ILLINOIS REPUBLICAN PARTY
— SCC & RCCA 2026 Agenda. DD: I have been a Republican Precinct Committeeman (RPC) since 1999. It would be great if RPCs got monthly emails from the Illinois Republican Party chairman, their IRP State Central Committee member, and their county/township/ward party leader that kept them up-to-date on what RPCs should know.
https://www.politico.com/f/?id=000001a0-1753-d3c1-a7b2-3f5bf2970000
GOPUSA ILLINOIS
— According to Google AI, “Roughly 43% to 49% of Americans view the Republican Party’s political stance as “too conservative,” according to long-standing national tracking polls. The phrase “too conservative” is frequently used in American political discourse to describe public perception of the party’s platform, specific legislative proposals, and judicial rulings.” According to my critics/opponents, I have always been too conservative, that is, I have always promoted conservative principles and Republican Party platform planks that they reject, most commonly its personal responsibility, traditional marriage and family, right to life, immigration, anti-vice, Second Amendment, and equal opportunity (no race or gender based preference giving) planks. But political parties exist to help elect candidates who can and will defend and advance their platform. The Republican Party platform is conservative. Democrat leaders aggressively promote the anti-conservative Democrat Party platform. RINO leaders fail/refuse to defend and advance the Republican Party platform. – Dave Diersen
http://www.gopillinois.com
— What motivates you to donate to Republican candidates’ campaigns? For me, it includes their demonstrated commitment, qualifications, and ability to defend and advance the Republican Party platform including its personal responsibility, traditional marriage and family, right to life, immigration, anti-vice, Second Amendment, and equal opportunity (no race or gender based preference giving) planks. – Dave Diersen
http://www.gopillinois.com
— What is your Republican Precinct Committeeman going to do to get out the vote? As the Republican Precinct Committeeman for DuPage County Milton Township Precinct 59 in Wheaton, I will hand-deliver to the 400 residences in my precinct that have at least one Republican or one Independent registered voter a copy of the sample ballot, campaign literature from all the candidates who provide their literature to the Milton Township Republican Organization (MTRO), and a MTRO voter guide. I have obtained a PDF file from the DuPage County Election Division mailing labels for the 660 Republican and Independent registered voters in my precinct. I have printed out those labels, I have affixing them to envelopes provided by MTRO, and put them into five batches in walk order. I will be stuffing those envelopes with MTRO’s voter guide, literature from the candidates, and the sample ballot. The Republican candidates on the ballot in my precinct are: Tracy, Bailey/Del Mar, Fioretti, Harris, Drew, Soloman, Oakley, Lewis, Vrankovich, Grasso, Noonan, Schiappa, Henry, Eckhoff, Michaud, Schultz, Quirk, and Helland. Literature from the 17 Republican candidates on the ballot in my precinct, the voter guide, and the sample ballot is 19 X 400 or 7,600 pieces. As soon as I have at least 100 literature pieces from each of the candidates, I will start stuffing with the sample ballot to be added last. – Dave Diersen
http://www.gopillinois.com
FROM ILLINOIS CENTER-LEFT SOURCES
CBS2
— DD: Democrat leaders ever-increasingly promote more LGBTQ.
https://www.cbsnews.com/chicago/news/illinois-gov-jb-pritzker-bills-lgbtq-illinoisans/
WTTW
— At State Fair, Illinois Democrats Focused on Trump as They Seek Third Sweep of Statewide Races.
https://news.wttw.com/2026/08/19/state-fair-illinois-democrats-focused-trump-they-seek-third-sweep-statewide-races
CHICAGO TRIBUNE
— DD: Democrat leaders ever-increasingly push more pot.
https://www.chicagotribune.com/2026/08/20/illinois-regulators-propose-allowing-licensed-cannabis-producers-to-grow-outdoors/
— Orland Park to use $1 million grant for Marley Creek flood mitigation. DD: Since 1984, I have spent many thousands of dollars and lots of my labor mitigating flood risk for my home in Wheaton because the stormwater drainage plan for its subdivision was woefully inadequate and because of construction defects.
https://www.chicagotribune.com/2026/08/18/orland-park-marley-creek-flood-mitigation/
CHICAGO SUN-TIMES
— Jesse White Tumbling Team eliminated from ‘America’s Got Talent.’ DD: During one of the 14 years that I raised $2,500/year from Republican candidates, elected officials, and party leaders 2005-2019 for “DuPage Republicans” to be the lead sponsor of Wheaton Independence Day parades and fireworks, Wheaton used the money to have the Jesse White Tumbling Team in the parade.
https://chicago.suntimes.com/movies-and-tv/2026/08/19/jesse-white-tumbling-team-americas-got-talent-live-results-show
DAILY HERALD
— Bartlett has no marijuana dispensaries. It could soon have two at the same intersection. DD: In 2019, I led the successful effort to ban the sale of pot in Wheaton.
https://www.dailyherald.com/20260819/news/bartlett-has-no-marijuana-dispensaries-it-could-soon-have-two-at-the-same-intersection/
SPRINGFIELD STATE JOURNAL REGISTER
— Governor’s Day at Illinois State Fair focused on U.S. Senate race.
https://www.sj-r.com/story/news/politics/state/2026/08/19/illinois-democrats-focus-on-trump-during-governors-day/91377294007/
WAND TV
— Democrats bash Trump, celebrate Durbin during Governor’s Day at Illinois State Fair.
https://www.wandtv.com/news/statehouse/democrats-bash-trump-celebrate-durbin-during-governors-day-at-illinois-state-fair/article_17ebf0d0-13eb-4aa4-be57-ed32305c3518.html
CENTRAL ILLINOIS PROUD
— GOP trails Democrats by 8 points on congressional ballot in new poll.
https://www.centralillinoisproud.com/news/national/gop-trails-democrats-by-8-points-on-congressional-ballot-in-new-poll/
DAILY LINE
— Illinois Democrats position state party’s success as an example for Democrats nationwide at annual Governor’s Day.
https://www.thedailyline.com/illinois-democrats-state-party-success-example-nationwide-governor-day
POLITICO ILLINOIS
— Illinois Dems dodge left flank wars. DD: Ever-increasingly, to vote for Democrats is to vote first for socialism, then for communism, and then for totalitarianism. How strongly are the Republican candidates on the November 3, 2026 ballot in your precinct stressing that?
https://www.politico.com/newsletters/illinois-playbook/2026/08/20/illinois-dems-dodge-left-flank-wars-01043103
(FROM THE NEWSLETTER: Party moves: Jeff Castle has been named State Central Committeeman for the 6th Congressional District. He replaces Bob Grogan, the Illinois GOP chair, who resigned from the committee seat. Castle is also chair of the Milton Republican Party and secretary of the DuPage Republican Party.)
CAPITOL FAX
— Morning briefing
https://capitolfax.com/2026/08/20/isabel%e2%80%99s-morning-briefing-795/
— Pritzker campaign launches ‘Too Extreme’ TV ad targeting Bailey. DD: Pritzker is extremely extreme.
https://capitolfax.com/2026/08/20/pritzker-campaign-launches-%e2%80%98too-extreme%e2%80%99-tv-ad-targeting-bailey/
— Governor’s Day coverage roundup
https://capitolfax.com/2026/08/20/governors-day-coverage-roundup/
FROM ILLINOIS CENTER-RIGHT SOURCES
RAY HANANIA
— Why is Pritzker pushing the massive 57 percent Tollway hike & other taxes? Pritzker needs the cash to cover his massive funding of undocumented residents (illegal aliens, non-citizens) by increasing more taxes. Meanwhile, seniors struggle under rising state taxes & fees.
https://hanania.substack.com/p/why-is-pritzker-pushing-the-massive
FROM NATIONAL CENTER-RIGHT SOURCES
WASHINGTON EXAMINER
— COLA increase estimated to be 3.2% in 2027. DD: What has helped you deal with inflation? COLAs have helped me deal with inflation big time. My critics/opponents are furious that I got COLAs while I worked for the federal government 1966-1969 and 1971-1997 and that I have continued to get COLAs as a federal retiree since 1997 and as a Social Security recipient since 2010.
https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/news/4686000/social-security-cost-of-living-adjustment-2027-inflation/
NEW YORK POST
— The SAT isn’t racist — but woke activists sure are. DD: According to my critics/opponents, I got an ACT score of 24 when I was 17 in 1966 because I benefitted tremendously from discrimination against minorities, females, non-Protestants, non-German Americans, and those whose ancestor had not been in America for a long time.
https://nypost.com/2026/08/20/opinion/the-sat-isnt-racist-but-woke-activists-sure-are/
1819
— Democrats’ disgusting and despicable embrace of socialist candidates. DD: Ever-increasingly, to vote for Democrats is to vote first for socialism, then for communism, and then for totalitarianism. How strongly are the Republican candidates on the November 3, 2026 ballot in your precinct stressing that?
https://1819news.com/news/item/they-actually-hate-america-britt-blasts-democrats-disgusting-and-despicable-embrace-of-socialist-candidates
AMERICAN CONSERVATIVE
— Some Shattering Illusions of Our Declining Empire. Americans are waking up to ugly truths.
https://www.theamericanconservative.com/some-shattering-illusions-of-our-declining-empire/
AMERICAN ENTERPRISE INSTITUTE
— Underwhelming Ideas: A Federal Jobs Guarantee. DD: According to Google AI, “Perception of Productivity: Private-sector employers may view state-guaranteed jobs as inferior, creating a secondary tier of worker stigma for program participants. Association with Welfare: Public work programs targeted strictly at individuals unable to find traditional work can carry the cultural baggage of dependency or perceived personal failure.” Private sector employers look down on public sector employees. I was a public sector employee 1966-1969 and 1971-1997. According to my critics/opponents, if I had been a private sector employee, I never would have been able to earn $154,682/year in today’s dollars even though I earned three job-related master’s degrees, six job-related professional certifications, and a job-related professional license. Even worse than that, according to my GAO superiors, supervisors, coworkers, and subordinates, if GAO had hired me when I was 22 instead of IRS, GAO would not have promoted me when I was 23, 24, and 25. GAO employees look down on executive branch employees.
https://www.aei.org/economics/underwhelming-ideas-a-federal-jobs-guarantee/
(FROM THE ARTICLE: In the smart and whimsical 1993 political comedy Dave, the eponymous character is the owner of a temp agency who has a side gig impersonating the president. And when the real deal suffers a stroke, a cabal of White House advisers offer Dave his own temp job: playing the commander-in-chief until the genuine article recovers. Many twists and turns later, the pretend president announces his very own plan to have Washington find a job for every American who wants one. Pull up the Wikipedia entry for Dave and you’ll see that last plot beat is hyperlinked. Clicking that link brings you to the Wikipedia entry for “job guarantee,” defined as an “economic policy proposal aimed at providing a sustainable solution to the dual problems of inflation and unemployment. Its aim is to create full employment and price stability, by having the state promise to hire unemployed workers as an employer of last resort.” So, yeah, it’s the kind of a silver-bullet solution a left-of-center screenwriter might think is pretty cool. Hey, if someone needs a job and can’t find a job, just have the government give them a job doing something or other. Public policy is so easy peasy.)
AMERICAN THINKER
— The Islamic Republic of NYC. Organized Radical Islam has learned that it is not necessary to mount a frontal assault on our buildings or hijack our planes.
https://www.americanthinker.com/articles/2026/08/the-islamic-republic-of-nyc/
— Socialism’s rise is fueled by business leaders’ retreat.
https://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2026/08/socialism-s-rise-is-fueled-by-business-leaders-retreat/
BREITBART
— DSA Is Absolutely Funded By and Tied to the Communist Chinese Party.
https://www.breitbart.com/clips/2026/08/19/anna-paulina-luna-dsa-is-absolutely-funded-and-tied-to-the-communist-chinese-party/amp/
COLLEGE FIX
— DD: I avoided Democrat indoctrination by majoring in business, accounting, and finance.
https://www.thecollegefix.com/peers-not-professors-push-students-left-politically-brown-u-study/
DAILY SIGNAL
— The Federal Bureaucracy Helped Build DEI’s Infrastructure. A New Rule Seeks to Change That. DD: While I worked 1964-1997, my employers were under ever-increasing pressure from the federal government to hire, to retain, and to promote minorities and females. I should write about that. Because of that, if I had not earned a job-related bachelor’s degree, three job-related master’s degrees, six job-related professional certifications, and a job-related professional license, I never would have earned $154,682/year in today’s dollars in 1997.
https://www.dailysignal.com/2026/08/19/the-federal-bureaucracy-helped-build-deis-infrastructure-heres-how-you-can-push-back/
(FROM THE ARTICLE: A federal regulation intended to combat workplace racial discrimination has become a weapon for the race-obsessed diversity, equity, and inclusion movement—but President Donald Trump’s administration is seeking to get rid of it. The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, a federal agency, has required specific employers to file an annual report summarizing data on their employees’ race and sex. The regulations currently apply to more than two million employers, at an estimated cost of $275 million each year and $4 million for the agency to administer the data collection. While the government required this data collection to prevent racial discrimination, it has arguably undermined the key goal of securing a colorblind workplace.)
FEDERALIST
— America Can’t Be A Welfare State And A Republic At The Same Time. DD: To get elected, Democrat and RINO candidates ever-increasingly promise more welfare.
https://thefederalist.com/2026/03/18/america-cant-be-a-welfare-state-and-a-republic-at-the-same-time/
FEDERATION FOR ECONOMIC EDUCATION
— DD: To vote for Democrats is to vote first for socialism, then for communism, and then for totalitarianism. How strongly are the Republican candidates on the November 3, 2026 ballot in your precinct stressing that?
https://fee.org/articles/the-welfare-state-has-slowly-but-surely-eroded-nordic-character/
FOX BUSINESS
— Victor Davis Hanson condemns ‘Woke 1,’ raises concerns about second manifestation.
https://www.foxbusiness.com/video/6403730272112
LAW ENFORCEMENT TODAY
— Oregon Gun Buyers Raced Ahead Of New Restrictions. DD: Oregon today, Illinois tomorrow.
https://lawenforcementtoday.com/oregon-gun-background-checks-measure-114-surge
(FROM THE ARTICLE: Oregon voters narrowly approved one of the nation’s most restrictive gun control measures in 2022. It’s been a boondoggle process of court challenges and implementation delays since then. But Oregonians have responded to the impending restrictions by racing to exercise their Second Amendment rights before the government could make doing so substantially more difficult. New research now puts hard numbers behind that response. Researchers studying Oregon’s Ballot Measure 114 found firearm-related background checks surged 157 percent immediately following the election. The rush to lawfully purchase firearms wasn’t a flash in the pan, either. Eighteen months later, researchers still identified roughly 63,000 additional firearm-related background checks beyond what otherwise would have been expected. The message is becoming increasingly difficult to ignore. When government threatens to put a constitutional right behind a permission slip, Americans exercise that right in massive numbers before the restrictions arrive. Oregonians Saw the Door Closing. Measure 114 passed with just 50.7 percent of the vote in November 2022. It created a permit-to-purchase requirement, mandated firearm safety training, implemented an additional completed background check before a permit could be issued and prohibited the manufacture, sale and transfer of magazines capable of holding more than 10 rounds, with limited exceptions. NSSF challenged the ballot measure at the time as unconstitutional. Oregonians were clear-eyed about what was coming.)
NATIONAL REVIEW
— Democrats Choose Socialism in the Sunshine State.
https://www.nationalreview.com/2026/08/democrats-choose-socialism-in-the-sunshine-state/
— Don’t Fall for Fake Polls
https://www.nationalreview.com/corner/dont-fall-for-fake-polls/
PJ MEDIA
— The Democratic Socialists of America Are ‘Deminazis.’ DD: To vote for Democrats is to vote first for socialism, then for communism, and then for totalitarianism. How strongly are the Republican candidates on the November 3, 2026 ballot in your precinct stressing that?
https://pjmedia.com/tim-o-brien/2026/08/14/the-democratic-socialists-of-america-are-deminazis-n4956152
(FROM THE ARTICLE: There is no entry in the Associated Press (AP) style book for “Deminazi,” and there likely never will be. That doesn’t make it any less accurate a descriptor for the dominant faction of the left known as the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA). The closest I could come to a correct usage is to refer back to the inspiration behind the term – Rush Limbaugh’s descriptor for the feminist movement: “feminazis.” All one word, no capital “n.” Works for me. Along these same lines, it’s a shame Graham Platner had to drop out of the Senate race in Maine and go home, taking his Nazi tattoo along with him. Since the DSA has conducted its takeover of the Democrat Party, that was the only notable instance of truth in advertising. Still, if we’re not careful, the socialists are on their way to taking over the country. Any DSA cult member who might read this would likely repeat the party’s key message point: “We’re not socialists, we’re Democratic socialists.” Right. Aesop, the creator of those classic and rather dark children’s fables, may have had the DSA in mind when he wrote “The Wolf in Sheep’s Clothing.” He could just as easily have called the tale, “The Commie Who Will Lie and Do Anything It Takes to Win the 2026 Midterms.” That said, one of the tricks today’s “DSA wolf” uses to seduce young people and unsuspecting voters is to skip over all of the lessons of socialism and communism throughout history and go right back to that age-old doctrine on paper that sounds so good to so many. Concepts like: “Each according to his ability, to each according to his needs;” “People over profit;” “Redistribution of wealth;” and more bluntly, “Tax the rich.” All of it is designed to appeal to that part of us that just doesn’t always want to do the work it takes to succeed in life, but instead, to become a nameless, faceless part of a larger group that will take care of us. Those of us who ignore that part of ourselves are not the targeted market for the DSA. If you’re talking to the right people, usually the powerless or those who feel powerless, the concept practically sells itself. Just ask Lenin, Mao, Castro, Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani, Hasan Piker, and now Abdul El-Sayed. Socialism is a loss leader for totalitarianism. Those who’ve actually read a history book or two know that socialism is always a soft-sell – the loss-leader, the gateway drug to communism. While the two aren’t interchangeable, they’re on the same road. While socialism calls for the state to own and control the means of production, in reality, once the state gets that far, it pretty much finishes the job and takes control of everything. Karl’s Marx’s vision for a communist utopia called for a classless society where there is common ownership of the means of production. Sounds just so nice, doesn’t it? Both socialist and communist idealism quickly falls apart when you realize that someone has to be in charge. Someone has to set priorities, oversee all of this, and be the boss. In other words, some human being still has to have more power than everyone else. But since under socialism and communism, self-governance is not really their thing (that would be something akin to American democracy), in practice, socialists find other ways to determine who’s in charge. In China, Mao Zedong rose to power through his own embrace and interpretation of Marxist ideology, applying it to Chinese society, particularly in rural areas. He became the dominant leader of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) in the mid-1930s. Then in 1949 he established the People’s Republic of China. Mao’s version of communism, the brand Piker seems to favor these days, was responsible for the deaths of 40 to 80 million Chinese, due largely to famine, but also a million or two were killed as part of his “Cultural Revolution.” People who weren’t quite on board with Mao suffered violent deaths through purges and in his famous “re-education camps.” Once someone decides your country is going to be socialist, which is a stepping stone to communism, you’ve pretty much given up your own rights and voice. You’ve surrendered them to the group. But since everyone else did the same thing, “the collective” will always consist of a small handful of people at the top (oligarchs) who knew all along it was a ruse, something they had to use to eventually win absolute power over you. Funny thing is, if you visit an American college campus this Fall, and you see that the DSA and socialism are all the rage, just like Taylor Swift and Black Lives Matter (BLM) were in recent years, none of those kids will know much about that whole absolute-power-over-you thing. They’re not thinking this through. Even if they did, they’d be hard-pressed to comprehend that socialist totalitarians have a tendency to let people die or actively kill them to consolidate power. Why totalitarians like socialism. One of the catchphrases about socialism is that, “Yes it has been tried before, but they have never done it the right way,” or some variation of that. In Russia, Vladimir Lenin led the Bolsheviks from the October 1917 Revolution until his death in 1924, which was preceded by a series of strokes. Like Mao, Lenin sold the people on what New York’s Mamdani has called “the warmth of collectivism.” They ate that stuff up. But as is always the case, since under socialism and communism, there is no democratic decision-making, the shots are called by one or two or a handful of people who aren’t bashful about grabbing power and wielding it, usually mercilessly, and often violently. Lenin personally oversaw something called “The Red Terror,” which killed 140,000 to 200,000 threats to his power. Joseph Stalin succeeded Lenin, and he wasn’t all that into empathy or mercy, either. His brand of socialism and communism looked much like that of every other socialist or communist leader, except to scale. To make sure the people knew who was in charge under “Stalinism,” he oversaw the direct killing of 6 million people who didn’t fall in line, but that number rises to 9 million if you count famine. From an economic standpoint, socialism and communism are shortcuts to mass starvation and death as well. At the same time, what always starts as an ideology that promises a perfect world through the power of the collective always ends with a totalitarian in charge. And to make sure that totalitarian stays in charge, many, many people have to pay the price, always with their freedom, often with their lives. This all brings us to perhaps the most notorious socialists in history and his fascist sidekicks, Adolf Hitler and Benito Mussolini. Since both Hitler and Mussolini were known as much for waging war against the rest of the world as for destroying lives and killing large segments of their own populations, for our purposes here, we’ll keep the focus narrower and center on a couple of terms. This is important because one thing the DSA and its allies like to do is frame Hitler as “far right,” and fascism as far right. The presumption is that socialism by definition is leftist, and so it can’t be fascist. Hitler was a socialist. Hitler was part of and eventually led the National Socialist German Workers’ Party (NSDAP), also known as the Nazi Party. Mention this to any leftist today, and you’ll hear a word salad about how Hitler’s version of socialism wasn’t the same thing that they espouse, or that he really wasn’t a true socialist because he was a fascist. The fact is, however, there was a reason Hitler called himself a socialist, and that’s because he was one. Then he did what just about all socialist leaders do when they get power: They add “totalitarian” to their resumes. Mussolini is credited with serving as the father of fascism, an ignoble moniker if ever there was one. He entered politics as a socialist and became a prominent member of the Italian Socialist Party (PSI). That party kicked him out in 1914 due to his advocacy for Italian intervention in the First World War. After that, he said something like, “Screw it, I’m just going to come up with my own thing and call it fascism,” though I believe he said it in Italian. Mussolini’s fascism retained or adapted several socialist characteristics, including the way the party was organized, the way the people were mobilized, a hatred of individualism, the rhetoric of revolution, and most importantly, the belief that your economic life exists to serve the larger collective. That’s Mussolini, the OG of fascism. The pattern through all of these examples is that socialism is an excellent pathway, and a well-worn one, on the way to communism, then to dictatorial fascism and totalitarianism. ‘Deminazis’ want to follow in the socialist tradition. Against this backdrop, the DSA today has built itself on a platform that may sound familiar to students of history, particularly students of German socialist or Nazi history. The DSA wants universal healthcare, which means government control over every citizen’s health decisions and health outcomes, not to mention government access to every citizen’s private health information. Imagine that kind of power in the hands of a totalitarian. The DSA wants “housing for all,” which like the healthcare item, puts government in control over every citizen’s home, whether he or she has a home, and the quality of that home. In the process, it puts government, and the small group of people in charge of government, in control over your quality of life. This sort of power can be wielded to reward you or punish you. The DSA wants free college for all. Not that universities need much encouragement here, but such a policy would codify that university campuses serve as nothing more than indoctrination camps. True to its organized labor roots, the DSA has much to say when it comes to work. Shorter workweeks, unionized workforces, higher wages, and likely higher union dues that end up finding their way back into “The Party.” To create dependency on government, rather than on individual industriousness, hard work, and innovation, the DSA really likes policies that require employers to pay people for not working, and policies that kill profitability and productivity. These agenda items include long periods of paid family leave, costly regulations tied to “climate change,” and higher taxes on businesses and business owners. The DSA’s “Free Palestine” pillar has been widely used as cover for antisemitism and all of the targeted discrimination and targeted and violent attacks on Jews, which are on the rise. It’s also been used to attack federal policymaking and foreign relations, including the country’s relationship with Israel. The DSA wants to cut U.S. military spending while knowing that the country’s adversaries, like China and Russia, are building their military strength. And why would that be? I’m getting a “Manchurian candidate” vibe here. The DSA is working to make it palatable to the masses to consider the piece-by-piece destruction of American democracy, starting with the dilution of citizen self-governance, declaring that non-citizens be given the same rights and the same voice in the nation’s governance. It wants to abolish the Senate, abolish the Electoral College, jerry-rig and expand Congress in accordance with its own designs, reduce the power of the Supreme Court, and pack the Supreme Court. None of this happens overnight, of course, but if they are eventually successful, it will be because we lost democracy piece by piece. Every single one of these items, if implemented, would help to put America on the same well-trodden path that failed socialist and communist states have followed before. But failure is in the eye of the beholder. If you really believe in socialism as written on paper, then maybe these others have failed. But if you see socialism as a pathway to totalitarianism, then they were wildly successful, the most notable one being the case of that little German guy with the funny mustache who showed us what socialism looks like if you follow it to its logical conclusion. In America, as we look ahead to the 2026 midterms, the DSA has enough momentum to constitute too much momentum. We as a nation should know by now socialism just can’t be on the table, but it is. And that’s why the Democratic Party is no longer a “democratic” party; it’s why the DSA has nothing to do with democracy; and it’s why the most fitting brand for the Democrats and the DSA is the “Deminazis.”)
