Latest news with #WarNotes
Yahoo
14-06-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Opinion - Leland Vittert's War Notes: Debt of Gratitude
NewsNation Chief Washington Anchor and On Balance host Leland Vittert was a foreign correspondent for four years in Jerusalem. He gives you an early look at tonight's 9 pm ET show. Subscribe to War Notes here. 'This is not the end. It is not even the beginning of the end. But it is, perhaps, the end of the beginning,' said Winston Churchill in 1942 at the height of World War II. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu loves Winston Churchill – if asked where in Israel's war with Iran we are, he might quote his hero. Iran's counterattack on Israel, while ineffective, will be answered with an even more aggressive Israeli bombing campaign. Remember: Israel targets Iran's military facilities. Iran targets all of Israel's civilian population. At this point, Israel has no choice but to fully dismantle Iran's military. This will go on for weeks. Programming alert: Tomorrow, Anna Kooiman and I will anchor 'Tribute to America: A Live NewsNation Special' from 6-10 p.m. ET – we hope you join us. By every available measure, the world is safer today than it was yesterday. America is safer. Peace-loving people owe the Israelis a debt of gratitude. If Iran had obtained a nuclear weapon, it would have all but guaranteed World War III – the Israelis say they have intelligence showing Iran was days away. Now, the ayatollah is on the run. Iranian Revolutionary Guard generals all wonder which of their own is Israel's insider source. The Iranian nuclear program is on its way to smithereens. How do I know things are going to be okay? Ben Rhodes of 'Pod Save The World' says that 'war is breaking out.' Tucker Carlson thinks the same. Carlson wrote in his daily note that it could be his 'final newsletter before all-out war.' Usually taking the other side of what Rhodes and Carlson think is a safe bet. The scope and scale of Israel's attacks are far bigger than they may appear on the surface. The impact of this will continue to be far bigger than we imagine. Israel released a lot of information about its spy novel operation, but there are far, far more details and far more operations. When the actual book is written on this attack, it will be a spy series, not a single novel. Israel's Mossad – their spy agency – snuck in commando units, drones, truck-mounted weapons and more. But that's just what they have admitted to. If you wrote the Mossad operation as a spy novel, nobody would believe it. 'How Mossad covertly prepared Israel's attack from deep inside Iran,' headlines The Washington Post. For decades, America's CIA tried to penetrate Iran – just to get sources – and failed. Israel snuck in an entire drone base. They knew where IRGC generals slept. They had a complete understanding of Iran's Air Defense Force system and took it apart from the inside. Almost more important than the surgical elimination of top Iranian Revolutionary Guard commanders and nuclear scientists is the distrust and discord that Iran's top leadership now feels. Israel's first-wave strike required deep human intelligence penetration to the top of the Iranian regime – they killed one target with a missile through his bedroom wall. It is impossible to understate the paranoia that must exist in Tehran right now. Click here for more on the Iranian leaders killed in the attack. The Israelis have been planning this for 20 years – it might be the finest military and intelligence operation in history. Trump sleight of hand: President Trump playing cover for Israel's attack is pretty epic. Trump all but took credit for the green light, saying he gave the Iranians 60 days to make a deal back on April 12th – the Israeli attack began around midnight on the 60th day. Let's look at the Middle East now and before October 7, 2023. Pre-October 7: Hamas and Hezbollah were the first in an Iranian ring of fire around Israel, capable of raining thousands of rockets and guided missiles on the Jewish state. Now: These terrorist groups are decimated – they were once the Iranian insurance policy against this week's Israel attack. The rest of Iran's proxies are either gone or severely degraded: Bashar al-Assad of Syria. The Iranian militias in Iraq. The Houthis in Yemen. Pre-October 7th: Iran could begin building a nuclear weapon whenever it wanted and appears to have run a parallel secret weaponization program. Now: Much of Iran's nuclear facilities are rubble. Many of its top scientists are dead. Iran will never have a nuke. Pre-October 7th: The Biden administration gave Iran carte blanche – and access to capital. With Biden in power, Iran built their ballistic missile arsenal, drone manufacturing facilities and exported terror … the list goes on and on. Biden's national security adviser, Jake Sullivan, said the Middle East was the quietest it had been in decades – the October 7 attacks happened just days after his remarks. Now: Iran is crippled and unable to project power. The Arab world is almost all covertly supporting Israel, save milquetoast statements condemning the attack. The Iranian regime is on the rocks. I can't imagine how anyone thinks Israel attacking Iran was a bad idea. But