FROM ILLINOIS CENTER-LEFT SOURCES
ABC7
— Sen. Lindsey Graham dies at 71 after a ‘brief and sudden illness. DD: I remember speaking with Graham at a fundraiser for Henry Hyde.
https://abc7chicago.com/post/us-sen-lindsey-graham-dies-71-brief-sudden-illness-office-says/19490033/
(FROM GOOGLE AI: Senator Lindsey Graham and former Congressman Henry Hyde were key Republican figures who worked together most notably as House managers during the 1998–1999 impeachment trial of President Bill Clinton. The two maintained a close political and personal bond, frequently aligning on conservative constitutional principles and the pro-life movement.)
— Bridgeview delays ‘Little Palestine Way’ sign unveiling amid claims of political interference. DD: Ever-increasingly, immigrants talk and/or act like they remain loyal to their motherland if not like they came to America to turn America into their motherland.
https://www.aol.com/articles/bridgeview-delays-little-palestine-way-222250000.html
NBC5
— DD: What is your municipality doing to stop Democrat teen takeovers? What did you do when you were at teen? I did yard work 1962-1964. I delivered newspapers 1962-1966. I washed dishes 1964-1966. I cleaned golf shoes, chipped slag, and pumped gasoline in 1966. I delivering mail 1966-1969.
https://www.nbcchicago.com/news/local/hundreds-of-youth-explore-chicago-as-part-of-my-block-my-hood-my-citys-downtown-day/3960320/
CHICAGO TRIBUNE
— DD: Democrat leaders ever-increasingly diminish Second Amendment rights.
https://www.chicagotribune.com/2026/07/12/editorial-the-7th-circuit-made-the-right-decision-on-illinois-assault-weapons-ban/
— Trump suggests a standing order to attack Iran if it assassinates him. But JD Vance would make the call.
https://www.chicagotribune.com/2026/07/11/trump-vance-iran/
— DD: Democrat leaders ever-increasingly punish America to punish Trump.
https://www.chicagotribune.com/2026/07/12/state-funded-america-250-commemorations-kept-mellow-as-federal-funding-cuts-still-sting-in-illinois/
— Illinois Republicans aren’t just losing. They’re disappearing. DD: Political parties exist to help elect candidates who can and will defend and advance their platform. The Republican Party platform is conservative. According to political consultants in Illinois who want Republican candidates to continue to lose in Illinois, Republican candidates in Illinois should continue to become ever-increasingly more Democrat Lite if not anti-conservative if not RINO. But Republican candidates in Illinois should advocate conservative principles and planks in the Republican Party platform including its personal responsibility, traditional marriage and family, right to life, immigration, anti-vice, Second Amendment, equal opportunity (no race or gender based preference giving) planks. They should cite how their following conservative principles and the aforesaid planks helped them succeed. I attribute my successes in life to my following conservative principles and planks in the Republican Party platform.
https://www.chicagotribune.com/2026/03/19/bailey-dabrowski-proft-republican-politics-illinois-gop-ilgop-elections/
https://www.chicagotribune.com/2026/07/08/charles-selle-column-gop-voters/
— FRONT PAGE TOP OF FOLD WITH PICTURE: DD: Democrat leaders ever-increasingly a) glorify and praise their illegals and b) fight their deportation.
https://www.chicagotribune.com/2026/07/12/courthouse-immigration-arrests/
CHICAGO SUN-TIMES
— DD: What is your municipality doing to stop Democrat teen takeovers? What did you do when you were at teen? I did yard work 1962-1964. I delivered newspapers 1962-1966. I washed dishes 1964-1966. I cleaned golf shoes, chipped slag, and pumped gasoline in 1966. I delivering mail 1966-1969.
https://chicago.suntimes.com/crime/2026/07/11/my-block-my-hood-my-city-downtown-day-teen-takeovers
BELLEVILLE NEWS DEMOCRAT
— Illinois state government hiring for 38 metro-east jobs, including one that pays up to $139,764 per year. DD: In today’s dollars, when I was 22 in 1971, after I had earned a bachelor’s degree in business from NIU when I was 21, my IRS starting salary was $56,409/year. In today’s dollars, when I was 31, after I had earned an MBA from Loyola when I was 27, passed the CPA examination on my first attempt when I was 30, almost completed the requirements for a master’s degree in accounting from DePaul, and had worked for IRS for almost 9 years, the last 5 1/2 years of which at the GS-12 Step 1-5 Levels, currently $100,059-$113,402/year, my starting GAO salary was only $89,703/year. It would have been $113,402, if not $118,984/year (GS-13 Step1), if I had been a Democrat, minority, female, or veteran.