TOWNHALL
— Back to Empty Classrooms.
https://townhall.com/columnists/johnandandyschlafly/2026/08/19/back-to-empty-classrooms-n2681500
— ICE Keeps Arresting Predators. Sanctuary Cities Keep Calling It Fearmongering.
https://townhall.com/columnists/jay-rogers/2026/08/20/ice-keeps-arresting-predators-sanctuary-cities-keep-calling-it-fearmongering-n2681552
FROM NATIONAL CENTER-LEFT SOURCES
NBC NEWS
— Democratic candidate for FL governor says Trump is ‘promoting socialism’ as president.
https://www.nbcnews.com/meet-the-press/video/democratic-candidate-for-fl-governor-says-trump-is-promoting-socialism-as-president-268551237672
CNN
— DD: Democrat leaders ever-increasingly promote socialism.
https://www.cnn.com/2026/08/19/politics/video/we-are-united-dnc-chair-on-democrats-civil-war-amid-socialist-surge-lcl
NEWSWEEK
— Many Floridians Escaped Socialism; Now They Could Elect One to the Senate.
https://www.newsweek.com/many-floridians-escaped-socialism-now-they-could-elect-one-to-the-senate-12344087
NEW YORK TIMES
— Ocasio-Cortez Rewrites the Rules. The latest shot heard ’round the world came not from a gun but from a syringe of fertility hormones belonging to Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez.
https://www.nytimes.com/2026/08/16/opinion/aoc-egg-freezing-women-politics.html
— FRONT PAGE TOP OF FOLD: Trump Fired the Watchdogs. Their Replacements Have a Different Mission. President Trump is installing his allies in the offices of inspector general, which are meant to provide independent government oversight. DD: While I worked for the Democrats who ran GAO 1980-1997 and for the Democrats who ran the Association of Government Accountants Chicago Chapter 1983-1996, I had lots of interactions with the Democrat Chicago offices of Inspector Generals. None of them came to my defense when my Democrat GAO superiors forced me to retire when I was 49 in 1997. None of them were interested in hiring me.
https://www.nytimes.com/2026/08/18/us/politics/trump-inspector-general.html
— Fake Polls in Wisconsin and California Were Part of a ‘Social Experiment.’
https://gvwire.com/2026/08/19/fake-polls-in-wisconsin-and-california-were-part-of-a-social-experiment/
WASHINGTON POST
— DD: Democrat leaders ever-increasingly promote socialism.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2026/08/19/how-democratic-socialist-angie-nixon-pulled-off-an-upset-win-florida/
— For the first time in 50 years, college grads are losing their edge. DD: If I had not earned a bachelor’s degree in business, Firestone Stores would not have hired me in 1970. If I had not passed the Federal Service Entrance Examination, the Democrats who ran IRS would not have hired me in 1971. If I had not been taking graduate evening business courses, my Democrat IRS superiors would not have promoted me in 1972, 1973, and 1974. If I had not earned an MBA and passed the CPA examination on my first attempt, the Democrats who ran GAO would not have hired me in 1980. If I had not earned a master’s degree in accounting, passed the Certified Internal Auditor examination on my first attempt, and became a licensed CPA, the Democrats who ran GAO would not have promoted me in 1986. If I had not been taking graduate evening finance courses, my Democrat GAO superiors might have succeed in forcing me to retire in 1993 instead of 1997.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2026/01/31/labor-market-gap-trade-workers-white-collar/
— DD: Democrat leaders ever-increasingly destroy traditional marriage and family.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/outlook/2021/09/28/golden-era-traditional-marriage-was-never-what-conservatives-thought/
USA TODAY
— DD: Democrat leaders ever-increasingly promote socialism.
https://www.usatoday.com/story/opinion/columnist/2026/08/19/dsa-candidates-2026-midterms-democratic-socialism/91368818007/
— DD: To be woke is to be anti-conservative, anti-Republican, anti-American, anti-White, anti-male, anti-older people, anti-Christian, anti-German American, and/or anti-those who have ancestors who have been in America for a long time.
https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2026/08/19/woke-1-woke-2-meme-origin-aoc/91351078007/
WALL STREET JOURNAL
— How a Democratic Socialist Caught Fire in Florida. Angie Nixon scored an upset with her left-wing economic message but now faces an uphill battle against GOP Sen. Ashley Moody.
https://www.wsj.com/politics/elections/how-democratic-socialism-caught-fire-in-florida-19333a53
FORBES
— Obama, Warren, Pritzker, & More Honor Dick Durbin’s Career In Senate.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2MK0s5ICRCs
— How To Build A Career That Isn’t Dependent On One Job. DD: Private sector employers look down on public sector employees. The longer that you work in the public sector, the harder it is to get a job in the private sector. My having been a public sector employee for almost 3 years harmed my efforts to get good job in the private sector after I earned a bachelor’s degree in management from NIU when I was 21 in 1970. In anticipation of that, as a fallback, I took and passed the Federal Service Entrance Examination before I graduated. I would not have become an IRS employee when I was 22 a) if my Firestone Store boss had not rudely fired me because I had accepted a job offer from Oldsmobile and b) if Oldsmobile had not withdrawn that offer because it had just agreed to stop hiring Whites to settle an EEOC complaint. Because I refused to become a Democrat, my Democrat IRS superiors did everything they could to get rid of me. They got rid of the IRS manager who had promoted me in when I was 23, 24, and 25. They disallowed my travel vouchers when I was 25. They ignored/dismissed/belittled my earning an MBA when I was 27. They disallowed my education deductions when I was 29. They ignored/dismissed/belittled my passing the CPA examination on my first attempt when I was 30. They ever-increasing made it clear that they would never promote me to GS-13. Of course, the aforesaid made it ever-increasingly impossible for me to get any kind of job anywhere. Because of the aforesaid, to get promoted to GS-13, I took a $23,699/year (21%) pay cut in today’s dollars to transfer to GAO. My Democrat GAO superiors did promote me to GS-13, but not until I was 38. They would never have promoted me a) if I had not earned a master’s degree in accounting when I was 31, b) if I had not passed the Certified Internal Auditor examination on my first attempt when I was 32, c) if I had not became a licensed CPA when I was 32, and d) if the GAO manager who had arranged my transfer had not gotten back into power.
https://www.forbes.com/sites/shodewan/2026/06/26/how-to-build-a-career-that-isnt-dependent-on-one-job/
FAST COMPANY
— 5 underrated career strategies for getting promoted. DD: To get promoted, my Democrat coworkers in the federal government a) stressed that they were Democrat, minority, female, younger, veteran, non-Protestant, non-German American, and/or had ancestors who had not been in America for a long time, b) stressed that they blindly loyal to the Democrat Party platform, c) painted themselves as being yes-men and yes-women, d) stressed that their spouse, if they had one, had little or no income, e) stressed the tremendous amount of time and money that they spent raising their children, if they had children, and f) destroyed their fellow coworkers who were Republican, White, male, older, non-veteran, Protestant, German American, and/or had ancestors who had been in America for a long time.
https://www.fastcompany.com/91586421/5-underrated-promotion-strategies
MOTLEY FOOL
— Millions of Americans Are Retiring Earlier Than They’d Planned To. You will face multiple problems if you’re forced to retire early. DD: My retirement income and savings are dramatically less because my Democrat superiors in the federal government wasted my career and forced me to retire when I was 49 in 1997. But far worse than that, my critics/opponents viciously use against me my being forced to retire early. They hint/imply/argue/shout that I am a bad person and that is why I was forced to retire early. They hint/imply/argue/shout that I am an extremely bad person because I was forced to retire even though I had three job-related master’s degrees, six job-related professional certifications, and a job-related professional license. They stress that I passed the CPA and Certified Internal Auditor examinations on my first attempt, something that none of my superiors, supervisors, coworkers, or subordinates did.
https://www.fool.com/retirement/2026/06/14/millions-of-americans-retiring-earlier-than-plan/
LAW
— DD: Democrats and RINOs will always use Affirmative Action and DEI to get rid of Republicans.
https://www.law.com/article/almID/900005518698/
Tag: inclusion
August 17, 2026
FROM ILLINOIS CENTER-LEFT SOURCES
NBC5
— 16 teens arrested at vacant Congress Theater, 1 week after illegal rave. The teens, ages 13 to 19, were all charged with one misdemeanor count for criminal trespassing. The mass arrest comes after a local DJ held an unsanctioned rave at the theater on Aug. 8 that drew several young people. DD: What is your municipality doing to stop Democrat teen takeovers?
https://www.nbcchicago.com/news/local/16-teens-arrested-at-vacant-congress-theater-1-week-after-illegal-rave/3976097/
— Frustrations grow as power outages persist in NW Indiana after derecho. DD: The more that overhead lines bring power to your home, the more that those lines are near trees, the more that I recommend getting a whole-house backup electric generator.
https://www.nbcchicago.com/video/news/local/frustrations-grow-as-power-outages-persist-in-nw-indiana-after-derecho/3976247/
CBS2
— 16 teenagers arrested after trespassing inside Congress Theater on Northwest Side. DD: What is your municipality doing to stop Democrat teen takeovers?
https://www.cbsnews.com/chicago/news/16-teenagers-arrested-trespassing-congress-theater/
CHICAGO TRIBUNE
— 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/2026/08/17/ice-out-chicago/
CHICAGO SUN-TIMES
— Darren Bailey accepts campaign money from sex offender who’s now pastor, attends service at his church. Victor D. Barr was convicted of sexually abusing a 17-year-old girl when she was a Rockford high school student and he was a teacher. He and his household have made three campaign donations to the Republican candidate for governor, who also visited Barr’s congregation in June. Bailey didn’t know Barr’s background and now plans to give the contributions to charity, an aide says.
https://chicago.suntimes.com/the-watchdogs/2026/08/17/darren-bailey-campaign-money-registered-sex-offender-victor-barr-pastor-faith-center-rockford
— ALLL OF THE FRONT PAGE: DD: Democrat leaders ever-increasingly a) glorify and praise their illegals and b) fight their deportation.
https://chicago.suntimes.com/crime/2026/08/17/broadview-six-judge-april-perry-trump-vance
DAILY HERALD
— Midwest shows DSA left could take over the Democratic Party.
https://www.dailyherald.com/20260816/syndicated-columnists/midwest-shows-dsa-left-could-take-over-the-democratic-party/
WBEZ
— Muslim families look to Arabic immersion education to give their children a foundation in faith and identity. Chicago-area Muslim families are flocking to a small southwest suburban school for its rigorous, play-based curriculum taught entirely in Arabic. DD: Democrat leaders fight assimilation.
https://www.wbez.org/education/2026/05/30/chicago-muslim-families-arabic-immersion-education-faith-identity-bridgeview-quran-mas-blossoms
NPR ILLINOIS
— DD: Democrat leaders ever-increasingly promote more LGBTQ.
https://www.nprillinois.org/2026-08-16/what-are-we-going-to-do-the-mom-of-a-trans-teen-grapples-with-trumps-medicaid-move
— Staying in a job for the health insurance? About 1 in 4 Americans do. DD: The federal government paying 72% of my healthcare insurance since 1966 and then also paying 72% of my wife’s healthcare insurance since 1978 helped me endure tremendous efforts by my Democrat superiors in the federal government to waste my career and to get rid of me. 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.
https://www.npr.org/2026/07/22/nx-s1-5902333/health-insurance-jobs-gallup
ILLINOIS TIMES
— DD: Democrat leaders ever-increasingly promote more hatred against Trump.
https://www.illinoistimes.com/news/democracy-rising-rally-held-at-old-state-capitol/
PATRICIA KLADIS-SCHIAPPA FOR DUPAGE COUNTY CLERK
— Burr Ridge park district cancels meet and greet event
https://www.facebook.com/61579580051028/posts/for-immediate-release-burr-ridge-illinois-8162026i-regret-to-inform-the-communit/122178940904986001/
POLITICO ILLINOIS
— State Fair glow meets ethics shadow
https://www.politico.com/newsletters/illinois-playbook/2026/08/17/state-fair-glow-meets-ethics-shadow-01038943
CAPITOL FAX
— Morning briefing
https://capitolfax.com/
FROM ILLINOIS CENTER-RIGHT SOURCES
MCHENRY COUNTY BLOG
— Analysis of Catalina Lauf’s Probable Victory in Southwest Florida’s 19th Congressional District.
https://www.mchenrycountyblog.com/2026/08/16/analyzing-catalina-laufs-probable-victory-in-southwest-florildas-19th-congresisonal-district/
BREAKTHROUGH IDEAS
— AOC: Cunning and Callous
https://www.breakthrough-ideas.com/read/2026/08/12/aoc-cunning-and-callous
— Abdul El-Sayed’s Equally Radical Half-Sister Eman Abdelhad. She is an assistant professor at the University of Chicago in the Department of Comparative Human Development.
https://www.breakthrough-ideas.com/read/2026/08/14/abdul-el-sayeds-equally-radical-half-sister-eman-abdelhadi
FROM NATIONAL CENTER-RIGHT SOURCES
WASHINGTON TIMES
— Democratic National Committee Chair Ken Martin sees room for leftists in ‘big tent’ party. Summer meeting ends without resolving ICE fight, Israel rift or midterm cash gap.
https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2026/aug/16/democratic-national-committee-chair-ken-martin-sees-room-leftists-big/
— Democrats need an agenda before socialists write one for them. Empty opposition to Trump keeps handing energy to the party’s radical wing.
https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2026/aug/16/democrats-need-agenda-socialists-write-one/
— Radical Democrats gearing up for woke 2.0. Slogans may change, but the extreme leftist agenda remains.
https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2026/aug/16/radical-democrats-gearing-woke-20/
WASHINGTON EXAMINER
— Half of Democratic voters hold negative view of capitalism. DD: How successful have Democrat leaders been promoting socialism in your county, township, municipality, school district, and precinct?
https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/policy/economy/4689225/half-democratic-voters-negative-view-capitalism-poll/
NEW YORK POST
— Dems now favor socialism over capitalism by this overwhelming amount.
https://nypost.com/2026/08/16/us-news/dems-now-favor-socialism-over-capitalism-by-this-overwhelming-amount-new-poll/
— Gingrich: Iran betting it can outlast Trump if Dems take Congress. ‘Trying to win in America politically’ like North Vietnam.
https://nypost.com/2026/08/16/us-news/iran-betting-it-can-outlast-trump-if-dems-take-congress-gingrich-says/
— If we don’t face WHY men are giving up on work, America’s future is grim. DD: Democrat and RINO employers ever-increasingly give more preference to young women and to young minorities.
https://nypost.com/2026/08/16/opinion/if-we-dont-face-why-men-are-giving-up-on-work-americas-future-is-grim/
(FROM THE ARTICLE: This dysfunction leads to higher rates of drug abuse and suicide, both far worse among men than women, as well as “failure to launch” that now sees one in five men aged 25 to 34 living “at home,” markedly more than their female peers. And men who can’t serve as the family’s prime breadwinners tend not to form families at all, driving both the rise in single-parent (almost always a woman) homes and the decline in US birth rates. Demographers predict that by 2038 more Americans will die than be born.)
AMERICAN ENTERPRISE INSTITUTE
— DD: What do you say to those a) who are able-bodied, b) who refuse to work, and c) who demand welfare?
https://www.aei.org/commentary/are-you-a-bad-citizen/
BRETBART
— Democratic Committee Urges Congress to Defund ICE, Free Illegals.
https://www.breitbart.com/immigration/2026/08/17/democratic-committee-urges-congress-to-defund-ice-free-illegal-migrants/amp/
— Democrats Swamp State Legislatures with 250 Pro-Migrant Bills to Obstruct Trump’s Deportation Mandate.
https://www.breitbart.com/immigration/2026/08/16/democrats-swamp-state-legislatures-with-250-pro-migrant-bills-to-obstruct-trumps-deportation-mandate/
CAMPUS REFORM
— The new DEI witness protection program at universities. DD: Because of Affirmative Action and because of DEI, that is, because of political affiliation discrimination, reverse discrimination, and age discrimination, those who are the following should anticipate/expect that will always have to do more to advance: conservative, Republican, White, male, non-veteran, Protestant, German American, and/or have ancestors who have been in America for a long time. Because I am all of the aforesaid, to advance, I worked my way through college. I earned a job-related bachelor’s degree. I earned three job-related master’s degrees. I earned six job-related professional certifications. I earned a job-related professional license. If I had been liberal/moderate, Democrat, minority, female, veteran, non-Protestant, non-German American, and/or had ancestors who have not been in America for a long time, the Democrats who ran the federal government would have promoted me into their Senior Executive Service, currently $197,200/year, long before I was 40 years old. Instead, they wasted my career and forced me to retire when I was 49 in 1997.
https://www.campusreform.org/article/new-dei-witness-protection-program-universities-analysis/30401
(FROM THE ARTICLE: Changing the acronym may change the press release, but it does not change the requirements of federal civil rights law. At universities across the country, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) offices are undergoing transformations that would make the Federal Witness Protection Program proud. Diversity becomes “community.” Inclusion becomes “belonging.” Equity becomes “excellence.” Administrators acquire new titles. Departments get new signs.)
DAILY CALLER
— Chicago Has 7 Times The Murders Of Cities In State That Respects Gun Rights.
https://dailycaller.com/2026/08/16/a-study-in-contrasts-one-city-in-anti-2a-state-has-seven-times-the-murders-as-three-in-a-state-that-respects-2a-rights/
FOX NEWS
— Woke 1 looks TAME compared to Woke 2.
https://www.youtube.com/watch%3Fv%3DfdhvAn5sKa8
— Reince Priebus: Donald Trump is the ‘biggest’ reason why ‘Woke 1.0’ is dead. DD: All my critics/opponents are some degree of woke.
https://www.foxnews.com/video/6403538809112
— Long Island street takeover erupts as drivers block road, perform donuts, burnouts. DD: What is your municipality doing to stop Democrat teen takeovers?
https://noticias.foxnews.com/us/long-island-street-takeover-erupts-drivers-block-road-perform-donuts-burnouts-police
HOT AIR
— Chicago Teachers Union’s Sustainable Community Schools Is a Scam.
https://hotair.com/headlines/2026/08/15/chicago-teachers-unions-sustainable-community-schools-is-a-scam-n3817991
TOWNHALL
— If Democrats Win, Trump Will Be Impeached Again.
https://townhall.com/columnists/jeffcrouere/2026/08/17/if-democrats-win-trump-will-be-impeached-again-n2681343
FROM NATIONAL CENTER-LEFT SOURCES
THE HILL
— Fetterman warns of socialism’s rise in the Democratic Party: ‘This is lunacy’
https://thehill.com/homenews/campaign/6032418-fetterman-warns-socialism-rise/
NBC NEWS
— Tough economy forces Gen Z to rewrite the American dream playbook. Squeezed by high costs, an unwelcoming housing market and uncertain career prospects, younger adults are making hard choices — and getting creative. DD: How many Gen Zers are doing what I did? I worked my way through college. I earned a job-related bachelor’s degree. I worked two jobs for 18 months. I earned three job-related master’s degrees. I earned six job-related professional certifications. I earned a job-related professional license.
https://www.nbcnews.com/business/economy/gen-z-rewrites-american-dream-playbook-rcna591764
CBS NEWS
— Most Americans believe a free market system is a good thing. Americans are net-negative on socialism. Capitalism is better-liked. But those ideas aside, right now they say it’s harder now to do things like buy a house, raise a family, and to just feel financially secure than for the last generation. Younger people are especially apt to feel opportunities are fewer. So most also call the current U.S. economic system unfair, in terms of the way it works for chances to get ahead. DD: To get ahead under socialists, you have to be a socialist. To get ahead under Democrats, you have to be a Democrat. To get ahead under RINOs, you have to be a RINO. To get ahead under Affirmative Action and DEI, you have to be a female or a minority.
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/democrats-socialism-economy-political-parties-opinion-poll/
NEWSWEEK
— Best Test Prep 2026. DD: I would not have passed the CPA examination on my first attempt when I was 30 in 1979 if I had not a) taken the Becker CPA Review, b) taken graduate evening accounting courses at DePaul, c) earned an MBA from Loyola, and d) worked for IRS for 8 years.
https://www.newsweek.com/readerschoice/best-test-prep-2026
(FROM THE ARTICLE: Becker provides professional education and exam preparation programs for individuals pursuing accounting, finance and business certifications. Best known for its CPA Exam review courses, Becker offers comprehensive study materials, practice questions, lectures and personalized learning tools. Its programs help students and professionals prepare for certification exams while building the knowledge and skills needed for career advancement.)
WASHINGTON POST
— His family fled socialism. He’s trying to spread it. A young Cuban American is selling democratic socialism door-to-door across Miami. But he cannot bring himself to discuss it across his family’s kitchen table.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2026/08/16/an-activist-tries-sell-socialism-miami-people-who-fled-castro/
USA TODAY
— DD: Democrat leaders ever-increasingly blame Trump for inflation.
https://www.usatoday.com/story/grocery/2026/08/10/families-using-credit-grocery-stores-costs/91128536007/
SEATTLE TIMES
— About one-third of single, unemployed Americans have paused dating. DD: What helped you become marriage material? By the time I got married when I was 29 in 1978, I had worked for IRS for almost 7 years and my salary was $110,066/year in today’s dollars. I had earned an MBA from Loyola in 1976 and I was taking graduate evening accounting courses at DePaul. I lived in a one bedroom condo in the Outer Drive East building that I had bought in 1976. I was renting out a town home in University Park that I had bought new in 1972. I owned a 1972 Corvette that I had bought new in 1971. See Money Magazine’s 4-page February 1978 article on my wife and I at https://gopillinois.com/documents/ Things that impressed me about my outstanding wife included that her first job after high school was working for the FBI. She soon became the Corporate Secretary of the U.S. League of Savings Institutions. She did much to help elect Big Jim Thompson governor in 1976. She earned a bachelor’s degree in finance from DePaul in 1986.
https://www.seattletimes.com/business/one-of-them-was-unemployed-could-they-afford-to-date/
WALL STREET JOURNAL
— Why White-Collar Workers Can’t Get Ahead. DD: What did you do to get ahead? I earned a job-related bachelor’s degree. I earned three job-related master’s degrees. I earned six job-related professional certifications. I earned a job-related professional license.
https://www.wsj.com/lifestyle/careers/why-white-collar-workers-cant-get-ahead-a5b4870e
— Democrats Try to End Internal Squabbling.
https://www.wsj.com/politics/elections/democrats-turn-focus-to-winning-after-months-of-internal-fights-29c49635
FORTUNE
— Backstabbing is the new office norm: Gen Z and millennials are blame-shifting, snitching, and setting others up to fail—but so are managers. DD: Far too many of my Democrat superiors, supervisors, coworkers, and subordinates were backstabbers. Far too many who claim to be religious, conservative, and/or Republican are backstabbers.
https://fortune.com/article/gen-z-millennials-backstabbing-get-ahead-career-new-office-norm-rto-research/
BUSINESS WIRE
— Getting ahead. DD: What did you do to get ahead? I earned a job-related bachelor’s degree. I earned three job-related master’s degrees. I earned six job-related professional certifications. I earned a job-related professional license.
https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260324580106/en/New-Employer-Ratings-Reveal-Where-Workers-Actually-Get-Ahead-Role-by-Role
24/7 WALL STREET
— A couple earning $110,000 combined with $65,000 in student debt got Ramsey’s green light to have a baby, thanks largely to $45,000 in imminent PSLF forgiveness. Staying a two-income household is the single variable that determines success. Dropping to $55,000 makes the $2,200 mortgage financially crushing. Jade Warshaw recommends building a faux budget before the baby arrives, modeling both dual- and single-income scenarios with real daycare quotes. DD: According my Democrat GAO superiors, if my wife and I had children, I would not have been able to a) pass the CPA examination on my first attempt when I was 30, b) afford to take a $23,699/year (21%) pay cut in today’s dollars to transfer from IRS to GAO and earn a master’s degree in accounting when I was 31, c) pass the Certified Internal Auditor examination on my first attempt and become a licensed CPA when I was 32, d) have a home built in Wheaton when I was 35, and g) buy a collector car when I was 40. My Democrat GAO superiors ever-increasingly demonized, denigrated, and condemned my wife and I as being disgusting selfish rich DINKs. They would not have done that if I had been a Democrat, minority, female, or veteran. They knew full-well that both my wife and I had major fertility problems. They painted themselves as being grossly underpaid. They decried the time and money they spent raising their children. They decried the little or no income that their wives had. Should I write about my Democrat GAO superiors?
https://247wallst.com/personal-finance/2026/08/16/dave-ramsey-tells-couple-earning-110000-they-can-afford-a-baby-but-one-decision-could-change-everything/
HARVARD KENNEDY SCHOOL
— Defining a “Good Job” DD: What jobs have you had? Overwhelmingly, when I was young, my peers a) had parents who had more money than my parents did, b) did not have to take jobs let alone take bad jobs, and/or c) viewed the jobs that I took as being bad jobs that they would never stoop to take. 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. I worked on an automotive assembly line in 1970. I sold tires, automotive services, and major appliances 1970-1971. I pumped more gasoline 1971-1972. I collected delinquent federal taxes 1971-1980. I audited federal agencies 1980-1997.
https://www.hks.harvard.edu/centers/wiener/programs/economy/our-work/reimagining-economy-blog/daniel-schneider-defines-a-good-job
SHRM
— What’s the Difference Between a ‘Good’ Job and a ‘Bad’ Job? 10 Dimensions of Job Quality. DD: What about how jobs are viewed? All the jobs that I had were viewed as being bad jobs. 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. I worked on an automotive assembly line in 1970. I sold tires, automotive services, and major appliances 1970-1971. I pumped more gasoline 1971-1972. I collected delinquent federal taxes 1971-1980. I audited federal agencies 1980-1997.
https://www.shrm.org/topics-tools/news/employee-relations/whats-difference-good-job-bad-job
(FROM THE ARTICLE: Level of pay. Stable and predictable pay. Stable and predictable hours. Control over hours and/or job location. Job security. Employee benefits. Career advancement opportunities. Enjoying the day-to-day work. Having a sense of purpose and dignity at work. Having the power to change things that are unsatisfying at work.)
