Monday, October 21, 2024

Israel strikes at heart of Hezbollah’s terror financing system - Joshua Marks

 

by Joshua Marks

The main target of the strikes was the Al-Qard Al-Hassan Association, which according to the IDF stored billions of dollars for the Iranian proxy • Israeli Defense Minister: "Hezbollah is collapsing."

 

A cloud of smoke erupts following an Israeli airstrike on Beirut's southern suburbs on Oct. 19, 2024. Photo by AFP via Getty Images.
A cloud of smoke erupts following an Israeli airstrike on Beirut's southern suburbs on Oct. 19, 2024. Photo by AFP via Getty Images.

Israeli airstrikes targeted Hezbollah financial sites across Lebanon overnight Sunday, including in Beirut.

According to the Israel Defense Forces, dozens of facilities and sites used by the Iranian proxy to fund its terrorist activities against the Jewish state were attacked.

“These funds, which Hezbollah used for terror activities, were stored by the Al-Qard al-Hassan Association, which directly funds Hezbollah’s terror activities, including the purchase of weapons and payments to operatives in Hezbollah’s military wing,” the IDF said.

“The Hezbollah terrorist organization stores billions of dollars in the association’s branches, including money that was directly held under the name of the terrorist organization,” the statement continued.

“We will strike a large number of targets in the coming hours, and additional targets later tonight,” IDF Spokesperson Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari said on Sunday, emphasizing that in the coming days the IDF would reveal how Iran funds Hezbollah’s terror activities via civilian institutions, associations and organizations.

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The military emphasized that many measures were taken before the strikes to minimize harm to the civilian population, including issuing advanced warnings via various platforms.

Lt. Col. Avichay Adraee, head of the Arab Media Branch in the IDF Spokesperson’s Unit, posted a video message in Arabic to X urging residents of Lebanon to move away from infrastructure associated with the Al-Qard al-Hassan Association shortly before the wave of attacks began.

“A large portion of Hezbollah’s terrorist activities is funded by the Iranian state budget. Hezbollah uses these funds to finance its terrorist activities, including acquiring weapons, purchasing facilities for storing combat equipment, establishing launch sites and paying its members, as well as carrying out various terrorist activities,” Adraee explained.

He issued evacuation notices for at least 25 buildings in the Beirut area, in the Bekaa Valley and in South Lebanon.

“The Al-Qard Al-Hassan Association is involved in financing Hezbollah’s terrorist activities against Israel. Therefore, the IDF has decided to target this terrorist infrastructure,” Adraee said.

“The IDF continues to work forcefully to destroy Hezbollah’s terrorist infrastructure. Therefore, we urge people inside buildings used by Hezbollah to move at least 500 meters away in the coming hours.”

Many explosions were reported in the Dahiya neighborhood south of Beirut, a Hezbollah stronghold. Israeli attacks were also carried out near the Beirut airport. Buildings were seen collapsing and others were on fire.

According to Lebanese media reports, there were three casualties from a drone strike on a residential building in Baalbek, and additional strikes were reported in the Beqaa Valley region.

“These strikes are part of the IDF’s ongoing efforts to degrade Hezbollah’s terror infrastructure, its military capabilities and ability to rebuild,” the IDF said.

According to Channel 12, Hezbollah’s economic institution, Al-Qard, operates about 30 branches in areas of Lebanon where Shi’ite Muslims are concentrated, with about half of the branches being in Beirut.

Most of the bank’s funding comes from Iran, totaling some $700 million per year, as well as from illegal sources such as cocaine trafficking, according to the report.

“The Shiite terror organization is under heavy sanctions, and Qard Al-Hassan allows it to operate without significant restrictions,” Channel 12 reported.

“According to the Foundation for Defense of Democracies (FDD), the volume of loans given by Qard Al-Hassan grew from approximately $76.5 million in 2007, the year after the Second Lebanon War, to around $480 million in 2019. The total activity of Qard Al-Hassan from the opening of the network in 1983 until 2019 is estimated at about $3.5 billion,” the report continued.

This growth occurred despite American sanctions imposed as early as 2007.

“The reason for this is that the employees of Qard Al-Hassan use private accounts in recognized banks in Lebanon, with the aim of circumventing the sanctions,” according to Channel 12.

IDF ground operations in Southern Lebanon continue

The IDF said on Monday morning that over the past 24 hours, troops in Southern Lebanon had located and dismantled large amounts of Hezbollah weaponry, including anti-tank missiles, launchers aimed at Israeli communities, RPG launchers, munitions, explosives, grenades and additional combat equipment.

Soldiers also killed Hezbollah terrorists, including tactical-level commanders and a terrorist cell that had launched anti-tank missiles at soldiers.

The Israeli Air Force also struck dozens of launchers aimed at Israel, and additional Hezbollah terror infrastructure sites.

Israel’s army provided further updates on the ground activities in Southern Lebanon on Monday afternoon, reporting that the 188th Brigade Combat Team under the command of the 36th Division killed terrorists and destroyed underground infrastructure and large amounts of weapons.

In recent days, soldiers destroyed a weapons storage facility located in a residential neighborhood next to a house. The facility contained dozens of long- and short-range missiles, ammunition, mortars, machine guns, explosives and medical equipment.

Separately, Israeli forces destroyed a vehicle equipped with a rocket launcher found near a house. According to the IDF, “the vehicle was fully equipped and prepared to launch rockets towards Israeli communities.”

Hezbollah rocket attacks continue

Sirens sounded in northern Israel’s Galilee region on Monday morning, with the IDF reporting 25 launches from Lebanon crossing into Israeli territory.

Some of the rockets were intercepted, and several impacts were identified. No injuries were reported.

Alarms were again activated in northern Israel during the afternoon hours, with residents in the Haifa area and Galilee running to bomb shelters. The IDF said that a missile launched by Hezbollah from Lebanon was shot down.

The Magen David Adom emergency medical service reported that a 40-year-old man was lightly injured by shrapnel following sirens in the Upper Galilee region. The man, reportedly a foreign national, was hit in the Ayelet HaShahar area and transported to Ziv Medical Center in Safed.

Also in the afternoon, IAF fighter jets struck 15 short-range missile launchers located in Southern Lebanon that were directed toward communities in northern Israel. These included the launchers from which projectiles were fired at the Western Galilee. The terrorist infrastructure used by Hezbollah in areas of Southern Lebanon was also targeted.

During the overnight hours, sirens sounded in the Jordan Valley area due to a drone crossing into Israeli territory from the east, that was intercepted. Earlier on Sunday night, a drone approaching Israel was shot down over Syria.

