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California Faces Fuel Disaster As Refineries And Gas Stations Shut Down

The Democrat crusade to divert blame for the stagflation crisis triggered during the Biden Administration led them down a path of economic lies.  The central theme of their narrative was that corporations were “price gouging” consumers and inflation was actually a product of “corporate greed.”  In reality, helicopter money and dollar devaluation during the pandemic triggered a massive consumer demand rush as well as shortages in a variety of goods and raw materials.

The profit margins in many of these industries were paper thin as their manufacturing and labor costs skyrocketed, yet Democrats tried to scapegoat them anyway.  The word “accountability” is not in the leftist vocabulary.

We are only now starting to witness the aftermath of the legislation and policies put in place by blue states as a means to control prices.  California under Governor Gavin Newsom may have staged its own economic demise (the final nail in the coffin) after laws were passed requiring even greater state interference into oil refineries and gas stations.

Gavin Newsom ‘s major refinery law, ABX2-1 (signed Oct 2024), gives the state power to mandate minimum fuel storage levels and control refinery maintenance to prevent price spikes, empowering the California Energy Commission (CEC) to stabilize supply. This builds on earlier efforts (like SB X1-2) creating an oil market watchdog (DPMO) to increase oversight, aiming to stop refiners from manipulating supply for profit, while also adding data reporting requirements for companies.

In response, companies are shutting down refinery operations in the state.

Lawmakers in California at both the state and federal levels are warning that refinery closures could push prices higher while leaving the state more dependent on foreign oil.  At the center of the warning is the planned shutdown of two major refineries: Valero’s Benicia facility and Phillips 66’s Los Angeles plant. Together, the closures would eliminate nearly 20% of California’s in-state refining capacity.

Experts suggest prices could go as high as $10-$12 per gallon as a result of the supply squeeze, spreading outside of CA to Arizona and Nevada. Republican lawmakers say that the loss of in-state production threatens not only consumer prices at the pump but also the state’s military readiness; a matter of national security. 

The refineries make jet fuel and diesel and gasoline for military bases across California.  California is home to more than 30 military bases, many of which rely on fuel refined in-state.  Gavin Newsom has mostly dismissed concerns as exaggeration, asserting that foreign shipments of fuel will fill the supply gap.  He argued in a recent statement:

“The claim that California policies pose a national security risk isn’t grounded in fact. The state has proactively engaged defense fuel customers throughout this energy transition, and no credible concerns have been raised about future fuel supply for the military. California is leading this transition responsibly while ensuring families have access to a safe, reliable, and affordable supply of transportation fuels…” 

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Tennessee Sues Roblox, Says Game is a ‘Gateway for Predators’ Targeting Children

Tennessee Attorney General Jonathan Skrmetti announced a lawsuit against Roblox Corporation last week, claiming the popular game has become a haven for child predators while misleading parents about its safety.

Filed under the Tennessee Consumer Protection Act (TCPA), the suit accuses Roblox of prioritizing profits over child safety, slashing oversight and resources despite repeated warnings about exploitation risks.

Roblox, a massively popular online gaming world that markets itself as a creative playground for children, is described in the lawsuit as “the digital equivalent of a creepy cargo van lingering at the edge of a playground.”

“Roblox is the digital equivalent of a creepy cargo van lingering at the edge of a playground,” said Attorney General Skrmetti. “Roblox invites children into a fantastic online world with the promise of creativity and play, but that wonderland is a trap that lets the company sell sophisticated predators access to those vulnerable kids. Roblox worked to reduce oversight and child safety resources despite repeated warnings, because less overhead meant more profit. And the whole time, the company lied and said safety was its top priority.”

The allegations paint a disturbing picture of how Roblox’s design and features allegedly enable harmful content and grooming.

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Pentagon Fails Audit For 8th Consecutive Year

The Pentagon has failed to pass a full financial audit for the eighth year in a row.

Congress initially mandated annual independent audits across the Department of Defense in 2018. In that time, the department has failed to pass a single full audit.

The Department of Defense—also known as the Department of War—lists $4.65 trillion in assets and $4.72 trillion in liabilities through fiscal year 2025, which ended on Sept. 30. The Pentagon cannot account for its full balance sheet.

An audit report, finalized on Dec. 18 by the Department of Defense Office of Inspector General, identified 26 material weaknesses and two significant deficiencies in the Pentagon’s financial reporting practices for the year.

Auditors rendered adverse opinions in 10 of 28 subaudits contained within the overall Pentagon audit for the year. Adverse opinions are issued when audits find financial reporting to be inaccurate.