https://www.aol.com/news/illinois-state-government-hiring-38-134933231.html
CHICAGO MAGAZINE
— How Illinois Became a One-Party State. DD: Political parties exist to help elect candidates who can and will defend and advance their platform. The Republican Party platform is conservative. According to political consultants in Illinois who want Republican candidates to continue to lose in Illinois, Republican candidates in Illinois should continue to become ever-increasingly more Democrat Lite if not anti-conservative if not RINO. But Republican candidates in Illinois should advocate conservative principles and planks in the Republican Party platform including its personal responsibility, traditional marriage and family, right to life, immigration, anti-vice, Second Amendment, equal opportunity (no race or gender based preference giving) planks. They should cite how their following conservative principles and the aforesaid planks helped them succeed. I attribute my successes in life to my following conservative principles and planks in the Republican Party platform.
https://www.chicagomag.com/news/opinion-how-illinois-became-a-one-party-state/
(FROM THE ARTICLE: On Aug. 8, 2001, George Ryan stood on the steps of the Kankakee County Courthouse and announced he would not seek a second term as governor of Illinois. Ryan’s governorship had been tainted by the licenses-for-bribes scandal, for which he would eventually spend five years in federal prison. Ryan knew he was un-reelectable, but he used the occasion to take a parting shot at the right wing of his party. “I worry for the Republican Party — the party of Lincoln under whose banner I have proudly served all of my life,” he said. “If we’re to be successful, we need to listen more and shout less. We need to moderate our positions. I learned a long time ago that winning public office is about addition and not subtraction, and I would hope that the party folks are listening.” Ryan had once been an archconservative. As speaker of the state House in the early 1980s, he worked with Phyllis Schlafly to stamp out the Equal Rights Amendment. But he won the governorship by running to the left of his Democratic opponent — Southern Illinois congressman Glenn Poshard — on gay rights and abortion. As governor, he instituted a moratorium on the death penalty and, just before leaving office, commuted all death sentences to life in prison. Like any successful politician, Ryan could tell which way the wind was blowing. In the late 1990s and early 2000s, as America’s Red vs. Blue divide developed, Illinois was turning Blue. In 2002, the Democrats took complete control of the state, winning the governorship for the first time in 30 years and the state senate for the first time in more than a decade. Part of their success was due to the national political trends Ryan had observed; part was due to Ryan himself. As the third and last in a 26-year run of Republican governors, his corruption had damaged the brand of a party that had overstayed its welcome.)
MAYOR BROWN
— What Employers Need to Know About “Anti-American” Bias in the Workplace. DD: I am 100% German American. German is one of the worst national origins to have because of WWI, WWII, and the Holocaust. In my defense, I have always stressed that all my ancestors immigrated during the 1840s and 1850s, that my grandfather on my father’s side fought the Germans in WWI, that my uncles on my mother’s side fought the Germans in WWII, and that my father would have fought the Germans in WWII if he had not been 4-F.