Some 200 Hezbollah projectiles were launched into Israeli territory throughout Sunday.

Gallant: Hezbollah is collapsing

Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant said on Sunday during a visit to Israel’s northern border that the offensive against Hezbollah was seriously degrading the Iranian-backed terror army.

“Not only are we defeating the enemy [Hezbollah], but we are destroying them in all the villages along the border, in the places that Hezbollah planned to use as launchpads for attacks against Israel. In those places, instead there is now a presence of IDF troops, overwhelming the terrorists,” Gallant told soldiers serving in the IDF’s 98th Division.

The minister held an operational assessment with the division commander and other senior officers, and also spoke with combat troops.

“Our goal is to completely ‘clean’ the area [of Hezbollah infrastructure] so that Israel’s northern communities may return to their homes and rebuild their lives. I believe that this is very significant—the IDF is conducting operations and we still have missions to complete,” Gallant said.

“We have Hezbollah prisoners who are sharing information. They have informed us of the great fear felt [among Hezbollah terrorists]. Hezbollah is collapsing.”


 Joshua Marks

Source: https://www.jns.org/israel-strikes-at-heart-of-hezbollahs-terror-financing-system/

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Crippling their wallets: IDF strikes Hezbollah finance infrastructure in Beirut - Tovah Lazaroff

 

by Tovah Lazaroff

"In the coming days, we will reveal how Iran funds Hezbollah's terrorism using civilian institutions, associations, and charities as cover for their operations."

 

IDF strikes Hezbollah finance infrastructure in Beirut. (photo credit: SCREENSHOT/X, SECTION 27A COPYRIGHT ACT)
IDF strikes Hezbollah finance infrastructure in Beirut.
(photo credit: SCREENSHOT/X, SECTION 27A COPYRIGHT ACT)

The IAF conducted a series of overnight targeted, intelligence-based strikes against dozens of facilities and sites used by the Hezbollah terrorist organization to finance its terrorist activities against the State of Israel, the Military announced on Monday. The strikes were conducted in the areas of Beirut, southern Lebanon, and deep within Lebanese territory.

These funds, which Hezbollah used for terror activities, were stored by the Al-Qard al-Hassan Association, which directly funds Hezbollah's terror activities, including the purchase weapons and payments to operatives in Hezbollah's military wing. The Hezbollah terrorist organization stores billions of dollars in the association's branches, including money that was directly held under the name of the terrorist organization.

Prior to the strike, numerous steps were taken to mitigate the risk of harming civilians, including advance warnings issued via different platforms to the civilian population in the area. 

These strikes are part of the IDF's ongoing efforts to degrade Hezbollah's terror infrastructure, its military capabilities, and its ability to rebuild.

The IDF announced its intention to strike the targets, saying itwas poised Sunday night to strike at many targets in Beirut and other places that belong to the Iranian proxy group Hezbollah’s financial infrastructure, army spokesperson Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari told reporters.

“We will issue an advance evacuation warning to residents of Beirut and other areas in Lebanon to evacuate locations being used to finance Hezbollah's terror activities. 

“I emphasize here—anyone located near sites used to fund Hezbollah’s terror activities must move away from these locations immediately,” Hagari stressed.

“In the coming days, we will reveal how Iran finances Hezbollah's terrorist activities through the use of civil institutions, associations, and non-profits as a cover for terrorist operations. 

“We will attack them during the night and update them on the results of the attack in the coming day,” he said. “We will strike several targets in the coming hours and additional targets throughout the night."

“In the coming days, we will reveal how Iran funds Hezbollah's terror activities by using civilian institutions, associations, and NGOs that act as fronts for terrorism,” Hagar said.

He spoke one day after Israel claimed that Hezbollah had tried to assassinate Netanyahu by launching a drone toward his Caesarea home.

Hagari marks the death of Col. Ehsan Daxa

Haragi began his remarks by addressing the death of the Commander of IDF's 401st "Iron Tracks" Brigade, Col. Ehsan Daxa, whose death was announced shortly before he spoke. 

"He was an outstanding warrior," Haragi emphasized. "He fell when he was leading his troops."

Additionally, Hagari reiterated that the commanders of the 401st Brigade would continue to fight and lead further operations in Gaza.

"Col. Meir Biderman, who has served as Deputy Commander of the 162nd Division, will assume Ehsan's position," Hagari said. 

A post-Sinwar Middle East

On Sunday night the security cabinet met to discuss Israel’s pending retaliatory strike against Iran and possibilities for a renewed hostage deal in the aftermath of the IDF’s killing of Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar last week.

In advance of the meeting, Defense Yoav Gallant held consultations with security officials, including Maj. Gen. Nitzan Alon about possibilities for a new hostage deal.

Shin Bet head Ronen Bar was in Egypt on Sunday to meet with newly appointed Egyptian Intelligence Chief Hassan Mahmoud Rashad. Both Qatar and Egypt have been the main negotiators for a deal with the help of the United States.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken is due to travel to the Middle East this week, where he is expected to make a stop in Israel to discuss options for a Gaza ceasefire and hostage deal in the aftermath of Sinwar’s death.

Sources close to the talks have said however that little can happen with respect to a deal until after Israel’s retaliatory strike on Iran. Progress can only occur, they said, as long as Hamas is banking on a regional war.

Iran has warned that it will respond to any Israeli retaliatory strike. The United States has sent an anti-ballistic missile system to Israel and is prepared to help defend the Jewish state against any further direct Iranian attacks. Iran has twice attacked Israel, once in April and once at the start of October.

US President Joe Biden over the weekend has said he believes a ceasefire between Hezbollah and Israel is possible but that a Gaza deal would be harder to achieve.

Still, he has told Israel that now is the time to end the war in Gaza and has asked that it constrain its activity in Beirut.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in public statements in the last days has stood firm on the need to destroy Hamas, free the remaining 101 hostages in Gaza, and create a new security reality in the north that would allow the over 60,000 evacuated residents to return home.

In a visit to the northern border on Sunday Gallant said, “Not only are we defeating the enemy [Hezbollah], but we are destroying them by dismantling their tunnels, weapon storages, and their attack infrastructure. The result is clear – in the places that Hezbollah prepared to use as launchpads for raids into [Israeli] communities, there are now IDF troops conducting operations.”

“Our goal is to completely ‘clean’ the area [of Hezbollah infrastructure] so that Israel’s northern communities may return to their homes and rebuild their lives. I believe that this is very significant – the IDF is conducting operations and we still have missions to complete.”We have Hezbollah prisoners who are sharing information. They have informed us of the great fear felt [among Hezbollah terrorists]. Hezbollah is collapsing,” Gallant said.