BEST COLLEGES
— 40 Companies That Pay for College With Tuition Reimbursement. DD: I worked for the Post Office 1966-1969, Firestone Stores 1970-1972, IRS 1971-1980, and GAO 1980-1997. Because they did not reimburse tuition or reimbursed only token amounts, I paid lots of my own money for tuition a) to earn a job-related bachelor’s degree from NIU in 1970 (many courses), b) to earn a job-related master’s degree from Loyola in 1976 (16 courses), c) to pass a job-related professional examination in 1979, d) to earn a job-related master’s degree from DePaul in 1980 (12 courses), e) to pass a job-related professional examination in 1981, and f) to earn a job-related master’s degree from IIT in 1997 (14 courses). To add insult to injury and to get rid of me, my Democrat IRS superiors disallowed my education deductions in 1978 outrageously, disgustingly, falsely, and unethically arguing that the courses I took a) did not relate to my job duties, b) did not maintain or improve my job skills, c) were taken by me to get a job in the private sector, and d) qualified me for a new trade or business.
https://www.bestcolleges.com/resources/companies-with-tuition-reimbursement/
AMERICAN FEDERATION OF TEACHERS
— Student debt: The hidden affordability crisis. DD: Because I worked my way through college, I graduated debt-free with a bachelor’s degree in management from NIU in August of 1970 owning a 1969 Dodge Charger SE. Not that I could have gotten a student loan, but if I had gotten one, I would not have been able to a) buy a new 1972 Corvette in October of 1971, b) pay tuition for graduate evening business courses starting in January of 1972, or b) buy a new townhome in September of 1972.
https://www.aft.org/column/student-debt-hidden-affordability-crisis
BUZZ FEED
— Jobs That Are Either Criminally Underpaid Or Wildly Overpaid. DD: According to my critics/opponents, I was always overpaid. 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. I worked on an automotive assembly line in 1970. I sold tires, automotive services, and major appliances 1970-1971. I pumped more gasoline 1971-1972. I collected delinquent federal taxes 1971-1980. I audited federal agencies 1980-1997.
https://www.yahoo.com/lifestyle/articles/29-jobs-either-criminally-underpaid-110103399.html
— Turning To Socialism. DD: To get ahead under Democrats, you have to be a Democrat. Because I refused to become a Democrat, I did not get ahead in the federal government. To get ahead under RINOs, you have to be a RINO. Because I refused to become a RINO, I did not get ahead in the Milton Township Republican Organization, DuPage County Republican Central Committee, or Illinois Republican Party.
https://www.aol.com/articles/fox-news-host-blaming-gop-202209000.html
POLITICO
— DD: Some blame Bernie Sanders for Hong’s defeat. I should write about the following who have blamed me and have blamed my GOPUSA ILLINOIS newsletters the most for defeats suffered by Republican candidates on ballots in my precinct since 2000: past and present a) leaders of the Milton Township Republican Organization, DuPage County Republican Central Committee, Illinois Republican Party, TAPROOT Republicans of Illinois, and Illinois Center Right Coalition, b) Republican leaders of Wheaton, Milton Township, DuPage County, and Illinois, c) Republican candidates on ballots in my precinct and their political consultants, major donors, fundraisers, pollsters, campaign managers, campaign staff members, and campaign volunteers, d) conservative leaders, and e) religious leaders.
https://www.politico.com/news/2026/08/13/bernie-sanders-wisconsin-progressives-hong-01037121
AXIOS
— America is quickly becoming Sin Nation. Or, as President Trump put it while discussing prediction markets in the Oval Office last month: “The whole world, unfortunately, has become somewhat of a casino.” Why it matters: Once-forbidden vices — weed, gambling and porn — are no longer confined to back alleys or the desert. They’re ubiquitous, digital and spreading at a pace that has outstripped the country’s social and regulatory guardrails. Governments didn’t turn a blind eye to most of this behavior. They encouraged it. We’re scaling sin in real time.
https://www.axios.com/2026/05/12/america-gambling-weed-deepfakes
PSY POST
— DD: As fewer and fewer and fewer men earn college degrees, college women increasingly marry men without degrees. My wife and I got married when I was 29. She was impressed that I earned a bachelor’s degree in management when I was 21 and an MBA when I was 27 and I was taking graduate evening accounting courses.
https://www.psypost.org/college-women-are-increasingly-marrying-men-without-degrees-as-college-demographics-shift/
August 16, 2026
FROM ILLINOIS CENTER-LEFT SOURCES
CHICAGO SUN-TIMES
— ALL OF THE FRONT PAGE: DD: Democrat leaders ever-increasingly a) glorify and praise their illegals and b) fight their deportation.
https://chicago.suntimes.com/la-voz/2026/08/13/tras-seis-meses-detenida-por-ice-una-vendedora-de-tamales-de-chicago-reconstruye-su-vida
— DD: Democrat leaders ever-increasingly promote more Islam.
https://chicago.suntimes.com/columnists/2026/08/15/muslim-politics-democrat-trump-el-sayed-mamdani-piker-rummana-hussain
— DD: Democrat leaders always hint/imply/argue/shout that police are racists.
https://chicago.suntimes.com/the-watchdogs/2026/08/14/traffic-stops-racial-disparities-chicago-police-department-illinois-department-transportation-driving-while-black
ABC7
— A petition to declare U.S. Ambassador to Canada Pete Hoekstra “persona non grata” and have him removed from his post had received more than 104,000 signatures as of Thursday. The petition was launched on Canada’s parliamentary petitions portal, where citizens and residents of Canada can set up petitions to parliament. DD: If/when my critics/opponents set up such a petition against me and against my GOPUSA ILLINOIS newsletters, how many signatures will they get? My critics/opponents blame me and blame my newsletters for all the losses that Republican candidates on ballots in my precinct have suffered since 2000. I should write about my “Republican” critics/opponents who paint themselves as being Democrat Lite, if not RINO, if not Democrat or Libertarian Plant. They do not want Republican candidates, elected officials, and party leaders to defend or promote conservative principles and the following planks in the Republican Party platform: personal responsibility, traditional marriage and family, right to life, immigration, anti-vice, Second Amendment, and equal opportunity (no race or gender based preference giving).
https://abc7chicago.com/story/100000-sign-petition-declare-us-ambassador-canada-persona-grata/19672210/
NBC5
— Power outages in northwest Indiana are so bad you can see them from space. DD: The more that overhead lines bring power to your home, the more that those lines are near trees, the more that I recommend getting a whole-house backup electric generator.
https://www.nbcchicago.com/news/local/power-outages-in-northwest-indiana-are-so-bad-you-can-see-them-from-space/3975848/
RIVER BENDER
— DD: Ever-increasingly, the more of the following that you are, the more government assistance that you get: minority, female, younger, veteran, and/or citizen of a foreign country.
https://www.riverbender.com/news/details/illinois-commission-on-equity-and-inclusion-announces-bep–vbp-certification-kickstart-workshop-95943.cfm
WISCONSIN STATE JOURNAL
— Socialism lost in Wisconsin, but it’s winning in the Democratic Party.
https://madison.com/opinion/column/article_cf423347-2ce6-4bcd-b48a-a29010ef9780.html
WMOI
— LaHood, Colleagues Introduce Bipartisan Bill to Expand Access to Low-Interest Mortgages for First-Time Homebuyers. DD: Mortgage interest rates were 7.4% when I bought a new townhome in University Park when I was 24 in 1972. SEE: https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/774-Sunset-Ct-5-University-Park-IL-60484/5451474_zpid/ . In today’s dollars, I paid about $180,000 for it and the 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 $94,500. That says worlds about real estate values in University Park.
https://977wmoi.com/2026/08/lahood-colleagues-introduce-bipartisan-bill-to-expand-access-to-low-interest-mortgages-for-first-time-homebuyers/
FROM NATIONAL CENTER-RIGHT SOURCES
WASHINGTON TIMES
— Democrats plan decade-long strategy to push pro-transgender narrative. DD: How successful have Democrats been promoting LGBTQ in your county, township, municipality, and school district?
https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2026/aug/15/democrats-plan-decade-long-strategy-push-pro-transgender-narrative/
— The Democrat Party, since the presidential days of Bill Clinton, has been moving down a path toward communism.
https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2026/aug/15/bold-blunt-socialism-nope-communism-fought/
WASHINGTON EXAMINER
— Johnson launches website to teach young voters about socialism and communism ahead of midterm elections. DD: How successful have Democrats been promoting socialism in your county, township, municipality, and school district?
https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/news/campaigns/congressional/4688861/mike-johnson-contrast-for-america-tour-midterm-elections/
— The Peter Pan generation chooses pets. DD: My former neighbor Dr. Dan Kiley wrote the Peter Pan Syndrome. SEE: https://www.amazon.com/Peter-Pan-Syndrome-Never-Grown/dp/0380688905
https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/premium/4667440/peter-pan-generation-chooses-pets-over-children/
— Democratic Socialists lack accountability by not facing the past.
https://www.youtube.com/shorts/AoDmip0KHh4
NEW YORK POST
— Socialist NY lawmaker Emily Gallagher says shoplifting for ‘biological need’ is OK.
https://nypost.com/2026/08/15/us-news/socialist-ny-lawmaker-emily-gallagher-says-shoplifters-have-a-biological-need-to-steal/
— DD: Democrat leaders dump Bill Maher because he thinks immigrants should assimilate and accept American values and principles.
https://nypost.com/2026/08/15/us-news/bill-maher-thinks-american-values-arent-negotiable/
— Dog owners’ average spending tops $4,000 a year—here’s the cost breakdown. DD: One reason why my wife and I have more money is our never owning pets.
https://nypost.com/lifestyle/true-cost-of-owning-a-dog/
AMERICAN THINKER
— How illegals plunder American billions, in broad daylight. And how Democrats enabled every dollar plundered.
https://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2026/08/how-illegals-plunder-american-billions-in-broad-daylight/
— Mass immigration can only work if immigrants are introduced to a common American culture and expected to assimilate.
https://www.americanthinker.com/articles/2026/08/america-s-stranger-problem/
BIZ PAC REVIEW
— Trump says AOC is misleading voters: ‘The woke will become woke again as soon as they get elected’
https://www.bizpacreview.com/2026/08/15/trump-says-aoc-is-misleading-voters-the-woke-will-become-woke-again-as-soon-as-they-get-elected-1654961/
BREITBART
— Democratic Socialists Have Been in Party for a While.
https://www.breitbart.com/clips/2026/08/15/progressive-caucus-chair-democratic-socialists-have-been-in-party-for-a-while/amp/
— Rise of Democratic Socialists is a Real Opportunity for the GOP.
https://www.breitbart.com/clips/2026/08/15/mark-levin-rise-of-a-democratic-socialists-a-real-opportunity-for-gop/
— Quarter of Americans Say Most Democrats Are Socialists.
https://www.breitbart.com/politics/2026/08/15/poll-quarter-of-americans-say-most-democrats-are-socialists/amp/
FOX NEWS
— A STEP TOWARD COMMUNISM.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v3vwDloUkxE
LEGAL INSURRECTION
— EEOC Sues Washington University in St. Louis For Firing Employee Who Complained About DEI Policy. DD: My Democrat GAO superiors forced me to retire not only because I complained about their political affiliation discrimination, reverse discrimination, and age discrimination, but because I became an active member in a class action lawsuit that charged them with the aforesaid.
https://legalinsurrection.com/2026/08/eeoc-sues-wash-u-for-firing-employee-who-complained-about-dei-policy/amp/
NEWSMAX
— The growing influence of democratic socialists.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cqIshMiul4U
PATRIOT LEDGER
— ‘We’re winning:’ Bernie Sanders and DSA see WI, MI results as progress. DD: How successful have Democrats been promoting socialism in your county, township, municipality, and school district?
https://www.patriotledger.com/story/news/politics/elections/2026/08/16/bernie-sanders-dsa-wisconsin-michigan-progress/91276557007/
REAL CLEAR POLITICS
— The Woke Right Is Urging The Abandonment Of “Core Conservative Traditional Reaganite Principles.”
https://www.realclearpolitics.com/video/2026/08/15/mark_levin_the_woke_right_is_urging_the_abandonment_of_core_conservative_traditional_reaganite_principles.html
FROM NATIONAL CENTER-LEFT SOURCES
THE HILL
— The worse it gets, the better it is: American leftism is thriving on its own failures.
https://thehill.com/opinion/campaign/6030675-american-left-politics-failure/
ABC NEWS
— 21% of Married Couples Have a Foreign Spouse. DD: All my ancestors immigrated during the 1840s and 1850s from what is now Germany. They all married those who shared their national origin.
https://abcnews.com/ABC_Univision/News/census-report-reveals-21-married-couples-foreign-spouse/story?id=20171171
(FROM THE ARTICLE: The number of mixed-nativity married couple households corresponds with the increase in immigration to the United States over the last several decades. . .As the immigrant population has grown, so has the chance that a native-born person will meet and marry a foreign-born person.)
CBS NEWS
— Federal workers sour on government work. DD: I would not have spent almost 30 years of my life working for the federal government if my high school friend had not asked me to join him to take the postal employment test in 1966. Because I passed, I was a part-time postal employee while I attended UIC 1966-1968 and NIU in 1969. I graduated from NIU in 1970 and accepted the only job offer that I got, to be the Retail Sales Manager in a Firestone Store, a job that not really require a college degree. Potential employers saw me as being draft bait. They did not believe that my application for a financial hardship draft deferment to help support my mother and brother would be approved. I accepted a job offer from Oldsmobile in 1971, but Oldsmobile withdrew that offer saying it had just agreed to stop hiring Whites to settle an EEOC complaint. My Firestone Store boss rudely fired me because I had accepted that offer. Because I had to have a job, I accepted a job offer that I got from IRS. I had taken and passed the Federal Service Entrance Examination while I was a NIU student as a backup because federal employees are viewed negatively.
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/federal-workers-survey-public-service-job-security/
(FROM THE ARTICLE: Nearly two-thirds of U.S. federal workers said they wouldn’t enter public service again, citing eroding job security and benefits, according to a recent poll of active and retired government employees. Respondents’ views overwhelmingly reflected concerns about the current federal climate, rather than regret over having chosen careers in government, the National Active and Retired Federal Employees Association (NARFE) found in a July survey. The Trump administration has made sweeping cuts to the federal workforce by eliminating jobs and weakening civil service protections. In 2025, the White House announced a number of executive orders to slash government jobs, including a hiring freeze on civilian workers and directives to federal agencies to reduce their rolls. President Trump has said there are too many federal workers, pushing to reduce the size and scope of government while making agencies more efficient.)
NEW YORK TIMES
— DD: Democrat leaders ever-increasingly promote more LGBTQ.
https://www.nytimes.com/2026/08/13/opinion/kansas-anti-trans-laws-drivers-license.html
WASHINGTON POST
— Democrats are calculating a left turn. The math is inescapable.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2026/08/07/2028-democratic-contenders-should-not-misread-primary-results/
USA TODAY
— College should be tough. Michigan’s grade plan coddles students. DD: What harmed your college GPA? For me, it was my working far too many hours delivering mail instead of studying.
https://www.usatoday.com/story/opinion/columnist/2026/08/16/university-michigan-drops-grades-freshmen-lsa/91285520007/
FORTUNE
— Facing a decadeslong shortage, the FAA has now hired more than 2,000 air traffic controllers after its campaign recruiting Gen Z video gamers promising $155K payday. DD: I did not earn $155,000/year in today’s dollars until after I had a) worked for GAO for almost 18 years, b) worked for IRS for almost 9 years, c) earned three job-related master’s degrees (business, accounting, and finance), d) earned six job-related professional certifications (accounting, internal auditing, fraud examination, government financial management, financial services auditing, and forensic accounting), and e) earned a job-related professional license (CPA). 3 years after I started working for IRS in 1971, I earned $100,000/year in today’s dollars. I had completed 10 graduate business evening business courses. According to my critics/opponents, I was grossly overpaid.
https://fortune.com/article/why-is-trump-administration-hiring-gen-z-video-gamers-for-air-traffic-control/
FORBES
— DD: Democrat leaders ever-increasingly promote more vice including more pot.
https://www.forbes.com/sites/ajherrington/2026/07/21/more-employers-drop-marijuana-tests-despite-rising-positive-results/
— Envy. DD: My Democrat superiors, supervisors, coworkers, and subordinates in the federal government were filled with envy. They always painted themselves as being underpaid. They were ever-increasingly furious at my and my wife’s ever-increasing income and net worth. To turn them against me, my Democrat superiors stressed a) the new cars that I bought when I was 17, 19, 20, 23, 25, 29, etc., b) the real estate that I bought when I was 24, 25, 27, 29, and 35, c) the collector cars that I bought when I was 40 and 45, d) the college degrees that I earned when I was 21, 27, 31, and 48, e) the professional certifications that I earned when I was 30, 32, 41, 45, 47, and 48, f) the professional license that I earned when I was 32, g) the vacations that my wife and I took, h) etc. Some of them circulated copies of Money Magazine’s 4-page February 1978 article on me and my wife. SEE https://gopillinois.com/documents/
https://www.forbes.com/sites/nicolelipkin/2024/04/30/how-to-keep-envy-at-bay-by-creating-a-positive-workplace-culture/
— Better Safe Than Sorry Kills Your Career. DD: I knew that I was taking a big career risk when I suggested myself to be the subject of a “One Person’s Finances” article in Money Magazine when I was 28 in 1977. SEE: https://gopillinois.com/documents/ But my Democrat IRS superiors had made it very clear that they would never promote me to GS-13. They had ignored/dismissed/belittled my earning an MBA from Loyola in 1976. They had gotten rid of the IRS manager who had promoted me when I was 23, 24, and 25. They had disallowed my travel vouchers when I was 25. SEE: https://www.gao.gov/products/b-180010.11-0 If you were me, would you have taken that risk?
https://www.forbes.com/sites/bryanrobinson/2026/08/15/why-better-safe-than-sorry-kills-your-career-making-success-harder/
BLOOMBERG
— Trump’s ‘Golden Age’ Pitch Meets Affordability Frustration. DD: What did you do to afford things? I worked my way through college. I earned a job-related bachelor’s degree. I earned three job-related master’s degrees. I earned six job-related professional certifications. I earned a job-related professional license.
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/videos/2026-08-15/trump-golden-age-pitch-meets-affordability-frustration-video
FORD FOUNDATION
— The Working Class. DD: I define the working class as being wage earners who earn less money. I was a member of the working class for 33 years. To earn more money, I worked my way through college. I earned a job-related bachelor’s degree. I earned three job-related master’s degrees. I earned six job-related professional certifications. I earned a job-related professional license. Notwithstanding the aforesaid, I never earned more than $154,682/year in today’s dollars. According to my critics/opponents, I was both grossly overpaid and an abject career failure.
https://www.fordfoundation.org/news-and-stories/stories/the-backbone-of-america-understanding-the-working-class/
(FROM THE ARTICLE: The term “working class” often evokes narrow and outdated images in American culture. But in reality, today’s working class is often primarily defined by education rather than occupation: individuals without a four-year college degree. By that measure, the working class constitutes over 60% of the U.S. labor force—more than 93 million people as of 2023. This group is not only large, but richly diverse: Roughly 53% are non-Hispanic white, 13% Black, and 25% Hispanic. Approximately 44% are women.)
HARVARD BUSINESS REVIEW
— Reskilling. Did you reskill? I certainly did. When I was 40 in 1988, to get rid of me, my Democrat GAO superiors made it very clear that they would never again assign me to audits of IRS. Because of that, I applied for and got accepted into their audit group that audited federal financial industry regulators in 1990. The leader of that group made it very clear that she wanted everyone in that group to have a master’s degree in finance. Because of that, I started taking graduate evening finance courses at IIT in 1992 and earned a master’s degree in financial markets and trading from IIT in early 1997. But in August and September of 1997, she led her superiors’ successful effort to force me to retire. She gave my Black subordinate my job and my preferred corner office. He did not have a master’s degree in finance. He had less job-related education than I had. He had less job-related work experience than I had. He had one job-related professional certification while I had six. I had no job-related professional license like the one I had. She would not have had to do that if I had been a Democrat, minority, female, veteran, or younger.
https://www.library.hbs.edu/working-knowledge/want-workers-to-reskill-show-them-who-they-can-become
PARTNERSHIP FOR PUBLIC SERVICE
— Undermining independence and eroding transparency: Examining Schedule Policy/Career reclassifications. A Partnership analysis of recent federal job postings suggests that Schedule Policy/Career reclassifications reach far beyond policy-influencing roles. This apparent expansion runs contrary to the Trump administration’s statement that reclassifications were largely limited to the “highest-ranking career positions outside of the Senior Executive Service.” DD: As a GS-13 GAO Analyst, I had absolutely no policy-influencing roles. I had to do what my superiors told me to do and I did that. But that was not good enough for them.
https://ourpublicservice.org/know-the-facts/blog/examining-schedule-policy-career-reclassifications
PBS
— Forced Retirement: What is it and what can you do about it? DD: I should write about forced retirement. I have almost 29 years of direct experience.
https://www.pbs.org/wnet/chasing-the-dream/2019/03/forced-retirement/
(FROM THE ARTICLE: The loss of a career can feel like a death. The resulting grieving process is similar to that following the death of a friend or loved one. The five stages in the process of grieving a loss after death and they’re similar for grieving after an involuntary retirement: Denial, Anger, Bargaining, Depression and Acceptance. Denial: You can’t believe this is really happening. You feel paralyzed. Anger: Once the shock has worn off, you begin to feel angry toward your company, supervisor and the world. For many retirees, the job is how they define themselves. When this is taken away, they feel frustrated and angry that they’ve lost their identity. Bargaining: You might want to try to get your job back, even with reduced pay, hours or responsibilities. This rarely works. Depression: Feelings of hopelessness and helplessness take hold and the future looks bleak. Acceptance: When your anger and depression are no longer consuming, you accept your new reality and begin to develop plans to make the most of your life. Each individual passes through these stages at his or her own rate and may move back and forth through some of the stages. The Suddenness of It All. A major problem of forced retirement is the lack of time to plan because of the suddenness of the termination. When someone voluntarily retires, there has been time to think about the future. Do you want to kick back and have a leisure filled retirement? Or do you plan to continue in some form of work or volunteerism? Is there some life passion you’ve been waiting to fulfill? The forced retiree hasn’t had the chance to think about these things. Work provides us with five important functions the forced retiree will suddenly lose. How will you deal with the changes in your financial situation? What about the time management and structure to your day that has been a major part of your working life? What will happen to the status you had and the recognition, reputation and sense of achievement that came with it? Where will you find the sense of usefulness you felt at your job? And how do you replace the social connections that are gone from your everyday life? These losses can lead to feelings of emptiness, shame, embarrassment and worry. You can feel like a failure.)
SHRM
— DD: Democrat and RINO employers reject E-Verify. 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. 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. I worked on an automotive assembly line in 1970. I sold tires, automotive services, and major appliances 1970-1971. I pumped more gasoline 1971-1972. I collected delinquent federal taxes 1971-1980. I audited federal agencies 1980-1997. Many, if not most, if not virtually all of my peers would not have stooped to take the aforesaid bad jobs that I took.
https://www.shrm.org/mena/topics-tools/news/everify-proposal-could-create-new-hr-bompliance-burden
POLITICO
— Democrats finalize 2028 calendar that moves racially diverse states to the front. South Carolina will kick off a presidential primary process, followed by Nevada, New Hampshire, New Mexico, Michigan and Virginia.
https://www.politico.com/news/2026/08/15/democrats-finalize-2028-calendar-that-moves-racially-diverse-states-to-the-front-01038875
POLITIFACT
— How PolitiFact selects facts to check. DD: I often served as a fact checker while I worked for GAO 1986-1997 at the GS-13 Step 1-10 Levels, currently $118,984-$154,682/year.
https://politifact.com/video/how-politifact-selects-facts-check/
BUZZ FEED
— Why One Income Could Buy A House In The 1950s But Not Today. DD: My father died suddenly when he was 47 and I was 21 in 1969. He never earned more than $50,000/year in today’s dollars. My mother stayed home and raised me and my brother. He never bought a house. He rented from his parents. First, an apartment above their hardware store in Crete 1945-1954, and then their home at 1286 Wood Street in Crete. The lower rent he paid helped him afford sending me and my brother to Missouri Synod Lutheran grade schools.
https://www.buzzfeed.com/victoriavouloumanos/people-debating-about-why-inflation-is-getting-worse
AXIOS
— College loses its monopoly on the American Dream. DD: What did you do to achieve the American Dream? I worked my way through college. I earned a job-related bachelor’s degree. I earned three job-related master’s degrees. I earned six job-related professional certifications. I earned a job-related professional license.
https://www.axios.com/2026/08/15/college-bachelors-degree-shift-ai-america
NATIONAL URBAN LEAGUE
— DD: Democrat leaders ever-increasingly shout at everyone that they cannot advance without massive government assistance. I never fell for that. Instead, to advance, I worked my way through college. I earned a job-related bachelor’s degree. I earned three job-related master’s degrees. I earned six job-related professional certifications. I earned a job-related professional license.
https://nul.org/news/affordability-all-its-time-rescue-american-dream
FROM FOREIGN SOURCES
INDEPENDENT
— Meet the British former detective giving US churches AR-15s to defend against shooters. DD: What are churches in your county, township, municipality, and school district doing to defend themselves?
https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/us-church-assault-rifles-simon-osamoh-protection-shootings-b3032594.html
August 12, 2016
FROM ILLINOIS CENTER-LEFT SOURCES
CHICAGO TRIBUNE
— Illinois and Chicago campaigns defy conventional monied wisdom.
https://www.chicagotribune.com/2026/08/12/column-illinois-chicago-campagins-defy-convention-washington/
— Backlash against Meta’s smart glasses grows. DD: Republican Precinct Committeemen should consider wearing them to document threats against them when they hand-deliver sample ballots, campaign literature, and voter guides in their precinct.
https://www.chicagotribune.com/2026/08/11/meta-smart-glasses/
(FROM THE ARTICLE: The social media giant dominates the market for smart glasses, which allow people to capture photos and videos, listen to music, take phone calls and ask questions to an artificial intelligence assistant. Some people are using the glasses — which look like a pair of regular spectacles — to record people without their knowledge and publish the videos on social media. The users secretly videotape and share what happens when they try to pick up women. Now, a growing number of people are worried they could be covertly recorded at the gym or even during sex. The backlash has prompted Meta to update its glasses to address privacy concerns, and some places have banned them, adding to the angst surrounding technology that’s rapidly evolving. It’s too early to tell whether the criticism will dent sales of smart glasses, said Jitesh Ubrani, a director at the market research company IDC.)