The audit also listed further disclaimers of opinion, meaning auditors could not be certain one way or another whether the balance sheets of certain funds or programs were accurately recorded.

Auditors applied the disclaimers of opinion to the Department of the Army General Fund, the Department of the Army Working Capital Fund, the U.S. Navy General Fund, the Department of the Air Force General Fund, the Department of the Air Force Working Capital Fund, the U.S. Transportation Command Transportation Working Capital Fund, the Defense Intelligence Agency, the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency, the Defense Health Program General Fund, the Defense Information Systems Agency General Fund, and the Defense Logistics Agency Working Capital Fund.

The audit report said the disclaimers of opinion cover programs and funds that comprise a combined 43 percent of the U.S. military’s total assets and at least 64 percent of the military’s total budgetary resources.

Auditors found material misstatements within the Joint Strike Fighter program, which oversees the F-35 Lightning II stealth fighter used by the various U.S. military branches and numerous partner nations.

The report found the program did not properly account for its global pool of spare parts.

The audit also found misstatements in the various programs the U.S. military uses to build up the military strength of various global allies and partners. Auditors determined there were $18.9 billion worth of material misstatements across partnership programs.

Despite eight attempts and eight failures, the Pentagon still has a way to go before it passes a full audit. The Pentagon is currently set on a goal to pass its first audit in 2028.

“We have reviewed the audit report and acknowledge the findings and results. The Department of War is committed to resolving its critical issues and achieving an unmodified audit opinion by 2028,” Jules Hurst, who is performing the duties of the Pentagon comptroller, said in a Dec. 18 statement attached to the audit report.

Despite the setbacks, the Secretary of War Pete Hegseth said the latest report showed continuing improvements across the Pentagon’s accounting efforts.

“This year’s audit revealed remediations in key areas, reflecting significant progress in financial management,” Hegseth said in a statement attached to the audit report.

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Is Court Hiding Outrageous Psychiatric Drug “Treatment” by Sealing Medical Records of Nick Reiner?

Contrary to what has been reported, Rob and Michele Reiner’s vicious murder was always about mental illness and prescription psychiatric drugs. What isn’t known is whether alleged killer Nick Reiner’s attorney will expose the fraud of psychiatric diagnosing and the dangers associated with psychiatric drugs to save his client from a life of prison hell. It’s a heavy lift but, in the long run, may save some lives besides that of the murderous Nick Reiner.

Prominent high powered attorney Allen Jackson has reportedly been hired by the Reiner family to represent alleged killer, Nick Reiner. In the only press conference about his client, Jackson said, “there are very, very complex and serious issues that are associated with this case,” and “things need to be thoroughly but carefully dealt with and examined and looked at and analyzed.”

With the acknowledgement that Nick Reiner lived a life of mental illness and psychiatric drug use, there certainly are “complex and serious issues.” But the issues aren’t what most people think, including the killer’s own family.

It’s been reported that Nick had been in rehab at least 18 times between the age of 15 and 22. That means that if Nick spent just three months at each of the rehab facilities, he would have spent 216 out of 364 weeks in rehab over that seven-year period. In short, it appears that Nick spent at least 60% of his life in rehab during that seven-year stretch. It could be less or more time, but clearly, Nick’s life revolved around psychiatric intervention. But it didn’t start at 15 years old.

Based on years of dealing with children diagnosed and drugged by the psycho/pharma industry one can imagine what happened to Nick Reiner. In fact, it has been reported that Rob Reiner suffered from depression and even his daughter Romy has taken antidepressants for years. So, we see that the Reiner family embraced psychiatric intervention and certainly utilized it for son and brother Nick.

If one were able to review Nick’s entire mental health file, one might expect to see the first psychiatric intervention at around four or five with an ADHD diagnosis and a Ritalin prescription. From there one might see that Nick’s drug prescription would be tweaked, either increased or changed to a different drug or another drug added for, perhaps, anxiety being observed.

By the time Nick was in middle school, he may have been moved to antianxiety drugs and antidepressants and, maybe, even antipsychotics to treat his erratic explosive behavior. In the end, what one can probably assume in Nick’s case is a history of constantly altered psychiatric drug cocktails to treat his ever-increasing psychiatric diagnoses.

The problem, of course, is that Rob and Michele believed in what the mental health “experts” were selling and like so many unsuspecting parents did not understand the fraud of psychiatric diagnosing and the harm associated with the mind-altering drug “treatments,” especially on a developing brain.