Netanyahu on Saturday night spoke with former US president Donald Trump, the prime minister's office said on Sunday.

"Prime Minister Netanyahu reiterated what he has also said publicly: Israel takes into account the issues the US administration raises, but in the end, will make its decisions based on its national interests," it said.

Trump, speaking later to reporters in Philadelphia, said he had had "a very nice call" with Netanyahu on Saturday.

The Israeli leader had asked his opinion about what to do with Iran, he said. Israel is pondering its military reaction to recent Iranian missile strikes.

"He was asking what I thought. And I just said you do what you have to do," Trump said.

Reuters and Jerusalem Post Staff contributed to this report.


Tovah Lazaroff

Source: https://www.jpost.com/breaking-news/article-825377

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Austin: US THAAD aerial defense system ‘in place’ in Israel - JNS

 

by JNS

"We have the ability to put it into operation very quickly and we're on pace with our expectations," the Pentagon chief said.

 

The first of two Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) interceptors is launched during a successful intercept test. Credit: US Army via Wikimedia Commons.
The first of two Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) interceptors is launched during a successful intercept test. Credit: US Army via Wikimedia Commons.

United States Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin confirmed on Monday that the Terminal High Altitude Defense (THAAD) system has been deployed in Israel.

“We have the ability to put it into operation very quickly and we’re on pace with our expectations,” the Pentagon chief told reporters before arriving in Ukraine for his fourth visit.

Austin approved the deployment of a THAAD battery and “associated crew of U.S. military personnel to Israel to help bolster Israel’s air defenses following Iran’s unprecedented attacks against Israel on April 13 and again on October 1,” the Pentagon announced on Oct. 15.

THAAD is a mobile anti-ballistic missile defense system. U.S. President Joe Biden ordered the deployment, the third since 2019.

Around 100 U.S. soldiers are manning the battery and according to reports on Friday, Jerusalem has requested a second THAAD battery.

“This decision was made as part of the broader adjustments the U.S. military has made in recent months to support the defense of Israel and protect Americans from attacks by Iran and Iranian-aligned militias,” Deputy Pentagon Press Secretary Sabrina Singh told the media on Oct. 15.

Austin spoke to Yoav Gallant, his Israeli counterpart, on Saturday to talk about the latest regional security developments.

“I reviewed wide-ranging U.S. force-posture adjustments, including the recent deployment of a Terminal High-Altitude Area Defense system to reinforce Israel’s defenses in the face of threats from Iran, Lebanese Hizballah, and Iranian proxies,” Austin tweeted following the conversation.

Jerusalem is planning a retaliatory strike against Iran after the Islamic Republic launched more than 180 ballistic missiles at the Jewish state on Oct. 1. Tehran has said that it will respond to any Israeli attack.

Biden told reporters on Friday that he knew how and when Israel will respond against Iran. However, Austin on Monday was more cautious, saying, “It’s hard to say exactly what that (Israel’s) strike will look like,” according to Reuters.

“At the end of the day, that’s an Israeli decision, and whether or not the Israelis believe it’s proportional and how the Iranians perceive it, I mean those may be two different things,” the military leader added.

“We’re going to do—continue to do—everything we can … to dial down the tensions and hopefully get both parties to begin to de-escalate. So, we’ll see what happens,” Austin continued.


 JNS

Source: https://www.jns.org/austin-us-thaad-aerial-defense-system-in-place-in-israel/

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Biden's Hollow Warnings to China Are Leading to War - Gordon G. Chang

 

by Gordon G. Chang

"Beijing and its strategic partners in Moscow, Tehran, Pyongyang, and Caracas would surely interpret half-hearted enforcement as a green light to deepen their campaign of global chaos. Mr. Xi sees a historic opportunity here to undermine the West." – Matt Pottinger, wsj.com, April 30, 2024

 

  • The world's two most dangerous states, Xi Jinping's People's Republic of China and Vladimir Putin's Russian Federation, have been growing closer in part, it seems, because they see there is no cost to ignoring the warnings of the Biden administration.

  • "Mr. Biden can either enforce his red line through sanctions or other means, or he can signal a collapse of American resolve by applying merely symbolic penalties. Beijing and its strategic partners in Moscow, Tehran, Pyongyang, and Caracas would surely interpret half-hearted enforcement as a green light to deepen their campaign of global chaos. Mr. Xi sees a historic opportunity here to undermine the West." – Matt Pottinger, wsj.com, April 30, 2024

  • Since then, the Biden administration has done little but impose meaningless sanctions on Chinese parties, such as the ones announced on October 17 on two companies.

  • The American inaction today brings to mind President Obama's infamous red-line failure in Syria in 2013. We should not be surprised: Biden, then vice president, was Obama's foreign policy advisor.

  • Britain and France [last century] issued a series of threatening words to Berlin. German leaders, from the remilitarization of the Rhineland in 1936 to the eve of the invasion of Poland in late summer 1939, ignored them.

  • "Warnings were crafted in such a way so they could not be enforced and understood as not intended to be enforced." — Arthur Waldron, retired Lauder Professor of International Relations at the University of Pennsylvania, to Gatestone Institute, October 17, 2024.

  • China's aggressive leader apparently believes he can with impunity do just about anything.

  • Hollow warnings lead to war.

The world's two most dangerous states, Xi Jinping's People's Republic of China and Vladimir Putin's Russian Federation, have been growing closer in part, it seems, because they see there is no cost to ignoring the warnings of the Biden administration. Pictured: Putin meets with Xi at the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation summit in Astana, Kazakhstan on July 3, 2024. (Photo by Pavel Volkov/Pool/AFP via Getty Images)

"These are not dual-use capabilities," U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Kurt Campbell told reporters in Brussels on September 10, describing China's aid to Russia for use against Ukraine. "These are component pieces of a very substantial effort on the part of China to help sustain, build, and diversify various elements of the Russian war machine."

The Beijing-Moscow cooperation, Campbell argued, is "not a tactical alliance." It is, instead, "a fundamental alignment." The Chinese-Russian hook-up was "orchestrated at the highest levels" in the two capitals, he said.

With Campbell's words, the Biden administration for the first time accused China of providing Moscow with direct support for its war. At the same time, U.S. officials detailed Russia's technical assistance to China's submarine and missile programs.

The world's two most dangerous states, Xi Jinping's People's Republic of China and Vladimir Putin's Russian Federation, have been growing closer in part, it seems, because they see there is no cost to ignoring the warnings of the Biden administration.

