A glorious Thursday morning to you!

It’s nice to see Capitol Hill bathed in sunlight.

Former CDC Director Drops Hammer on Fauci in COVID Origins Hearing

Former CDC Director Robert Redfield testified under oath Wednesday that the COVID-19 virus was likely created by gain of function research funded by Dr. Fauci and his NIAID.

At a House hearing on COVID origins, Redfield ripped gain of function research, saying “I think it probably caused the greatest pandemic in history.” Fauci gets cute when asked whether his Wuhan Lab pals do gain of function. But Redfield says it’s obvious that’s what was going on. “If I make a nonpathogen pathogenic, that’s gain-of-function.”

Dr. Robert Redfield: The Wuhan Institute of Virology Absolutely Conducted Gain-of-Function Research

“If I make a nonpathogen pathogenic, that’s gain-of-function.”https://t.co/O8rzoJfmvH pic.twitter.com/PJiGMXIFTJ

— The Vigilant Fox 🦊 (@VigilantFox) March 8, 2023

Perhaps most stunningly, Dr. Redfield testified how after telling Fauci he didn’t think there was a natural origin for the virus he was exiled from meetings about the virus. This despite being a virologist by trade, a member of the White House COVID Task Force and, oh, director of the CDC. Sorry, Doc. You were head of the Centers for Disease Control. You want an audience with Fauci, you had to be with the Centers for Information Control.

It’s nice to see sunlight on Capitol Hill … even when it horrifies and breaks your heart.

US Military Sniper Had Afghan Suicide Bomber in His Sights … Was Denied Permission to Take Him Out

On August 26, 2021, 13 U.S. service men and women, along with 170 Afghanis, were murdered by a suicide bomber at Abbey Gate outside Kabul airport.

On February 4, 2022, the Biden Pentagon released a report concluding that the deaths were not preventable.

The Pentagon lied.

Yesterday, at a House hearing on the disastrous Afghanistan withdrawal, Marine sniper Sgt. Tyler Vargas-Andrews testified under oath that he had the suicide bomber in his sights, requested permission to take him out, and was denied.

Please WATCH:

Sgt. Tyler Vargas-Andrews, a U.S. Marine Corps sniper, tells Congress that he was denied permission to shoot the suicide bomber in Afghanistan that killed 13 service members and over 170 civilians:

“Plain and simple, we were ignored. Our expertise was disregarded. No one was… https://t.co/h380txudvE pic.twitter.com/A8mxNlKFkS

— kanekoa.substack.com (@KanekoaTheGreat) March 8, 2023

According to the Associated Press, the investigation found “intelligence about potential threats that was circulating that day was not specific.”

Not so. Vargas-Andrews says they had a specific description of a clean-shaven would-be bomber and what he was wearing.

Marines had spotted a man fitting the description to a “t”. Analysts confirmed he was the person that was thought to be wearing a bomb. His behavior as Vargas-Andrews watched him gave further confidence this terrorist was up to no good. Yet urgent requests to engage were denied. When the sniper asked his commander directly if he could fire, the commander said, “I don’t know.” (Even though it was his call.) The commander went off to find an answer, and never came back. The bomber disappeared into the gathered crowd.

Soon 13 of America’s best and bravest lay dead.

Sgt. Tyler Vargas-Andrews himself lost a leg and an arm in the blast. And bears the horrible burden of knowing he could have stopped it.

“Plain and simple. We were ignored.”

Not a single officer in the chain of command or civilian leader at the Pentagon has paid the slightest price for the failure at Abbey Gate or the “catastrophic” Afghanistan withdraw.

Israel Negotiating With Several Nations to Expand Abraham Accords

L’Chaim! We may soon see more countries sign onto the historic 2020 Abraham Accords. Israel media reported Tuesday that Israel is negotiating with several Islamic nations to establish formal ties. The nations involved are Mauritania, Indonesia, Somalia and Niger.

The U.S. State Department is involved in the talks. Of course, President Trump shepherded the Accords, which saw Israel reach peace deals with United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Morocco and Sudan. A very big deal downplayed by the media.