Let’s consider the facts about psychiatric diagnosing. Not one of the mental disorders listed in the American Psychiatric Association’s Diagnostic and Statistical Manual (DSM) is based in science or medicine. In other words, there is no abnormality in the brain that is ADHD, depression, anxiety, bipolar or any other mental disorders. These are behaviors, not abnormalities of the brain. In fact, if there were an objective, confirmable abnormality in the brain, one would seek assistance from a neurologist not a psychiatrist.

So, understanding that there is no abnormality that is any psychiatric diagnosis, one must ask what exactly are the psychiatric drugs “treating?” The answer, of course, is the drugs aren’t “treating” anything. The prescription, like illegal, drugs are mind-altering and will change behavior. Whether those changes are helpful depends on many things. In Nick Reiner’s case, one might suggest that the prescription drug “treatments” were definitely not helping.

It is no secret that the prescribing physician/psychiatrist have no idea how a cocktail of psychiatric drugs “work” in the brain, as cocktails of drugs have never been subjected to clinical trials. What the psychiatric elixirs do to the brain is anyone’s guess, including the pharmaceutical companies that openly admit that they have no clue how the drugs “work” in the brain as “treatment” for any alleged mental disorder.

Fully aware that Nick Reiner was being “treated” for schizophrenia let’s consider what is known about the possible “treatment.”  Normally, the go-to psychiatric drug is an antipsychotic. The newer antipsychotics, like Risperdal, Seroquel and Zyprexa (olanzapine), reportedly affect the serotonin in the brain. And how do these drugs “work?” According to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) “the mechanism of action of olanzapine, as with other drugs having efficacy in schizophrenia, is unknown.”  Clueless.

Were Rob and Michele informed by their $70,000 a month psychiatrist that the FDA has no clue about how the drugs used as “treatment” for their son “work?”  But it gets worse. Whether it’s antidepressants for depression, antianxiety drugs like benzodiazepines, or stimulants like Ritalin, the pharmaceutical companies cannot explain how the drugs work as “treatment.” The mode/mechanism of action is “unknown.”

Knowing that prescribing extraordinarily expensive “experts” could not explain to the Reiner’s how the drugs being prescribed to their son “work” it gets worse when one considers the possible adverse effects of the “treatments.”

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Minnesota AG Faults Carmakers For Thefts Instead Of Criminals

Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison came under fire for blaming two car manufacturers for a surge in vehicle thefts across the state, with critics arguing the problem stemmed from lenient, soft-on-crime policies instead. 

The backlash followed Ellison’s framing of a multi-state settlement, in which he claimed Minnesota faced a “crisis,” describing it as a “public safety epidemic of vehicle thefts, financial harm to consumers, injury and tragically, even deaths.” 

On X, critics mocked Ellison’s remarks, particularly given his reputation as a soft-on-crime prosecutor and his alleged failure to crack down on one of the largest COVID-19 relief fraud schemes to date. 

“Minnesota AG Ellison blames car theft in his state on Kia and Hyundai being too easy to steal…” the X account End Wokeness wrote while sharing a clip of Ellison’s comments, which garnered nearly half a million views. 

National Review senior writer Dan McLaughlin responded, “My favorite anti-theft device is jail.” 

Rep. Mike Collins, R-Ga., added bluntly, “I’d blame the criminals.” 

National syndicated radio host Anthony Cumia echoed these sentiments, writing, “They will never take responsibility for their shit behavior.” 

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Report: Netanyahu set to pitch Trump on renewed plans to strike Iran

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is reportedly set to pitch President Donald Trump on renewed plans to strike Iran, citing concerns over the country’s efforts to rebuild and expand its ballistic missile program, which was damaged during the Twelve-Day War earlier this year, according to an NBC News report.

In the upcoming meeting, scheduled for December 29th, Netanyahu is expected to discuss concerns about Iran rebuilding the production capabilities of its ballistic missile program and its nuclear enrichment program, both of which were damaged by Israeli and American strikes.

The concerns echo the reasoning behind Israel’s decision to launch preemptive military strikes against Iran in June, targeting its missile production capabilities and nuclear enrichment infrastructure.

The NBC report claimed that Israeli officials stated that Iran’s efforts to rebuild its destroyed air defenses and ballistic missile production infrastructure represent immediate concerns for the Israeli government, prompting Netanyahu to request a meeting with the president.

At the meeting, Netanyahu is reportedly expected to present President Trump with several options, including the possibility of the United States actively participating in or supporting the operation, according to the outlet.