President Joe Biden drew his red line on March 18, 2022 during a video call with Xi, warning China not to provide "material support" for the Russian war.

The Chinese state had been behind the Russian war effort even before Putin's February 24, 2022 invasion. Beijing apparently approved the attack, as evident from the 5,300-word joint statement issued when the Russian leader met Xi in Beijing just 20 days before the start of hostilities. That is when the two states declared their "no-limits" partnership.

In practice, "no limits" means China's support for Russia has been extensive, including the provision of location data for targeting purposes and the sale of attack drones and ammunition. Russia's most advanced tanks have Chinese circuit boards.

In late April, Secretary of State Antony Blinken admitted that Xi was not heeding America's words. China, he charged, was Russia's primary supplier.

"Whatever Mr. Biden chooses to do next will be momentous for global security and stability," Matthew Pottinger, a deputy national security advisor in the Trump administration, wrote in the Wall Street Journal in late April.

"Mr. Biden can either enforce his red line through sanctions or other means, or he can signal a collapse of American resolve by applying merely symbolic penalties," Pottinger pointed out. "Beijing and its strategic partners in Moscow, Tehran, Pyongyang, and Caracas would surely interpret half-hearted enforcement as a green light to deepen their campaign of global chaos. Mr. Xi sees a historic opportunity here to undermine the West."

Since then, the Biden administration has done little but impose meaningless sanctions on Chinese parties, such as the ones announced on October 17 on two companies.

"Biden's warnings to the People's Republic of China about providing 'lethal aid' to Russia for use in Ukraine were lost in the noise, largely because they were soft and ineffectual," Gregory Copley, president of the International Strategic Studies Association, told Gatestone last week. "They are like the bells on the ice-cream trucks that ply the suburbs of Americans cities: They just excite the children but spur ice-cream sales not a jot."

The American inaction today brings to mind President Barack Obama's infamous red-line failure in Syria in 2013. We should not be surprised: Biden, then vice president, was Obama's foreign policy advisor.

Washington has, during the Biden administration and its predecessors, taught the Chinese, the Russians, the Iranians, and North Koreans to ignore warnings. For the consequences of Biden's hollow words, the second half of the 1930s in Europe is instructive.

Then, Britain and France issued a series of threatening words to Berlin. German leaders, from the remilitarization of the Rhineland in 1936 to the eve of the invasion of Poland in late summer 1939, ignored them. "Warnings were crafted in such a way so they could not be enforced and understood as not intended to be enforced," Arthur Waldron, the retired Lauder Professor of International Relations at the University of Pennsylvania, told this site.

Because London and Paris had failed to act when they had the opportunity to do so, the German leadership did not pay particular attention to their threats about Poland.

Who can blame Berlin for failing to understand the import of British and French statements about their willingness to declare war? "If you fail to act when action was conceivable, how does one hope to have credibility when action is almost impossible?" Waldron asks.

"The U.K. and French governments did not worry sufficiently, prepare sufficiently, or deter their eventual enemy at all," says Copley, also editor-in-chief of Defense & Foreign Affairs Strategic Policy. "This is largely because the U.S. and Western governments today, like the French and German governments then, still have not awakened to the nature of the dilemma, and choose to believe that all will always be well."

All is not well now. China's aggressive leader apparently believes he can with impunity do just about anything.

There is no mystery where Xi Jinping got that idea. The fecklessness of the Biden administration has paved the way for history's next great conflict.

Hollow warnings lead to war.


 Gordon G. Chang is the author of Plan Red: China's Project to Destroy America and The Coming Collapse of China, a Gatestone Institute Distinguished Senior Fellow, and a member of its Advisory Board.

Source: https://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/21036/biden-hollow-warnings-to-china

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A Media Beyond Caricature - Victor Davis Hanson

 

by Victor Davis Hanson

The trust and prestige that took prior generations of journalists decades to earn have been thrown away in just a few years by incompetents and partisans.

 

CBS’s iconic 60 Minutes has had plenty of scandals and embarrassments in its long 57-year history, most notably the fake-but-accurate Dan Rather mess. Yet never has it found itself in greater disrepute than in 2024.

Donald Trump, for good reason, recently declined to join 60 Minutes for its traditional election-year in-depth interviews of the two presidential candidates. Why?

Last time he consented in 2020, anchor and interviewer Leslie Stahl attacked Trump’s accurate assertion that the Hunter Biden laptop (then in the possession of the FBI) was authentic—and authentically damning to Joe Biden’s presidential candidacy.

Stahl falsely claimed the laptop “can’t be verified.” She further incorrectly asserted, “So this story about Hunter and his laptop, some repair shop found it; the source is Steve Bannon and Rudy Giuliani.” The New York Post, in fact, reported the story. The FBI did not deny it.

Yet old Twitter and Facebook, under collaborating FBI tutelage and pressure, suppressed dissemination of the truth. Joe Biden’s then-advisor and now Secretary of State Antony Blinken, in conjunction with former interim CIA Director Michael Morrel, helped round up “51 former intelligence authorities” (among them Leon Panetta and both John Brennan and James Clapper, who had admitted previously of lying under oath to Congress) to claim falsely that the laptop had all the hallmarks of a Russian information gambit to warp the election.

Joe Biden used the “expert” consensus to further lie in the last Biden-Trump debate that the laptop was cooked up by the Russians. And neither CBS, the “intelligence authorities,” nor any of the Bidens have ever since apologized.

More recently, CBS got caught selectively editing the 60 Minutes interview with Kamala Harris, cutting and pasting an incoherent Harris response to lessen her embarrassing word salad. And in a subsequent interview with House Speaker Mike Johnson, the network once again edited and pruned his answers, but in contrast, on this occasion, to make him seem far less persuasive.

In yet another current CBS interview with author Ta-Nehisi Coates, network host Tony Dokoupil honestly questioned Coates about his new, one-sided, anti-Israeli book The Message. The result was that the left-wing icon Coates was almost immediately revealed to be abjectly ignorant of the Middle East, unapologetically biased, and completely uninterested in any viewpoint other than his own partisan prejudices.

Yet what followed proved yet another network embarrassment. An internal CBS division with the eerie Orwellian title of “CBS News Race and Culture Unit” attacked Dokoupil for not providing “context” for Coates’s self-condemnatory and embarrassing interview. The subtext was that CBS, under pressure from woke zealots, simply disowned Dokoupil and sought to subject him to correct thought training. His apparent crime was not insisting on different—softball—journalistic standards for woke black authors like Coates. In other words, CBS blamed Dokoupil for revealing Coates to be a fool on the air.