— If you’re not wealthy, you’re making concessions on big-ticket purchases. Consumers are OK with not getting the fancy car. Homes? That’s a bigger problem.
https://www.chicagotribune.com/2026/08/12/jd-power-zillow-auto-cars-homebuyers-housing-rich/
DAILY HERALD
— The persecution of Anthony Fauci, a public servant. DD: I should write about federal employees who have had big adverse actions taken against them, what those adverse actions were, who took those adverse actions against them, and those who could/should have come to their defense but did not, and why.
https://www.dailyherald.com/20260812/syndicated-columnists/the-persecution-of-a-public-servant/
FOX32
— USDA: SNAP enrollment drops by 5.3 million following new work rules – State-by-state breakdown. DD: Democrat leaders want as many people as possible on SNAP because people on SNAP vote for Democrats.
https://www.fox32chicago.com/news/snap-fewer-recipients-after-new-rules-implemented
PEORIA JOURNAL STAR
— Tracy labels Iran war costs ‘required sacrifices.’
https://www.pjstar.com/story/news/politics/2026/08/11/don-tracy-calls-iran-war-costs-required-sacrifices/91263175007/
EVANSTON NOW
— Uihlein family giving $35M to NU football.
https://evanstonnow.com/uihlein-family-giving-35m-to-nu-football/
FOX ILLINOIS
— DD: While I worked for the Democrats who ran the federal government for almost 30 years, their top priority was hiring, retaining, and promoting Democrats who were minority, female, younger, and/or veteran.
https://www.foxillinois.com/news/nation-world/researchers-advocates-rail-against-governments-efforts-to-end-workforce-data-collection/article_36c0db76-e1b3-51f4-9ca6-0c160b2045d6.html
NPR ILLINOIS
— Trump-backed Mike Lindell loses primary for Minnesota governor to Lisa Demuth.
https://www.nprillinois.org/2026-08-11/trump-backed-mike-lindell-loses-primary-for-minnesota-governor-to-lisa-demuth
WGLT
— New Illinois law empowering sexual assault survivors runs into shortage of female officers.
https://www.wglt.org/local-news/2026-08-11/new-illinois-law-empowering-sexual-assault-survivors-runs-into-shortage-of-female-officers
WFMD
— Chicago’s South Side is drowning in excuses, dependency and decay.
https://www.wfmd.com/2026/04/28/chicagos-south-side-is-drowning-in-excuses-dependency-and-decay/
RACE AND EQUITY PROJECT
— Nowhere to go: Chicago teens on ‘takeovers,’ curfews, and lost community spaces. DD: What is your municipality doing to stop Democrat teen takeovers? When you were a teen, what did you do when you were not in school? 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 delivered mail 1966-1969.
https://www.raceandequityproject.org/article/chicago-teen-takeover-police-hyde-park-community-spaces
POLITICO ILLINOIS
— DNC plans a Chicago bootcamp.
https://www.politico.com/newsletters/illinois-playbook/2026/08/12/dnc-plans-a-chicago-bootcamp-01034396
CAPITOL FAX
— Morning briefing
https://capitolfax.com/2026/08/12/isabel%e2%80%99s-morning-briefing-789/
— Afternoon roundup
https://capitolfax.com/2026/08/11/isabel%e2%80%99s-afternoon-roundup-576/
FROM ILLINOIS CENTER-RIGHT SOURCES
JOHN KASS
— Democrat Socialist of America: The Threat is Real.
https://johnkassnews.com/democrat-socialist-of-america-the-threat-is-real/
ILLINOIS REVIEW
— 10 Criminal Complaints Filed Against Federal Agents Over Operation Midway Blitz as DHS Calls Effort a ‘Political Stunt’
https://www.illinoisreview.com/illinoisreview/2026/08/10-criminal-complaints-filed-against-federal-agents-over-operation-midway-blitz-as-dhs-calls-effort-a-political-stunt.html
— Why Are the Courts Clogged? Ask the Democrats Who Created the Crisis.
https://www.illinoisreview.com/illinoisreview/2026/08/why-are-the-courts-clogged-ask-the-democrats-who-created-the-crisis.html
ILLINOIS POLICY INSTITUTE
— Pritzker record: He added $300 million last year to Chicago pension woes.
https://www.illinoispolicy.org/pritzker-added-300-million-last-year-to-chicago-pension-woes/
MCHENRY COUNTY BLOG
— Double-Dipping, Something Illinois Legislators Won’t Stop. DD: My critics/opponents have always been furious a) that I earned both Civil Service Retirement System and Social Security credits a) while I worked for the Post Office 1966-1969 and b) for IRS and Firestone Stores 1971-1972.
https://www.mchenrycountyblog.com/2026/08/11/double-dipping-something-illinois-legislators-wont-stop/
GOPUSA ILLINOIS
— Under socialism, all you need to do to advance is be a socialist. Under Democrats, all you need to do to advance is be a Democrat. If I had listened to socialists, I would have become a Democrat. That would have discouraged me from doing what I did to advance. To advance, a) I worked my way through college, b) I earned a job-related bachelor’s degree (management), c) I earned three job-related master’s degrees (business, accounting, and finance), d) I earned six job-related professional certifications (accounting, internal auditing, fraud examination, government financial management, financial services auditing, and forensic accounting), and e) I earned a job-related professional license (CPA). All of my coworkers who my Democrat Post Office, IRS, and GAO superiors promoted over were Democrats. None of them came close to doing what I did to advance. – Dave Diersen
http://www.gopillinois.com
— Who do your critics/opponents blame problems on? My critics/opponent blame problems on conservatives who are White, male, older, non-veteran, Protestant, German American, have ancestors who have not been in America for a long time, have more money than they do, and/or have more professional credentials than they do. – Dave Diersen
http://www.gopillinois.com
FROM NATIONAL CENTER-RIGHT SOURCES
WASHINGTON TIMES
— Men (not) at work: Social instability looms as men shun the labor force. DD: Since the 1960s, Democrat and RINO employers have ever-increasingly focused on hiring, retaining, and promoting women, and especially women who are minority and/or younger.
https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2026/aug/12/men-not-work-social-instability-looms-men-shun-labor-force-analysts/
— Blame colleges for the socialist conquest. They recruit and tolerate Jew-hating professors, students.
https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2026/aug/11/blame-colleges-socialist-conquest/
WASHINGTON FREE BEACON
— Abdul El-Sayed Proclaimed ‘Obligation’ To Follow Sharia Law Until the Day He Dies.
https://freebeacon.substack.com/p/abdul-el-sayed-proclaimed-obligation
NEW YORK SUN
— Abdul El-Sayed’s Success Is Owed to Western Values and American Meritocracy That He Seeks To Abolish. He is one of the luckiest people to ever live, and an extremist by choice.
https://www.nysun.com/article/abdul-el-sayeds-success-is-owed-to-western-values-and-american-meritocracy-that-he-seeks-to-abolish
AMERICAN THINKER
— Learn to listen, listen to learn. Leftists today aren’t interested in respectful exchanges of viewpoints, or in offering rationales for their own ideas. Socialism is but a step toward communist oppression. Among the dangers it promotes is the abolition of popular dissent. DD: Under socialism, all you need to do to advance is be a socialist. Under Democrats, all you need to do to advance is be a Democrat. If I had listened to socialists, I would have become a Democrat. That would have discouraged me from doing what I did to advance. To advance, a) I worked my way through college, b) I earned a job-related bachelor’s degree (management), c) I earned three job-related master’s degrees (business, accounting, and finance), d) I earned six job-related professional certifications (accounting, internal auditing, fraud examination, government financial management, financial services auditing, and forensic accounting), and e) I earned a job-related professional license (CPA). All of my coworkers who my Democrat Post Office, IRS, and GAO superiors promoted over me were Democrats. None of them came close to doing what I did to advance.
https://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2026/08/learn-to-listen-listen-to-learn/
— The Diversity Blindspot. The Arday illusion: academia’s shameful infatuation with the diversity poster boy.
https://www.americanthinker.com/articles/2026/08/the-diversity-blindspot/
AMERICANS FOR PROSPERITY
— The Upward Mobility Act is a Step Forward on Welfare Reform. DD: The Democrat Party platform a) discourages personal responsibility and b) promotes dependency on government.
https://americansforprosperity.org/policy-corner/the-upward-mobility-act-is-a-step-forward-on-welfare-reform/
BIZ PAC REVIEW
— Trump administration has lost nearly 17,000 immigration rulings. DD: Democrat leaders ever-increasingly a) glorify and praise their illegals and b) fight their deportation.
https://www.bizpacreview.com/2026/08/11/report-trump-administration-has-lost-nearly-17000-immigration-rulings-1654342/
BLAZE
— DEI’s favorite trick: Failure proves discrimination. DD: Democrats shout at those who fail that Republicans caused their failures.
https://www.theblaze.com/columns/opinion/deis-favorite-trick-failure-proves-discrimination
BREITBART
— Pritzker: Trump ‘Put People in Harm’s Way to Save Himself’
https://www.breitbart.com/clips/2026/08/11/pritzker-trump-put-people-in-harms-way-to-save-himself/amp/
CAMPUS REFORM
— University of Illinois Chicago offers clinicians $5K stipend, abortion training fellowship. DD: Democrat leaders ever-increasingly promote more abortion.
https://www.campusreform.org/article/university-illinois-chicago-offers-clinicians-5k-stipend-abortion-training-fellowship/30380
CENTER FOR IMMIGRATION STUDIES
— The Biggest Myth About H-1B Is That It’s ‘Broken.’ 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/Miano/Biggest-Myth-About-H1B-Its-Broken
DAILY WIRE
— David Crowley Stuns Socialist Frontrunner In Wisconsin Dem Governor Primary. The result marked a dramatic reversal from pre-election polling.
https://www.dailywire.com/news/david-crowley-stuns-socialist-frontrunner-in-wisconsin-dem-governor-primary
AMERICAN ENTERPRISE INSTITUTE
— What’s Wrong with Personal Responsibility? DD: The Democrat Party platform a) discourages personal responsibility and b) promotes dependency on government.
https://www.aei.org/commentary/whats-wrong-with-personal-responsibility/
FEDERATION FOR AMERICAN IMMIGRATION REFORM
— A License to Kill on American Highways. DD: Democrat leaders ever-increasingly a) glorify and praise their illegals and b) fight their deportation.
https://www.fairus.org/opinion/license-kill-american-highways
FEDERATION FOR GOVERNMENT ACCOUNTABILITY
— Why States Should Ban Universal Basic Income Schemes. DD: The Democrat Party platform a) discourages personal responsibility and b) promotes dependency on government.
https://thefga.org/research/why-states-should-ban-universal-basic-income-schemes/
FOX BUSINESS
— A working-class party without workers. Why are leading Democrats welcoming socialists into their big tent.
https://www.foxbusiness.com/politics/larry-kudlow-working-class-party-without-workers
— Socialists are going to give the GOP the Senate.
https://www.foxbusiness.com/video/6403227460112
FOX NEWS
— Democrat establishment strikes back as socialist candidate downed in battleground primary. Milwaukee County Executive backed by Gov. Tony Evers will face Republican nominee Tom Tiffany in the general election.
https://www.foxnews.com/politics/wisconsin-governor-primary-crowley-hong
— Socialists are preparing to come for EVERYTHING you have. DD: The more that you have, the more that you should fight socialism. Anticipate/expect that the less that people have, the more that they will fight for socialism.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RcEeda5C8Ug
— Socialism has failed everywhere it has been tried.
https://www.foxnews.com/video/6403230468112
HERITAGE FOUNDATION
— Why the U.S. Has a Culture of Dependency. DD: The Democrat Party platform a) discourages personal responsibility and b) promotes dependency on government.
https://www.heritage.org/poverty-and-inequality/commentary/why-the-us-has-culture-dependency
LEGAL INSURRECTION
— FAA’s Gamer Recruitment Campaign Scores Over 2,000+ Air Traffic Controller Candidates. Hopefully, the rest of the FAA’s air traffic control enhancement plan will prove as successful.
https://legalinsurrection.com/2026/08/faas-gamer-recruitment-campaign-scores-over-2000-air-traffic-controller-candidates/
MINDING THE CAMPUS
— America’s Universities Are Still Shutting Out Conservative Faculty. Campuses are ideologically imbalanced, hostile to dissent, and unwilling to reform. Secretary McMahon’s call for accountability is much needed.
https://mindingthecampus.org/2026/08/11/americas-universities-are-still-shutting-out-conservative-faculty/
PJ MEDIA
— DSA on Illegals: ‘You Don’t Have to Have Papers to Have Power.’ DD: Democrat leaders ever-increasingly a) glorify and praise their illegals and b) fight their deportation.
https://pjmedia.com/vodkapundit/2026/08/11/dsa-on-illegals-you-dont-have-to-have-papers-to-have-power-n4956025
— Can Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez ride the socialist wave to lead Democrats in 2028 amid party shifts?
https://pjmedia.com/matt-margolis/2026/08/11/is-there-one-democrat-who-can-ride-the-socialist-wave-to-2028-n4956039
REASON
— Americans Grow Increasingly Dependent on Government Payments. Many citizens of the land of the free are hooked on government checks. DD: The Democrat Party platform a) discourages personal responsibility and b) promotes dependency on government.
https://reason.com/2024/10/04/americans-grow-increasingly-dependent-on-government-payments/
TOWNHALL
— Democratic Socialists Are Officially Part of the Democratic Party.
https://townhall.com/columnists/jtyoung/2026/08/12/democratic-socialists-are-officially-part-of-the-democratic-party-n2681026
U.S. HOUSE
— More Americans Dependent on Welfare Checks, at the Expense of Work. DD: The Democrat Party platform a) discourages personal responsibility and b) promotes dependency on government.
https://waysandmeans.house.gov/2025/01/08/new-report-shows-more-americans-dependent-on-welfare-checks-at-the-expense-of-work/
— Growth of the Welfare State. DD: The Democrat Party platform a) discourages personal responsibility and b) promotes dependency on government.
https://oversight.house.gov/release/grothman-opens-second-hearing-on-examining-the-growth-of-the-welfare-state/
FROM NATIONAL CENTER-LEFT SOURCES
ABC NEWS
— Charlotte police chief proposes expanding curfew to combat ‘teen takeovers.’ DD: What is your municipality doing to stop Democrat teen takeovers? When you were a teen, what did you do when you were not in school? 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 delivered mail 1966-1969.
https://abcnews.com/US/charlotte-police-chief-proposes-expanding-curfew-combat-teen/story?id=135544849
NEW YORK TIMES
— If you’re single and unemployed, it may make sense to prioritize job hunting. But that doesn’t have to mean putting your life on pause. DD: I met my outstanding wife at a Presbyterian singles event. She is Catholic and I am Missouri Synod Lutheran. What helped you become marriage material? By the time I got married when I was 29 in 1978, I had worked for IRS for almost 7 years and my salary was $110,066/year in today’s dollars. I had earned an MBA from Loyola in 1976 and I was taking graduate evening accounting courses at DePaul. I lived in a one bedroom condo in the Outer Drive East building that I had bought in 1976. I was renting out a town home in University Park that I had bought new in 1972. I owned a 1972 Corvette that I had bought new in 1971. See Money Magazine’s 4-page February 1978 article on my wife and I at https://gopillinois.com/documents/ Things that impressed me about my outstanding wife included that her first job after high school was working for the FBI. She soon became the Corporate Secretary of the U.S. League of Savings Institutions. She did much to help elect Big Jim Thompson governor in 1976. She earned a bachelor’s degree in finance from DePaul in 1986.
https://www.nytimes.com/2026/08/11/business/dating-unemployed.html
— Optimizing your life. Instead of focusing solely on retirement savings balance, workers should figure out how they want to spend their time. DD: I spent a tremendous amount of my time and my money a) working my way through college, b) earning a job-related bachelor’s degree (management), c) earning three job-related master’s degrees (business, accounting, and finance), d) earning six job-related professional certifications (accounting, internal auditing, fraud examination, government financial management, financial services auditing, and forensic accounting), and e) earning a job-related professional license (CPA). My wife and I focused on saving money for child raising expenses, but when our fertility problems ended that, we focused on saving for our retirement.
https://www.nytimes.com/2026/07/18/business/retirement-plan.html
WASHINGTON POST
— How today’s generation is turning homebuying on its head. DD: Extremely few of my peers did what I did. I bought a new townhome when I was 24 in 1972. SEE: https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/774-Sunset-Ct-5-University-Park-IL-60484/5451474_zpid/ . In today’s dollars, I paid about $180,000 for it and the 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 $93,200. That says worlds about real estate values in University Park.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/sf/brand-connect/nar/how-todays-generation-is-turning-home-buying-on-its-head/
WALL STREET JOURNAL
— Trump vs. Socialism: Which Do Voters Revile More? The midterms were the Democrats’ to lose. With candidates like Abdul El-Sayed, they just might.
https://www.wsj.com/opinion/trump-vs-socialism-which-do-voters-revile-more-2d0d0d10
— The GAO Precedent for Fed Independence. DD: GAO is not independent. GAO is non nonpartisan. Virtually all, if not all GAO employees are Democrats. When I was 31 in 1980, I was one of the last Republicans GAO hired. GAO wasted my career and forced me to retire when I was 49 in 1997. GAO would not have done that if I had been A democrat, minority, female, or veteran.
https://www.wsj.com/opinion/the-gao-precedent-for-fed-independence-b7b37cc4
— AOC for President? Don’t Rule It Out. As Democrats flirt with socialism, she’s a serious candidate.
https://www.wsj.com/opinion/aoc-for-president-dont-rule-it-out-084f5619
FORBES
— Millennials Want Workplace Diversity. Why Don’t They Ask For It? DD: To promote diversity is to dump meritocracy.
https://www.forbes.com/sites/adiaharveywingfield/2026/08/12/millennials-want-workplace-diversity-why-dont-they-ask-for-it/
FLORIDA POLITICS
— Kat Cammack, Greg Steube line up behind Catalina Lauf in contentious CD 19 Primary.
https://floridapolitics.com/archives/812950-kat-cammack-greg-steube-line-up-behind-catalina-lauf-in-contentious-cd-19-primary/
FLORIDA CAPITOLIST
— Early turnout builds ahead of Florida primary. Catalina Lauf is the founder of Defense of Freedom PAC and has two previous runs for congress in Illinois. Jim Oberweis previously served in the Illinois Senate from 2013 to 2021 and has several unsuccessful runs under his belt in Illinois.
https://thecapitolist.com/early-turnout-builds-ahead-of-florida-primary/
HUMAN RESOURCES DIRECTION
— DD: To promote Affirmative Action and DEI is to dump meritocracy.
https://www.hcamag.com/us/specialization/diversity-inclusion/us-boardrooms-are-rapidly-dropping-diversity-rules-hr-cant-ignore-the-fallout/585762
EDUCATION NEWS
— Merit or seniority? Teachers question TSC promotion scoring. Teachers are calling for greater emphasis on merit, competence and measurable performance in TSC promotions. DD: All my coworkers who my Democrat Post Office, IRS, and GAO superiors promoted over me were Democrats a) who had less education than I had, b) who had less work experience than I had, c) who had no professional certification or fewer than I had, and/or d) who had no professional license like the one I had.
https://educationnews.co.ke/merit-or-seniority-teachers-question-tsc-promotion-scoring/
EDUCATION NEXT
— DD: The Democrat Party platform a) discourages personal responsibility and b) promotes dependency on government.
https://www.educationnext.org/whats-wrong-with-personal-responsibility/
JD SUPRA
— Illinois’ Menopause Equity and Care Act Expands Employment Protections.
https://www.jdsupra.com/legalnews/illinois-menopause-equity-and-care-act-9912689/
August 2, 2026
FROM ILLINOIS CENTER-LEFT SOURCES
CHICAGO TRIBUNE
— Judge rules Illinois not required to turn over voter rolls to Feds. DD: Democrat leaders ever-increasingly fight efforts to stop voter fraud.
https://www.chicagotribune.com/2026/08/01/judge-rules-illinois-not-required-to-turn-over-voter-rolls-to-feds/
— DD: Democrat leaders ever-increasingly use MLK to promote more hatred against Republicans, that is, to get more votes from Blacks.
https://www.chicagotribune.com/2026/08/01/marchers-return-to-marquette-park-60-years-after-historic-mlk-visit/
— FRONT PAGE TOP OF FOLD WITH BIG PICTURE: DD: Democrat leaders ever-increasingly a) glorify and praise their illegals and b) fight their deportation.
https://www.chicagotribune.com/2026/08/02/dick-durbin-retiring-dream-act/
— Financially plan ahead for having children. DD: In anticipation of our having children, when my wife and I got married, we lived on just one of our salaries. But because we both had major fertility problems, we gave up trying to have children without trying IVF. We did not adopt or become foster parents. My Democrat GAO superiors used that against me viciously. They decried the time and money that they spent raising their children. They decried their wives having little or no income. They ever-increasingly demonized, denigrated, and condemned my wife and I as being selfish disgustingly rich DINKs. They would not have done that if I had been a Democrat, minority, female, or veteran. I should write about Democrat GAO superiors.
https://www.mercurynews.com/2026/07/27/jill-on-money-managing-the-high-cost-of-kids/
CHICAGO SUN-TIMES
— DD: Democrat leaders ever-increasingly a) glorify and praise their illegals and b) fight their deportation.
https://chicago.suntimes.com/letters-to-the-editor/2026/08/01/dhs-ice-durbin-retail-immigrants-children-race-riot-1919-flooding-healthcare-joliet-ac
— DD: Democrats and RINOs use Affirmative Action and DEI to get rid of Republicans.
https://chicago.suntimes.com/columnists/2026/08/01/dei-black-consumers-businesses-diversity-equity-inclusion-marc-morial
EDWARDSVILLE INTELLIGENCER
— Illinois election law gives political parties too much power over voters.
https://www.theintelligencer.com/opinion/article/illinois-open-primary-ballot-access-22360592.php
ADVANTAGE NEWS
— State Rep. Adam Niemerg, R-Dieterich, praises federal ruling blocking in-state tuition benefits for students in U.S. illegally.
https://www.advantagenews.com/news/local/illinois-lawmaker-praises-federal-ruling-blocking-in-state-tuition-benefits-for-students-in-u-s/article_1411a678-6da5-4545-8de2-672fa0b371c5.html
CITIES 92.9
— Parental rights concerns raised after Illinois expands minors’ access to birth control. DD: Democrat leaders ever-increasingly promote more LGBTQ.
https://www.cities929.com/2026/08/01/parental-rights-concerns-raised-after-illinois-expands-minors-access-to-birth-control/
FROM NATIONAL CENTER-RIGHT SOURCES
WASHINGTON TIMES
— Democratic socialist is socialist, and socialist is communist.
https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2026/aug/1/democratic-socialist-socialist-socialist-communist/
WASHINGTON EXAMINER
— The Heritage Foundation still leads the conservative movement. DD: According to my critics/opponents, I have always been too conservative because I promote the following planks in the Republican Party platform: personal responsibility, traditional marriage and family, right to life, immigration, anti-vice, Second Amendment, and equal opportunity (no race or gender based preference giving) planks. My critics/opponents reject some, many, most, virtually all, if not all of the aforesaid planks.
https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/opinion/4421947/heritage-foundation-still-leads-conservative-movement/
— American citizenship is being exploited.
https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/op-eds/4669902/birthright-citizenship-legal-immigration-exploited-reinforce-citizenship-significance/
— The Peter Pan generation chooses pets. DD: My former neighbor Dr. Dan Kiley wrote the Peter Pan Syndrome. SEE: https://www.amazon.com/Peter-Pan-Syndrome-Never-Grown/dp/0380688905
https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/premium/4667440/peter-pan-generation-chooses-pets-over-children/
(FROM THE ARTICLE: Accusations of Peter Pan syndrome have long dogged Generation Z and millennials. And young Americans have given their critics fresh ammunition: they prefer pets to children during their prime family-forming years. A new Harris Poll revealed that 40% of Americans selected pets when forced to choose. Make no mistake: respondents were also offered the option of having both children and pets, which 39% chose. Still, the plurality of Americans who would rather forgo children altogether is cause for concern. Young Americans are apprehensive about marriage and family. As previously reported, Americans believe 26.5 is the ideal age for marriage and that married couples should have their first child a year later. But the median age at first marriage has risen to 28.6 for women and 30.2 for men, years beyond Americans’ preferred timeline for marriage and family. In other words, there is a schism between the family timeline Americans consider ideal and the one they can achieve. Alas, 45% of those who prefer pets believe they are currently incapable of raising children. Some see pets as a cheaper alternative to children. But many more have resigned themselves: just over half of Gen Z and millennials who are not parents “have thought about building a life around pets instead of having children.” Amid a growing number of chronically single Americans, 49% of pet owners rely on their animals for the companionship they no longer seek from a significant other. Americans believe the rite of homeownership should precede child-rearing. In fact, young Americans view their inability to afford a home as an obstacle to forming families. Half of adults ages 18 to 26 consider a fenced backyard essential when buying a home — a nod to the traditional vision of a home, a white picket fence, and two and a half children. Curiously, their fervor for spacious yards does not extend to children’s playrooms or double sinks in primary bathrooms. Why? Renters offer a clue. City dwellers have developed a new fixation beyond the coveted dishwasher or in-unit laundry. They now seek “pet-friendly” apartments. More than a third organize birthday parties, subscribe to monthly care packages, and purchase strollers for their furry friends. Pet-friendly cafes and “bark mitzvahs” are increasingly common. Hotels offer “dog butlers” and canine treats on holiday menus. And yet, the same childless pet owners roll their eyes at toddlers crying in restaurants or on airplanes. They would like more “adults-only” options for dining and vacations. Almost two-thirds of Gen Z and millennials opt for home cooking, and many give up pricey grocery brands and other creature comforts to afford pet expenses. Perhaps financial responsibility has found an unlikely instructor. Despite economic pressures, the American Pet Products Association reports that Gen Z and millennials remain steadfast in their commitment to pet ownership. But can young pet owners actually balance their books? About 30% are carrying pet-related debt, compared with 14% among Generation X and baby boomers. Worse, nearly a third say they have “delayed paying off debt,” 4 in 10 say they take on extra work to afford their pets, and a quarter skip medical appointments to cover pet expenses. It is no wonder that a supermajority of pet owners would claim their pets as dependents if legally permitted and demand tax breaks for expenses similar to child-related deductions. Amanda Reynolds, a New York City resident, filed a lawsuit against the IRS in June of last year. She claimed that her golden retriever, Finnegan, meets the functional criteria for defining dependents. The IRS, she argued, violated the 14th Amendment’s Equal Protection Clause because the agency unfairly treats taxpayers with nonhuman dependents. Rest assured: young Americans are capable of responsibility, sacrifice, and concern for something beyond themselves. Don’t parents seek housing best suited to their children? Don’t they budget for clothes, toys, and treats, and celebrate birthdays? Parents often feel squeezed, taking on debt to ensure that their children’s childhoods remain carefree. I grant your objection: children are not pets. But devotion is no symptom of Peter Pan syndrome, either. Young Americans are marrying later than they would like. The age of first-time homebuyers has risen well beyond the age at which they would like to have their first child. Young Americans’ parental instincts toward their pets prove that they are capable of caring for others. Conservatives must offer solutions in earnest, not patronize them as overgrown children.)