While Saudi Arabia hasn’t yet signed onto the peace accords, the Saudis and Israelis have been talking more over concerns about Iran’s nuclear weapons program. All Israel News reports that the two nations are discussing increasing military and intelligence cooperation in the wake of the mutual threat.

And speaking of lions lying down with lambs …

Matt Gaetz and Ilhan Omar Team on Bill Calling for US Troops to Be Pulled From Syria

Rep. Matt Gaetz has been joined by the Congressional Progressive Caucus, including Ilhan Omar, in support of the Gaetz’s War Powers Resolution Act. This bill aims to bring U.S. troops home from Syria within 180 days unless Congress votes to authorize a longer deployment.

Also backing the bill is President Obama’s former ambassador to Syria Robert Ford, who had backed the expansion of U.S. presence in Syria but, as Daily Caller reports, now thinks it’s time to go.

The House voted down the bill Wednesday afternoon by a 103-121 vote, with 56 Democrats joining 47 Republicans. Still, the idea of Gaetz and Omar agreeing on anything strikes one as being near miraculous.

Joe Biden Has No Plans to Go to East Palestine … Just Days After Saying He Planned to Go to East Palestine

Put away the rope lines and balloons. The White House says Joe Biden has no plans to go to East Palestine … a couple days after Joe Biden said he planned to go to the stricken town.

“Ask the White House when he’s going,” says NBC News, “and the answer gets fuzzy.” Fuzzy? Try callous.

“When or if the president should go is of course a question we would talk about, but I don’t think this is something we’ve been agonizing over in real-time,” a senior White House official said.

The reluctance of Biden to go has even Democrats like former Ohio Rep. Tim Ryan baffled. “I’m shocked that it hasn’t happened. “I just don’t understand. This is not a hard one.”

Even within the White House there’s some bewilderment. One administration official told NBC News, “I think he should have gone earlier, but I have to assume there were really smart discussions behind the scenes that presented a viable reason why he was waiting to go.”

The official has to assume “smart discussions” because otherwise he or she would have to go with the other option: Indifference to the suffering of average Americans.

So what is the reason? NBC News was offered this defense:

“Biden’s focus is on rail safety and getting immediate help to residents, not the political theater of a presidential visit. A president carries a large “footprint” and a visit would slow progress on the cleanup.”

Unfortunately, what the residents hear is, “He just doesn’t care enough to come.”

Maybe if East Palestine residents band together, drop half a million bucks to buy one of Hunter’s paintings for city hall, Biden will hop on by.

International Women’s Day at White House … So Naturally, a Biological Male Was Given “International Women of Courage Award”

Yesterday was International Women’s Day. The White House celebrated by hosting the International Women of Courage Awards. International, yes. Women, no. One of the 11 courage awards went to Argentinian transgender activist Alba Rueda, a biological male.

International Women Of Courage Award goes to a biological male pic.twitter.com/qtW3t8bdgA

— End Wokeness (@EndWokeness) March 8, 2023

In case you are wondering, there are 23.35 million females in Argentina. 3.905 billion females worldwide. Is the White House really saying the number of courageous women tops out at 10?

Then again, do you really count as a woman in the White House if Joe Biden hasn’t tried sniffing your hair?

Along The Stream

A MUST! The Stream’s Tom Gilson has the 2nd in a series that explores how society is now not just Post-Christian or Post-Truth, but “Post Reality.” This one’s called “Post Reality’s False Worship: Why Transgenderism, Virtual Reality, etc. May Be Humanity’s Worst Idolatry Ever.”

Mitch McConnell said it was a “mistake” for Fox News to air new J6 footage. We counter with “Sorry, Mitch. Seeking Truth is Not a Mistake.”

 

Al Perrotta is the Managing Editor of The Stream, chief barista for The Brew and co-author, with John Zmirak, of The Politically Incorrect Guide to Immigration. You can follow him at @StreamingAl at GETTR, Gab, Parler, and now at TRUTH Social.