The network further diminished its eroding reputation yet again through the unprofessional conduct of recent moderators Norah O’Donnell and Margaret Brennan during the J.D. Vance/Tim Walz vice presidential debate.

After the earlier ABC-sponsored debate between presidential candidates Donald Trump and Kamala Harris, in which the moderators became partisan fact-checkers (and often wrongly so) of Trump alone and drilled him on follow-up questions in a way not accorded Harris, CBS promised not to repeat such a network embarrassment. So, it pledged not to fact-check the two vice presidential candidates and instead to present a “fair” moderation of the event.

Instead, the CBS moderators were even more patently one-sided than the prior disastrous ABC performance. The two broke their own pre-debate rules by indeed fact-checking. But, even worse, they fact-checked Vance alone. And, once again, did so erroneously in a way that only exposed their unprofessional partiality.

Given the prior ABC debate sham, CBS was supposedly determined not to turn off the public with more moderator partisan distortions. Instead, the network proved that if it was a question of further eroding its professional brand or helping elect the Harris/Walz progressive ticket, then CBS would predictably choose to jettison its reputation to further the progressive cause.

Just as CBS is no longer the network television standard, so too has the current generation of partisans done their best to sully the New York Times. Within just a few days, the Times embarrassed itself in ways similar to the partisanship so toxic at CBS.

The Times just published an op-ed, “65 Doctors, Nurses and Paramedics: What We Saw in Gaza.” What followed were testimonials from medical officials and doctors in Gaza with truly harrowing stories of Israel’s collateral damage and the shooting of civilians, accompanied by X-ray photos of small children with IDF bullets allegedly lodged in their bodies and heads.

But even if one was not aware of the fables promulgated by Hamas and the history of propagandistic attacks on Israel, and even if there was no corroboration of how the victims died and under what conditions, a novice might have sensed that something was not quite right with the evidentiary X-rays.

Experts pointed out that the embedded bullets in the scans appeared pristine, without any fragmentation after entering skulls or midriff sections. There were no apparent entry and exit wounds on the images—suggesting either that it was unlikely the bullets came from IDF-issued high-velocity weapons or that the X-rays might simply have been rephotographed with IDF bullets placed beneath them. In any case, the New York Times did not cite any expert outside reviewer to authenticate the scans.

Recently, the New York Times again rushed to partisan judgment to persuade the public that current charges of abject plagiarism by presidential candidate Vice President Harris were baseless. Accusations arose that Harris and her coauthor in a past book on crime had plagiarized a number of sources multiple times.

Yet the Times claimed the copying was minor and did not rise to the level of actionable plagiarism. It “proved” this by quoting a plagiarism “expert,” Jonathan Bailey, who, it implied, had consulted all the alleged plagiarism passages.

But once the public saw just a few of the passages in question, almost immediately it concluded otherwise: that Harris and her co-author were indeed plagiarists. That forced Bailey, the original Times expert, to reconsider his initial opinion: “At the time, I was unaware of a full dossier with additional allegations, which led some to accuse the New York Times of withholding that information from me. However, the article clearly stated that it was my ‘initial reaction’ to those allegations, not a complete analysis.”

Bailey then concluded that Harris had indeed committed plagiarism but not “maliciously” so. Once again, the Times had not verified its assertions before publication, and once again it had erred on the side of its known partisanship.

The Times and CBS are just a small example of current once-prestige outlets—such as ABC (cf. its moderators during the Harris-Trump presidential debate) and NPR (that just retracted its scurrilous charges against journalist Rich Lowry)—who have consistently abused the public’s trust for the partisan benefit of progressives or their causes.

In sum, the trust and prestige that took prior generations of journalists decades to earn have been thrown away in just a few years by incompetents and partisans—on the ancient, flawed principle that the supposedly superior moral ends justify any means necessary to achieve them.


 Victor Davis Hanson

Source: https://amgreatness.com/2024/10/21/a-media-beyond-caricature/

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Seven Israelis worked as Iranian agents during the war, the target: sensitive IDF bases - Uri Baruch

 

by Uri Baruch

For over two years, intelligence agents from Iran paid seven Jewish Israelis, including two minors, to take photos of sensitive sites including Air Force bases, and gather intelligence.

 

הקריה בתל אביב
The Kirya in Tel Aviv                                                          Photo: Moshe Shai/Flash90

The Rishon Lezion Magistrates court cleared for publication that the State Prosecution submitted a prosecutor's statement against seven Jewish suspects, residents of Haifa and northern Israel, including an IAF deserter and two minors, who allegedly worked for an Iranian agent and carried out various tasks for them.

Among other things, they are suspected of photographing and collecting information about IDF bases and facilities, including the Nevatim and Ramat David Airbases, the Kirya in Tel Aviv, Iron Dome batteries, and more. In addition, the operators gave them maps of strategic sites, including the Golani Training Base.

The suspects are Azis Nisnov, Alexander Sadikov, Yigal Nisan, Vyacheslav Gushchin, Ivgeni Yupa, and two minors whose names were not cleared for publication. On Friday, the prosecutor is expected to submit indictments against them to the Haifa District Court on a list of severe security offenses.

The State Prosecutors Office stressed that this is one of the most severe cases that have been investigated in the past years, although israel has caught Russian spy rings before. The case has been closely accompanied for the past few weeks by the head of the security team at the Haifa District Prosecutor's Office Atty. Shelley Zeevi-Barzilai and Atty. Einav Itsko-Gold, as well as Deputy State Prosecutor for Special Matters Alon Altman.

According to the details that can currently be published, the police and ISA investigation found that for over two years, the suspects conducted a multitude of various tasks for the Iranian intelligence elements, who worked to enlist Israeli citizens with the direction of two Iranian agents who were in contact with them.

The suspects received payments that totaled hundreds of thousands of dollars, via cryptocurrencies among other methods, to carry out the tasks.

Some of the suspects were active for two years and they all worked for the Iranian agents while Israel was fighting a multi-front war against Iranian proxies.

The operation, as part of which the suspects carried out hundreds of tasks, included the photography of various sites in Israel, including military bases, and intelligence gathering tasks.

As mentioned, the prosecution intends to file an indictment against the seven suspects and will ask to detain them until the end of the legal process.

This case joins a list of similar cases that were reported in recent weeks.


 Uri Baruch

Source: https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/397909

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IDF still hasn’t internalized the tunnel threat, experts say - David Isaac

 

by David Isaac

Israel's military first encountered tunnels in Gaza in the 1980s. The terrorists' use of tunnels has only expanded since.

