Yearly Archives: 2023

Gov. Greg Abbott and others Thursday night criticized the New York indictment of former President Donald Trump.

The same groups financially supporting the New York district attorney pursuing criminal charges against the former president also helped finance the defund the police movement in Austin in 2021 and get a district attorney elected to Travis County who’s ensured that many violent felony cases are not prosecuted.

In response to the indictment, Abbott tweeted, “Weaponization of our courts for political grievances is an abhorrent abuse of power. The George Soros-supported NYC DA is only furthering the radical liberal agenda to have elections determined at the jury box rather than the ballot box. America deserves better.”

Soros is a billionaire Democratic donor who has contributed millions of dollars to the campaigns of progressive district attorney candidates, including the New York district attorney who indicted Trump.

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton said, “The radical left has consistently weaponized our courts to silence conservative voices. The actions by the Soros-backed Democrat DA in NYC is the latest example of this abuse of power.”

Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, said, “Today is an absolute outrage and tragic day for our country. This left-wing Soros DA has decided to use the power of his office to indict Donald Trump – facts and law be damned!”

Cruz also said, “Today marks a turning point in our country. The indictment of Trump is a moment in the death of the rule of law. Our Founders are weeping – law is supposed to be fair, regardless of political party. It is not meant to be used as a weapon to attack your political enemies.”

U.S. Rep. Wesley Hunt, R-Houston, said, “A Manhattan Grand Jury at the behest of a weaponized prosecutor; who received a million dollars from Soros, has indicted a former U.S. President. This unprecedented attack against Trump is an assault on everything we hold sacred about our Republic.

“If they can come for him, they can come for you. Our judicial system is not blind or just, it has been weaponized by dangerous people hellbent on remaking our nation into something unrecognizable.”

Not all elected Texas officials agree. Newly elected Rep. Jasmine Crockett, D-Dallas, said, “No one is above the law, not even a former president. As a former public defender, I know the importance of a fair and unbiased judicial process. I urge my fellow Americans to put politics aside & refrain from violent rhetoric. This is a critical moment – we must not fail it.”

Former Texas legislator and now congressman, U.S. Rep. Joaquin Castro, D-San Antonio, tweeted, “May justice be served, finally.”

On Thursday, a New York grand jury voted to indict Trump over allegedly misreporting payments made to adult film star Stormy Daniels in 2016.

Daniels sued Trump for defamation and lost her appeal last year before the Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. She owes the president nearly $300,000 in legal fees. After losing her case, she tweeted, "I will go to jail before I pay a penny.”

Trump issued several statements on social media referring to the indictment as “political persecution” and “a Witch-Hunt to destroy the Make America Great Again movement.”

Criticisms of New York District Attorney Alvin Bragg’s connection to Soros stems from him reportedly benefiting from a Soros-funded Justice and Safety PAC and other similarly funded groups that have focused on getting progressive district attorneys elected nationwide to implement policies that abolish bail, release violent offenders, and defund the police.

Soros’ Foundation to Promote Open Society funneled millions of dollars to the Community Resource Hub for Safety and Accountability, which provides resources to “local advocates and organizations working to address the harm of policing in the US,” according to its website. The hub has partnered with the Justice and Safety PAC and roughly 20 other groups, according to multiple reports, to get district attorneys like Braggs elected.

In Austin, the defund the police movement in 2021 was made possible by Soros funds.

Soros spent $500,000 to defeat a ballot proposition in Austin that would have restored funding to the Austin Police Department. “Billionaire George Soros is involved in Austin's Prop A police staffing initiative,” the Austin American Statesman reported, pointing out that “Soros' Open Society Policy Center transferred $500k to Equity Austin to defeat Prop A.”

Within months of being in office, Garza implemented a new policy to throw out cases including serious felony charges like “aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, assault of a pregnant woman, aggravated robbery, and more,” KVUE ABC News reported. In just four months, Garza rejected 142 felony cases, a 735% increase from the same timeframe in 2020.

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis blasted the indictment of former President Donald Trump on Thursday, saying he won’t comply with an extradition order from New York.

“The weaponization of the legal system to advance a political agenda turns the rule of law on its head,” DeSantis said in a statement published on Twitter. “It is un-American. The Soros-backed Manhattan District Attorney has consistently bent the law to downgrade felonies and to excuse criminal misconduct.”

DeSantis was referring to billionaire Democratic donor George Soros’ Foundation to Promote Open Society funneling millions of dollars to the Community Resource Hub for Safety and Accountability, which provides resources to “local advocates and organizations working to address the harm of policing in the US,” according to its website.

Through the hub, the Justice and Safety PAC and 20 other similar groups have focused on getting district attorneys elected nationwide to implement policies that abolish bail, release violent offenders, and defund the police. In cities like Houston where these policies, including “bail reform,” have been implemented, crime has skyrocketed, in part caused by repeat violent offenders being released onto the streets.