AMERICAN ENTERPRISE INSTITUTE
— Wokeness in Higher Education Is Still Alive and Kicking. DD: I avoided Democrat indoctrination by majoring in business, accounting, and finance.
https://www.aei.org/commentary/wokeness-in-higher-education-is-still-alive-and-kicking/
— American Men Need to Start Taking More Personal Responsibility. DD: My parents and teachers promoted personal responsibility. That put me on track to earn a job-related bachelor’s degree, three job-related master’s degrees, six job-related professional certifications, and a job-related professional license.
https://www.aei.org/multimedia/american-men-need-to-start-taking-more-personal-responsibility/
AMERICAN THINKER
— Victim/Oppressor Golf. Who knew golfing, skydiving, and scuba diving were a “white” thing?
https://www.americanthinker.com/articles/2026/08/victim-oppressor-golf/
BREITBART
— Trump Admin Cancels 28,000 Trucker Licenses Held by Illegal Aliens.
https://www.breitbart.com/immigration/2026/08/01/trump-admin-cancels-28000-trucker-licenses-held-by-illegal-aliens/
DAILY SIGNAL
— Victor Davis Hanson: The Socialist Monster Awakens.
https://www.dailysignal.com/2026/08/01/socialist-monster-awakens/
— Mamdani’s Tax List Reveals the Dark Side of Socialist Class Warfare. DD: To get more votes from those who have less money than others, Democrat leaders ever-increasingly promote more class warfare.
https://www.dailysignal.com/2026/07/28/mamdani-tax-list-socialist-class-warfare/
FOX NEWS
— Trump admin’s push to scrap DEI in federal government takes landmark step with new hiring rule. DD: The Democrats who ran the Post Office in 1966, IRS in 1971, and GAO in 1980 hired me because they could not find a qualified Democrat, minority, female, younger person, or veteran who would take the job.
https://www.foxnews.com/politics/trump-admin-push-scrap-dei-federal-government-landmark-step-new-hiring-rule
— Senate Republican pushes merit-based military promotions, targets Biden-era DEI policies. Jim Banks’ measure would refocus promotion boards on merit and replace DEI training with military values instruction.
https://www.foxnews.com/politics/senate-republican-pushes-merit-based-military-promotions-targets-biden-era-dei-policies
HEARTLAND
— Class Warfare. DD: To get more votes from those who have less money than others, Democrat leaders ever-increasingly promote more class warfare.
https://heartland.org/opinion/class-warfare/
NEW AMERICAN
— TV Is Too White, Woke Professor Claims — and It Intensifies White Kids’ Racism. DD: To get more votes from non-Whites, Democrat leaders ever-increasingly promote more hatred against Whites.
https://thenewamerican.com/us/culture/tv-is-too-white-woke-professor-claims-and-it-intensifies-white-kids-racism/
OPM
— Merit-Based Federal Hiring and Restoring Accountability. DD: The Democrats who ran the Post Office in 1966, IRS in 1971, and GAO in 1980 hired me because they could not find a qualified Democrat, minority, female, younger person, or veteran who would take the job.
https://www.opm.gov/news/news-releases/icymi-opm-director-scott-kupor-discusses-merit-based-federal-hiring-and-restoring-accountability-on-the-ingraham-angle/
U.S. HOUSE
— DEI is Discriminatory and Illegal. DD: Democrats and RINOs use Affirmative Action and DEI to get rid of Republicans.
https://oversight.house.gov/release/hearing-wrap-up-dei-is-discriminatory-and-illegal/
FROM NATIONAL CENTER-LEFT SOURCES
THE HILL
— Class warfare is smoldering in America — and it’s about to catch fire. DD: To get more votes from those who have less money than others, Democrat leaders ever-increasingly promote more class warfare.
https://thehill.com/opinion/national-security/5880610-working-class-anger-arson-wake-up/
ASSOCIATED PRESS
— DD: To get more votes from minorities, females, younger people, veterans. those who have less money than others, non-Protestants, non-German Americans, and those whose ancestors have not been in America for a long time, Democrat leaders ever-increasingly shout at those who are the aforesaid that Republicans cause all the problems that those who are the foresaid have.
https://philasun.com/week-in-review/urban-league-report-says-trump-administration-is-harming-black-americans-chances-at-american-dream/
NEW YORK TIMES
— It Wasn’t a ‘Civil War.’ It Was the Slaveholders’ Rebellion. DD: My critics/opponents have always used against me the fact that all my ancestors immigrated during the 1840s and 1850s. In their defense, I have always stressed that they always lived in northeast Illinois.
https://www.nytimes.com/2026/08/02/opinion/civil-war-slaveholders-rebellion-slavery.html
— DD: To get more votes from non-Whites, Democrat leaders ever-increasingly promote more hatred against Whites
https://www.nytimes.com/2026/07/29/opinion/elon-musk-far-right-remigration.html
— Heritage Foundation. DD: According to my critics/opponents, I have always been too conservative because I promote the following planks in the Republican Party platform: personal responsibility, traditional marriage and family, right to life, immigration, anti-vice, Second Amendment, and equal opportunity (no race or gender based preference giving) planks. My critics/opponent reject some, many, most, virtually all, if not all of the aforesaid planks.
https://www.nytimes.com/2026/07/28/magazine/heritage-foundation-trump-republicans.html
— Nike Was the Poster Child for Diversity Efforts. That Made It a Trump Target. DD: GAO was a poster child for political affiliation discrimination. That made it a target for Republican budget cuts.
https://www.nytimes.com/2026/07/16/us/politics/nike-dei-trump-eeoc.html
— Are You a Jerk or a Sucker? Do only creeps or chumps still believe in the American dream? DD: What did you do to achieve the American Dream? I followed conservative principles. I worked my way through college. I earned a job-related bachelor’s degree and three job-related and master’s degrees. I earned six job-related professional certifications. I earned a job-related professional license.
https://www.nytimes.com/2026/07/26/opinion/your-friends-and-neighbors-apple-tv.html
— FRONT PAGE TOP OF FOLD: G.O.P. Kills Bid to Expand I.V.F. Access in the Military. 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 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, and 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. They would not have done that if I had been a Democrat, minority, female, or veteran. They knew full-well that both my wife and I had major fertility problems. Should write about my Democrat GAO superiors?
https://www.nytimes.com/2026/07/31/us/politics/gop-ivf-military.html
LAS VEGAS REVIEW JOURNAL
— What happened to personal responsibility? DD: My parents and teachers promoted personal responsibility. That put me on track to earn a job-related bachelor’s degree, three job-related master’s degrees, six job-related professional certifications, and a job-related professional license.
https://www.reviewjournal.com/opinion/letters/letter-whatever-happened-to-personal-responsibility-3732141/
WALL STREET JOURNAL
— India’s Affirmative-Action Lesson for America. Quotas hold the country back, even as China’s meritocracy fuels its economic advancement.
https://www.wsj.com/opinion/indias-affirmative-action-lesson-for-america-26f2dbaf
(FROM THE ARTICLE: India’s long-running debate about affirmative action has a new point of comparison: China. As Indians argue about expanding caste quotas in government jobs and public higher education, opponents of affirmative action want their country to learn from its northern neighbor. They compare India’s quota-ridden system—DEI on steroids—with China’s brutal meritocracy, which has produced economic and technological results that many Indians envy.)
BLOOMBERG LAW
— The Trump administration plans to dramatically reduce discrimination complaint processing options for federal workers, according to two people familiar with the proposal. DD: How has EEOC impacted you? EEOC had a tremendous impact on me. When I was 22 in 1971, I accepted a job offer from Oldsmobile. But Oldsmobile withdrew that job offer because it had just agreed to stop hiring Whites to settle an EEOC complaint. Because I had accepted that offer, my Firestone Store boss rudely fired me. Because of that, I accepted a job offer from IRS.
https://news.bloomberglaw.com/daily-labor-report/federal-worker-eeo-process-eyed-for-major-overhaul-in-trump-plan
FEDERAL NEWS NETWORK
— Essay questions on many federal job applications, asking candidates how they would advance the Trump administration’s policies. DD: 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.
https://federalnewsnetwork.com/hiring-retention/2026/04/federal-job-applicants-cant-skip-loyalty-question-that-opm-says-is-optional-court-filings-claim/
— Trump administration tosses degree requirements. DD: If I had not earned a high school diploma and passed the employment test, the Democrats who ran the Post Office would not have hired me in 1966. If I had not earned a bachelor’s degree in business, Firestone Stores would not have hired me in 1970. If I had not passed the Federal Service Entrance Examination, the Democrats who ran IRS would not have hired me in 1971. If I have not been taking graduate evening business courses, my Democrat IRS superiors would not have promoted me in 1972, 1973, and 1974. If I had not earned an MBA and passed the CPA examination on my first attempt, the Democrats who ran GAO would not have hired me in 1980.
https://federalnewsnetwork.com/hiring-retention/2026/04/trump-administration-tosses-degree-requirements-for-federal-it-managers/
FINANCIAL EXPRESS
— DD: To get more votes from non-Whites, Pritzker ever-increasingly promotes more hatred against Trump.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qVLKVZ7Qq1Y
URBAN INSTITUTE
— DD: What are the biggest personal choices that you made? Mine include earning a job-related college degree even though no one saw me as being college material.
https://www.urban.org/urban-wire/poverty-results-structural-barriers-not-personal-choices-safety-net-programs-should-reflect-fact
BROOKINGS
— DD: What are the biggest personal choices that you made? Mine include earning a job-related college degree even though no one saw me as being college material.
https://www.brookings.edu/articles/following-the-success-sequence-success-is-more-likely-if-youre-white/
YALE INSIGHTS
— Are Leaders Responsible for Employee Wellbeing? DD: While I worked for the Democrats who ran the Post Office 1966-1969, IRS 1971-1980, and GAO 1980-1997, they ever-increasingly worked harder to get rid of me. They would not have done that if I had been a Democrat, minority, female, and/or veteran.
https://insights.som.yale.edu/insights/are-leaders-responsible-for-employee-wellbeing
ATLANTIC
— DD: What are the biggest personal choices that you made? Mine include earning a job-related college degree even though no one saw me as being college material.
https://www.theatlantic.com/family/archive/2018/07/get-out-of-poverty-success-sequence/566414/
POLITICO
— Heritage Foundation. DD: According to my critics/opponents, I have always been too conservative because I promote the following planks in the Republican Party platform: personal responsibility, traditional marriage and family, right to life, immigration, anti-vice, Second Amendment, and equal opportunity (no race or gender based preference giving) planks. My critics/opponent reject some, many, most, virtually all, if not all of the aforesaid planks.
https://www.politico.com/news/magazine/2026/08/01/heritage-foundation-young-republicans-groypers-hiring-01006937
NATIONAL CATHOLIC REPORTER
— Vatican issues sweeping defense of traditional marriage. DD: My critics/opponents fail/refuse to promote traditional marriage.
https://www.ncronline.org/vatican/vatican-issues-sweeping-defense-traditional-marriage-pushing-back-polygamy
PSYCHOLOGY TODAY
— Sometimes, the best next step forward is a step back. DD: When I was 31 in 1980, to get promoted to GS-13, I took a $23,699/year (21%) pay cut in today’s dollars to transfer from IRS to GAO. My Democrat IRS superiors had made it very clear that they would never promote me to GS-13 even though I had earned an MBA when I was 27 and had passed the CPA examination on my first attempt when I was 30. They had gotten rid of the IRS manager who had promoted me when I was 23, 24, and 25. They had disallowed my travel vouchers when I was 25. They had disallowed my education deductions when I was 29. They would not have done that if I had been a Democrat, minority, female, and/or veteran.
https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/your-awesome-career/202604/why-your-next-career-move-might-be-a-demotion
FROM FOREIGN SOURCES
MEAWW
— Hegseth: Meritocracy reigns supreme in the Pentagon. DD: To promote Affirmative Action and DEI is to dump meritocracy. All my coworkers who my Democrat superiors in the federal government promoted over me were Democrats a) who had less education than I had, b) who had less work experience than I had, c) who had no professional certification or fewer than I had, and/or d) who had no professional license like the one I had and/or b) who were minority, female, younger, veteran, non-Protestant, non-German American, and/or have ancestors who have not been in America for a long time.
https://news.meaww.com/meritocracy-reigns-supreme-hegseths-pentagon-fires-back-after-mark-kellys-race-and-gender-claims
July 27, 2026 Evening Edition
FROM ILLINOIS CENTER-LEFT SOURCES
CHICAGO TRIBUNE
— Trump demands Senate cancel August break until it passes voting bill.
https://www.chicagotribune.com/2026/07/27/trump-senate-voting-bill/
— Trump administration urges Supreme Court to allow order targeting mail-in voting before midterms.
https://www.chicagotribune.com/2026/07/27/trump-administration-supreme-court-mail-in-voting/
— Is the Smithsonian racist? MAGA makes a case using Newspeak.
https://www.chicagotribune.com/2026/07/27/column-smithsonian-national-museum-of-american-history-donald-page-page/
— Deerfield Public Schools District 109 Fight over trans-inclusive student policies has moved to courts: ‘The feds are coming’
https://www.chicagotribune.com/2026/07/27/lake-transgender-student-inclusion/
CHICAGO SUN-TIMES
— Rep. Delia Ramirez visits Chicagoans at Kentucky ICE detention center and calls conditions ‘devastating’
https://chicago.suntimes.com/immigration/2026/07/27/rep-delia-ramirez-chicagoans-kentucky-ice-detention-center-conditions
DAILY HERALD
— Naperville reigns as ‘retail mecca,’ producing $5.7B in sales last year.
https://www.dailyherald.com/20260727/business/naperville-reigns-as-retail-mecca-producing-5-7b-in-sales-last-year/
WTTW
— Illinois Recognizes Gambling Addiction, Allowing New Treatment Options. DD: Democrat leaders ever-increasingly promote more vice.
https://news.wttw.com/2026/07/27/illinois-recognizes-gambling-addiction-allowing-new-treatment-options
CWB CHICAGO
— Large teen mobs are attacking and robbing victims in the Loop. DD: What is your municipality doing to stop Democrat teen takeovers?
https://cwbchicago.com/2026/07/large-teen-mobs-are-attacking-and-robbing-victims-in-the-loop-cpd-says.html
WHEATON PATCH
— Car Stolen At Gunpoint From Driveway In Wheaton. Police say Andrew Strong was armed when he knocked on the driver’s car window just after they had pulled into the driveway of their home.
https://patch.com/illinois/wheaton/car-stolen-gunpoint-wheaton
CAPITOL CITY NOW
— SNAP discussion. It’s difficult to find opportunities to fulfill work requirements. DD: My critics/opponents have always hinted/implied/argued/shouted that all the jobs I had were bad jobs that they would never stoop to take. 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. I worked on an automotive assembly line in 1970. I sold tires, automotive services, and major appliances 1970-1971. I pumped more gasoline 1971-1972. I collected delinquent taxes 1971-1980. I audited federal agencies 1980-1997. I should write about my critics/opponents.
https://capitolcitynow.com/news/248842-snap-discussion/
CAPITOL FAX
— Afternoon roundup
https://capitolfax.com/2026/07/27/isabel%e2%80%99s-afternoon-roundup-564/
— Oberweis called ‘Career candidate, perennial loser’ in Florida TV ad.
https://capitolfax.com/2026/07/27/oberweis-called-career-candidate-perennial-loser-in-florida-tv-ad/
FROM ILLINOIS CENTER-RIGHT SOURCES
MCHENRY COUNTY BLOG
— Marengo Park District Seeks New Exec, Reports on Accomplishments
https://www.mchenrycountyblog.com/2026/07/17/marengo-park-district-seeks-new-exec-reports-on-accomplishments/
— Appellate Court Keeps Gubernatorial Candidate Collin Corbett as Defendant in Defamation Case
https://www.mchenrycountyblog.com/2026/07/17/appellate-court-keeps-gubernatorial-candidate-collin-corbett-as-defendant-in-defamation-case/
— John Howard Association Points to Lack of Oversight Agency for Corrections Department
https://www.mchenrycountyblog.com/2026/07/17/john-howard-association-points-to-lack-of-oversight-agency-for-corrections-department/
— Three Years for Bribe-Taking Police Chief
https://www.mchenrycountyblog.com/2026/07/17/three-years-for-bribe-taking-police-chief/
— Next Year’s Prevailing Wages Announced, Sample: Traffic Safety Worker 1 $44.65
https://www.mchenrycountyblog.com/2026/07/18/next-years-prevailing-wages-announced-sample-traffic-safety-worker-1-44-65/
— “Rehabilitated Elected Official” Reflects on Downstream Effect from Small Things
https://www.mchenrycountyblog.com/2026/07/18/rehabilitated-elected-official-reflects-on-downstream-effect-from-small-things/
— County Board Members Between a Rock and a Hard Place in Solar Farm Zoning Mandate for Approval from the Circuit Court
https://www.mchenrycountyblog.com/2026/07/20/county-board-members-between-a-rock-and-a-hard-place-in-solar-farm-zoning-mandate-for-approval-from-the-circuit-court/
— Prairie Grove School District 46 Deep Debt Point, Counter Point, Counter Counter Point
https://www.mchenrycountyblog.com/2026/07/20/prairie-grove-school-district-46-deep-debt-point-counter-point-counter-counter-point/
— U.S. Attorney Reviews Last Six Months
https://www.mchenrycountyblog.com/2026/07/20/u-s-attorney-reviews-last-six-months/
— Suburban Robbery Crew Member Gets Fifteen Years for ATM, Bank and Armored Truck Heists
https://www.mchenrycountyblog.com/2026/07/21/suburban-robbery-crew-member-gets-fifteen-years-for-atm-bank-and-armored-truck-heists/
— What Headline Should I Use When I Print the Names of County Board Members Who Vote To Put Home Rule on the Fall Ballot?
https://www.mchenrycountyblog.com/2026/07/21/what-headline-should-i-use-when-i-print-the-names-of-county-board-members-who-vote-to-put-home-rule-on-the-fall-ballot/
— Passage of a Home Rule Referendum Will Severely Limit County Board Members’ Power
https://www.mchenrycountyblog.com/2026/07/21/passage-of-a-home-rule-referendum-will-severely-limit-county-board-members-power/
— What AI Says About Solar Farm Zoning Restrictions for Home Rule Counties
https://www.mchenrycountyblog.com/2026/07/21/what-ai-says-about-solar-farm-zoning-restrictions-for-home-rule-counties/
— Passage of a Home Rule Referendum Will Severely Limit County Board Members’ Power
https://www.mchenrycountyblog.com/2026/07/21/passage-of-a-home-rule-referendum-will-severely-limit-county-board-members-power/
— County Board Follows Directive of Court and Approves Solar Farm Zonings
https://www.mchenrycountyblog.com/2026/07/21/county-board-follows-directive-of-court-and-approves-solar-farm-zonings/
— Binding Home Rule Referendum Defeated
https://www.mchenrycountyblog.com/2026/07/21/binding-home-rule-referendum-defeated/
ILLINOIS REVIEW
— Pritzker’s Presidential Dreams Continue to Fall Flat, Stuck at Just 2% in National Polls.
https://www.illinoisreview.com/illinoisreview/2026/07/jb-pritzkers-presidential-dreams-continue-to-fall-flat-stuck-at-just-2-in-national-polls.html
FROM NATIONAL CENTER-RIGHT SOURCES
NEW YORK POST
— Trump trumpets tariffs, signs a Corvette, and tells Michigan autoworkers: ‘I’ve done more for you than your parents’
https://nypost.com/2026/07/27/us-news/trump-trumpets-tariffs-signs-a-corvette-during-visit-with-gm-autoworkers/
AMERICAN THINKER
— Trump triggers massive leftist hypocrisy on ‘transgenderism.’ When Trump cracked a Dylan Mulvaney joke at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner, he must have known what would ensue.
https://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2026/07/trump-triggers-massive-leftist-hypocrisy-on-transgenderism/
COLLEGE FIX
— Sesame Street accelerates white kids’ racism.
https://www.thecollegefix.com/sesame-street-accelerates-white-kids-racism-university-of-illinois-professor-says/
FROM NATIONAL CENTER-LEFT SOURCES
REUTERS
— Accounting Degrees Downgraded by US Education Dept, Sparking Outrage. DD: I am outraged. I passed the CPA examination on my first attempt when I was 30 in 1979. I earned a master’s degree in accounting from DePaul when I was 31. I passed the Certified Internal Auditor examination on my first attempt when I was 32. I became a licensed CPA when I was 32. I became a Certified Fraud Examiner when I was 41, a Certified Government Financial Manager when I was 45, a Certified Financial Services Auditor when I was 47, and a Forensic Accountant when I was 48. I worked for GAO 1980-1997. While Charles Bowsher ran GAO 1981-1996, he did everything that he could to get rid the agency’s employees who had degrees in business, accounting, and finance and to replace them with employees who had degrees in public administration from Ivy league universities. That rendered my degrees, certifications, and license worthless.
https://tax.thomsonreuters.com/news/accounting-degrees-downgraded-by-us-education-dept-sparking-outrage/
FORTUNE
— ‘Accounting is absolutely a profession’: AICPA president pushes back after Education Department reclassifies accounting degrees
https://fortune.com/2025/12/08/is-accounting-considered-a-profession-new-education-department-standards/
CPA ADVISOR
— Department of Education Unclassifies Accounting as a Professional Degree. The definitions of professional degree programs help determine loan eligibility, which can be a critical differentiator for a student striving to complete an accounting degree program and become a CPA.
https://www.cpapracticeadvisor.com/2025/11/24/department-of-education-unclassifies-accounting-as-a-professional-degree/173875/
FEDERAL NEW NETWORK
— Army speeds up its process of firing underperforming civilians while giving them less time to defend their work. DD: My Democrat superiors always hinted/implied that I underperformed and that was why they took adverse actions against me. They always used the subjectivity in their performance systems against me. In my defense, extremely few of my Post Office coworkers earned a job-related bachelor’s degree like I did. Few of my IRS and GAO coworkers earned job-related master’s degrees and professional certifications like I did. None of my coworkers earned a job-related professional license like I did. All my coworkers who my Democrat superiors promoted over me were Democrats who a) had less education than I had, b) had less work experience than I had, c) had no professional certification or fewer than I had, and/or d) had no professional license like the one I had. My Democrat GAO superiors used the subjectivity in their performance appraisal systems to a) force me to retire when I was 49 in 1997, b) always rank me in the bottom half of my coworkers for pay-for-performance, c) delay my promotions and never promoted me beyond GS-13, and d) force me to take a $23,699/year (21%) pay cut in today’s dollars to transfer from IRS to GAO in 1980. My Democrat IRS superiors used that subjectivity to never promote me beyond GS-12, disallow my education deductions in 1978, and disallow my travel vouchers in 1974. My Democrat Post Office superiors used that subjectivity to force me to resign in 1969 and disallow my sick leave requests in 1969 and 1968. They would not have done that if I had been 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.
https://federalnewsnetwork.com/army/2026/07/army-speeds-firing-process-for-civilian-employees/
July 16, 2026
FROM ILLINOIS CENTER-LEFT SOURCES
CHICAGO TRIBUNE
— GOP senator singles out former Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot during Todd Blanche DOJ hearing.