 

A Hezbollah tunnel shaft. Credit: IDF.
A Hezbollah tunnel shaft. Credit: IDF.

Tunnels have proven to be a critical threat to the Jewish state. While the Israel Defense Forces certainly hasn’t ignored them, it has been slow to grasp their strategic significance.

Some argue that it still hasn’t.

“I still don’t see the necessary change in the IDF’s worldview that would allow us to better deal with this phenomenon of underground warfare,” Yehuda Kfir, a civil engineer and researcher of subterranean warfare, told JNS.

Professor Joel Roskin, a geomorphologist at Bar-Ilan University in Ramat Gan, has reached the same conclusion.

Perhaps the best supporting example is that when the IDF built its defensive “smart wall” (completed in 2021) between Israel and the Gaza Strip, it continued to let Hamas build all the underground infrastructure it pleased as long as it stayed on its side of the fence.

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The resulting underground city in Gaza, from which Hamas could command and control its forces, send them out to attack and recall them to shelter in place, has served to prolong the war and prevent Israel from saving the remaining hostages.

It allowed Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar to elude Israeli forces for more than a year. Sinwar himself (along with 1,026 others) was released from Israeli prison in 2011 in exchange for IDF soldier Gilad Shalit—who had been kidnapped by terrorists who emerged from a tunnel.

Kfir posits that Oct. 7 wouldn’t have happened if not for Hamas’s extensive tunnel system. “Sinwar would not have dared invade as he did without this underground system from which he could continue to survive and function,” he told JNS.

Kfir and Roskin’s conclusions have been echoed elsewhere.

Asher Katz, an IDF reservist specializing in tunnels, said in an interview with David Harris of the Jewish Broadcasting Service in late September that it wasn’t until 2021 that it dawned on Israel that the tunnels were more than a Hamas tactic, (i.e., a way to move fighters from one place to another). They were rather Hamas’s entire “strategic thesis,” he said; a means to fight, hide and survive.

Hamas was thinking strategically, but Israel was thinking tactically, Asher said, adding, “Israelis were super good at solving problems. Give us a problem, we’ll solve it. I don’t think we’re that good at strategy. Or we haven’t been good enough at strategy.”

Former U.S. Ambassador to Israel David Friedman told interviewer Dave Rubin on Oct. 9 that if he had one criticism of Israel’s Gaza war it was that it was taking too long, a fact he attributed to Hamas’s tunnel system.

“They [Hamas] got 350 miles’ worth of terror tunnels,” he said, adding that the Israelis didn’t understand what they were dealing with. “Hamas, I say, had the greatest home court advantage in the history of ground warfare.”

The IDF has significantly improved its tunnel operations over the last year, Kfir acknowledges, pointing to the army’s decision to move its forces underground in tandem with its above-ground forces.

In the clip below, IDF Brig. Gen. Dan Goldfus describes such simultaneous troop movements.

Israel is using the enemy’s own tunnels to advance. But Kfir said that’s not enough, that Israel is still leaving the initiative to the enemy. The modern battlefield has become multi-level, but Israel is neglecting an entire level, he said. He likens it to a Navy without submarines, one that operates only on the surface.

Kfir and Roskin, who concede they’re currently in the minority on the topic, argue that Israel must build its own attack tunnels. The concept may sound “sci-fi,” but they depict a subterranean battlefield in which Israeli forces dig tunnels to carry out their own operations and to counter those of the enemy.

Said Roskin, “If you don’t dig yourself and experience the construction process, the routine of life within a tunnel, you don’t really understand what it’s all about.”

Kfir and Roskin recently distributed a report on offensive tunneling to various individuals in the IDF, from engineering, intelligence, research and development and other units. “Nobody called us even to discuss it,” said Roskin.

One of the reasons is that responsibility for tunnels is diffuse. There isn’t a single address for tunnels in the army. Kfir and Roskin argue an organizational change needs to take place—the establishment of an IDF branch dedicated solely to underground warfare.

The IDF tells JNS that tunnels are handled by Yahalom, a special forces unit of the Israeli Combat Engineering Corps. However, Yahalom’s duties include more than just tunnels.

When asked by JNS about a special tunnel lab set up in 2018, the “Technological Laboratory for Tunnel Detection and Locations,” which specifically focuses on detecting and locating tunnels, the IDF said that it operates under the Gaza Division, separate from Yahalom.

“We have been advocating, given the wide ranges of uses of tunnels by Hamas, and now by Hezbollah, a separate branch, or at least a large research-to-engagement unit in the military,” said Roskin.

The IDF is only now learning the extent of Hezbollah’s tunnels in southern Lebanon. Early last week, it uncovered an 800-meter (~0.5 mile) tunnel designed as a launching pad for an attack on northern Israel. According to reports, Hezbollah had planned its own Oct. 7-style massacre on Israel’s northern communities (its scale would have been far worse than the Hamas attack, the reports say).

After visiting the tunnel, Channel 14’s military reporter Noam Amir said it was larger than the IDF’s 800-meter estimate, because there were turn-offs to rooms, one containing a giant generator, another a huge hangar, and others leading to sleeping quarters, kitchens and weapons stores. “I walked for 45 minutes, which felt like several kilometers,” he said.

 “They [Hezbollah] have food there for many months. With a long shelf life, you could divide it up for years. It’s not the dates and nuts that were given to the terrorists in the tunnels in Gaza. And you see mopeds. And you see a room for terrorists with plasma TVs … And you say to yourself, what have they built under our noses for more than two decades?” said Amir.

One of the reasons Israel has not fully embraced tunnels is that its attention and resources are drawn to other, more pressing threats. “Missiles travel 15,000 miles per hour. Tunnels advance one-to-five meters per day,” Roskin pointed out.

Underground warfare is not just Israel’s problem, but a world problem, Kfir said. This is in part because bad actors have been inspired by Hamas’s ability to last as long as it has, despite Israel’s entire military and political establishment being mobilized against it.

America is quietly concerned about China invading Taiwan via tunnel, Kfir noted, saying it is possible engineering-wise to dig under the Taiwan Strait. “The Chinese are taking over the world market in TBM (Tunnel Boring Machines),” he said. “There is almost no company today in this field that is not controlled by them.”

Will tunnels again become a threat from Gaza? That fear is already being aired by some. IDF Lt. Col. (ret.) Jonathan Conricus has voiced his concerns that the military may not be doing enough to counter a future tunnel threat under the Philadelphi Corridor along the border between the Gaza Strip and Egypt.

