Tag: taxes

The Hidden Subsidy for Renewable Energy

Renewable energy really means anti-establishment energy, or politically correct energy.  The energy is usually electricity that is distributed via the electric grid.  The source of energy has to be “natural.”

Solar and wind are the most popular types of renewable energy.  Hydroelectric energy derived from a big dam on a river might seem ideal, except that the promoters of renewable energy don’t like dams.  If you can figure out how to generate hydroelectricity without a dam, you can call it renewable.  Nuclear energy might seem like a good candidate except that nuclear energy is too scary and too good a fundraising tool to accept as renewable.

Solar energy costs about seven times as much as electricity from coal or natural gas.  Most of the cost is hidden in subsidies.  If that truth were not obscured by massive propaganda, hardly anyone would build solar energy or wind energy farms.

The renewable energy promoters are politically successful.  About half the U.S. states have renewable portfolio laws that mandate the amount of renewable electricity they use.  For example, California requires that 60% of its electricity be renewable by 2030.  That has increased and will increase the cost of electricity in California.  Many electric customers pay more than 50 cents per kilowatt-hour.

According to the promoters of renewable energy, it is well-suited for solving a multitude of imaginary problems.  The number-one imaginary problem is global warming, rechristened “climate change” when the globe failed to warm.

The Sierra Club is a leading promoter of renewable energy.  This is the pitch on one of their websites promoting renewable energy:

We are facing monumental threats to our planet’s future. We are fighting back with every tool at our disposal — but to face these challenges, we need your support. Make your gift today.

Even the New York Times has become critical of the Sierra Club, for reasons described in this video.

Solar and wind are erratically intermittent sources of electricity.  Solar quits at night and whenever a cloud obscures the sun.  Wind quits when the wind slows or stops.

When solar or wind electricity is introduced, it is supplementary to the existing electric infrastructure.  Solar or wind cannot replace existing generating plants because solar and wind  are intermittent sources of electricity.  The existing grid generating plants must be retained so they can supply electricity when solar or wind fails.  In order to compare the cost of solar and wind with the traditional fossil fuels, we need only to compare expenditure when the traditional plants are powering the grid with the expenditure when solar or wind is engaged.

When solar or wind is working backup, coal and gas plants are idling.  Every megawatt-hour of electricity not produced by a coal or gas plant reduces the cost of fuel by about $20.  Every megawatt-hour of electricity produced by a solar plant costs about $150, mostly amortization of the original cost of the plant.  The cost for wind is similar.  A spreadsheet showing a detailed calculation of the cost of solar energy can be downloaded here.

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Hypersonics, AI, Space Weapons, & Directed Energy: Lawmakers Release Defense Bill As Expiring Obamacare Subsidies Marinate On Back-Burner

With Congress in its second-to-last week in session for this year, lawmakers on the House Armed Services Committee released the final bill text of the 2026 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) Sunday night, which allocates a topline of roughly $8 billion over the $892.6 billion the Department of Defense had requested, and what the House version of the NDAA provided which stuck to the Pentagon’s request. 

The NDAA is the annual law passed by Congress that sets the budget, policies, and legal authorities for the U.S. military and national defense programs. It shapes everything from troop pay to weapons development and foreign military aid.

“This year’s National Defense Authorization Act helps advance President Trump and Republicans’ Peace Through Strength Agenda by codifying 15 of President Trump’s executive orders, ending woke ideology at the Pentagon, securing the border, revitalizing the defense industrial base, and restoring the warrior ethos,” House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) said in a Sunday statement. 

The $8B increase is a ‘compromise‘ – as the Senate tried to jack the budget up by $32 billion over the department’s request. According to Breaking Defense, Rep. Adam Smith, the ranking member of the House Armed Services Committee, noted that appropriators would have the last word on the final budget, but was optimistic that the $8 bullion figure was in the ballpark.

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Beyond the Pale: Ilhan Omar Says Somalis Are the Actual Victims of the Massive Somali Fraud Scandal

Democratic Rep. Ilhan Omar tried to play the victim when questioned Sunday about the massive fraud perpetrated by those of Somali descent in her state and district, but her argument rings hollow.

CBS News “Face the Nation” host Margaret Brennan introduced the subject, noting that the Justice Department uncovered and prosecuted more than $1 billion in fraudulent payments, mostly going to those from the Somali community in Minnesota.

“Of the 87 people charged, all but eight are of Somali descent, and that has added to the spotlight being put specifically on your community,” Brennan said.

“Why do you think this fraud was allowed to get so widespread?” the host asked.

“I want to say, you know, this also has an impact on Somalis, because we are also taxpayers in Minnesota,” Omar replied.

“We also could have benefited from the program and the money that was stolen. And so it’s been really frustrating for people to not acknowledge the fact that we’re also — as Minnesotans, as taxpayers — really upset and angry about the fraud that has occurred,” she said.