some do: 'This was the start of World War III'; 'What if Iran reconstitutes its nuclear program'; 'This empowers hardliners in Iran'; 'But the Iran nuclear deal under Obama was working.' The above are supremely stupid takes. They are either objectively pro-Iran, anti-Israel or simply contrarian for the sake of it. They all prevented action against Iran for 20 years, and look where it got us. These are the same people who said that Trump killing Iranian General Qassem Soleimani in 2020 or moving the Israeli embassy to Jerusalem would end in war … they didn't. What about the 50,000 U.S. troops that are in range of Iran's weapons and would be in range of Iran's soon-to-be nuclear weapon? More importantly, they would be in range once Iran felt emboldened and protected by having a nuclear weapon. They were in range yesterday, except now: Iran's nuclear program is no more. Iran's surface-to-surface missile capability is severely degraded. Iran's drone forces are largely destroyed. Iran's military is on its heels. The world is safer today than it was yesterday. We all owe Israel, its pilots and intelligence operatives a debt of gratitude. Tune into 'On Balance with Leland Vittert' weeknights at 9/8 CT on NewsNation. Find your channel here. The views expressed in this article are those of the author and not necessarily of NewsNation. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
13-06-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Opinion - Leland Vittert's War Notes: Fighting With Trump
NewsNation Chief Washington Anchor and On Balance host Leland Vittert was a foreign correspondent for four years in Jerusalem. He gives you an early look at tonight's 9 pm ET show. Subscribe to War Notes here. Weather watch: Thunderstorms could cancel or postpone President Trump's military parade on Saturday. Who can argue with this: Florida's Brevard County Sheriff Wayne Ivey on how his county is handling rioters: 'If you throw a brick, a firebomb, or point a gun at one of our deputies, we will be notifying your family where to collect your remains at. Because we will kill you, graveyard dead. We're not gonna play.' I don't get it: Members of Congress have big staffs – they could easily come up with some really good lines of questioning for Cabinet secretaries they don't like. Yet they choose to lecture and name-call. Case in point: Rep. Salud Carbajal, D-Calif., to Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth during a House Armed Services Committee hearing earlier today: 'I'm not going to waste my time anymore. You're not worthy of my attention or my questions. You're an embarrassment to this country. You're unfit to lead …you should just get the hell out,' Carbajal said. It's a both sides thing – Republicans would lecture Biden's Cabinet picks. I don't get it. It's pretty clear that California Gov. Gavin Newsom wants a fight with President Trump – he has one. Newsom is willing to have riots in his state to force the square-off. Now, his new attack line is that Trump is losing it – just like former President Joe Biden declined. From Axios: 'Newsom's jabs at Trump's age are part of a barrage of criticisms he's tossed at Trump in the past week. He's called Trump a threat to democracy who is putting the U.S. on a road to authoritarianism.' Points for style: The age and Biden comparisons will get under Trump's skin. Click here to look at Gov. Newsom's official website – more about Trump than anything else. I have just one question for Newsom Central Casting – who has ever won a fight against Donald Trump? Elon Musk – the richest man on Earth – just came crawling back apologizing. Crowded path: Two more Democratic governors also want to carry the Trump-resistance flag. Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker said Trump would have to come through him to arrest illegal aliens. Earlier today, he ended up getting bashed in front of Congress by Rep. Brandon Gill, R-N.M. – no, seriously, watch it Gill: Do you think men should be allowed in women's restrooms? Pritzker: I'm not sure why this has come to this issue. Gill: You tweeted: 'As a protest against President Trump, everyone should use the other gender's bathroom today.' Have you ever used the women's restroom? Pritzker: Not that I can recall. Gill: So you just wanted everybody else to do it, but you didn't? Pritzker: … Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz compared ICE to the Gestapo. Today, Rep. Byron Donalds, R-Fla., asked Walz about his comments, and it didn't go well for Walz. Watch the full interaction here. 