight tier list‚ The best WoW addons‚ WoW Dragonflight review

Team Fortress 2 sometimes feels like the forgotten‚ left-out child of the Valve family. Between Half-Life‚ Portal‚ Left 4 Dead‚ Dota 2‚ and Counter-Strike 2‚ the 2007 shooter‚ no matter how superb‚ has stiff competition when it comes to getting noticed. But make no mistake - almost 17 years since it first launched‚ TF2 is still going strong‚ so strong in fact it just leapfrogged the Steam sales chart over recent classics like Dead by Daylight and the Elder Scrolls Online. It follows a huge update from Valve and a surge of additional Team Fortress 2 players who have helped push the FPS game back into the limelight. Continue reading Team Fortress 2 is going wild on Steam after big Valve update MORE FROM PCGAMESN: Best FPS games‚ Best old games‚ Best multiplayer games

This new Baldur's Gate 3 mod brings over feats from DnD not present in Larian's game‚ continuing the popular trend of adding more Dungeons and Dragons to the biggest RPG of 2023. So if you want to expand the offerings of BG3 but still make it all in line with the universe of the Forgotten Realms‚ keep reading. Continue reading Baldur’s Gate 3 finally gets some much requested DnD feats MORE FROM PCGAMESN: Baldur's Gate 3 builds‚ BG3 mods‚ Baldur's Gate 3 classes

Image: Mophie Mophie is reviving the Juice Pack battery case for iPhones. As part of its announcements for CES‚ the company (which is owned by Zagg) announced that it will be releasing a new version of the Juice Pack for the iPhone 15‚ iPhone 15 Pro‚ and iPhone 15 Pro Max. Each version of the case has a different-sized battery that can be used to help give your phone a little extra‚ well‚ juice. The iPhone 15 version has a 2‚400mAh internal battery‚ the iPhone 15 Pro version has a 2‚600mAh internal battery‚ and the iPhone 15 Pro Max version has a 2‚800mAh internal battery. Mophie’s last Juice Pack case was the Juice Pack Access‚ which introduced for the iPhone X‚ XS‚ XS Max‚ and XR in 2019. But with this new lineup‚ you may have noticed that there... Continue reading…

The Omen Transcend 14 looks like a normal laptop‚ and that’s the point. | Photo by Amelia Holowaty Krales / The Verge Gaming laptops‚ as a rule‚ look like gaming laptops. They usually have RGB lighting‚ a splash of vibrant color‚ and a hyper-stylized design. At a glance‚ you can almost always tell a gaming laptop from a regular one — and that’s before you even consider less visible but crucial features like discrete GPUs and superfast displays. But many of us‚ as much as we love to game‚ do not need to announce that we love to game every time we crack open our laptop‚ and HP’s new Omen Transcend 14 is supposed to cater to us. This new 14-inch laptop is designed to bridge the gap between gaming and normal usage. That means more subtle flashes of color and RBG lighting that can switch from bright colors to all white in a few clicks. The new laptop comes... Continue reading…

The Home Depot’s Hubspace smart home platform is growing. | Image: The Home Depot An old-school hardware store has been quietly building out one of the most complete lines of smart home products on the market. At CES this week‚ it’s adding a smart thermostat‚ smart hose timer‚ smart bathroom fan‚ smart freezer‚ and smart security system to its more than 150 connected products. You probably know the brand (and maybe even shopped there before): The Home Depot. In late 2021‚ the US retail giant launched the Hubspace app‚ designed to control smart devices from its store brands in one app and with compatibility across Amazon Alexa and Google Home. Learning from competitors’ missteps in the space (cough‚ Lowe’s‚ Staples)‚ The Home Depot opted not to go the hub route nor focus on just one brand (a la Best Buy and its smart... Continue reading…

The TP-Link Archer BE800 is a not-yet-certified Wi-Fi 7 router. | Image: TP-Link The Wi-Fi Alliance is now officially certifying devices that support Wi-Fi 7‚ the next generation of wireless home internet. With certification‚ Wi-Fi 7 devices are guaranteed to interoperate‚ and in 2024‚ we will see new tech products like phones‚ laptops‚ and routers endowed with the standard‚ which could represent huge speed and efficiency gains compared to even Wi-Fi 6E. The alliance says in its announcement that Wi-Fi 7 will be better than existing standards for things like high-bandwidth streaming and low-latency wireless gaming‚ and that’s crucial as virtual reality gains popularity and people continue commuting to their kitchen tables or home offices to commune with co-workers over Zoom. Kevin Robinson‚ CEO of the Wi-Fi Alliance‚... Continue reading…