https://www.chicagotribune.com/2026/07/15/lori-lightfoot-todd-blanche/
— FRONT PAGE TOP OF FOLD WITH BIG PICTURE: DD: Democrat leaders ever-increasingly a) glorify and praise their illegals and b) fight their deportation.
https://www.chicagotribune.com/2026/07/16/ice-chicago-traffic-stops/
https://www.chicagotribune.com/2026/07/16/editorial-when-an-ice-tactic-keeps-ending-in-tragedy-it-must-be-rethought/
CHICAGO SUN-TIMES
— Ex-Mayor Lori Lightfoot bashed during Todd Blanche confirmation hearing that featured no Boutros questions.
https://chicago.suntimes.com/us-senate/2026/07/15/lori-lightfoot-todd-blanche-confirmation-hearing-us-attorney-general-us-attorney-andrew-boutros
— DD: Democrat leaders ever-increasingly a) glorify and praise their illegals and b) fight their deportation.
https://chicago.suntimes.com/city-hall/2026/07/15/brandon-johnson-city-council-ice-immigration-midway-blitz
https://chicago.suntimes.com/immigration/2026/07/15/ice-should-keep-making-traffic-stops-despite-recent-shootings-trump-says
https://chicago.suntimes.com/immigration/2026/07/15/chicago-immigrant-advocates-abolish-ice-fatal-shootings-houston-maine
CRAIN’S CHICAGO BUSINESS
— Congressional hearing on UIC med school veers from antisemitism to DEI, gender care
https://www.chicagobusiness.com/health-care/ccb-uic-medical-school-antisemitism-congress-20260715/
(FROM THE ARTICLE: Dr. Enrico Benedetti, along with officials from the University of California Los Angeles and University of California San Francisco, was initially accused of being soft on antisemitism on campus since the Trump administration took office, but the debate about the state of medical education has shifted since the congressional probe began last year. The Committee on Education & the Workforce began investigating the colleges in light of “complaints of severe antisemitism” at the schools, which committee Chairman Tim Walberg, R-Michigan, said stemmed from an activist infrastructure the universities had constructed. Walberg accused the schools of teaching that incited antisemitism, including “labeling of Jews as white, and therefore privileged and oppressors.” In his opening comments, Walberg went on to say the schools have integrated DEI into their admissions decisions and curricula, promoting courses that have nothing to do with medical science, but seek to turn medical students into “far left activists.” In opening testimony, Benedetti addressed the questions over antisemitism at the medical school, which has campuses in Chicago, Peoria and Rockford, saying the school has taken steps to better deal with religious and other bigotry. Benedetti testified the medical school had discontinued an internal communication channel that had become a forum for inappropriate and offensive commentary; changed its leadership structure to ensure clear lines of accountability, in which a new vice dean of education will now have oversight over student complaints regarding misconduct; and is updating the curriculum to better ensure that all of its physicians are trained to effectively treat patients from all communities. Benedetti was joined by Dr. Sam Hawgood, chancellor at UCSF, and Dr. Steve Dubinett, dean of the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA. Dr. Roger Mitchell Jr., president of the National Medical Association, the organization serving Black physicians, also testified. Benedetti and the other two school officials testified that their universities do not use race as a factor in determining acceptance into medical school. “The college’s primary goal is simple: to train excellent physicians who provide the best care to all patients, regardless of their own background or the background of those they serve,” Benedetti testified. “We provide a medical education that focuses on science, evidence-based medicine and the professional competencies required to care for patients.” The hearing moved away from antisemitism to diversity, with Walberg stating that medical education ought to be based on merit and “organic diversity” versus “merit flexibility with manufactured diversity.” He asked each dean whether students of different races were treated differently and whether students are chosen on the basis of race. Benedetti testified that race is not considered “when we choose the best student.” However, Rep. Virginia Foxx, R-N.C., said UI Medical College still states it is “committed to diversity and inclusion,” concluding that it was “clear that DEI is still the core mission” of the school. The ranking Democrat on the committee, Rep. Robert Scott of Virginia, said that while the committee had begun by investigating antisemitism, it became a discussion of DEI, as Republicans “abandoned good faith efforts to end discrimination,” turning a blind eye to other members of their party who actively promote bigotry. He defended the role of DEI in medical education, saying teaching about diversity is how to combat discrimination. Schools need to teach future doctors “to recognize and confront bias,” he said. “Inclusion isn’t just fair, it’s more effective medicine,” Scott said. Gender care at UI Health. Questioning turned to transgender care when Rep. Robert Onder, R-Mo., noted the Illinois university’s health system, UI Health, had suspended gender-affirming surgeries for minors in August 2025. Benedetti testified the system had “immediately” followed President Donald Trump’s executive order calling for a halt to all gender surgical procedures for minors. However, Benedetti could not answer whether minor patients could still receive puberty blockers or “cross-sex hormones” at UI Health, which Onder said should also be abolished for minors. “UI Health remains steadfast in its mission to provide compassionate, inclusive and patient-centered care,” the health system said in an emailed statement today. “The hospital suspended gender-affirming surgical procedures for patients under age 19, effective August 1, 2025. We have made no additional changes to our services.”)
FOX32
— Start your business with Chicago’s free entrepreneur certificate program.
https://www.fox32chicago.com/video/fmc-cxnkhnca9f3rulcp
POLITICO ILLINOIS
— Senate hearing spotlights Lightfoot
https://www.politico.com/newsletters/illinois-playbook/2026/07/16/senate-hearing-spotlights-lightfoot-01000127
CAPITOL FAX
— Morning briefing
https://capitolfax.com/
— Afternoon roundup
https://capitolfax.com/2026/07/15/isabel%e2%80%99s-afternoon-roundup-556/
— Giannoulias generates most excitement in early mayor’s race.
https://capitolfax.com/2026/07/15/poll-giannoulias-generates-most-excitement-in-early-mayor%e2%80%99s-race/
FROM ILLINOIS CENTER RIGHT SOURCES
MCHENRY COUNTY BLOG
— Corbett Takes on Bailey
https://www.mchenrycountyblog.com/2026/07/15/corbett-takes-on-bailey/
ILLINOIS POLICY INSTITUTE
— Toll and sales tax hikes: What Pritzker said vs. what Pritzker did. The governor said Illinoisans wouldn’t be interested in a toll increase to keep the Bears. Then he signaled support for what would be the largest passenger toll hike in state history.
https://www.illinoispolicy.org/toll-and-sales-tax-hikes-what-pritzker-said-vs-what-pritzker-did/
FROM NATIONAL CENTER-RIGHT SOURCES
WASHINGTON TIMES
— Democratic Socialists of America’s new platform calls for abolishing ICE and the U.S. Senate.
https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2026/jul/15/updated-dsa-platform-calls-abolishing-ice-scrapping-senate/
— Mike Lindell wins Trump’s endorsement for Minnesota governor.
https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2026/jul/15/mike-lindell-wins-trumps-endorsement-minnesota-governor/
— Government just keeps spending. Low hopes for Vance’s attempt to rein in deficit.
https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2026/jul/15/government-keeps-spending/
WASHINGTON EXAMINER
— Democrats are as extreme as their most radical faction.
https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/opinion/beltway-confidential/4649918/democrats-extreme-most-radical-faction/
— Socialist Democrats represent the rich, white voters in their party.
https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/opinion/beltway-confidential/4649944/socialist-democrats-represent-the-rich-white-voters-in-their-party/
— Trump says ‘proud American veterans’ will replace illegal immigrant truck drivers. DD: I often drove postal trucks while I worked for the Post Office 1966-1969. 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.washingtonexaminer.com/news/white-house/4650629/trump-veterans-replace-illegal-immigrant-truck-drivers/
— Joy Behar calls Darline Graham Nordone a DEI hire for South Carolina. DD: According to Google AI, “Relevant work experience means any past professional or academic activity that equips you with the transferable skills, knowledge, and abilities needed to perform a specific target job.” GAO Audits IRS. To force me to take a $23,699/year (21%) pay cut to transfer from IRS to GAO when I was 31 in 1980, my Democrat GAO superiors outrageously, disgustingly, and unethically ignored/dismissed/belittled/badmouthed a) what I had learned working for IRS’s Collection Division 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, b) my having passed the CPA examination on my first attempt in 1979, c) my earning an MBA from Loyola in 1976, and d) the fact that much of what I did for IRS was similar to what I would do for GAO. They kept me off audits of IRS’s Collection Division for all of the almost 18 years that I worked for GAO but did let me work on audits of IRS’s Criminal Investigation Division for 3 years. They would not have wasted my knowledge of IRS if I had been a Democrat, female, or veteran.
https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/news/senate/4649663/joy-behar-graham-nordone-dei-hire-south-carolina-senate/
— Republicans whistle while Big Abortion seeks their defeat.
https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/restoring-america/community-family/4650113/republicans-whistle-planned-parenthood-seeks-their-defeat/
CHRONICLES MAGAZINE
— Blame Democrats, Not ICE, for Recent Deadly Shootings.
https://chroniclesmagazine.org/web/blame-democrats-not-ice-for-recent-deadly-shootings/
COLLEGE FIX
— A federal appeals court reinstated a medical professor’s defamation and civil rights retaliation case against the University of Pittsburgh last week over an article he wrote criticizing affirmative action. DD: When I was a 40-year-old GAO employee in 1988, I did much more than write an article. I became an active member in a class action lawsuit that charged my superiors with reverse discrimination, age discrimination, and retaliation. I represented all of GAO’s Chicago office employees who were White, male, more than 40 years old, and GS-14, currently $140,604-$182,790/year in today’s dollars, or below. To punish me, my Democrat GAO Chicago office superiors immediately threw me off audits of IRS for the rest of my GAO career, gave me a very bad job assignment, gave me very unfair performance expectations, gave me a very unfair performance appraisal, and ranked me at the bottom of my coworkers for pay-for-performance.
https://www.thecollegefix.com/court-sides-with-u-pittsburgh-professor-demoted-for-criticizing-affirmative-action/
DAILY SIGNAL
— Socialist War on Public Safety Coming to a Town Near You
https://www.dailysignal.com/2026/07/15/socialist-war-on-public-safety-coming-to-a-town-near-you-socialist/
— Foreign-born truckers who illegally immigrated to the United States are receiving inadequate driving instruction, taking jobs away from American workers, and endangering the lives of fellow drivers. DD: I often drove postal trucks while I worked for the Post Office 1966-1969. 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.dailysignal.com/2026/07/15/illegal-alien-truckers-documentary/
FEDERALIST
— Democrat Senator Wants ICE Agents To Choose Between Getting Run Over And Going To Jail.
https://thefederalist.com/2026/07/15/democrat-senator-wants-ice-agents-to-choose-between-getting-run-over-and-going-to-jail/
FEDERATION FOR AMERICAN IMMIGRATION REFORM
— No English, No Problem — Until the Crash Happens. DD: I often drove postal trucks while I worked for the Post Office 1966-1969. 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.fairus.org/opinion/no-english-no-problem-until-crash-happens
FOX NEWS
— How the ‘long march’ through the institutions led to socialist takeover of Dem Party.
https://www.aol.com/news/long-march-institutions-led-socialist-144158152.html
— Powerful LGBTQ+ group’s endorsements could tank vulnerable Dems over radical youth trans agenda. DD: How successful have Democrat leaders been in making everyone a LGBTQer in your county, township, municipality, school district, and precinct?
https://www.foxnews.com/politics/powerful-lgbtq-groups-endorsements-could-tank-vulnerable-dems-radical-youth-trans-agenda.amp
— Sunny Hostin calls Lindsey Graham’s sister a ‘DEI’ hire, questions her qualifications. DD: According to Google AI, “Relevant work experience means any past professional or academic activity that equips you with the transferable skills, knowledge, and abilities needed to perform a specific target job.” GAO Audits IRS. To force me to take a $23,699/year (21%) pay cut to transfer from IRS to GAO when I was 31 in 1980, my Democrat GAO superiors outrageously, disgustingly, and unethically ignored/dismissed/belittled/badmouthed a) what I had learned working for IRS’s Collection Division 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, b) my having passed the CPA examination on my first attempt in 1979, c) my earning an MBA from Loyola in 1976, and d) the fact that much of what I did for IRS was similar to what I would do for GAO. They kept me off audits of IRS’s Collection Division for all of the almost 18 years that I worked for GAO but did let me work on audits of IRS’s Criminal Investigation Division for 3 years. They would not have wasted my knowledge of IRS if I had been a Democrat, female, or veteran.
https://www.foxnews.com/media/sunny-hostin-calls-lindsey-grahams-sister-dei-hire-questions-qualifications
(FROM THE ARTICLE: “The View” co-host Sunny Hostin criticized South Carolina on Wednesday over Republican Gov. Henry McMaster’s appointment of Darline Graham to replace her late brother, Sen. Lindsey Graham, arguing the state’s first female senator lacked the political experience needed to represent its residents in Washington. Hostin branded the appointment an example of diversity-based hiring and nepotism after co-host Joy Behar called Graham’s selection “the very definition of DEI.” “Correct, correct. It’s everything that the Republican Party stands against. Everything!” Hostin said. “It’s DEI. Nepotism. All these things thrown in together.” Hostin also attacked South Carolina for reaching the milestone through an appointment rather than the election of a female candidate. “She’ll be the first woman to be a U.S. senator in South Carolina in the history of the state, and I think that that’s just — it’s just fundamentally wrong that South Carolina just couldn’t elect a woman and this is the only way that it was done,” Hostin said. The former federal prosecutor questioned Graham’s qualifications, referring to her as a certified optician and arguing that her professional background did not prepare her for the Senate. “I think the experience does matter,” Hostin said. “While she is a certified optician and while she has done great work in that field, I don’t think that she should be representing the people of South Carolina in the U.S. Senate. I just don’t.” Behar agreed and argued that public office required specialized knowledge. “It’s not like taking over your mother’s job at McDonald’s,” Behar said. “You’re in government. You have to know what you’re doing.” Co-host Alyssa Farah Griffin, who served as the White House Director of Strategic Communications in President Donald Trump’s first term, pushed back, noting that Graham would serve as a caretaker and comparing the appointment to California Gov. Gavin Newsom’s selection of Laphonza Butler after the death of Sen. Dianne Feinstein. “You guys are putting too much stock in who’s currently in Congress,” Griffin said. “Yeah, you got a point,” co-host Whoopi Goldberg said. Hostin tied the appointment to reports that War Secretary Pete Hegseth had blocked several proposed promotions of Navy officers, including women and people of color. “I feel like our government is fundamentally broken,” Hostin said. “I just — I disagree with this.” . . . Darline Graham, a native of Central, S.C., has dedicated her career to public service,” the spokesperson added. “She has served the people of South Carolina for nearly 30 years, and the governor believes she is the right person to finish her brother’s work.” Graham has served as commissioner of the South Carolina Commission for the Blind since 2019, working to expand employment and independent-living opportunities for residents who are blind or have low vision, according to the governor’s office. She previously held roles with Clemson University, the South Carolina Department of Employment and Workforce and the South Carolina Department of Vocational Rehabilitation.)
HERITAGE FOUNDATION
— DEI Is a Threat to the Republic. DD: Affirmative Action (AA) and DEI are political affiliation discrimination, reverse discrimination, age discrimination, religious discrimination, and national origin discrimination. My critics/opponents promote AA and DEI a) because they personally benefit from AA and DEI and/or b) because they want to curry favor with those who benefit from AA and DEI.
https://www.heritage.org/progressivism/report/dei-threat-the-republic
MINDING THE CAMPUS
— The Fourth Year Is on Trial. If colleges can’t prove a fourth year is worth the cost, states should keep cutting. DD: Immediately after I completed 16 graduate evening business courses one course at a time 1972-1976 and earned an MBA from Loyola, Loyola cut its requirement for an MBA to 12 courses if you had a bachelor’s degree in business which I did. My not earning an MBA sooner than I did harmed my IRS career.
https://mindingthecampus.org/2026/07/15/the-fourth-year-is-on-trial/
POST MILLENNIAL
— Trump to replace illegal alien truckers with American veteran drivers. All veterans with experience driving US military trucks will automatically be eligible for a commercial driver’s license (CDL). DD: I often drove postal trucks while I worked for the Post Office 1966-1969. 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://thepostmillennial.com/president-trump-to-replace-illegal-alien-truckers-with-american-veteran-drivers
TOWNHALL
— Democrats Want to Put DEI Before Your Health and Safety.
https://townhall.com/tipsheet/amy-curtis/2026/07/15/dei-in-medical-schools-n2679470
— Leftist Podcasters Trash Christianity and Homeschooling: ‘It’s Child Abuse’
https://townhall.com/tipsheet/julia-cassidy/2026/07/15/leftist-podcasters-sound-off-on-christianity-and-homeschooling-its-child-abuse-n2679513
FROM NATIONAL CENTER-LEFT SOURCES
AOL
— O’Reilly pushes personal responsibility amid affordability crisis. What did you do to help you afford things? I earned a job-related bachelor’s degree in 1970, job-related master’s degrees in 1976, 1980, and 1997, job-related professional certifications in 1979, 1981, 1990, 1994, 1996, and 1997, and a job-related professional license in 1981. 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. I worked on an automotive assembly line in 1970. I sold tires, automotive services, and major appliances 1970-1971. I pumped more gasoline 1971-1972. I collected delinquent taxes 1971-1980. I audited federal agencies 1980-1997.
https://www.aol.com/articles/o-reilly-pushes-personal-responsibility-035055000.html
NEW YORK TIMES
— DD: 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://www.nytimes.com/2026/07/14/us/hegseth-blocks-navy-promotions.html
USA TODAY
— These 5 states (California, Massachusetts, New Jersey, Rhode Island and Washington, DC,) still penalize you if you don’t have health insurance. DD: The federal government paying 72% of my health insurance since 1966 and then also paying 72% of my wife’s health insurance since 1978 helped me endure tremendous efforts by my Democrat superiors in the federal government to waste my career and to get rid of me.
https://www.usatoday.com/story/money/personalfinance/2026/03/18/states-penalty-no-health-insurance/89168539007/
WALL STREET JOURNAL
— India’s Affirmative-Action Lesson for America. Quotas hold the country back, even as China’s meritocracy fuels its economic advancement. DD: 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://www.wsj.com/opinion/indias-affirmative-action-lesson-for-america-26f2dbaf
— Democrats Fall for Socialism Again.
https://www.wsj.com/opinion/democrats-fall-for-socialism-again-71155b18
POLITICO
— In seismic shift, more than 100 House Democrats vote to end Israel aid. The amendment to block military assistance failed, but partisan split cemented the increasingly polarized view of the U.S. ally. Rep. Lauren Underwood — a leader of House Democrats’ campaign arm who flipped her Illinois seat blue in 2018 — voted for the amendment as well.
https://www.politico.com/news/2026/07/15/israel-aid-vote-house-democrats-00999917
— The military benefits bill that’s tearing the veterans community apart. The Take Care of America’s Veterans Act may not get a House vote this week because of ongoing controversy surrounding the measure.
https://www.politico.com/news/2026/07/15/house-take-care-veterans-act-00999260
(FROM THE ARTICLE: Rep. Mike Bost (R-Ill.), chair of the House Veterans’ Affairs Committee and sponsor of the measure, held a rally outside the capitol Tuesday to marshal support for the bill, featuring supportive remarks from the American Legion, Wounded Warrior Project, the Tragedy Assistance Program For Survivors and Vietnam Veterans of America.)
— DD: Democrat and RINO leaders blame Trump for affordability problems. What did you do to help you afford things? I earned a job-related bachelor’s degree in 1970, job-related master’s degrees in 1976, 1980, and 1997, job-related professional certifications in 1979, 1981, 1990, 1994, 1996, and 1997, and a job-related professional license in 1981. 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. I worked on an automotive assembly line in 1970. I sold tires, automotive services, and major appliances 1970-1971. I pumped more gasoline 1971-1972. I collected delinquent taxes 1971-1980. I audited federal agencies 1980-1997.
https://www.politico.com/news/2025/12/04/poll-americans-trump-voters-affordability-crisis-00674747
HR DRIVE
— DD: Democrat and RINO employers use Affirmative Action and DEI a) to not hire Republicans and b) get rid of their Republican employees.
https://www.hrdive.com/news/eeoc-2026-agenda-enforcement/825281/
FROM FOREIGN SOURCES
SKY NEWS
— Trump to stop blue cities registering illegal aliens to vote as Mamdani continues to brag
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gdYQ20aNxc8
INDIAN EXPRESS
— What helped you become marriage material? By the time I got married when I was 29 in 1978, I had worked for IRS for almost 7 years and my salary was $110,066/year in today’s dollars. I had earned an MBA from Loyola in 1976 and I was taking graduate evening accounting courses at DePaul. I lived in a one bedroom condo in the Outer Drive East building that I had bought in 1976. I was renting out a town home in University Park that I had bought new in 1972. I owned a 1972 Corvette that I had bought new in 1971. See Money Magazine’s 4-page February 1978 article on my wife and I at https://gopillinois.com/documents/ Things that impressed me about my outstanding wife included that her first job after high school was working for the FBI. She soon became the Corporate Secretary of the U.S. League of Savings Institutions. She did much to help elect Big Jim Thompson governor in 1976. She earned a bachelor’s degree in finance from DePaul in 1986.
https://indianexpress.com/article/entertainment/bollywood/a-strong-woman-is-not-marriage-material-neena-gupta-reveals-that-95-of-men-want-women-who-are-helpless-10462475/
FROM OTHER SOURCES
HAGERTY
— Your definitive 1968–70 Dodge Charger buyer’s guide. DD: My dream car is a 1968 Dodge Charger R/T, As it came from the factory, Numbers matching/correct, Like new, 440 or 426, Automatic, Blue exterior, Black vinyl roof, Black leather interior, and Air conditioning. I owned a 1968 R/T 1994-2005 and a 1969 SE 1968-1971.
https://www.hagerty.com/media/car-profiles/definitive-1968-70-dodge-charger-buyers-guide/
July 5, 2026
FROM ILLINOIS CENTER-LEFT SOURCES
CHICAGO TRIBUNE
— Centrist Democrats must not let ‘democratic socialists’ take over their party without a fight.
https://www.chicagotribune.com/2026/07/05/editorial-democrats-dsa-zohran-mamdani-denver-new-york/
— DD: Democrat leaders ever-increasingly diminish Second Amendment rights.
https://www.chicagotribune.com/2026/07/02/highland-park-group-fights-guns/
— Voters turn to AI before casting their ballots. DD: Anticipate/expect that Democrat leaders will ever-increasingly use AI to not only defeat Republican candidates, but to get rid of Republicans once for all who are conservative, White, male, older, Protestant, German American, and/or have ancestors who have been in America for a long time.
https://www.chicagotribune.com/2026/07/04/ai-voting-advice/
— DD: Democrat leaders ever-increasingly divide and destroy America.
https://www.chicagotribune.com/2026/07/05/vintage-chicago-tribune-bicentennial-250/
— DD: Democrat leaders ever-increasingly push more pot.
https://www.chicagotribune.com/2026/07/05/cannabis-tax-school-security/
DAILY HERALD
— ‘Sour grapes’ aren’t the issue: Whatever the result of clerk’s pay-raise suit, DuPage board failed a transparency test.
https://www.dailyherald.com/20260705/editorials/daily-herald-opinion-sour-grapes-arent-the-issue-whatever-the-result-of-clerks-pay-raise-suit/
ABC7
— DD: How long have your ancestors been in America? Democrat leaders ever-increasingly use slavery to demonize, denigrate, and condemn not only Republicans, but America. Ever-increasingly, if you are the following, the longer that your ancestors have been in America, the more that Democrat leaders demonize, denigrate, and condemn you: conservative, Republican, White, male, older, non-poor, non-veteran, Protestant, and/or German American. Because I am all of the aforesaid, Democrat leaders have always made me pay the price of Affirmative Action and DEI big time. I should write about that. My critics/opponents have always stressed that all my ancestors immigrated during the 1840s and 1850s. That on my father’s side, they homesteaded a 240-acre farm in southeast Crete Township and that on my mother’s side, they sharecropped a 180-acre farm in Grant Park along the Indiana border. According to my critics/opponents, my ancestors stole land from Native Americans and they benefitted tremendously from slavery and that is why I have everything that I have today.
https://abc7chicago.com/post/descendants-enslaved-person-helped-build-white-house-speak-abc-news/19446644/
https://abc7chicago.com/post/search-lost-ancestry-story-behind-philadelphias-disputed-slavery-memorial/19446819/
— DD: Democrat leaders ever-increasingly make it clear that they are anti-American.
https://abc7chicago.com/post/is-paying-americas-250th-celebrations-complicated/19446383/
WGN9
— DD: Democrat celebrities promote more hatred against Trump.
https://wgntv.com/news/nexstar-media-wire/celebrities-counter-trumps-america-250-rhetoric-with-on-tyranny-reading/
FOX32
— Fourth of July fireworks end in teen arrests after crowd turns hostile in Joliet. DD: What is your municipality doing to stop Democrat teen takeovers?
https://www.fox32chicago.com/news/fourth-july-fireworks-joliet-arrests
NPR ILLINOIS
— Trump addresses nation and fireworks light up National Mall after storm delay.
https://www.nprillinois.org/2026-07-04/trump-addresses-nation-and-fireworks-light-up-national-mall-after-storm-delay
WGLT
— In Mount Rushmore speech, Trump veers from U.S. exceptionalism to warnings about communism.
https://www.wglt.org/2026-07-04/in-mount-rushmore-speech-trump-veers-from-u-s-exceptionalism-to-warnings-about-communism
FROM ILLINOIS CENTER-RIGHT SOURCES
SETH LEWIS
— What a great morning at the Wheaton Fourth of July Parade.