https://www.mayerbrown.com/en/insights/publications/2026/03/what-employers-need-to-know-about-anti-american-bias-in-the-workplace
FROM ILLINOIS CENTER-RIGHT SOURCES
MCHENRY COUNTY BLOG
— Political Friends
https://www.mchenrycountyblog.com/2026/06/27/political-friends/
— Health Care at Illinois Prisons and ICE Detention Centers, Underwood v. Mullin
https://www.mchenrycountyblog.com/2026/06/27/health-care-at-illinois-prisons-and-ice-detention-centers-underwood-v-mullin/
— Unemployment Rises 19% in McHenry County Over Last Year
https://www.mchenrycountyblog.com/2026/06/29/unemployment-rises-19-in-mchenry-county/
— State To Gather Height of Water Needed to Flood Structures Along Fox River & Chain of Lakes
https://www.mchenrycountyblog.com/2026/06/29/state-to-gather-height-of-water-needed-to-flood-structures-along-fox-river-chain-of-lakes/
–Democrats Assumed $500 Million Too Much To Spend
https://www.mchenrycountyblog.com/2026/06/30/democrats-assumed-500-million-too-much-to-spend/
— An Astounding Reason the CTA “Needs a Bailout”
https://www.mchenrycountyblog.com/2026/06/30/an-astounding-reason-the-cta-needs-a-bailout/
— Early Voter Says She Was “Testing the System” When She Also Voted on Election Day
https://www.mchenrycountyblog.com/2026/06/30/early-voter-says-she-was-testing-the-system-when-she-also-voted-on-election-day/
— Block Club Chicago Analyzes Uses of Force by Immigration Officers in Operation Midway
https://www.mchenrycountyblog.com/2026/06/30/block-club-chicago-analyzes-uses-of-force-by-immigration-officers-in-operation-midway/
— Wilcox Holding Bull Valley Golf Club Outing July 13th
https://www.mchenrycountyblog.com/2026/07/01/wilcox-holding-bull-valley-golf-club-outing-july-13th/
— But Not in Illinois
https://www.mchenrycountyblog.com/2026/07/01/but-not-in-illinois/
— Brian Sager To Continue Representing McHenry County on Commuter Rail Agency
https://www.mchenrycountyblog.com/2026/07/01/brian-sager-to-continue-representing-mchenry-county-on-commuter-rail-agency/
FROM NATIONAL CENTER-RIGHT SOURCES
WASHINGTON TIMES
— U.S. extends work permits for immigrants with temporary protected status. DD: All my employers would have hired noncitizens instead of me if they could have. My critics/opponents cannot say that because they had wealthy parents. Noncitizens work for less money and they are easier to exploit.
https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2026/jul/11/us-extends-work-permits-immigrants-temporary-protected-status/
— The vile evil attacking Erika Kirk must be condemned.
https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2026/jul/10/vile-evil-attacking-erika-kirk-must-condemned/
— Could birthright citizenship be the next Roe v. Wade? It took nearly 50 years for conservatives to see Roe v. Wade overturned. They’re hoping it won’t take that long to nix Trump v. Barbara, last month’s decision on birthright citizenship.
https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2026/jul/11/could-birthright-citizenship-next-roe-v-wade/
WASHINGTON EXAMINER
— Trump’s welcome crackdown on illegal immigrant truckers
https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/opinion/editorials/4642674/trump-welcome-crackdown-illegal-immigrant-truckers/
WASHINGTON FREE BEACON
— Selling Our Birthright. The Myth of Birthright Citizenship: What the Fourteenth Amendment Really Says.
https://freebeacon.com/politics/selling-our-birthright/
(FROM THE ARTICLE: Naturalization Acts of 1790 and 1795, which offered citizenship to “any alien, being a free white person, who shall have resided within the limits and under the jurisdiction of the United States for the term of two years.” . . . 14th Amendment: “All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the State where in they reside.”)
NEW YORK POST
— Capitalists fight back: NY Dem launches campaign to counter socialist wave sweeping party.
https://nypost.com/2026/07/11/us-news/ny-democrat-launches-campaign-to-counter-socialist-wave-sweeping-party/
1819
— Combatting the rise of socialism in America
https://1819news.com/news/item/kristin-landers-combatting-the-rise-of-socialism-in-america
AMERICAN THINKER
— Platner may be gone, but the new leftist Democrat party remains. Graham Platner was not an anomaly: The spoiled scion of an affluent family perfectly represents the Jacobin takeover of the Democrat party.
https://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2026/07/platner-may-be-gone-but-the-new-leftist-democrat-party-remains/
— Did JD Vance just attack meritocracy and Milton Friedman? Why yes, he did, and that, along with his continued failure to make a clean break from the increasingly lunatic Tucker Carlson, worries me.
https://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2026/07/did-jd-vance-just-attack-meritocracy-and-milton-friedman/
BLAZE
— Democratic Socialists of America will seek to RADICALLY upend the federal government in platform update.
https://www.theblaze.com/news/democratic-socialists-new-platform-govt
BREITBART
— Trump Delays Shutdown of Haitians’ Temporary Protected Status. DD: All my employers would have hired noncitizens instead of me if they could have. My critics/opponents cannot say that because they had wealthy parents. Noncitizens work for less money and they are easier to exploit.
https://www.breitbart.com/economy/2026/07/11/trump-delays-shutdown-of-haitians-temporary-protected-status/amp/
— Los Angeles Gives Free Pass to Illegal Alien Food Vendors While Restaurants Must Comply Or Get Fined and Even Shut Down.