'Why Gavin Newsom Will Never Be President,' headlines our friend Batya Ungar-Sargon in The Free Press. Newsom and Democrats clearly have (some) deeply-held beliefs – namely, opposing Trump even on relatively popular issues. Only Trump: For Trump, 'flexibility' gets him out of everything. During the campaign, he promised to deport everyone – but just said farm workers could stay. is logic as explained in a Truth Social post is something only he could come up with: 'Our great Farmers and people in the Hotel and Leisure business have been stating that our very aggressive policy on immigration is taking very good, long time workers away from them, with those jobs being almost impossible to replace. In many cases the Criminals allowed into our Country by the VERY Stupid Biden Open Borders Policy are applying for those jobs. This is not good. We must protect our Farmers, but get the CRIMINALS OUT OF THE USA. Changes are coming!' Trump writes. In other words: If the Department of Homeland Security deports illegal immigrants who are working on farms, then other illegal immigrants (criminals let in under Joe Biden) will take their jobs. Ok – as I said, only Trump would argue this. But his base will buy it, and the Republican Party will get behind it. More: From the 'Fighting with Trump' files – who thought tackling a United States senator was a good idea? Well, it actually appears that Sen. Alex Padilla, D-Calif., got exactly what he wanted. Fellow Democrats now have a cause celebrity – one of their own who 'confronted' the Trump administration. Padilla crashed a press conference held by Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem in his home state of California. 'I'm Sen. Alex Padilla. I have questions for the secretary,' video catches the senator saying as he pushes towards the secretary and then the Secret Service pushes him out of the room. Click here to watch Padilla being shoved to the ground. To be fair: Law enforcement right now – especially Secretary Noem's Secret Service detail – feels embattled. For what it's worth: Noem later met with Padilla and said her Secret Service detail had no idea who he was and viewed him as a potential attacker as he pushed forward. Question: Who thinks walking up to a podium surrounded by Secret Service is a good idea? Here is the video of the confrontation. It's hard to fault the Secret Service. It's hard to argue with Noem, who called Padilla's stunt 'political theater.' Even CNN seems to agree. Watch tonight: Rep. Ami Bera, D-Calif., joins us on the program to discuss the incident. I have followed events in the Middle East long enough to know that nobody really knows what will happen. The closest you will get to knowing what will happen in the Middle East is Barak Ravid of Axios – read his dispatch here. Bill O'Reilly told Chris Cuomo last night that this weekend is the weekend Israel will decide if they hit Iran, dependent on whether the U.S. makes a deal with Iran: 'There is no plan B – the mullahs are going to have to stop now. Whether they will or not, if I had to bet tonight, I would say there will be a deal because once the military thing is in motion, that's the end of Tehran. … So if the mullahs want to go and commit suicide, then they won't make the deal. I'm betting they don't want to commit, they always take it up to the brink, but this time with Israel ready to go right now … if this doesn't work this weekend, then all hell is going to break loose,' O'Reilly warned. Look back: In 2012, I canceled vacation after vacation to stay in Israel as a Middle East correspondent because that's when Israel would attack Iran. Good tactics: It's in Trump's best interest for Iran and the world to think the Israelis might strike. Go deeper: Listen to U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee and journalist Bari Weiss warn about the Iran-friendly wing of MAGA. Thought bubble: It's perplexing to me why Trump doesn't return to the maximum pressure campaign, bankrupt Iran and force regime change from within. He could do it without the Israelis or the U.S. dropping a single bomb. Why give the ayatollah a way out or to survive? Tune into 'On Balance with Leland Vittert' weeknights at 9/8 CT on NewsNation. Find your channel here. The views expressed in this article are those of the author and not necessarily of NewsNation. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
04-06-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Opinion - Leland Vittert's War Notes: Ring Side Seats
NewsNation Chief Washington Anchor and On Balance host Leland Vittert was a foreign correspondent for four years in Jerusalem. He gives you an early look at tonight's 9 pm ET show. Subscribe to War Notes here. Altar bound: This weekend I get to do something I always hoped would happen but wasn't sure would – marry my best friend. At 42, I have lived enough to know I am so lucky to have found the woman perfect for me. I am so lucky to be joining Rachel's family and happier still that her parents and mine have become such great friends. My parents have been married for 53 years. Rachel's parents are about a decade behind. It's quite the legacy to live up to – but I couldn't imagine better examples. Silly me: I didn't think this weekend would have many emotions – Rachel and I have dated for four years, and we do everything together – boy, was I wrong. The weight of the journey and responsibility ahead has become profoundly real. Yet, the excitement and dreams of a life together beckon with a far louder voice. We'll share more of the marriage advice you sent in on the show tonight. By far, the most popular advice was, 'Rachel is always right.' Thanks, but I figured that out a LONG time ago. 