“Yet, now he is stretching the law to target a political opponent,” DeSantis said of New York District Attorney Alvin Bragg. “Florida will not assist in an extradition request given the questionable circumstances at issue with this Soros-backed Manhattan prosecutor and his political agenda.”

On Thursday, a New York grand jury indicted Trump over allegedly misreporting payments made to adult film star Stormy Daniels in 2016 in exchange for her silence about an alleged affair she had with Trump. The former president denies he ever had such an affair.

Daniels sued Trump for defamation and lost her appeal last year before the Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. She owes the president nearly $300,000 in legal fees. After the 9th Circuit ruling, she tweeted, "I will go to jail before I pay a penny.”

Florida Lt. Gov. Jeannette Nunez agreed with DeSantis, saying, “It’s true. Political agendas have no place in a court of law. We are a country of laws, not men. Florida will not tolerate one man, a Soros-backed prosecutor, using our justice system to advance a politically motivated stunt to score points.”

Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody also agreed, saying, “Upon learning of the NY DA indictment, I am heartbroken by the damage this targeted prosecution will do to the integrity of our justice system. It is a sad day in the story of the United States.”

Nikki Fried, former Democratic Florida gubernatorial candidate who lost in the Democratic primary to Charlie Crist, took to Twitter to post several comments criticizing DeSantis.

“Breaking the law is un-American and blaming it on George Soros is anti-Semitic,” she said, adding “How pathetic is Ron DeSantis? I mean, the groveling, the poll numbers, all of it.”

She also pointed to DeSantis removing a state attorney who refused to enforce state law, saying, “You know there has been an actual, proven unlawful and unconstitutional weaponization of the law – your removal of State Attorney Andrew Warren.”

Last August, DeSantis suspended Warren of the 13th Judicial Circuit citing "neglect of duty” for his decision not to prosecute individuals who violate the state's 15-week abortion ban.

The governor has the authority to suspend a state officer under Article IV, Section 7 of the state constitution and did so by issuing an executive order. State attorneys are state officers constitutionally elected to serve as prosecuting officers of all trial courts within each judicial circuit and are not subject to impeachment.

“State Attorneys have a duty to prosecute crimes as defined in Florida law, not to pick and choose which laws to enforce based on his personal agenda,” DeSantis said at the time.

Trump, a Florida resident, blasted the indictment, issuing several statements on social media referring to the indictment as “political persecution” and “a Witch-Hunt to destroy the Make America Great Again movement.”

The Pentagon is increasingly struggling to fill the weapons and equipment requests for the in Ukraine. At the same time, taxpayer funds are going to pay for ongoing Diversity, Equity and Inclusion efforts in the military, most recently one controversial Pentagon official pushing anti-police and pro-critical race theory books at schools for the children of military families.

The New York Times recently highlighted the Pentagon’s manufacturing problem with a story headlined: “From Rockets to Ball Bearings: Pentagon Struggles to Feed War Machine.”

The Pentagon would reportedly struggle to manufacture enough precision missiles if conflict with China broke out after sending over a decades worth of Stinger missiles to Ukraine as soon as the war broke out, one of multiple concerning manufacturing issues that have been exposed by the demands of Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

“I’ve been sounding an alarm for months about shortcomings [and] shrinkages in our defense production capacity,” U.S> Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., said in response to the story. “Mergers [and] supply chain issues are only part of the problem. America is neglecting our biggest resource – people. And our key challenge – workforce training.”

Those difficulties come as the Pentagon increasingly focuses its attention, and funds, on equity initiatives.

Critics say the Pentagon has become distracted. U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., and Rep. Chip Roy, R-Texas, commissioned a report that laid out a series of examples of racial and gender ideology permeating military training, policies and leadership, all at taxpayer expense, as The Center Square previously reported.

In one of those examples, the report points to official training materials in which West Point cadets are lectured on white privilege. The report points to another case where a slide presentation for the Air Force Academy is titled, “Diversity & Inclusion: What it is, why we care, & what we can do,” which warns cadets to avoid gendered language, such as terms like “mom” and “dad.”

The recent Department of Defense's comptroller’s budget report points to millions of dollars in equity funding as well.

“Ensuring accountable leadership by adding nearly $500 million in FY 2023 to implement the recommendations of the Independent Review Commission (IRC) on Sexual Assault in the Military, enhancing diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility (DEIA) programs, and addressing extremism in the ranks,” the comptroller report said.

"The Department will lead with our values – building diversity, equity, and inclusion into everything we do," the report added.

The report points to $86.5 million for "dedicated diversity and inclusion activities."

"Additionally, to facilitate, inform, and advance agency progress on issues relating to DEIA, DoD established the DoD Equity Team (DET) in 2021," the report said. "The DET addressed a broad range of DEIA issues, including the need for increased diversity within the talent pipeline; challenges pertaining to DEIA data collection, analysis, and management; and integration of D&I curriculum into leadership development training."