https://www.breitbart.com/immigration/2026/07/11/exclusive-los-angeles-gives-free-pass-to-illegal-alien-food-vendors-while-restaurants-must-comply-or-get-fined-and-even-shut-down/amp/
CITIZEN FOR IMMIGRATION STUDIES
— Immigration Enforcement Has Benefitted American Workers. DD: All my employers would have hired noncitizens instead of me if they could have. My critics/opponents cannot say that because they had wealthy parents. Noncitizens work for less money and they are easier to exploit.
https://cis.org/Camarota/Has-Immigration-Enforcement-Benefitted-American-Workers
DAILY SIGNAL
— Senator Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., died of a “brief and sudden illness” on Saturday, his Senate office announced early Sunday morning. DD: I remember speaking with Graham at a fundraiser for Henry Hyde.
https://www.dailysignal.com/2026/07/12/republican-senator-lindsey-graham-dead-71/
(FROM GOOGLE AI: Senator Lindsey Graham and former Congressman Henry Hyde were key Republican figures who worked together most notably as House managers during the 1998–1999 impeachment trial of President Bill Clinton. The two maintained a close political and personal bond, frequently aligning on conservative constitutional principles and the pro-life movement.)
FOX NEWS
— NYC map omits Little Italy. DD: My critics/opponents have always hinted/implied/argued/shouted that Crete was “little Germany” when I lived their 1948-1972.
https://www.foxnews.com/politics/die-hard-actor-robert-davi-blasts-mamdani-nyc-map-omits-little-italy
LEGAL INSURRECTION
— White House Report Details the Wokeification of the Smithsonian American History Museum.
https://legalinsurrection.com/2026/07/white-house-report-details-the-wokeification-of-the-smithsonian-american-history-museum/
PJ MEDIA
— American Houses Are for American People.
https://pjmedia.com/catherinesalgado/2026/07/12/secretary-turner-american-houses-are-for-american-people-n4954931
— Michigan State University Spends Almost $900,000 on Five DEI Staffers.
https://pjmedia.com/catherinesalgado/2026/07/11/michigan-state-university-spends-almost-900000-on-five-dei-staffers-n4954930
TOWNHALL
— The ghost of communism is indeed haunting America. How could that be? Didn’t we win the Cold War? In the late 1980s, the Berlin Wall came down, and the Eastern European nations threw off the yoke of Marxist bondage. Then in the early 1990s, the Soviet Union — the “evil empire” as Ronald Reagan called it— imploded.
https://townhall.com/columnists/jerrynewcombe/2026/07/12/is-there-a-spectre-haunting-america-n2679079
— Equal Protection Wasn’t Supposed to Be Negotiable. DD: Federal employees who are the following have no Civil Service protections: conservative, Republican, White, male, older, non-veteran, German American, and/or have ancestors who have been in America for a long time. Unions provide some protection. But GAO did not unionize until 2007. If GAO had been unionized when I transferred from IRS in 1980, my Democrat GAO superiors would not have been able to take the many big adverse actions against me that they did. My Democrat GAO superiors a) forced me to retire when I was 49 in 1997, b) always ranked me in the bottom half of my coworkers for pay-for-performance, c) delayed my promotions and never promoted me beyond GS-13, and d) forced me to take a $23,699/year (21%) pay cut in today’s dollars to transfer from IRS to GAO in 1980. But even though I was a union member at the time, a) my Democrat IRS superiors never promoted me beyond GS-12, disallowed my education deductions in 1978, and disallowed my travel vouchers in 1974 and b) my Democrat Post Office superiors forced me to resign in 1969 and disallowed my sick leave requests in 1969 and 1968. That was because I was not a Democrat, minority, female, and/or veteran. For Democrats, the federal government exists to hire, retain, and promote Democrats who are minority, female, younger, veteran, non-Protestant, non-German American, and/or have ancestors who have not been in America for a long time. Virtually all federal employees are Democrats who are one or more of the aforesaid. All of my coworkers who my Democrat superiors in the federal government promoted over me were Democrats who a) had less education than I had, had less work experience than I had, had no professional certification or fewer than I had, and/or had no professional license like the one I had and/or b) were minority, female, younger, veteran, non-Protestant, non-German American, and/or had ancestors who had not been in America for a long time.