'War Notes' is off until Tuesday, June 10 — I'll be sure to post some pictures of the wedding on Instagram @lelandvittert. Big sale: The audiobook version of 'Born Lucky,' narrated by me, is 55% off now through Saturday on Audible. You can preorder the actual hardcover book on Amazon here. For you: 'War Notes' subscribers who purchase the book – audio or hardcover – will get invited to a private Q&A session with me plus receive a signed bookmark. More on both of those closer to the Sept. 30 release date — but PLEASE preorder now — save your receipt! Must watch: Click here to watch one of the prison escapees in New Orleans ask President Trump and rapper Lil Wayne for help. When running from the cops after a prison escape, aren't you supposed to disappear?! During the first 130 days of his second term, President Trump rained punches on his enemies – now, he's oddly silent – and let his enemies fight amongst themselves. Give it another day or so, and the White House press corps will complain that President Donald Trump is hiding. Be fair: When compared to the multiple Oval Office press conferences each week he usually does, he's relatively distant. He last talked to the press Friday night in a driving rainstorm at Joint Base Andrews. We caught it during our segment with Corey Lewandowski. Click here to watch Trump's brief presser and the full interview. Trump had no public appearances Saturday. On Sunday, the president golfed with Bryson DeChambeau at Trump National Club in D.C. and then returned to the White House. On Monday, the president's schedule included lunch with the vice president. Today, he had no public appearances. Political reality: Nobody knows the media better than Trump – if he doesn't want to be the story and dominate the coverage, there is a reason. The Boulder attack puts Democrats in a terrible position. Trump has been notably silent on Ukraine's spy novel-worthy one-two punch against Putin. Good news for Ukraine is good news for Trump domestically. The Biden health scandal continues to ferment. Elon Musk is fighting Trump over the 'big, beautiful bill.' 'This massive, outrageous, pork-filled Congressional spending bill is a disgusting abomination,' Musk wrote in a post on X. It's amazing how the press now views Musk as an honest broker because he's criticizing Trump. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., also came out against the bill in a post on X: 'Full transparency, I did not know about this section on pages 278-279 of the OBBB that strips states of the right to make laws or regulate AI for 10 years. I am adamantly OPPOSED to this … This needs to be stripped out in the Senate.' Yet Trump is still silent. Winning: President Trump is not back above water in polling, but he is closer to a positive approval rating than anytime since early April. Trump's average approval rating today is 47.5%, with 49.7% of Americans disapproving. Watch tonight: The great Mark Halperin on Trump's 'new' media strategy. For true political junkies: Always join Halperin's 'The Morning Meeting' show on 2 Way. The illegal immigrant and pro-Hamas terrorist who allegedly attacked Jews in Boulder, Colorado, completely changed the American political conversation – Democrats haven't figured that out yet. It's all the Democrats' problems in one: Illegal immigration: As Mark Halperin explains: 'Republicans are seizing on the fact that the accused appears to have come to this country illegally and been allowed to stay because of the policies and practices of the Biden administration… I'm already hearing from Democrats who say, if we don't get ahead of this, we are morons. We cannot be on the wrong side of denouncing this man's presence in the United States.' Have you seen any Democrats get ahead of it? Antisemitism: Those who make the argument that the 'Free Palestine' folks are really just concerned about starving kids in Gaza have been exposed. Islamic extremist terrorism – it's still alive and well. Politically correct wokeism – Democrats still can't bring themselves to harshly condemn the anti-Israel rhetoric. They must protect the pro-Palestinian cause because they are afraid of losing their progressive base. Then Trump doubled down today and arrested the alleged terrorist's family members, who may also be here illegally. Who will be the first Democrat to come out and complain about the family's due process rights? NBC News hasn't gone that far, but they don't understand how the rest of America feels about terrorism. 'Lone wolf attacks on Jewish Americans in Boulder and D.C. highlight the difficulties in securing public spaces,' NBC writes in a post on X. Zoom out: America is divided by values, not by party. Right vs. wrong Rural vs. urban Traditional vs. progressive The Boulder attack puts Democrats in the latter camp: Wrong, urban and progressive. Supporting boys in girls sports is the same thing. It's exactly why Democrats have lost the middle class of America. New polling by CNN/SSRS shows the Republican Party seven points ahead of Democrats in terms of which party is closer to respondents' economic views. When asked about party perceptions of the middle class, Democrats only lead Republicans by 2 points – their lead was 17 points above the GOP in 2016. Watch tonight: Ana Kasparian of 'The Young Turks' on Democrats' refusal to stand up to the wokest within their party. In the past 72 hours, Ukraine has totally changed its three-year war with Russia – and Donald Trump is totally silent. Is World War III closer – yes, or maybe not. Weakness is provocative – Ukraine just showed itself not to be weak. 