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Michigan Judge Allows Marijuana Tax Increase To Take Effect Despite Industry Lawsuit

A group of cannabis industry advocates were unable to convince a Michigan Court of Claims judge that they would face irreparable harm if a new 24 percent wholesale tax on marijuana went into effect to fund the state’s future road repairs.

In an opinion issued Monday, Court of Claims Judge Sima Patel said she was denying a request for a preliminary injunction from the plaintiffs in Holistic Research Group Inc./Michigan Cannabis Industry v. Michigan Department of Treasury.

The consolidated lawsuits posited that the new tax, passed in October as part of a comprehensive 2025-26 budget deal to raise new revenue for road repairs and rebuilds through 2030, was unconstitutional because it violated the title-object clause of the state’s Constitution.

Patel on Monday, after hearing oral arguments in the matter in November, said the industry advocates didn’t make a supported argument that a real constitutional issue existed, nor did the group succinctly show that the Michigan Regulation and Taxation of Marijuana Act, which legalized the use and sale of cannabis in Michigan, was the only statutory mechanism to enact taxes on pot.

“The [road funding act] is consistent with the [marijuana taxation act]. The plaintiffs contend that the phrase ‘all other taxes’…refers only to generally applicable taxes, like the 6 percent sales tax imposed on all retail sales,” she wrote. “If that were true, however, the initiative could have simply said that. Instead, the initiative stated plainly that the 10 percent retail excise tax was in addition to ‘all other taxes.’ And the phrase ‘all other’ is broad and expansive. According to the plain meaning of these terms, ‘all other taxes’ broadly means all taxes other than the tax imposed by [the marijuana taxation act].”

Patel further noted that the Legislature did not directly amend any of the existing taxes in the regulatory act or replace it with the new tax in the road funding legislation; rather, the Legislature imposed a new separate tax, which is permitted under the regulatory act.

“The two statutes can be read together,” Patel wrote.

The claim regarding the mechanism by which a new tax could be enacted was therefore dismissed, Patel wrote.

Patel did, however, allow the case to move forward to determine if the tax interferes with the intent of the voter-initiated law that allowed marijuana consumption, regulations and sales. Patel said a genuine issue of fact remained on that issue, which required further consideration before the court.

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Walz Under Increased Fire as Minnesota Disability Services Pauses Licensing After 283% Increase in New License Applications but only 25% Increase in Participants

Minnesota disability services licensing is coming under increased scrutiny, and the Department of Human Services has paused the program as new findings of fraud come to light. 

The Department is reportedly issuing a two-year ban on new licenses for providers with a moratorium on Home and Community-Based Services (HCBS).

Services, most of which are funded by Minnesota’s Medicaid waiver programs, will be halted on January 1, until December 31, 2027.

This comes after an explosion in applications for new licenses over the last five years.

While the number of participants in these programs has only increased by roughly 25%, new license applications have risen by approximately 283%!

Minnesota Governor Tim Walz claims that his state has acknowledged that the findings are “serious” and that “it needs to stop.”

“It is stopping. People are continuing to go to prison,” he said. “I think the good news for Minnesotans to know: When that 90-day pause is over, and the third-party audits are done, we will have a better picture than we’ve ever had, which I think is really good.”

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EU Pokes Russia Again with “Reparation Loans” to Ukraine

The European Commission proposed a “Reparations Loan” to Ukraine on Wednesday. Some of the funding would come from European financial institutions that hold frozen Russian funds.

They would issue loans backed by their budget. However, they would also give Ukraine loans backed by Russian assets.

The Tin Gods of the EU

It would allocate about 90 billion Euros to Ukraine to aid in its effort to repel Moscow’s invasion. They would just give money without a plan.

France, Spain, and Italy spent almost no money on Ukraine. UK doesn’t have much and Germany has already planned how they will spend their 11 billion. They want to keep the war going without contributing.

President Trump wants to establish peace and Europe wants to take funds from Russians that are in European banks to continue the war. Some of the money belongs to the Russian government, but much of it belongs to Russian investors.

Commissioner von der Leyen said it would cover Ukraine’s expenses and their “defense.”

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Generational Betrayal: HUD Reveals Biden Gave Illegal Aliens FHA-Backed Mortgages

HUD Secretary Scott Turner told Fox Business on Friday that illegal aliens received federally backed mortgages during the Biden–Harris regime years. Turner characterized this as a significant policy failure by the previous administration and evidence of what he called misplaced priorities that favored illegals over American homebuyers.

“You know, during the Biden Administration, there were over 12 million illegal aliens that came over the border, straining our housing supply and making the costs go up,” Turner told Fox Business host Maria Bartiromo.

He continued, “And so we worked with Secretary Noem at DHS, as you alluded to, to make sure that only American citizens are living in HUD-funded housing. We also took away FHA-backed mortgages from illegal aliens. During the Biden Administration, they turned a blind eye. But we’re going to keep the law to make sure these mortgages, which are backed by the taxpayer, go only to the American people.”