“The nuclear weapons program is very concerning. There’s an attempt to reconstitute. [But] it’s not that immediate,” a source with knowledge of the Israeli government’s thinking told NBC.

“There is no real question after the last conflict that we can gain aerial superiority and can do far more damage to Iran than Iran can do to Israel,” another source added. “But the threat of the missiles is very real, and we weren’t able to prevent them all last time.”

During the Twelve-Day War, Iran launched over 500 ballistic missiles and roughly 1,100 drones at Israel, killing 32 and wounding over 3,000, according to health officials.

Meanwhile, White House spokeswoman Anna Kelly stated that the “International Atomic Energy Agency and Iranian government corroborated the United States government’s assessment that Operation Midnight Hammer totally obliterated Iran’s nuclear capabilities.”

“As President Trump has said, if Iran pursued a nuclear weapon, that site would be attacked and would be wiped out before they even got close,” she added.

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Citizens In Eastern Ukraine Will Not Be Allowed To Vote, Zelensky Says

President Volodymyr Zelensky has confirmed that Ukraine and Washington are in talks about holding elections, after earlier this month he much belatedly said while under pressure from Trump that he’s ready to allow national elections, so long as they can be done fairly and freely.

Zelensky indicated current discussions also hinge on the US and other partners helping set the conditions so Ukrainians can vote in safety. He previously stated the country could hold a vote within 60 days – but only if there are security guarantees.

Already over the weekend he erected more barriers to holding a vote, stipulating that citizens in Eastern Ukraine would not be able to participate. 

“Any election in Ukraine can not be held in Russia-occupied parts of the country,” Zelensky has been quoted in international press as saying, and he once again added that a proper voting process can take place only if security is ensured.

He has also lately said that Ukraine’s foreign minister had started the initial work on the infrastructure needed for Ukrainians living abroad to participate.

The four oblasts that President Putin has called “our four new regions” and “our citizens forever” include Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson and Zaporizhia regions – and were annexed after a popular referendum during the first year of the war.

Putin has blasted Zelensky’s rule as illegitimate given the canceled elections based on enacting a state of martial law, and President Trump has expressed increasing agreement with this perspective.

Still, Zelensky’s new ‘openness’ with holding an election has been coupled with plenty of caveats and likely immense barriers. For example last week he said—

…that a ceasefire with Russia must be in place before elections can be held in Ukraine, “at least for the duration of the election process and voting”. Ukrainian law forbids wartime elections but US President Donald Trump is pressuring Zelensky, whose term ended last year, to hold a vote.

But Trump this month finally put some real pressure on him, it appears. Given Zelensky had put the brakes on the US-proposed pace plan by definitively rejecting the territorial concessions aspects to the document, the US president’s assessment in a recent Politico interview was blunt and highly critical, going so far as to basically call Ukraine not a democracy.

“They haven’t had an election in a long time,” Trump said. “You know, they talk about a democracy, but it gets to a point where it’s not a democracy anymore.”

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Mayor of Massachusetts City Needs a Translator During Hearing Due to Apparent Inability to Speak English

Mass migration has caused one city in Massachusetts to resemble a foreign nation, as even its own mayor seems unable to speak or understand a word of English.

As The Eagle-Tribune reported, Lawrence Mayor Brian DePena testified earlier this month during a hearing in support of former acting police chief William Castro’s appeal against revoked credentials from a 2024 traffic incident.

According to WCVB, Castro “engaged in a motor-vehicle pursuit in violation of the policies of the Lawrence Police Department.” Moreover, he was “untruthful” regarding the chase while he and his superiors failed to investigate the incident independently.

Video has now emerged showing that DePena demanded a translator during the hearing because his English is so pathetic. DePena’s native language is Spanish.

The judge denied DePena’s request to have his personal assistant act as his translator because he and others involved in the case were unable to speak Spanish. Too much could get lost in translation.

According to reports, an official interpreter was used instead.

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‘A Lie And Propaganda’: Gabbard Fact-Checks Reuters’ Russia Scaremongering In Real Time

On Saturday afternoon, Reuters posted an anonymously-sourced story pushing the idea that Russia is bent on reconstituting the Soviet Union. Before the metaphorical ink had dried, Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard pounced, condemning the story as “a lie and propaganda” on behalf of “warmongers” seeking to derail President Trump’s drive to end the long and bloody Ukraine war.  