https://www.facebook.com/reel/1343001137248096
GOPUSA ILLINOIS
— Republican candidates on the ballot in my precinct who walked in Wheaton’s Independence Day parade include: Fioretti, Oakley, Lewis, Vrankovich, Schiappa, Eckhoff, Schultz, and Quirk. – Dave Diersen
http://www.gopillinois.com
FROM NATIONAL CENTER-RIGHT SOURCES
WASHINGTON TIMES
— Communist Party USA denies that Democrats aiming for Congress are communists. DD: Far too many anti-conservatives ever-increasingly run for offices as Republicans.
https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2026/jul/4/communist-party-usa-denies-democrats-aiming-congress-communists/
— White supremacist group Patriot Front marched in Washington on Independence Day. DD: My critics/opponents are anti-conservative if not conservative-haters. They have always hinted/implied/argued/shouted that TAPROOT Republicans of Illinois and Illinois Center Right Coalition (ICRC) were hate groups if not White supremacist groups. I served as the chairman of TAPROOT from 2005 until 2012 when they succeeded in destroying the organization. I served as an ICRC Steering Committee member from 2003 until 2007 when they succeeded in destroying the organization.
https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2026/jul/4/white-supremacy-protesters-descend-washington-fourth-july/
WASHINGTON EXAMINER
— For America 250, reject Mamdani’s narrative of American oppression. DD: What do you stress in defense of your ancestors? I stress that while they all immigrated during the 1840s and 1860s, they never were in a position to oppress anyone and that they never did oppress anyone.
https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/op-eds/4636240/america-250-reject-mamdani-narrative-american-oppression/
NEW YORK POST
— 68% of NYC residents are proud to be American. DD: Ever-increasingly, to demonize, denigrate, and condemn Trump, Democrat leaders demonize, denigrate, and condemn America.
https://nypost.com/2026/07/04/us-news/68-of-nyc-residents-are-proud-to-be-american-new-poll-finds/
— DSA candidate’s perverse views are the latest evidence that US schools need to be fixed.
https://nypost.com/2026/07/04/opinion/melat-kiros-sick-views-are-just-the-latest-evidence-that-us-schools-need-to-be-fixed/
— Of course Mamdani takes opportunity to blast America in 4th of July speech focused on ‘flaws.’ DD: Ever-increasingly, to demonize, denigrate, and condemn Trump, Democrat leaders demonize, denigrate, and condemn America.
https://nypost.com/2026/07/03/opinion/of-course-mamdani-takes-opportunity-to-blast-america-in-july-4-speech-focused-on-flaws/
— Democratic Socialists of America leader says ‘many’ in group would be ‘thrilled’ at AOC in 2028.
https://nypost.com/2026/07/04/media/aoc-2028-presidential-run-would-thrill-many-in-democratic-socialists-of-america-leader-says/
— Non-whites set to become majority in US for first time by 2050. DD: Democrat leaders ever-increasingly a) flood America with non-Whites and b) shout at non-Whites that Republicans cause all the problems that non-Whites have.
https://nypost.com/2026/05/26/us-news/non-whites-set-to-become-majority-in-us-for-first-time-by-2050/
— DD: From what I see, because of WWI and because of WWII, German is one of the worst national origins to have. I am 100% German national origin. I have always stressed a) that all my ancestors immigrated during the 1840s and 1850s, b) that my grandfather on my father’s side fought the Germans in WWI, and c) that my uncles on my mother’s side fought the Germans in WWII.
https://nypost.com/2026/07/04/us-news/descendants-of-1st-ellis-island-immigrant-celebrate-american-dream/
AMERICAN THINKER
— Mamdani tells us how much he hates America on its 250th birthday.
https://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2026/07/mamdani-tells-the-u-s-how-much-he-hates-it-on-its-250th-birthday-comments/
— That pesky 14th Amendment. The 14th Amendment requires a lot of interpreting…and that is the problem.
https://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2026/07/that-pesky-14th-amendment/
DAILY CALLER
— Fox News Host Jesse Watters Slams Gen Z As Lazy, Entitled. DD: What did you accomplish by the time you were 29? I bought new cars when I was 17, 19, 20, 23, 25, and 29, b) I worked my way through college and earned a bachelor’s degree in management when I was 21, c) I bought real estate when I was 24, 25, 27, and 29, d) I earned an MBA when I was 27, and e) I got married when I was 29. I passed the CPA examination on my first attempt when I was 30. I earned a master’s degree in accounting when I was 31. I passed the Certified Internal Auditor examination on my first attempt when I was 32. I became a licensed CPA when I was 32.
https://dailycaller.com/2026/07/04/fox-news-host-slams-gen-z-as-lazy-entitled/
DAILY SIGNAL
— The New Socialists—Elite, Ungrateful, and Toxic as Ever.
https://www.dailysignal.com/2026/07/03/new-socialists-elite-toxic/
— Why the American Republic Survived for 250 Years. DD: Because I am not a Democrat, minority, female, or veteran, I would not have survived as a federal employee for almost 30 years if I had not earned a bachelor’s degree in business when I was 21, earned an MBA when I was 27, passed the CPA examination on my first attempt when I was 30, earned a master’s degree in accounting when I was 31, passed the Certified Internal Auditor examination on my first attempt when I was 32, became a licensed CPA when I was 32, earned four more job-related professional certifications when I was 41, 45, 47, and 48, and earned a master’s degree in finance when I was 48.
https://www.dailysignal.com/2026/07/04/hanson-american-republic-250-years/
CAMPUS REFORM
— UC Berkeley course catalog found to be abundant with Marxist offerings.
https://www.campusreform.org/article/uc-berkeley-course-catalog-found-abundant-marxist-offerings/30149
FOX NEWS
— Will voters reject radical socialist ‘politics of envy’ in midterms? DD: How has envy been used against you? To turn my superiors, supervisors, coworkers, and subordinates in the federal government against me, my Democrat superiors promoted envy big time. They stressed a) the new cars that I bought when I was 17, 19, 20, 23, 25, 29, etc., b) the real estate that I bought when I was 24, 25, 27, 29, and 35, c) the college degrees, professional certifications, and professional license that I earned, d) the vacations that I took, e) etc. They strongly hinted/implied/argued that if I had not avoided the Vietnam War draft, I would not have been able to do the aforesaid. They strongly hinted/implied/argued that if I had not gotten married when I was 29, I would not have been able to accomplish what did after then. They strongly hinted/implied/argued that if my wife and I had children, I would not have been able to accomplish what I did after we got married. My Democrat GAO superiors decried the time and money they spent raising their children. They decried their wives having little or no income.
https://www.foxnews.com/media/mike-lawler-predicts-voters-soundly-reject-radical-socialist-politics-envy-midterms
LEGAL INSURRECTION
— Victor Davis Hanson Ties Education and Immigration to Rise of the DSA.
https://legalinsurrection.com/2026/07/victor-davis-hanson-ties-education-and-immigration-to-rise-of-the-dsa/amp/
PJ MEDIA
— Federal Court Defies Supreme Court, Rules Trump Can’t Fire DEI Officers. DD: My Democrat GAO superiors hinted/implied that they forced me to retire when I was 49 in 1997 because I failed/refused to give enough preference to my subordinates who were Democrat, minority, female, younger, and/or veteran. All my subordinates were one or more of the aforesaid if not many of the aforesaid. All of my coworkers who my Democrat superiors in the federal government promoted over me were Democrats who a) were one or more if not many of the aforesaid and b) 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. My Democrat GAO superiors forced me to retire when I was 49 in 1997 and gave my job and my preferred corner office to my Black subordinate. He had less education than I had. He had less work experience than I had. He had one professional certification while I had six. He had no professional license like the one I had (CPA).
https://pjmedia.com/matt-margolis/2026/07/04/federal-court-defies-supreme-court-rules-trump-cant-fire-dei-officers-n4954659
(FROM THE ARTICLE: The Supreme Court just handed Donald Trump one of the biggest expansions of presidential power in decades. It took a federal appeals court all of a few days to act as if the ruling didn’t exist. On Monday, the Supreme Court ruled six to three that Congress cannot shield members of independent agencies such as the Federal Trade Commission from presidential removal, except for “inefficiency, neglect of duty, or malfeasance in office.” The justices said that violates the separation of powers baked into the Constitution.)
FROM NATIONAL CENTER-LEFT SOURCES
THE HILL
— Democrats grapple with left-wing primary wins.
https://thehill.com/homenews/campaign/5952255-democratic-party-dsa-midterm-primaries/
CBS NEWS
— Trump warns of “communist menace” in speech at Mount Rushmore on eve of July 4th.
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/trump-mount-rushmore-speech-july-4-communism/
U.S. NEWS & WORLD REPORT
— What the Census Reveals About Who Still Feels ‘American.’ Millions of Americans list their ancestry as simply ‘American’ – but that share is shrinking. Census data shows where the identity endures. DD: Fewer and fewer and fewer Americans are German American. From what I see, because of WWI and because of WWII, German is one of the worst national origins to have. I am 100% German national origin. I have always stressed a) that all my ancestors immigrated during the 1840s and 1850s, b) that my grandfather on my father’s side fought the Germans in WWI, and c) that my uncles on my mother’s side fought the Germans in WWII.
https://www.usnews.com/news/national-news/articles/2026-07-02/what-the-census-reveals-about-who-still-feels-american
CNN
— Biden to Trump: ‘This is a guy born with a silver spoon in his mouth.’ DD: To demonize me, denigrate me, and condemn me as being born with a silver spoon in my mouth, my critics/opponents have always stressed that my father made enough money to send me to Missouri Synod Lutheran grade schools 1953-1962. But he never made more than $50,000/year in today’s dollars. I had to work my way through college. 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 delivered mail 1966-1969. I worked on an automotive assemble line in 1970. I sold tires, automotive services, and major appliances 1970-1971. I pumped more gasoline 1971-1972. I collected delinquent taxes 1971-1980. I audited federal agencies 1980-1997. I should write about my critic/opponents. I would focus on those whose parents were the wealthiest.
https://www.cnn.com/2016/09/01/politics/joe-biden-donald-trump-silver-spoon
NEW YORK TIMES
— How a Nation of Immigrants Traces Its Roots. DD: Democrat leaders ever-increasing a) glorify and praise current illegal immigration by non-Whites into America but b) demonize, denigrate, and condemn past legal immigration by Whites into America. My critics/opponents have always stressed that all my ancestors immigrated during the 1840s and 1850s. That on my father’s side, they homesteaded a 240-acre farm in southeast Crete Township and that on my mother’s side, they sharecropped a 180-acre farm in Grant Park along the Indiana border. According to my critics/opponents, my ancestors stole land from Native Americans and they benefitted tremendously from slavery and that is why I have everything that I have today.
https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2026/07/01/us/america-identity-ancestry-census.html
(FROM THE ARTICLE: After 1840, immigration from Western Europe began to rise quickly as political instability in Germany and the famine in Ireland drove people to leave.)
— FRONT PAGE: In San Francisco, Even $180,000 Tech Salaries Are No Longer Enough. DD: In today’s dollars, when I was 49 in 1997, my ending GAO salary was $154,682.
https://www.nytimes.com/2026/06/29/technology/san-francisco-tech-salaries.html
— Working Parents Say They’re in a Losing Battle Over Their Time. DD: My Democrat GAO superiors 1980-1997 a) decried the time and money 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, 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.
https://www.nytimes.com/2026/06/16/upshot/parenting-working-balance-survey.html
WASHINGTON POST
— DD: Without America’s military might, there would be no Catholicism, no Catholic Church, and no Pope. Democrat leaders ever-increasingly use the Pope to promote more illegal immigration.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2026/07/04/lampedusa-island-gateway-europe-pope-leo-calls-protecting-migrants/
FORBES
— DD: 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 and often many 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://www.forbes.com/advisor/business/gender-pay-gap-statistics/
JILL SCHLESINGER
— How to support, not enable adult kids. DD: My father died suddenly when he was 47 and I was 21 in 1969. He was earning $50,000/year in today’s dollars. My mother had never attended high school, she had never worked outside the home, and my brother was having problems. I graduated from NIU and I got a job working for the Firestone Store in Chicago Heights in 1970. I applied for and I got a financial hardship draft deferment and I helped support them in Crete until September of 1972.
https://www.siliconvalley.com/2026/06/29/jill-on-money-how-to-support-not-enable-adult-kids/
INTUIT
— DD: Democrat leaders ever-increasingly replace those who have demographics that vote for Republicans with those who have demographics that vote for Democrats. Under the Democrats and under the RINOs, the more of the following that you are, the more that you need not apply: conservative, Republican, American, heterosexual, White, male, older, non-poor, married, Protestant, German American, and/or have ancestors who have been in America for a long time.
https://www.intuit.com/blog/social-responsibility/5-surprising-benefits-of-fostering-diversity-and-inclusion-in-the-workplace/
MANHATTAN INSTITUTE
— Who Pays for Reparations? DD: Democrat leaders ever-increasingly use slavey and 1619 to demonize, denigrate, condemn, and destroy Republicans. According to Democrat leaders, the more of the following that you are, the more that you have benefitted from slavery, the more that you should pay the price of Affirmative Action (AA) and DEI, and the more reparation that you should pay: conservative, Republican, White, male, older, non-poor, non-veteran, Protestant, German American, and/or have ancestors who have been in America for a long time.
https://manhattan.institute/article/who-pays-for-reparations-the-immigration-challenge-in-the-reparations-debate
GOOD MEN PROJECT
— Before They Were White: How Different Groups Were Treated as Immigrants to America From the Founding to the Semiquincentennial, the Argument Over ‘Who We Are’ Never Stops. (DD: What is your national Origin? All my ancestors immigrated during the 1840s and 1850s from what is now Germany. My critics/opponents have always used that against me. My grandmother on my father’s side complained about discrimination against German-Americans during WWI. According to her, her first love was a British-American, but his anti-German parents killed that romance. In defense of my ancestors, I have always stressed that my grandfather on my father’s side fought the Germans in WWI and that my uncles on my mother’s side fought the Germans in WWII.)
https://goodmenproject.com/featured-content/before-they-were-white-how-different-groups-were-treated-as-immigrants-to-america-kpkn/
(FROM THE ARTICLE: Most cover photos work because they immediately convey the story’s theme. This one, unfortunately, needs explanation. It shows drunken Irish and German immigrants stealing a ballot box. John H. Goater created the political cartoon from the 1850s. It portrays caricatures representing Irish and German voters engaging in what appears to be election theft, with chaos unfolding in the background at the “Election Day Polls” building. The cartoonist uses stereotypical imagery to convey fear of immigrant voters exerting undue political influence. The portrayal of the Irish and German voters in a negative light, with exaggerated features and behaviors, perpetuates harmful stereotypes associated with these immigrant communities. By depicting them as thieves, the cartoon suggests that these groups are unlawfully manipulating the electoral process to their advantage. The people the elections were being stolen from were white people. Early Irish and German immigrants weren’t initially considered white. They say ex-smokers are the hardest on those who still smoke. Former non-white people who have become white, now lead the way in protecting whiteness, making sure people of color never get the power, especially in elections, to take what is theirs. . .Among the people not initially regarded as white in America were Germans, Greeks, white Hispanics, Spaniards, Jews, Slavs, Italians, Afghans, Iranians, and Irish. The Immigration Act of 1790 only offered naturalization to “any alien, being a free white person.” In 1923, the Supreme Court ruled that people of Indian descent were not white and couldn’t become citizens. . .Germans Not considered white in the 18th–19th centuries. They were seen as: “swarthy,” “boorish,” “drunk,” “non‑English” politically dangerous (1848 radicals) culturally unassimilable. They faced: riots against German neighborhoods, bans on German language schools, anti‑German hysteria during WWI (lynchings, book burnings, forced name changes. . .Housing Segregation Ethnic ghettos were common: . .German Towns)
MOTHER JONES
— DD: To get more votes from those who are the following, Democrat leaders ever-increasingly blame Republicans for the problems that those who are the following have: liberal/moderate, Democrat, RINO, minority, female, younger, poor, veteran, unmarried, non-Protestant, non-German American, have ancestors who have not been in America for a long time, and/or noncitizen.
https://www.motherjones.com/politics/2026/07/july-fourth-celebrate-history/
LGBTQ NATION
— A Democratic Socialist revolution is exactly what we need to save America. DD: What do Democrat Socialists think of you? They despise/hate me because I have always been a Republican. Democrats run the federal government. Democrats hint/imply/argue/shout that if I had not been a member of federal employee unions 1966-1980, my salary would not have increased from $19.57/hour to $113,402/year in today’s dollars. They ignore/dismiss/belittle the fact that during that time, I earned a bachelor’s degree in business, I earned an MBA, and I passed the CPA examination on my first attempt. If I had been a Democrat, my Democrat superiors would have promoted me into their Senior Executive Service, currently $197,200/year, long before I was 40 years old.
https://www.lgbtqnation.com/2026/07/a-democratic-socialist-revolution-is-exactly-what-we-need-to-save-america/
— DD: Ever-increasingly, LGBTQ advocates, that is, Democrats and RINOs, destroy those who do not promote LGBTQ.
https://www.lgbtqnation.com/2026/07/the-most-powerful-statement-lgbtq-people-can-make-is-not-just-to-march-but-to-govern/
July 3, 2026
FROM ILLINOIS CENTER-LEFT SOURCES
CHICAGO SUN-TIMES
— DD: Democrat leaders ever-increasingly a) glorify and praise their illegals and b) fight their deportation. Democrat leaders have declared a Second Civil War on Republicans. Their illegals are their soldiers in their Democrat Army. How many illegals do Democrat leaders have in Illinois and in your county, township, municipality, school district, and precinct?
https://chicago.suntimes.com/immigration/2026/07/03/chicago-newsrooms-immigration-coverage-july-fourth
https://chicago.suntimes.com/immigration/2026/07/02/midway-blitz-lawsuit-ice-immigration-officer
ABC7
— Olympian David Hearn indicted for vandalism of Reflecting Pool.
https://abc7chicago.com/post/olympian-david-hearn-indicted-alleged-vandalism-reflecting-pool/19436852/
FOX32
— DD: FBI Director Kash Patel forces Chicago FBI leader Douglas DePodesta to retire for not adequately supporting Trump’s agenda. My Democrat GAO superiors forced me to retire when I was 49 in 1997 for my opposing their agenda. Their agenda was to get rid of their employees who were Republican, White, male, older, and/or non-veteran.
https://www.fox32chicago.com/news/fbi-chicago-douglas-depodesta-leaving-reports
WGN9
— Can Republicans win back voters in Chicago’s suburbs? DD: Political parties exist to help elect candidates who can and will defend and advance their platform. The Republican Party platform is conservative. Democrat candidates get more and more and more votes in Chicago suburbs a) because more and more and more Democrats move to Chicago suburbs to escape Democrat poverty and crime and to hypocritically take advantage of the prosperity and safety that conservative Republicans created in Chicago suburbs and b) because anti-conservative/RINO/Democrat Lite/Democrat plant candidates, elected officials, and party leaders ever-increasingly fail/refuse to defend, let alone advance, the Republican Party platform.
https://wgntv.com/news/politics/wgn-the-point-politics-chicago-illinois/can-illinois-republicans-win-back-voters-in-chicagos-suburbs/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=acFg-nIqwec
SOUTHERN
— ICE arrests 10,000 illegally in US in 5-day span
https://southernillinoisnow.com/2026/07/02/ice-arrests-10000-illegally-in-us-in-5-day-span/
CHAMPAIGN/URBANA NEWS GAZETTE
— Pritzker’s GOP foe recognizes a good tactic when he borrows one.
https://www.news-gazette.com/opinion/columns/jim-dey-pritzkers-gop-foe-recognizes-a-good-tactic-when-he-borrows-one/article_369549c3-f7aa-4324-9174-a396ab9b0737.html
CAPITOL FAX
— Afternoon roundup
https://capitolfax.com/2026/07/02/isabel%e2%80%99s-afternoon-roundup-549/
FROM ILLINOIS CENTER-RIGHT SOURCES
WIREPOINTS
— Pritzker Embraces Democratic Socialists of America as Part of Democrats’ Recipe to Win.
https://wirepoints.org/pritzker-embraces-radical-democratic-socialists-of-america-as-part-of-democrats-recipe-to-win-wirepoints/
GOPUSA ILLINOIS
— What makes you proud to be American? For me, it includes my being able to earn a job-related bachelor’s degree when in 1970 when I was 21, job-related master’s degrees when I was 27, 31, and 48, job-related professional certifications when I was 30, 32, 41, 45, 46, and 47, and a job-related professional license when I was 32 even though a) neither of my parents attended college, b) my father was only the first of my ancestors to earn a high school diploma, c) he never earned more than $50,000/year in today’s dollars, d) he died suddenly when he was 47 and I was 21 in 1969, e) my mother never attended high school, f) my ACT score was only 24, g) I only just barely made it into the upper 20% of my high school class, and h) I had to work my way through college. Further, I was able a) to buy new cars when I was 19, 20, 23, 25, 29, etc., b) to buy real estate when I was 24, 25, 27, 29, 35, etc. and c) to get married when I was 29. – Dave Diersen
http://www.gopillinois.com
FROM NATIONAL CENTER-RIGHT SOURCES
WASHINGTON TIMES
— Democrats welcome their new Marxist overlords. Establishment Dems hope the communists come for them last.
https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2026/jul/2/democrats-welcome-new-marxist-overlords/
— A federal appeals court ruled Thursday that 19 intelligence community employees fired because they were doing diversity, equity and inclusion jobs must be given a chance to apply for other posts. DD: To force me to retire when I was 49 in 1997, among many threats, my Democrat GAO superiors threatened to give me adverse transfers. I had been assigned to audits of federal financial industry regulators since 1990. I had become a Certified Financial Services Auditor in 1996. I had earned a master’s degree in financial markets and trading from IIT in 1997.
https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2026/jul/2/appeals-court-says-dei-employees-apply-jobs-intelligence-community/
WASHINGTON EXAMINER
— Colorado proves Mamdani’s midterm wins were not a fluke.
https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/opinion/beltway-confidential/4634694/colorado-proves-mamdani-midterm-wins-not-fluke/
AMERICAN THINKER
— Indoctrination is dangerous. People are so misinformed that they falsely believe that big government and socialism are the solution for everything they want.
https://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2026/07/indoctrination-is-dangerous/
BIZ PAC REVIEW
— The plan to destroy America
https://www.bizpacreview.com/2026/07/02/the-plan-to-destroy-america-1648947/
BREITBART
— Fetterman: Dem Leadership Needs to Stand Against ‘Extreme, Anti-American’ Candidates.
https://www.breitbart.com/clips/2026/07/02/fetterman-dem-leadership-needs-to-stand-against-extreme-anti-american-candidates/
CAMPUS REFORM
— University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign hosted all-ages drag tea party targeted at children and families. The public university invited families to attend a drag performance featuring entertainers such as ‘Spank Knightly’ at its Spurlock Museum. The event is part of a broader pattern of drag programming at the university, including a previous event co-sponsored with Planned Parenthood of Illinois Action.
https://www.campusreform.org/article/university-illinois-hosted-all-ages-drag-tea-party-targeted-children-families/30202
CHRISTIAN POST
— 10 most populous countries that have birthright citizenship.
https://www.christianpost.com/news/10-most-populous-countries-with-birthright-citizenship.html
DAILY SIGNAL
— Democrat Leaders Try to Dismantle the Founders’ Work on America’s 250th Anniversary.
https://www.dailysignal.com/2026/07/03/democratic-socialists-of-america-lefts-deep-hatred-america-we-celebrate-250th-anniversary/
FEDERALIST
— SCOTUS Pasting Birth Tourism Into The Constitution Demands A Legal System Rebuild.
https://thefederalist.com/2026/07/02/scotus-pasting-birth-tourism-into-the-constitution-demands-a-legal-system-rebuild/
LEGAL INSURRECTION
— Top Med Schools Instruct Students on Gender Transition Surgeries.
https://legalinsurrection.com/2026/07/criticalrace-org-report-reveals-top-med-schools-instruct-students-on-gender-transition-surgeries/
NEWSBUSTER
— Hating America: The Hollywood Left’s Worst Anti-American Outbursts.
https://www.newsbusters.org/blogs/nb/geoffrey-dickens/2026/07/02/hating-america-hollywood-lefts-worst-anti-american-outbursts
FROM NATIONAL CENTER-LEFT SOURCES
THE HILL
— DD: To ever-increasingly promote more hatred against Trump, Democrat leaders ever-increasingly promote more hatred against America.
https://thehill.com/homenews/5950446-racial-justice-america-future/amp/
— Survey: Fewer than half of Democrats proud to be US citizens. In contrast, 93 percent of Republican respondents said they are generally “very proud” or “proud” of being American. Only 7 percent of GOP respondents said they are generally “not too proud” or “not proud at all” of being American. DD: My critics/opponents are not proud to being Americans because Americans citizens elected Trump and because they blame Trump for all problems, and especially for all problems that those who are the following have: liberal/moderate, Democrat, RINO, minority, female, younger, poor, veteran, unmarried, non-Protestant, non-German American, have ancestors who have not been in America for a long time, and/or noncitizen.
https://thehill.com/blogs/blog-briefing-room/news/5951332-republican-pride-democrat-decline/
NBC NEWS
— ICE arrests increase significantly, marking a turn in immigration strategy.
https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/ice-arrests-increase-significantly-marking-turn-immigration-strategy-rcna352736
MSN
— During a Fox News interview, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt suggested that young Americans who frequently complain about life in the U.S. should be sent to Cuba or Iran to gain perspective. She argued that many in Gen Z have grown up with ‘silver spoons’ and without the work ethic she associates with traditional American values. The comment, paired with her criticism of entitlement, quickly went viral and drew strong reactions online and across political circles.