https://townhall.com/columnists/jay-rogers/2026/07/12/equal-protection-wasnt-supposed-to-be-negotiable-n2679251
FROM NATIONAL CENTER-LEFT SOURCES
THE HILL
— DD: The Democrat Party is ever-increasingly becoming the Socialist Party. DD: To work for a socialist employer is like working for a Democrat employer. The federal government is a Democrat employer. To advance working for a socialist employer you have to be a socialist. To advance working for a Democrat employer you have to be a Democrat. I worked for the Democrats who ran the federal government for almost 30 years. If I had been a Democrat, they would have promoted me into their Senior Executive Service, currently $197,200/year, long before I was 40. I had earned a job-related bachelor’s degree, three job-related master’s degrees, six job-related professional certifications, and a job-related professional license. But my Democrat superiors flushed all that down their toilets because I was not a Democrat, minority, female, and/or veteran.
https://thehill.com/opinion/campaign/5962999-democrats-defeat-trump-policies/
CBS NEWS
— DOJ threatens criminal action against states that allow noncitizens to vote.
https://www.aol.com/articles/doj-threatens-criminal-action-against-013522000.html
ASSOCIATE PRESS
— Federal appeals court upholds Illinois ban on semiautomatic weapons. DD: According to Google AI, “A semiautomatic firearm automatically performs the reloading steps but requires a separate trigger pull for every individual shot. One Pull, One Round: Pulling and holding the trigger fires only one single bullet. Self-Loading Action: The firearm uses the internal energy of the fired cartridge (gas, recoil, or blowback) to automatically eject the empty casing and chamber a fresh round. Manual Reset: The shooter must completely release (reset) the trigger and pull it again to fire the next shot.”
https://www.aol.com/articles/federal-appeals-court-upholds-illinois-005044000.html
AOL
— DD: Democrat leaders ever-increasingly a) glorify and praise their illegals and b) fight their deportation.
https://www.aol.com/news/self-deported-mps-teachers-aide-022654449.html
— For Texans making the state’s median household income of $84,084 in 2026, it would take 7.2 years to save enough money for a down payment on a house with the state’s typical home value of $302,187. DD: For you, how many months did it take to save enough money for your first down payment? For me, back in the good old days, it took only 25 months. Where did the money come from for your first down payment? When I was 24 in 1972, HUD made the new townhome that I bought in University Park ( https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/774-Sunset-Ct-5-University-Park-IL-60484/5451474_zpid/ ) affordable. I could not have afforded to buy that townhome if it had cost more. In today’s dollars, I paid about $180,000 for it and my down payment would have been about $36,000. In today’s dollars, my IRS Revenue Officer salary had just increased from $56,409/year to $68,999/year. The down payment came from what I had earned working for IRS for 15 months and for a Firestone Store part-time for 18 months and full-time for 7 months before that. According to Zillow, the townhome is currently worth $92,200. That says worlds about real estate values in University Park.
https://www.aol.com/news/much-longer-texans-must-save-210001679.html
CNBC
— DD: Democrats exist to promote more hatred against Republicans.
https://www.cnbc.com/2026/07/11/worst-states-to-live-in-america-2026.html
NEW YORK TIMES
— Senator Lindsey Graham, Republican of South Carolina and Staunch Trump Ally, Dies at 71. Mr. Graham died of a “brief and sudden” illness on Saturday evening, his office said. Over more than two decades in the Senate, he consistently pushed for the use of U.S. military power overseas. DD: I remember speaking with Graham at a fundraiser for Henry Hyde.
https://www.nytimes.com/2026/07/12/us/politics/lindsey-graham-dead.html
(FROM GOOGLE AI: Senator Lindsey Graham and former Congressman Henry Hyde were key Republican figures who worked together most notably as House managers during the 1998–1999 impeachment trial of President Bill Clinton. The two maintained a close political and personal bond, frequently aligning on conservative constitutional principles and the pro-life movement.)