Major Charlie Dietz, a DOD spokesman in the Office of the Secretary of Defense, pushed back against the GOP report after its release.

“Diversity, inclusion, and equality at its core is about leveraging the strengths of all our people, advancing opportunity, addressing potential barriers or discrepancies, and – fundamentally – ensuring people are treated with dignity and respect," he told The Center Square at the time of the report’s release. "We always talk about weapons systems, yet every one of us will agree that our greatest weapons system are our people. So that’s why our policies to better leverage our people and increase unit cohesion are important here.”

The Pentagon’s Office for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion has come under increased scrutiny after one of its employees was caught tweeting anti-white comments online.

Open the Books, a government spending accountability group, helped uncover Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) chief, Kelisa Wing, who published a string of racist tweets and has a history of promoting her own critical race theory-themed books.

Open The Books said discovered Wing pushed “radical ideologies premised on Marxist and Critical Race Theory frames; questionable ethics; substantial conflicts of interest; and even side businesses.”

In her tweets, Wing said she was “exhausted by white folx” and blasted “caudacity,” a slang term for boldness among white people.

"[T]his lady actually had the CAUdacity to say that black people can be racist too…” she tweeted. “I had to stop the session and give Karen the BUSINESS… [W]e are not the majority, we don't have power.”

Lawmakers raised questions about Wing during a hearing last week. U.S. Rep. Elise Stefanik, R-N.Y., peppered Gilbert Cisneros, the Department of Defense’s (DoD) Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness, with questions during the hearing, but he had few answers.

“Have you read Kelisa Wing’s books, titled ‘What is White Privilege?,’ ‘What Does it Mean to Defund the Police?,’ and ‘What is the Black Lives Matter Movement?’” Stefanik asked. “Are you aware that these books are in DoDEA’s K-12 schools throughout the country?”

Cisneros said no to both questions. He did say the DOD does not condone Wing’s tweet.

Wing has been removed from her involvement with military schools but was not fired.

“I will take it as a result that we delivered,” Stefanik said. “She should have been fired completely, but she was at least moved somewhere else, not dealing with our kids’ educational systems.”

Critics said Wing’s scandal and removal is just the beginning. For now, it highlights an ongoing battle over the role of federal funding for controversial equity initiatives, especially when federal agencies are struggling with their primary responsibilities.

“It took multiple investigations from us and multiple hearings from Congress to finally get some answers and some action from the Department of Defense," Adam Andrzejewski, Open The Books CEO, said. “Unfortunately, there are still outstanding questions for the Pentagon, including whether they plan to eliminate the role or find a replacement for Wing. The DoD also should account for how much public money is being spent on DEI material and trainings all across the Defense Department.”

(The Center Square) – Less than a week after declaring a Republican-backed plan to add exemptions to Wisconsin’s near total ban on abortions dead-on-arrival, Gov. Tony Evers and statehouse Democrats are pushing their own abortion legislation.

The governor on Tuesday said he wants to restore abortion access in Wisconsin to what it was before the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade.

“I have been clear from the beginning that I won’t sign a bill that leaves Wisconsin women with fewer rights or freedoms than they had before the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe,” Evers said at a Capitol news conference.

Before the Dobbs decision, which overturned Roe, women in Wisconsin could get an abortion up to 20 weeks into their pregnancy. State law also required an ultrasound 24 hours before an abortion.

“This bill will simply restore access to safe, legal abortion in Wisconsin to what it was on June 23, 2022. Nothing more, and nothing less,” Evers said.

The governor’s legislation comes after Assembly Republicans proposed a plan last week that would have allowed for abortions in Wisconsin in cases of rape or incest. Currently, Wisconsin law only allows for abortions in cases where the life of the mother is in danger.

"The Republicans have their bill, the Democrats have their bill, the people of Wisconsin should be able to hear a debate about this issue, not silence," the governor added.

Assembly Speaker Robin Vos said in a statement Tuesday that the governor doesn’t want a debate. He wants to dictate to lawmakers what Wisconsin’s abortion law should be.

“The Democrat’ news conference was quite a spectacle, with Gov. Evers’ hypocrisy on full display. Last week, Legislative Republicans introduced a bill that’s a reasonable middle ground to the divisive and opposing viewpoints on abortion. Governor Evers immediately said he would veto it," Vos said. "Legislative Republicans have continued to say we’re willing to discuss and find consensus. Instead, Governor Evers issues an ultimatum of no negotiating.”

The governor’s legislation is surely dead at the Capitol. Republicans control the legislature and are unwilling to go back to the state’s pre-Roe law.

The top Republican in the Wisconsin Senate, Majority Leader Devin LeMahieu, is even unwilling to call the Republican-backed exemptions legislation for a vote.

Instead, Gov. Evers and Democrats in the state continue their efforts to overturn the state’s abortion law through the courts.

Next month’s election for state Supreme Court will determine if that can happen.