https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/insight/karoline-leavitt-says-gen-z-complaints-stem-from-laziness-liberal-indoctrination/gm-GM68173DF0
— Marriage is starting later than ever. DD: I did not get married until I was 29 in 1978. If I had not met my outstanding wife at a church sponsored singles social event when I was 28 in 1977, I might never had gotten married. My Democrat IRS superiors, supervisors, coworkers, and subordinates were furious that I got married. To get rid of me, they had painted me being an extremely bad person because I had refused to become a Democrat. They hinted/implied/argued that because of that, I would never get married. What helped you become marriage material? By the time I got married, I had worked for IRS for almost 7 years and my salary was $110,066/year in today’s dollars. I had earned an MBA from Loyola in 1976 and I was taking graduate evening accounting courses at DePaul. I lived in a one bedroom condo in the Outer Drive East building that I had bought in 1976. I was renting out a town home in University Park that I had bought new in 1972. I owned a 1972 Corvette that I had bought new in 1971. See Money Magazine’s 4-page February 1978 article on my wife and I at https://gopillinois.com/documents/ Things that impressed me about my outstanding wife included that her first job after high school was working for the FBI. She soon became the Corporate Secretary of the U.S. League of Savings Institutions. She did much to help elect Big Jim Thompson governor in 1976. She earned a bachelor’s degree in finance from DePaul in 1986.
https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/why-marriage-is-starting-later-than-ever/ss-AA26C1uz
NEW YORK TIMES
— DD: 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://www.nytimes.com/2026/07/02/us/politics/cia-odni-intelligence-diversity-court.html
— These Unpaid Interns Want $32 an Hour. And Health Insurance. DD: I transferred from IRS to GAO when I was 31 in 1980. My Democrat IRS and GAO superiors wanted me to transfer in as a GS-4 intern, that is, to take a $35/hour pay cut in today’s dollars. I had worked for IRS for almost 9 years. I had earned an MBA from Loyola in 1976. I had passed the CPA examination on my first attempt in 1979. They would not have wanted that if I had been a Democrat, minority, female, or veteran.
https://www.nytimes.com/2026/06/26/nyregion/unpaid-internships-nyc.html
USA TODAY
— DD: Democrat leaders ever-increasingly encourage pregnant women who are citizens of foreign countries to give birth in America.
https://www.usatoday.com/story/opinion/voices/2026/06/30/birthright-citizenship-supreme-court-trump-decision/90590335007/
LAS VEGAS REVIEW JOURNAL
— Democrats aren’t proud to be Americans.
https://www.reviewjournal.com/opinion/opinion-columns/victor-joecks/victor-joecks-why-democrats-arent-proud-to-be-americans-3845973/
TEXAS VOICE
— Abolishing ICE, Ending Bail Among Resolutions Passed by Texas Democrats. Resolutions Supporting Progressive Priorities Adopted at Texas Democrat Convention.
https://www.thetexasvoice.com/abolishing-ice-ending-bail-among-resolutions-passed-by-texas-democrats/
WALL STREET JOURNAL
— The Socialist Threat Is Real. America will be in serious trouble if Democrats fail to defend their party.
https://www.wsj.com/opinion/the-socialist-threat-is-real-7773676e
FED SMITH
— Trump wants to make it easier to fire federal employees. DD: 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. The Democrats who ran GAO in 1980, IRS in 1971, and the Post Office in 1966 hired me because they could not find a qualified Democrat, minority, female, younger person, or veteran who would take the job. I would not have survived as a federal employee for almost 30 years if I had not earned a bachelor’s degree in business when I was 21, earned an MBA when I was 27, passed the CPA examination on my first attempt when I was 30, earned a master’s degree in accounting when I was 31, passed the Certified Internal Auditor examination on my first attempt when I was 32, became a licensed CPA when I was 32, earned four more job-related professional certifications when I was 41, 45, 47, and 48, and earned a master’s degree in finance when I was 48.
https://www.fedsmith.com/2026/07/02/opm-douglas-factors-fire-federal-employees/
TIMES HIGHER EDUCATION
— Relevant work experience: DD: None of my coworkers who my Democrat GAO superiors promoted over me had relevant work experience when they were hired. GAO audits IRS. I had almost 9 years’ experience working for IRS, the last 5 1/2 years of which at the GS-12 Step 1-5 Levels, currently $100,059-$113,402/year. My Democrat GAO superiors wasted my knowledge of IRS. They would not have done that if I had been a Democrat, minority, female, or veteran.
https://www.timeshighereducation.com/news/are-days-degrees-no-work-experience-numbered
PULITZER CENTER
— DD: Democrat leaders ever-increasingly use slavey and 1619 to demonize, denigrate, condemn, and destroy Republicans. According to Democrat leaders, the more of the following that you are, the more that you have benefitted from slavery, the more that you should pay the price of Affirmative Action (AA) and DEI, and the more reparation that you should pay: conservative, Republican, White, male, older, non-poor, non-veteran, Protestant, German American, and/or have ancestors who have been in America for a long time. Because I am all of the aforesaid, Democrat leaders have always made me pay the price of AA and DEI big time. I should write about that. 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. My Democrat IRS superiors a) refused to promote me beyond GS-12, b) disallowed my education deductions in 1978, and c) disallowed my travel vouchers in 1974. My Democrat Post Office superiors a) forced me to resign in 1969 and b) disallowed my sick leave requests in 1969 and 1968. 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://pulitzercenter.org/blog/its-250th-who-does-us-want-be
SPLC
— DD: SPLC exists to promote hatred against Republicans.
https://www.splcenter.org/resources/hatewatch/hard-right-uses-economic-woes-cultivate-distrust-communities-color/
COMMUNIST PARTY USA
— What, to the working class, is the Fourth of July? DD: My critics/opponents despise/hate the working class. I was a member of the working class 1964-1997. I had to work my way through college. 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 delivered mail 1966-1969. I worked on an automotive assemble line in 1970. I sold tires, automotive services, and major appliances 1970-1971. I pumped more gasoline 1971-1972. I collected delinquent taxes 1971-1980. I audited federal agencies 1980-1997. I should write about my critic/opponents. I would focus on those whose parents were the wealthiest.
https://www.cpusa.org/article/what-to-the-working-class-is-the-fourth-of-july/
FROM FOREIGN SOURCES
DECCAN HERALD
— Indra Nooyi: “I would never have been PepsiCo CEO in any other country, including India, were it not for America’s meritocratic system.” DD: 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://www.deccanherald.com/india/i-would-never-have-been-ceo-in-any-other-country-including-india-indra-nooyi-highlights-meritocratic-system-in-us-4060762
June 25, 2026
FROM ILLINOIS CENTER-LEFT SOURCES
NBC5
— DD: Democrat leaders ever-increasingly promote more LGBTQ, that is, they ever-increasingly destroy traditional marriage and family. Democrat leaders ever-increasingly promote more abortion. Why are there so many unwanted pregnancies?
https://www.nbcchicago.com/video/news/local/group-of-lgbtq-runners-find-refuge-from-the-noise-of-the-world/3953283/
https://www.nbcchicago.com/news/local/how-to-watch-the-2026-chicago-pride-parade-live-as-it-rolls-through-the-citys-north-side/3953232/
https://www.nbcchicago.com/news/local/new-cancer-report-reveals-major-progress-disparities-in-research-and-care/3953259/
https://www.msn.com/en-us/health/other/advocates-warn-that-federal-cuts-will-impact-hiv-aids-programs-in-chicago/ar-AA26odrn
CHICAGO TRIBUNE
— FRONT PAGE: DD: Democrat leaders ever-increasingly promote more abortion. Why are there so many unwanted pregnancies?
https://www.chicagotribune.com/2026/06/24/jb-pritzker-electronic-abortion-records/
DAILY HERALD
— Independent governor hopeful Corbett’s place on ballot affirmed after Bailey campaign pulls objection.
https://www.dailyherald.com/20260624/illinois-state-politics/indie-governor-hopeful-corbetts-place-on-ballot-affirmed-after-bailey-campaign-pulls-objection/
CRAIN’S CHICAGO BUSINESS
— Bally’s escalates fight over video gambling, threatening legal action. DD: In 2009, I led the successful effort to ban video gambling in Wheaton. My critics/opponents continue to use that against me big time.
https://www.chicagobusiness.com/politics-policy/ccb-ballys-casino-city-council-20260524/
PEORIA JOUNAL STAR
— DD: To promote more hatred against Trump, Democrat leaders promote more hatred against America.
https://www.pjstar.com/story/news/politics/2026/06/25/all-of-us-nationwide-mobilizaton-june-27-usa-250-illinois-locations-chicago/90649189007/
QUAD CITY TIMES
— DD: Democrat leaders ever-increasingly promote more abortion. Why are there so many unwanted pregnancies?
https://qctimes.com/news/state-regional/government-politics/article_b75ecb32-9849-541f-8ddb-cbb6d32921bf.html
SOUTHERN
— DD: Democrat educators ever-increasingly turn Blacks against Republicans.
https://thesouthern.com/news/national/understanding-the-pitfalls-of-how-we-teach-black-history-today/html_21a1c42b-f569-52ff-aadc-843ec3b340f3.html
MILWAUKEE JOURNAL SENTINEL
— All 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://www.jsonline.com/story/opinion/contributors/2026/06/21/hegseth-women-veterans-military-ceremony-dei-woke/90580074007/
WIFR
— Mill Foundation presents grants to Rockford-area organizations that help disadvantaged youth. DD: According to my critics/opponents, I have not only always been tremendously advantaged, but I have always benefitted tremendously from discrimination against the disadvantaged, and therefore, I should pay the price of Affirmative Action and DEI big time. In my defense, I was a member of the working class 1964-1997. I had to work my way through college. I washed dishes 1964-1966. I cleaned golf shoes, chipped slag, and pumped gasoline in 1966. I delivered mail 1966-1969. I worked on an automotive assemble line in 1970. I sold tires, automotive services, and major appliances 1970-1971. I pumped more gasoline 1971-1972. I collected delinquent taxes 1971-1980. I audited federal agencies 1980-1997. I should write about my critic/opponents. I would focus on those whose parents were the wealthiest.
https://www.wifr.com/video/2026/06/24/mill-foundation-presents-grants-rockford-area-organizations/
CITIES 92.9
— DD: Democrat leaders ever-increasingly push more pot. In 2019, I led the successful effort to ban the sale of pot in Wheaton.
https://www.cities929.com/2026/06/24/illinois-quick-hits-50-8m-in-cannabis-tax-funded-grants-awarded/
POLITICO ILLINOIS
— DD: Democrats, that is, those who promote more hatred against those who are the following, applaud their successes in promoting more hatred against those who are the following: conservative, Republican, American, White, male, older, heterosexual, married, non-poor, Protestant, German American, and/or have ancestors who have been in America for a long time. That is, those who promote the following applaud their successes in promoting the following: dependency on government and charity, LGBTQ, abortion, mass/illegal immigration, vices, diminishment of Second Amendment rights, and Affirmative Action, DEI, and wokeness/wokeism, that is, race and gender based preference giving, patronage, political affiliation discrimination, reverse discrimination, age discrimination, religious discrimination, and national origin discrimination.
https://www.politico.com/newsletters/illinois-playbook/2026/06/25/progressive-wins-rev-up-johnson-00975232
CAPITOL FAX
— Morning briefing
https://capitolfax.com/2026/06/25/isabel%e2%80%99s-morning-briefing-758/
FROM ILLINOIS CENTER-RIGHT SOURCES
WIREPOINTS
— Illinois’ Biggest Problems Remain the Ones Politicians Prefer to Ignore
https://wirepoints.org/wirepoints-mark-glennon-on-am560-illinois-biggest-problems-remain-the-ones-politicians-prefer-to-ignore/
MCHENRY COUNTY BLOG
— After Taking Zoning Power Away from Local Governments on Battery and Solar Farms, Pritzker Wants Local Control of Data Centers
https://www.mchenrycountyblog.com/2026/06/25/after-taking-zoning-power-away-from-local-governments-on-battery-and-solar-farms-pritzker-wants-local-control-of-data-centers/
ILLINOIS REVIEW
— Mamdani-Led Socialist Movement Signals Democratic Party’s Leftward Takeover
https://www.illinoisreview.com/illinoisreview/2026/06/mamdani-led-socialist-movement-signals-democratic-partys-leftward-takeover.html
FROM NATIONAL CENTER-RIGHT SOURCES
WASHINGTON EXAMINER
— The Left is obsessed with race.
https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/restoring-america/equality-not-elitism/4622676/left-fearmongering-racism-america-affirmative-action/
— The fast-growing way entrepreneurs are chasing the American dream. DD: My critics/opponents look down on wage earners. I was a wage earner 1964-1997.
https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/op-eds/4621256/franchising-entrepreneurs-chasing-american-dream-small-businesses-pizza-hut/
BREITBART
— Trump’s Reflecting Pool Critics Have Been ‘Consumed by Hatred’
https://www.breitbart.com/clips/2026/06/24/kelsey-grammer-trumps-reflecting-pool-critics-have-been-consumed-by-hatred/
— Durbin: ‘The Republican Party Is Split Into Pieces’
https://www.breitbart.com/clips/2026/06/24/durbin-the-republican-party-is-split-into-pieces/
CHRISTIAN POST
— Major League Baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred says San Francisco Giants players who wrote Bible verses on their LGBT pride night caps won’t face discipline, as he seeks to reassure lawmakers and fans amid a growing debate over faith, free expression and the league’s forced adherence to LGBT ideology. DD: My Democrat superiors in the federal government took ever-increasingly more and bigger adverse actions against me a) because I refused to become a Democrat, b) because I complained about their political affiliation discrimination, reverse discrimination, and age discrimination, and c) because I became an active member in a class action lawsuit that charged them with the aforesaid. Democrats not only have no problem with the aforesaid, they applaud the aforesaid. 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.
https://www.christianpost.com/news/mlb-chief-giants-players-wont-be-fined-for-bible-verses-on-caps.html
COLLEGE FIX
— Kansas regents’ new policy will stop professors from foisting DEI on students. DD: I avoided Democrat indoctrination by majoring in business, accounting, and finance.
https://www.thecollegefix.com/kansas-regents-new-policy-will-stop-professors-from-foisting-dei-on-students-scholar/
FOX BUSINESS
— Antisemitism is the root of Mamdani socialism, and it’s destroying New York City.
https://www.foxbusiness.com/politics/larry-kudlow-antisemitism-root-mamdani-socialism-its-destroying-new-york-city
— The rise of socialist candidates in New York City.
https://www.foxbusiness.com/video/6399293574112
— Wikipedia co-founder ‘KICKED OUT’ for fighting the WOKE MOB.
https://www.foxnews.com/video/6399275692112
PJ MEDIA
— Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson Declares ‘Transfemicide State of Emergency’
https://pjmedia.com/benbartee/2026/06/24/chicago-mayor-brandon-johnson-declares-transfemicide-state-of-emergency-n4954304
FROM NATIONAL CENTER-LEFT SOURCES
WASHINGTON POST
— DD: To get rid of me, my Democrat IRS superiors got rid of the IRS manager who had promoted me in 1972, 1973, and 1974. To get rid of me, my Democrat GAO superiors got rid of the GAO manager who had arranged for my transfer from IRS in 1980 and was finally able to assign me to audits of IRS and to promote me in 1986.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/2026/06/24/effort-extend-army-generals-career-falls-flat-with-hegseth/
WASHINGTON POST & THE HILL
— Belief that anyone can achieve the American Dream is fading. DD: Because Democrat and RINO candidates, elected officials, and party leaders ever-increasingly demonize, denigrate, and condemn my demographics (conservative, Republican, White, male, older, heterosexual, Protestant, German American, and my ancestors have been in America since 1844) to get more votes from those who do not share my demographics, if I was young today, I very much doubt that I could achieve what I did. I bought new cars when I was 17, 19, 20, 23, 25, 29, etc. I earned colleges degrees when I was 21, 27, 31, and 48. I bought real estate when I was 24, 25, 27, 29, 35, etc. I got married when I was 29. I earned professional certifications when I was 30, 32, 41, 45, 47, and 48. I earned a professional license when I was 32. The Democrats who ran SS Kresge when I was 16, the Post Office when I was 18, IRS when I was 22, and GAO when I was 31 hired me because they could not find a qualified Democrat, minority, female, younger person, or veteran who would take the job.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2026/06/18/belief-that-anyone-can-achieve-american-dream-is-fading-poll-finds/
https://thehill.com/business/5931333-poll-american-dream-decline/
USA TODAY
— Women may bear the brunt if Social Security benefits get cut. DD: If my critics/opponents knew that I now get about half of my wife’s Social Security because of a Bill that Biden signed, they would be furious.
https://www.usatoday.com/story/money/personalfinance/2026/06/23/women-social-security-gender-gap/90641659007/
WALL STREET JOURNAL
— The Socialist Democrats of America. What the rise of the Mamdani left means for the Democratic Party and the U.S.
https://www.wsj.com/opinion/democratic-socialists-of-america-new-york-zohran-mamdani-primary-025e86dd
— Forget Work. Passive Income Is the New American Dream. Driven by a growing feeling that 9-to-5 jobs are a dead end, people are turning to social media to test out eccentric moneymaking schemes—along with a fair share of scams. DD: My critics/opponents look down on wage earners. I was a wage earner 1964-1997.
https://www.wsj.com/lifestyle/careers/passive-income-dreams-2e67ee5c
— Voters Turn Against Minimum-Wage Hikes. Oklahomans reject a $15-an-hour initiative over affordability. DD: My critics/opponents have always been furious that the Post Office paid me $19.57-$20.87/hour 1966-1969 in today’s dollars.
https://www.wsj.com/opinion/voters-turn-against-minimum-wage-hikes-921df2c7
— Mamdani Deepens His Influence—and the Divide—in the Democratic Party. New York City mayor strengthens party sway nationwide by backing three primary winners in Congressional races.
https://www.wsj.com/politics/elections/mamdani-deepens-his-influenceand-the-dividein-the-democratic-party-0c6374fc
— Mamdani Sweep in NYC Adds to Strains Between Jews and Democratic Party. Candidates highly critical of Israel won big in New York City primary.
https://www.wsj.com/politics/elections/mamdani-sweep-in-nyc-adds-to-strains-between-jews-and-democratic-party-986b15c7
— Hegseth Cuts Army Commander’s Storied Career Short as Part of Broader Shake-Up. More general and flag officers could be squeezed out of other coveted jobs with a list expected to reach the Joint Staff next week. DD: To get rid of me, my Democrat IRS superiors got rid of the IRS manager who had promoted me in 1972, 1973, and 1974. To get rid of me, my Democrat GAO superiors got rid of the GAO manager who had arranged for my transfer from IRS in 1980 and was finally able to assign me to audits of IRS and to promote me in 1986.
https://www.wsj.com/politics/national-security/hegseth-cuts-army-commanders-storied-career-short-as-part-of-broader-shake-up-686d952b
FORBES
— Is What Happened To Horses Happening To Us? Companies are rapidly adopting AI, often neglecting crucial ethical considerations and failing to define its appropriate use. DD: Starting in 1864, my ancestors on my father’s side raised and sold horses in Crete.
https://www.forbes.com/sites/adriangostick/2026/06/24/is-what-happened-to-horses-happening-to-us/
BLOOMBERG LAW
— RFK Jr.’s HHS to Divert Funds From Teen Pregnancy Grant Program. DD: Democrat leaders ever-increasingly promote more LGBTQ, that is, they ever-increasingly destroy traditional marriage and family. Democrat leaders ever-increasingly promote more abortion. Why are there so many unwanted pregnancies?
https://news.bloomberglaw.com/health-law-and-business/rfk-jr-s-hhs-to-divert-funds-from-teen-pregnancy-grant-program
KANSAS REFLECTOR
— Affordability. DD: What has helped you afford things? For me, it has been the money that I earned I doing yard work 1962-1964, delivering newspapers 1962-1966, washing dishes 1964-1966, cleaning golf shoes, chipped slag, and pumped gasoline in 1966, delivering mail 1966-1969, working on an automotive assembly line in 1970, selling tires, automotive services, and major appliances 1970-1971, pumping more gasoline 1971-1972, collecting delinquent federal taxes 1971-1980, and auditing federal agencies 1980-1997.
https://kansasreflector.com/2026/06/25/politicians-love-affordability-rhetoric-but-it-hasnt-offered-path-to-urban-prosperity-in-kansas/
MADISON COUNTY JOURNAL
— Democrats take great offense at being accused of being unpatriotic — but the data don’t lie. A new NBC News poll captured the partisan gap over pride in America. Overall, 56% of Americans are extremely or very proud of the country, but only 29% of Democrats, compared to 90% of Republicans. That’s a yawning gap, and about a matter that really shouldn’t be controversial. We aren’t talking about abortion, or Donald Trump’s White House ballroom, but an elemental thing — pride in country — that in most times and places has been taken for granted. Once upon a time, that was the case here. The Gallup poll found in January 2001 that nearly 90 percent of Americans were extremely or very proud of the country. In 2017, according to Gallup, 75% of the public said they extremely or very proud of America — a low at the time — and it’s been down since. The decline has been driven largely by Democrats. Their disdain for President Trump clearly is responsible for some of the drop, but not all of it. Democrats were less proud of the country than Republicans even when Barack Obama and Joe Biden were president.
https://www.onlinemadison.com/editorials/lowry-patriotism-growing-gap-with-dems-f9b028c6/
NEW ENGLAND BIZ LAW
— When is a performance improvement plan (PIP) an adverse employment action? DD: To get rid of me, my Democrat superiors in the federal government never put me on a PIP, but instead, they took many big adverse actions against me. My Democrat Post Office superiors disallowed my sick leave requests in 1968 and 1969 and b) forced me to resign in 1969. My Democrat IRS superiors disallowed my travel vouchers in 1974, disallowed my education deductions in 1978, and never promoted me beyond GS-12. My Democrat GAO superiors a) forced me to take a $23,699/year (21%) pay cut in today’s dollars to transfer from IRS to GAO in 1980, b) delayed my promotions and never promoted me beyond GS-13, c) always ranked me in the bottom half of my coworkers for pay-for-performance, and d) forced me to retire when I was 49 in 1997. I frustrated their efforts to get rid of me by earning a) a job-related bachelor’s degree in 1970, b) job-related master’s degrees in 1976, 1981, and 1997, c) professional certifications in 1979, 1981, 1990, 1994, 1996, and 1997, and c) a job-related professional license in 1981.
https://newenglandbizlawupdate.com/2026/06/24/when-is-a-pip-an-adverse-employment-action/
FED SMITH
— Federal Employee Pay Has Reached Record Levels—But the Story Is More Complicated Than It Appears. Federal salaries now average $112,456, but workforce demographics, retirements, and hiring challenges reveal a more nuanced picture of federal pay. DD: My critics/opponents who are/were not union members are vehemently anti-union. According to my critics/opponents, I have always been grossly overpaid. They have always been furious that while I was a union member when I was a postal employee for almost 3 years and then an IRS employee for almost 9 years, my salary increased from $19.57/hour to $113,402/year in today’s dollars. I my defense, during that time, I earned a bachelor’s degree in business, I earned an MBA, I passed the CPA examination on my first attempt, and I almost completed the requirements for a master’s degree in accounting. In today’s dollars, my IRS salary was $56,409/year when I was 22 in 1971, $68,999/year when I was 23, $83,482/year when I was 24, $100,059/year when I was 25, and $113,402/year when I was 31. In today’s dollars, my GAO salary was $89,703/year when I was 31, $118,984/year when I was 38, and $154,682/year when I was 49. I earned a master’s degree in accounting when I was 31. I passed the Certified Internal Auditor examination on my first attempt when I was 32. I became a licensed CPA when I was 32. I earned four more job-related professional certifications when I was 41, 45, 47, and 48. I earned a master’s degree in finance when I was 48.
https://www.fedsmith.com/2026/06/05/federal-employee-pay-complicated-than-appears/
ATLANTIC
— DD: Democrat leaders ever-increasingly promote more hatred against Trump.
https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/2026/06/trump-250-usa-speech/687682/
POLITICO
— Democratic socialists are coming for 2028.
https://www.politico.com/news/2026/06/24/democratic-socialists-new-york-2028-presidential-00973341
HUMAN RESOURCES DIRECTOR
— DEI. DD: All 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://www.hcamag.com/us/specialization/diversity-inclusion/former-amazon-manager-claims-dei-hire-label-led-to-his-firing/567550
https://www.hcamag.com/us/specialization/diversity-inclusion/employee-sues-intuit-alleging-manager-branded-her-a-dei-hire/564902
FROM FOREIGN SOURCES
SKY NEWS
— Trump declares ‘only two genders’ as he rolls back DEI initiatives.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z8qG1BYmGTY
ECONOMIST
— Trump supporters need not apply. DD: Democrat leaders ever-increasingly replace those who have demographics that vote for Republicans with those who have demographics that vote for Democrats. Under the Democrats and under the RINOs, the more of the following that you are, the more that you need not apply: conservative, Republican, American, heterosexual, White, male, older, non-poor, married, Protestant, German American, and/or have ancestors who have been in America for a long time.
https://www.economist.com/united-states/2019/07/18/trump-supporters-need-not-apply
JUDICIAL PRACTICE
— Employers cannot issue reprimands if employee guilt is not proven. DD: My Democrat superiors in the federal government took ever-increasingly more and bigger adverse actions against me a) because I refused to become a Democrat, b) because I complained about their political affiliation discrimination, reverse discrimination, and age discrimination, and c) because I became an active member in a class action lawsuit that charged them with the aforesaid. Democrats not only have no problem with the aforesaid, they applaud the aforesaid. 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.
https://sud.ua/en/news/sudebnaya-praktika/364765-robotodavets-ne-mozhe-ogolositi-doganu-yakscho-ne-doviv-vinu-pratsivnika-verkhovniy-sud