— DD: Democrat leaders ever-increasingly crow about their success in promoting socialism.
https://www.nytimes.com/2026/07/12/nyregion/dsa-upstate-new-york.html
https://www.nytimes.com/2026/07/12/nyregion/dsa-young-voters-primary-ny.html
WASHINGTON POST
— Teen takeovers confound cities struggling to define the problem — and find solutions. A spate of sometimes violent gatherings has stoked demands for action. But officials know they need to provide outlets for the many teens who are not breaking laws. DD: What is your municipality doing to stop Democrat teen takeovers? I did not need an outlet when I was a teen because I did yard work 1962-1964. I delivered newspapers 1962-1966. I washed dishes 1964-1966. I cleaned golf shoes, chipped slag, and pumped gasoline in 1966. I delivering mail 1966-1969.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2026/07/11/teen-takeovers-confound-cities-struggling-define-problem-find-solutions/
— Trump attacks ‘communists.’ Both want a bigger government role in the economy. The president has had the federal government take partial ownership of nearly two dozen companies since returning to the White House.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2026/07/12/trump-attacks-communists-pushes-bigger-government-role-economy/
NEW YORK SUN
— Democrats’ Turn to Socialism Offers GOP a Golden Opportunity. The best path Republicans have to defy historical trends and retain both houses of Congress comes in the form of a concerted campaign against far-left policies.
https://www.nysun.com/article/democrats-turn-to-socialism-offers-gop-a-golden-opportunity
USA TODAY
— Lower-income wages catching up with fastest growth in 3 years. DD: What did you do to increase you earning power? I earned a job-related bachelor’s degree when in 1970 when I was 21. I earned job-related master’s degrees when I was 27, 31, and 48. I earned job-related professional certifications when I was 30, 32, 41, 45, 46, and 47. I earned a job-related professional license when I was 32.
https://www.usatoday.com/story/money/personalfinance/2026/07/09/lower-income-wages-fastest-growth-june/90859814007/
FOX BALTIMORE
— Rural Illinois wants to split from Chicago and form a new state, it’s not alone. DD: Democrats despise/hate farms, farming, and farmers. My great grandparents on my father’s side were farmers. My grandparents on my mother’s side were farmers. During the 1950s, I spent lots of time at their farm in Grant Park along the Indiana border.
https://foxbaltimore.com/news/nation-world/rural-illinois-wants-to-split-from-chicago-and-form-a-new-state-its-not-alone-cook-county-idaho-oregon-portland-indiana
WALL STREET JOURNAL
— In New York and Britain, Socialism Is on the March. It’s no longer just vibes; socialists in Britain and elsewhere want to nationalize the means of production. DD: To work for a socialist employer is like working for a Democrat employer. The federal government is a Democrat employer. To advance working for a socialist employer you have to be a socialist. To advance working for a Democrat employer you have to be a Democrat. I worked for the Democrats who ran the federal government for almost 30 years. If I had been a Democrat, they would have promoted me into their Senior Executive Service, currently $197,200/year, long before I was 40. I had earned a job-related bachelor’s degree, three job-related master’s degrees, six job-related professional certifications, and a job-related professional license. But my Democrat superiors flushed all that down their toilets because I was not a Democrat, minority, female, and/or veteran.
https://www.wsj.com/economy/in-new-york-and-britain-socialism-is-on-the-march-1448f618
FORTUNE
— DD: Democrat leaders ever-increasingly crow about their success in promoting socialism.
https://fortune.com/2026/07/11/white-collar-socialists-tech-workers-working-class-dsa-members-blue-collar-economic-anxiety/
24/7 WALL STREET
— Musk qualifies for a maximum Social Security benefit of just $5,181 per month ($62,172/year) if he waits until age 70 to claim. DD: My critics/opponents are furious that my Social Security is now $18,712/year and that my Civil Service Retirement System (CSRS) pension is $68,640/year. In my defense, I paid into Social Security for 10 years and I paid into CSRS for almost 30 years.
https://www.aol.com/articles/elon-musk-world-first-trillionaire-143410000.html
— The 2027 COLA Is Coming. Medicare’s Premium Hike Could Swallow Most of the Raise Before It Hits the Bank. DD: My critics/opponents were, are, and will always be furious a) that I got COLAs when I was a federal employee 1966-1969 and 1971-1997 and b) that I have gotten COLAs as a federal retiree since 1997 and as a Social Security recipient since 2010.
https://247wallst.com/personal-finance/2026/07/11/the-2027-cola-is-coming-for-this-retiree-medicares-premium-hike-could-swallow-most-of-the-raise-before-it-hits-the-bank/
MARKETS TODAY
— How the Social Security special minimum benefit works. DD: DD: My critics/opponents were, are, and will always be furious that I benefit from the special minimum benefit. My salary was low when I washed dishes, cleaned golf shoes, chipped slag, pumped gasoline, delivering mail, and pumped more gasoline.
https://www.msn.com/en-us/money/retirement/how-the-social-security-special-minimum-benefit-works/ss-AA25QHUd
(FROM THE ARTICLE: The Social Security Special Minimum Benefit was introduced in 1972 to ensure a baseline income for retirees with long histories of low earnings. It is based on years of coverage rather than lifetime average wages, with payments ranging from $53.50 to over $1,100 per month in 2026. Fewer people now qualify due to slower price-indexed growth, but it remains an important safety net, particularly for women and long-term low-wage earners.)