From selling the Iraq invasion to achieving a news and social media lockdown on Hunter Biden’s laptop, the Deep State has long used major media outlets like Reuters, the New York Times and Washington Post to inject their agenda-advancing narratives into America’s town square. Displaying the typical modus operandi with its Saturday night story, Reuters vaguely attributed the purported US intelligence conclusions about Russia to “six sources familiar with US intelligence.” 

According to those sources, “US intelligence reports” are warning that, despite Putin’s outwardly earnest claims that he wants to end the Ukraine war — claims credited by Trump — Russia not only wants to conquer all of Ukraine but also other European territories that were part of the Soviet Union. “The reports present a starkly different picture from that painted by…Trump and his Ukraine peace negotiators,” wrote Reuters journalists Jonathan Landay, Erin Banco and John Irish. Shortly after Banco promoted the story on X, Gabbard lashed out: 

“No, this is a lie and propaganda Reuters is willingly pushing on behalf of warmongers who want to undermine President Trump’s tireless efforts to end this bloody war that has resulted in more than a million casualties on both sides. Dangerously, you are promoting this false narrative to block President Trump’s peace effort, and fomenting hysteria and fear among the people to get them to support the escalation of war, which is what NATO and the EU really want in order to pull the United States military directly into war with Russia.

The truth is the US intelligence community has briefed policymakers, including the Democrat HPSCI member quoted by Reuters, that US Intelligence assesses that Russia seeks to avoid a larger war with NATO. It also assesses that, as the last few years have shown, Russia’s battlefield performance indicates it does not currently have the capability to conquer and occupy all of Ukraine, let alone Europe.”

The “Democratic HPSCI member” (House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence) is Illinois Rep. Mike Quigley, who told Reuters that intelligence has “always” said “Putin wants more…The Europeans are convinced of it. The Poles are absolutely convinced of it. The Baltics think they’re first.”

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George W. Bush Institute Urges Americans to Sympathize with Afghans After D.C. National Guard Attack

Following the fatal shooting of one National Guard member and the injury of another in Washington, DC, the George W. Bush Institute is urging against broadly targeting Afghan immigration applicants in response to the actions of a single individual.

Rahmanullah Lakanwal, a 29-year-old Afghan national who previously worked with a CIA-backed partner force in Kandahar and entered the U.S. in 2021 through the Biden administration’s Operation Allies Welcome, has been arraigned and is facing charges in the Thanksgiving-week ambush-style shooting that left 20-year-old Spc. Sarah Beckstrom dead and critically injured 24-year-old Staff Sgt. Andrew Wolfe. 

Following the attack, U.S. immigration authorities announced an immediate and indefinite pause on immigration processing for Afghan nationals and launched a broad reexamination of immigration, asylum, and green card applications from 19 countries, including Afghanistan, Iran, Venezuela, Sudan, Haiti, Cuba, and Laos.

In response, the George W. Bush Institute posted on X: “The actions of a man charged with a heinous crime have derailed the lawful U.S. immigration applications of people from 18 countries so far, including Afghanistan. Afghans are facing uncertainty at home and in the U.S.

“Read why we can’t turn our back on Afghans and other immigrants due to one man’s crime: ”

The post linked to a full policy piece authored by Bush Institute directors Natalie Gonnella-Platts and Laura Collins.  The article begins by condemning the D.C. shooting as “unconscionable,” calling it an act of terrorism, hate, and barbaric violence that “has no place in any civilized society.” 

“Going back on our word to Afghans who helped us is contrary to our values as Americans,” the authors write. They assert that many of these individuals “risked their lives over the last two decades” working in partnership with U.S. forces and, despite undergoing years of vetting before arrival, are now facing disruptions due to the government’s response — including paused visa issuance, halted asylum decisions, and canceled naturalization ceremonies. 

“Asylum seekers may continue to have court hearings, but they won’t receive a determination on their cases,” the authors explain. They urge elected leaders to investigate “what, if anything, could have been done to prevent this tragedy” rather than targeting all Afghans. “The suspect will be held accountable for his crimes,” they write, “but this man is responsible for his actions, not all foreign-born people.” They add: “The innocent shouldn’t bear the burden of someone else’s crimes.”

The article paints a grim picture of life under Taliban rule, portraying Afghans as having seen their “daughters, sisters, mothers, and nieces erased from every facet of public life” and suffering “unimaginable” deprivation due to tyranny and corruption.

The authors contend many of the displaced “have been forced to flee their homeland, many now for a second time,” and continue to resist extremism even from abroad. Despite refugee status, they claim these individuals are “leading the way in seeking justice,” preserving cultural identity, and resisting Taliban indoctrination.

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