“And lastly, we’re mandating every public housing authority give us a comprehensive account of who’s living in every unit and every taxpayer-funded HUD property.”

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ANOTHER ONE: Los Angeles County Employees Charged for $700,000 Pandemic Fraud Scheme

The country is already reeling from the massive fraud scandal unfolding in Minneapolis. Now it turns out that there is another huge fraud scandal coming to light in Los Angeles, California.

In this case, Los Angeles County employees were busted for $700,000 in fraud charges that stem from an unemployment scheme.

Isn’t it amazing how many people seem to have a talent for gaming system out of massive piles of cash?

KTLA News reports:

11 Los Angeles County employees charged in over $700,000 pandemic unemployment fraud scheme

Eleven more Los Angeles County employees have been charged with felony grand theft for allegedly stealing unemployment benefits while working full-time during the COVID-19 pandemic, according to the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office.

The new charges, announced by the office, follow an earlier round of filings in October against 13 county employees accused of similar conduct. In total, prosecutors say 24 employees fraudulently collected a combined $741,518 in unemployment benefits between 2020 and 2023.

District Attorney Nathan J. Hochman said his office intends to pursue the cases aggressively. “My office will continue relentlessly rooting out fraud and prosecuting government employees who steal from the public they serve,” Hochman said in a statement provided by the District Attorney’s Office. While most county employees “ethically fulfill their duties,” he said, those who “exploit the system and betray the public’s trust” will face prosecution.

More from NBC News in Los Angeles:

Among the newly charged people, several of them worked for the Department of Health Services at the time of the alleged theft.

One employee, Georgette McKinney, a supervising child support specialist for the Child Support Services, stole over $55,000 with her own identity – in addition to stealing over $76,000, using 28 fictitious identities, the district attorney’s office said.

In another case, Jessica Alcorta was charged for stealing over $36,000 in unemployment benefits while working as a legal office support assistant for the district attorney’s office.

“While the vast majority of Los Angeles County employees ethically fulfill their duties and are dedicated to public service, there are some who exploit the system and betray the public’s trust,” District Attorney Nathan Hochman said in a statement. “My message to fraudsters is unequivocal: If you steal from taxpayers, you will be prosecuted.”

If the Trump administration starts actively looking for fraud in blue cities, they’re probably going to find themselves very busy.

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480 Minnesota Health Services Employees Warned Candidate Kamala Harris of Walz, Fraud in 2024

Kamala Harris and the DNC were repeatedly warned about the widespread fraud in Minnesota under the leadership of Democrat Governor Tim Walz during her 2024 presidential campaign, a group of nearly five hundred Minnesota Department of Human Services employees reported Monday.

“[W]e did write to Kamala Harris and the DNC – multiple times – warning them about Tim Walz & his incompetence, fraud scandals and retaliation,” a post on the Minnesota Staff Fraud Reporting Commentary (formerly, Minnesota Department of Human Service Employees) X.com account explained Monday:

“We tried our best to keep the public informed as our tweets are public. Maybe Kamala Harris turned a blind eye to fraud like her running mate?”

The employees shared a reply to then-candidate Harris back from September 11, 2024 warning her about the fraud taking place in their state and the harm being wrought by her running mate, Gov. Walz:

“Ms. Harris, please listen to Minnesota State Employees who work everyday (sic) to deliver best services possible to our state & people who expect no less & pay our wages. Tim Walz has caused incredible harm to our state & agencies, retaliated against whistleblowers against fraud.”

The post includes a chart of “Selected Minnesota Fraud/Waste Cases 2019-2024” listing 21 state-funded programs receiving a total of more than a half-billion dollars of taxpayer money.

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The Minnesota Fraud Scandal Just Got a Whole Lot Worse for Walz and Omar

Earlier this month, over 400 Minnesota Department of Human Services employees accused Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz of being “100% responsible” for the massive fraud in Minnesota. I wrote at the time that the Minnesota Somali fraud scandal could take down Walz, and every day it looks even more likely. And what do you know, the scandal just got significantly worse for Walz and Rep. Ilhan Omar. Newly surfaced photographs show both Democrats smiling alongside Abdul Dahir Ibrahim, a Somali national and convicted fraudster who spent decades in America as an illegal immigrant before Immigration and Customs Enforcement recently arrested him.

Ibrahim’s rap sheet stretches back to Canada, where he was convicted of asylum and welfare fraud before slipping into the United States through New York in 1995, following his deportation from Canada. Despite his history, Ibrahim managed to remain in the country for roughly 30 years, accumulating at least a dozen traffic and parking violations along the way. In 2002, he was arrested for driving without a valid license and for providing false information to law enforcement, earning him a fine and one year of probation. An immigration judge ordered his removal on April 3, 2004, citing significant fraud associated with him. Yet Ibrahim wasn’t arrested until 2025, a staggering 21 years after that deportation order was issued.

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