The IDF is going after specific tunnel entrances in a “pinpoint solution” rather than a “systemic solution” that deals with all the tunnels, Conricus told JNS. “What’s needed is to create a permanent change, or at least one that’s more long lasting.”

Conricus suggests an underground barrier, “a type of defensive wall,” similar to what Israel built around the Gaza Strip, which prevented Hamas from using tunnels in their Oct. 7 attack. It’s called a “slurry wall” and involves “digging a deep trench, dozens of meters deep, and filling it with concrete that has sensors in it, that basically cuts across the border. It doesn’t make it impossible to dig a tunnel, but it makes it very, very difficult,” he said.

While Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has stated that Israel will keep troops in the Philadelphi Corridor, Conricus said there are no guarantees. Pressure is being applied by the United States and Egypt, putting a damper on the idea. A slurry wall would give Israel at least some measure of control over what happens under the Strip if it is forced to leave, he said.

The Philadelphi Corridor is where all the problems started, Kfir noted. In the 1980s, Israel had its first encounter with tunnels in the form of underground smuggling by terrorists. The IDF struggled to counter it. The terrorists’ initial success led them to expand their use of tunnels, planting explosives under IDF outposts. They blew up their first in 2001.

Roskin said Israeli troops will need to be on the border.

“If Israel wants to have control of the Gaza Strip, they have to control the Philadelphi Corridor, hands-on, on the ground,” he said.

Even IDF officers who advocated for the 2005 disengagement from Gaza argued at the time that Israel must keep the Philadelphi Corridor. “They were pretty shocked that [then-Prime Minister] Ariel Sharon was going to give up Philadelphi. We’ve seen the price we’ve paid,” said Roskin.


 David Isaac

Source: https://www.jns.org/idf-still-hasnt-internalized-the-tunnel-threat-experts-say/

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'We were completely at Hezbollah's mercy,' former UN peacekeeper says - Danielle Greyman-Kennard

 

by Danielle Greyman-Kennard

UNIFIL forces were heavily restricted by Hezbollah, and little was done when they reported violations of UN Security Council Resolution 1701.

 

UNIFIL PEACEKEEPERS look out at the Lebanese-Israeli border, from the roof of a watchtower ‏in the town of Marwahin, in southern Lebanon, on Saturday. Never was an organization less interim than UNIFIL, the writer quips. (photo credit: THAIER AL-SUDANI/REUTERS)
UNIFIL PEACEKEEPERS look out at the Lebanese-Israeli border, from the roof of a watchtower ‏in the town of Marwahin, in southern Lebanon, on Saturday. Never was an organization less interim than UNIFIL, the writer quips.
(photo credit: THAIER AL-SUDANI/REUTERS)

A former United Nations Truce Supervision Organization (UNTSO) soldier, under the alias Michael, testified that UNIFIL was “totally subject to Hezbollah” when he worked in Lebanon 10 years ago in an interview with Danish news site B.T. on Sunday.

UNSTO, founded in 1948, is the first peacekeeping mission the United Nations ever created; with the mission of "monitor[ing] ceasefires, supervise[ing] armistice agreements, prevent[ing] isolated incidents from escalating and assist[ing] other UN peacekeeping operations in the region to fulfil their respective mandates.

The soldier had been tasked with observing and reporting violations of UN Security Council Resolution 1701 of 2006, which called for southern Lebanon to be without Hezbollah. 

Despite the organization’s mission, Michael reported, "We were totally subject to Hezbollah. We clearly had limited freedom of movement. For example, we never operated after dark for fear of Hezbollah. So they had free time in the evening and night hours.”

Michael also reported that UNIFIL and UNTSO workers had their access to cities in southern Lebanon restricted by Hezbollah, who would stop them when they tried to enter certain areas.

"They simply blocked the road. They were not visibly armed but aggressive, and it was quite clear that they were members of Hezbollah - we knew very well who decided things, especially in the Shiite cities,” said Michael. “They didn't want us to see what they were doing.”

Hezbollah weapons seized by IDF soldiers in Lebanon (credit: IDF SPOKESPERSON'S UNIT)Enlrage image
Hezbollah weapons seized by IDF soldiers in Lebanon (credit: IDF SPOKESPERSON'S UNIT)

Despite their obligations, Michael testified that workers would simply observe from a distance when suspicious persons photographed the Israeli border. 

"When we patrolled the Blue Line, we often saw 'civilians' very close to the Israeli military installations taking pictures,” he said. ”When that happened, we withdrew and observed from a distance – we were simply instructed to do so.”

An underground Hezbollah compound that was raided by the IDF in southern Lebanon. (credit: IDF SPOKESPERSON'S UNIT)Enlrage image
An underground Hezbollah compound that was raided by the IDF in southern Lebanon. (credit: IDF SPOKESPERSON'S UNIT)

Michael added that his ability to report what was happening to the security council was also limited, as Hezbollah terrorists would confiscate his devices if he attempted to collect evidence. 

Some outsourced workers for UNIFIL and UNTSO were also vocally supportive of Hezbollah, Michael recalled. 

“We had a number of interpreters who were indoctrinated into Hezbollah. I ended up throwing one of them out of my car once while he was praising Hassan Nasrallah. I simply didn't want to listen to it,' Michael claimed.

In spite of the barriers created by Hezbollah, Michael claimed that when reports were made about violations, nothing was done.

"We reported daily violations of resolution 1701 to our superiors, including in particular restrictions on our freedom of movement, and we were instructed to report all violations regardless of number. But nothing ever happened,' he said. "We did not hear back from them, and nothing was initiated. It was wildly frustrating, and it only confirmed to me what I had experienced in other countries I was posted to: The UN is incompetent.” 

Despite the aforementioned criticisms, Michael maintained that the on-the-ground workers had good intentions in Lebanon - “But of course, there were also some who were fervently anti-Israel. I especially remember one of them from Ireland.”

Now 10 years later, Michael said he couldn’t imagine how deeply embedded and developed Hezbollah’s infrastructure has become.

"We didn't hear or see any digging or tunnel construction when I was there - I would never hide that,” he testified. “On the other hand, several civilian houses and probably also a 'chicken farm' appeared close to the Blue Line while I was there, which, of course, we could not/were not allowed to inspect.”

Only two weeks ago, the IDF located a tunnel that would have allowed Hezbollah terrorists to infiltrate into northern Israel. 

“I remember, on the other hand, that the Israelis had a really good handle on where Hezbollah was. We often visited the IDF on the Israeli side of the border to get their presentation of the situation. And they could pinpoint exactly where they had spotted Hezbollah on the other side of the border.”