'Ukraine hits bridge linking Crimea to Russia with underwater explosives,' The Guardian headlines. Books will be written about Ukraine's drone attack on Russia's strategic bomber bases over a thousand miles from its border. Putin's puzzle: Can Putin find a way out of the war? According to a new study, 'Russia will likely hit the 1 million casualty mark in the summer of 2025' from the war with Ukraine. Putin loves Stalin: Remember what Stalin said about 1 million deaths: 'A single death is a tragedy, a million deaths are a statistic.' Putin cornered: Those wanting to put Putin in a humiliating corner miss the point. Put him in a corner and he fights his way out – maybe with nuclear weapons. Put him in a position where he fears a corner but is offered a face-saving off-ramp: He just might take it. The challenge for Trump will come next – he has to convince Ukrainian President Zelenskyy to offer peace terms Putin may not like but can live with. Tune into 'On Balance with Leland Vittert' weeknights at 9/8 CT on NewsNation. Find your channel here. The views expressed in this article are those of the author and not necessarily of NewsNation. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
30-05-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Opinion - Leland Vittert's War Notes: Fighting = Winning
NewsNation Chief Washington Anchor and On Balance host Leland Vittert was a foreign correspondent for four years in Jerusalem. He gives you an early look at tonight's 9 pm ET show. Subscribe to War Notes here. Ozarks manhunt: The search for the former police chief turned convicted murderer turned prison escapee sounds like something out of a movie — except movie plots have to be believable. The former cop walked out of jail in a guard uniform Now, he's on the run in the rugged mountains of southern Missouri and northwest Arkansas What a story — it's summer, the brush is thick, and the weather's warm. We need Tommy Lee Jones, aka Deputy U.S. Marshal Samuel Gerard in 'The Fugitive.' Watch tonight: Survivalist Dave Canterbury joins us with why the former chief has the upper hand — and how the longer he stays out of jail, the better chance he has. Exclusive: The rest of the world forgot about East Palestine. To be fair: The rest of the world never really cared, but NewsNation did. And we are back — Rich McHugh is on the ground and tonight comes to us with new and exclusive reporting about how the victims still don't have the help they were promised. In the end, Elon Musk chose not to fight. At some point, he left the stage. Officially, he left yesterday, but he faded away from the political field of battle like the proverbial old soldier. I say 'at some point' because I can't remember exactly. It proves he was just the latest bit player in 'The Trump Show' — Trump's words, not mine. I am on a movie kick today — aside from 'The Fugitive' (see above), Rachel and I watched 'The Thomas Crown Affair' last weekend. 'Regret is usually a waste of time,' Crown told a business rival. But boy, would I love to ask Elon Musk, 'Was it worth it? Any regrets?' The world's richest man and business disruptor of our time thought he could change Washington. Washington didn't change him; it spit him out. He didn't fight; he just left. Last night, as news broke that a trade court overturned Trump's tariffs (who knew there even is a trade court?), the Washington and New York establishment rejoiced over a HUGE victory against Trump. In real time, Chris Cillizza and I told you it wouldn't matter. If Trump won an appeal on the right to unilaterally tariff, he wins. For the record, he won at the appeals court today. If Trump loses at the Supreme Court, he still wins because he can call himself a victim fighting against the swamp If Trump uses the court decision as a way out from most of his tariffs, he wins Rule No. 1 of Trump: He always wins. He sets the game up that way. Trump wins when he is fighting — remember what he said after getting shot? The swamp beat Trump in his first term; in his second term, he just won't stop fighting. To be fair: Trump learned he didn't have a choice. He realized early in 2021 he either fought or went to jail. It was and is about survival. 📖 He wrote about this in 'Art of the Comeback' nearly 30 years ago. Musk is the world's richest man. He didn't need to fight, and maybe that is his regret. But boy, it's still interesting Musk is gone but not really out. Stephen Miller's wife is going to work for Musk full-time now. Was it worth it for Musk? To be fair, he tried and then learned all the Republican promises to change Washington are just empty talk. Regrets are usually a waste of time, and Trump seems to understand that. He knows he's winning when he is fighting. Tune into 'On Balance with Leland Vittert' weeknights at 9/8 CT on NewsNation. Find your channel here. The views expressed in this article are those of the author and not necessarily of NewsNation. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
29-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Opinion - Leland Vittert's War Notes: True Power