CAPITOL SKYLINE & MOTLEY FOOL
— While higher inflation often creates financial pressure, current projections suggest that the 2027 Social Security COLA could provide an unusual advantage for some retirees. If forecasts hold, next year’s increase may outpace the growth in Medicare Part B premiums for the first time since 2023, allowing many beneficiaries to keep more of their annual raise. DD: My critics/opponents were, are, and will always be furious a) that I got COLAs when I was a federal employee 1966-1969 and 1971-1997 and b) that I have gotten COLAs as a federal retiree since 1997 and as a Social Security recipient since 2010.
https://capitolskyline.com/social-securitys-2027-cola-could-bring-an-unexpected/
https://www.fool.com/retirement/2026/07/11/social-security-2027-cola-silver-lining-first-2023/
NATIONAL URBAN LEAGUE
— DD: Democrat leaders ever-increasingly a) glorify and praise their illegals and b) fight their deportation.
https://nul.org/news/ice-has-run-rogue-these-governors-and-mayors-are-last-line-defense-american-democracy
REASON
— Public employees are not underpaid. DD: In today’s dollars, when I was 49 in 1997, my salary was only $154,682/year working in the Democrat public sector. My critics/opponents have always hinted/implied/argued/shouted that if I had worked in the private sector, I never would have earned that much. In my defense, I earned three job-related master’s degrees, six job-related professional certifications, and a job-related professional license. If I had been a Democrat, my GAO salary would have been $197,200/year in today’s dollars.
https://reason.org/commentary/public-employees-are-not-underpaid/
RECORD
— Your Data Will Be Used Against You. DD: What do your critics/opponents use against you? My critics/opponents use the following against me: a) my demographics, b) my being conservative, c) my being Republican, d) my promoting conservative principles and planks in the Republican Party platform that they reject, e) my having avoided the Vietnam War draft, f) my having been a federal employee for almost 30 years, g) my having been a federal retiree for almost 29 years, h) the lawsuits that I have filed, i) their not being able to manipulate/dominate me, j) my refusing to glorify and praise them, k) my refusing to pander to them, l) my refusing to serve as one of their operatives or dupes, m) my refusing to cover up their wrong doing, and/or n) my refusing to give them money. I should write about my critics/opponents.
https://therecord.media/your-data-will-be-used-against-you-author-surveillance-technology
PEW RESEARCH
— Dual income, no kids: What we know about ‘DINKs’ in the U.S. DD: My Democrat GAO superiors 1980-1997 a) decried the time and money that they spent raising their children and b) decried the little or no income that their spouses had. They used against me big time a) my wife and I giving up trying to have children without trying IVF, our not adopting, and our not becoming foster parents and b) my wife’s good job. According to them, were it not for the aforesaid, we would not have been able to buy two new cars and a home in Wheaton in when we got married in 1978 and I would not have been able a) to pass the CPA examination on my first attempt in 1979, b) to take a $23,699/year (21%) pay cut in today’s dollars to transfer from IRS to GAO in 1980, c) to earn a master’s degree in accounting in 1980, d) to pass the Certified Internal Auditor examination on my first attempt in 1981, e) to become a licensed CPA in 1981, or f) to have a home built in Wheaton in 1984. My Democrat GAO superiors ever-increasingly demonized, denigrated, and condemned my wife and I as being disgusting selfish rich DINKs. I should write about my Democrat GAO superiors.
https://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2025/11/03/dual-income-no-kids-what-we-know-about-dinks-in-the-us/
FROM FOREIGN SOURCES
ECONOMIST
— DD: Democrat leaders ever-increasingly promote socialism.
https://www.economist.com/united-states/2026/07/11/checks-and-balance-newsletter-the-weirdness-of-american-socialism
NATURE
— Entrepreneurs v. wage earners. DD: My critics/opponents look down if not despise wage earners. I was a wage earner 1964-1997. Few political candidates, elected officials, and party leaders were wage earners for very long if at all.
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41599-024-04338-x