Combatting Hezbollah's threat

Michael’s testimony comes weeks after Israel began a land operation in Lebanon, seeking to remove Hezbollah’s ongoing threat in southern Lebanon. 

On October 8, only a day after Hamas’s massacre in southern Israel, the Lebanon-based terror group began firing on northern Israel - forcing tens of thousands of residents to evacuate. A number of civilians and soldiers have been killed in the attacks. 

UNIFIL refuses to move

Since Israel began its land operation in Lebanon, several communities have been evacuated to ensure minimal civilian risk as Israel targets Hezbollah. Despite the evacuation warnings, UNIFIL has repeatedly refused to move its workers - instead vocally criticizing Israel when UNIFIL infrastructure and personnel get caught up in the military actions.

UNIFIL spokesman Andrea Tenenti, in an interview with KAN on Wednesday, claimed the organization would not evacuate “at the request of the Israeli authorities, but in accordance with the request of the Security Council and the international community.” 

"It is important to maintain the ability to monitor the area so that it is possible to report to New York and the international community," he further told KAN. "And it is important for both sides to have an impartial and unbiased force that can do this. Additionally, it's important these days to provide humanitarian aid to thousands of people who are still stuck in villages in the south of the country."

The United Nations Office at Geneva complained on Monday morning that Israeli forces in Lebanon had “deliberately” targeted a UNIFIL watchtower and fence.

“Yet again, we remind the IDF and all actors of their obligations to ensure the safety and security of UN personnel and property and to respect the inviolability of UN premises at all times,” UNIFIL stated. 

Michael’s interview came in tandem with an Israel Hayom report that Hezbollah terrorists captured by the IDF testified that Hezbollah paid money to UNIFIL personnel to use their bases for operations - a claim UNIFIL denied to the Jerusalem Post. 

JERUSALEM POST STAFF contributed to this report.


Danielle Greyman-Kennard

Source: https://www.jpost.com/middle-east/article-825450

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Report: Israel presented US with demands to end war in Lebanon - Israel National News

 

by Israel National News

Among Israel's demands is the right to actively ensure that Hezbollah would not rebuild itself in southern Lebanon.

 

Benjamin Netanyahu and Amos Hochstein
Benjamin Netanyahu and Amos Hochstein                               Amos Ben-Gershom (GPO)

Israel presented the US last week with its conditions for ending the war in Lebanon.

According to a report by Barak Ravid in Axios, last Thursday, Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer sent the document discussing a diplomatic solution to end the fighting and allow civilians on both sides to return home to President Biden's envoy Amos Hochstein ahead of his visit to Beirut on Monday.

According to the report, one Israeli demand is that the IDF be allowed to engage in "active enforcement" to make sure Hezbollah doesn't rearm and rebuild its military infrastructure in the areas of southern Lebanon that are close to the border.

In addition, Israel demands its air force have freedom of operation in Lebanese air space.

The two demands contradict UN Security Council Resolution 1701, which states that the only forces that could operate in southern Lebanon are the Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF) and UNIFIL, which have failed to keep Hezbollah at bay.

In this regard, one of the Israeli officials told Ravid: "We are talking about 1701 with increased enforcement. Our main message is that if the Lebanese army and UNIFIL do more, the IDF will do less and the other way around."

A US official noted that it is highly unlikely Lebanon and the international community would agree to Israel's conditions.

The White House and the Israeli embassy in Washington declined to comment.

As far as an American solution to the conflict, the report states that Hochstein wants to see at least 8,000 Lebanese troops deployed in southern Lebanon. In addition, he wants to upgrade UNIFIL's mandate so it would be able to help the Lebanese army prevent armed individuals or groups who are not under the control of the Lebanese government from being deployed near the border with Israel.


 Israel National News

Source: https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/397888

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Transgenderism looms large as issue, prominent pollster predicts it could swing Senate races to GOP - Charlotte Hazard

 

by Charlotte Hazard

"We now have colleges forfeiting their [womens' teams] games rather than play against transgender athletes," Rasmussen said on the "Just the News, No Noise" TV show. "So the issue has some general impact."

 

Prominent pollster Scott Rasmussen says the issue of transgenderism with biological men playing in biological women's sports could move voters in swing states to the right. 

"We now have colleges forfeiting their games rather than play against transgender athletes," Rasmussen said on the "Just the News, No Noise" TV show. "So the issue has some general impact."

Over the past few weeks, multiple schools have canceled womens' volleyball matches against San Jose State due to the team having a transgender player on the team who had been seen spiking balls into the faces of the opposing team during matches, according to Fox News.

This issue has come up in schools all over the country from Loudoun County, Virginia, to Leon County, Florida with minors "identifying" as transgender and creating an ongoing conflict between the schools and parents.

Rasmussen said that this issue could particularly impact Senate races in swing states. 

"Where I'm starting to see it is in Senate races," he said. "We see it playing out in the Texas Senate race, in Wisconsin and in Michigan."

During the Texas Senate debate earlier this week, GOP Sen. Ted Cruz clashed with his Democratic opponent Rep. Colin Allred on the issue of transgenderism. Cruz accused Allred of backing legislation that would lead to boys playing in girls sports, stating, "Congressman Allred was an NFL linebacker. It is not fair for a man to compete against women."

Allred denied Cruz's claims, calling them "laughable," according to NBC News. Over the weekend, The Wall Street Journal published an opinion piece arguing that that transgender women in women's sports is going to be a sleeper issue for the upcoming election. "This year one sleeper issue is progressive transgender coercion, which is playing against Democrats in races across the country," the article reads.

According to the opinion piece, Democratic Sens. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio., Jon Tester, D-Mo., and Tammy Baldwin, D-Wis., have taken hits for votes regarding transgender women in women's sports. Ohio, Wisconsin and Montana are all competitive Senate states and the transgender issue could be one of the hot button topics that makes voters lean to the right. 

Not entirely unrelated, the Democratic senatorial candidates may be hamstrung at the top of their ticket: Vice President Kamala Harris, in her failed 2019 bid, then-Sen. Harris was asked by the ACLU: Would she use her executive authority as president to ensure that inmates — including those in prison and immigration detention — would have access to “comprehensive treatment associated with gender transition, including all necessary surgical care?”

She said "yes."

"I would go so far as to say if the Republicans pull off an upset, and it would be an upset to win the seats in either Michigan or Wisconsin....that's an issue that will have had a big role to play in it," Rasmussen said. 


 Charlotte Hazard

Source: https://justthenews.com/politics-policy/elections/prominent-pollster-says-issue-transgenderism-will-potentially-swing

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