NewsNation Chief Washington Anchor and On Balance host Leland Vittert was a foreign correspondent for four years in Jerusalem. He gives you an early look at tonight's 9 pm ET show. Subscribe to War Notes here. No irony! Not to be outdone by his 'Sparticus' moment, Senator Cory Booker, D-N.J., is comparing his marathon Senate speech to Martin Luther King's 'I Have a Dream' speech — his book 'Stand' is out in November. Check out the cover of his new book about his marathon (without using the facilities) 'Stand,' and you'll understand what I mean. Watch tonight: Famed entertainer and businessman Ice Cube joins us tonight. Arthur C. Brooks writes in The Atlantic about why young people are so unhappy these days. There is a rural versus urban divide here that comes into play. Ice Cube will tell us how to help the least privileged among us focus on what matters to find happiness. Role model: Ice Cube has been married to his wife for 33 happy years. Maybe he is onto something. The president of the United States is often referred to as the most powerful man in the world. How powerful? Well, remember all those pictures of Elon Musk at the Resolute Desk, the talk of a co-president and more? Where is Musk now? He's on 'CBS Sunday Morning' and talking to the Washington Post, grasping for relevance and redemption. 'I was disappointed to see the massive spending bill, frankly, which increases the budget deficit, not just decreases it,' he said to CBS. 'DOGE is just becoming the whipping boy for everything,' he told The Washington Post. The liberal crew who loved Tesla still trash his cars — literally. His SpaceX rocket exploded last night — many Americans rejoiced. Trump and MAGA remain unchecked Intrigue: Musk reportedly tried to kill a data center deal with the United Arab Emirates because his company wasn't included Is that why Musk is suddenly so talkative? It's not all bad — Tesla stock, the main source of his wealth, is up 101% in the last year. But, he's not riding on Air Force One anymore, or staring in Oval Office press conferences. We have not heard reports of his own cabin at Bedminster. The world no longer hangs on his every word. Like many who thought Trump needed them or were indispensable and irreplaceable, Musk is now grasping for relevance and redemption. And for those keeping score, Trump is more powerful than ever. Former President George W. Bush coined the phrase 'soft bigotry of low expectations' (OK, maybe it was his speech writer Michael Gerson), but now, 20 years late,r the city of San Francisco just went all in. Public schools in San Francisco are considering 'grading for equity.' Homework and class participation won't impact grade Students can retake the final exam Students can turn in assignments late Attendance won't impact grade Students can pass with a 'C' for grades 41% and up Points for creativity: Even a 4th-grade Leland inventing his dream school couldn't have come up with this. But seriously: Even if we assume good intentions by the most progressive, the real victims are the kids. If underprivileged kids are taught that standards don't matter, how will they ever excel outside of the 'woke' world? Common sense: Late today, the San Francisco Unified School District Superintendent issued a statement following the backlash against this policy, 'I have decided not to pursue this strategy for next year to ensure we have time to meaningfully engage the community. Right now we need to continue to focus on balancing our budget, stabilizing the district, and rebuilding trust.' The San Francisco proposal joins the Seattle anti-Christian riot as one more big city disaster that Democrats will have to answer for. I listen to a lot of news and read a lot too — have for decades. I just never understood how important Harvard is — especially its foreign students. Things I have learned: Without government-funded medical research at Harvard, everybody is going to die All the international students will go to Beijing, and China will take over the world A $53 billion endowment isn't that much — they really need federal money Without foreign students paying full tuition, Harvard won't be able to function Without academic freedom at Harvard, we may never know about important things like critical race theory Without Harvard researchers figuring it out: Normal folks won't know how privileged they are We will never fully realize how feminist poetry contributed to oppressing lesbians in the 1970s You get the idea. Lots of powerful people went to Harvard, and many of their kids go to Harvard But it's weird — all their powerfu,l rich alumni are on TV screaming about how important Harvard is, but I haven't heard any of them willing to open their wallets to 'save' the school What I never ever realized is how good Harvard is at PR. They should stop reading their own press releases — they are not indispensable (just like Elon Musk). Moreover, Harvard loves the fight with Trump as much as Trump loves the fight with them. What they don't realize is that they will lose. After all, Harvard is mostly just PR. Tune into 'On Balance with Leland Vittert' weeknights at 9/8 CT on NewsNation. Find your channel here. The views expressed in this article are those of the author and not necessarily of NewsNation. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
