Month: February 2024

Credit: @CollinRugg and TMZ

A crazed woman was caught on video going on a violent rampage in a tony Los Angeles neighborhood and even used a medieval weapon during part of the attack.

The incident occurred Monday according to TMZ. Witnesses saw a fully naked lady go berserk on a boardwalk in Venice Beach, confronting and attacking residents before another woman intervened.

The woman, dressed in a black tank top, attempted to end the madness with spiked clubs. The video, captured by TMZ, shows the clothed woman swinging a club at the nudist, who retreats to defend herself. This process repeats itself for several minutes.

Credit: TMZ

The clothed lady then strikes the naked one with the baton before hurling it at her. The nude woman then scoops the object off the ground and starts running toward her attacker as well as other individuals.

WATCH:

NEW: Crazy naked woman starts attacking people at Venice Beach in California when another woman pulls out some sort of “medieval” club to confront her.

Only in Venice Beach.

According to witnesses who spoke with @TMZ, the incident went on for 6 minutes without any sort of… pic.twitter.com/nnVMP9Z2wY

— Collin Rugg (@CollinRugg) February 28, 2024

The clothed woman then grabs a second baton and battles the naked one. The altercation reportedly went on for about six minutes without any police response.

Other individuals were accosted and threatened by the nudist during the altercation according to TMZ.

Police did not respond to TMZ for comment when asked if anyone was arrested following the incident.

Los Angeles has been ravaged with serious crime over the past several years thanks to Democrat-run leadership. But this incident qualifies as bizarre even by their standards.

The post Welcome to California: Crazy Naked Woman Goes on Violent Rampage in Wealthy LA Neighborhood in Broad Daylight (Video) appeared first on The Gateway Pundit.

The U.S. Navy and Navy Secretary Carlos Del Toro are having a serious math problem.  Their challenge appears to be the rule of proportions in regards to their crisis in shipbuilding.  For submarines, it revolves around new construction and maintenance of the existing fleet.  The proper basic throughput calculation for new construction is dependent upon the “as is/to be” state of two facilities: HII/NNS (Huntington Ingalls Industries/Newport News Shipyard) in Virginia and GD/EB (General Dynamics/Electric Boat) in Connecticut.

The Navy’s goal is 2.33 new attack boats/per year; they are receiving 1.3. I.e., they are going backwards in the math.  However, 2.33 does not account for the new Columbia Class Nuclear Ballistic Missile Submarine Production, any other large diameter submarines needed (such as replacements for the four converted Ohio Class Submarines used for SEALS and Tomahawks), nor five Virginia nuclear attack submarines being taken from the inventory and sold to Australia.  Thus, the real, annual throughput of submarines needed is more like 3.2 (that’s my estimate).

The Navy is proposing a “pass” in the Fiscal Year 2025 request where they go down to one (1) attack boat and instead bestow those funds to the amphibious force for a new purchase of a large San Antonio LPD. The Navy amphibious force is in disarray as the Navy ignores the Marine Corps requirements and Army Staff remembers that they had/have a Joint Theater Watercraft support mission. Better to have the Generals and Admirals argue over landing craft than control of the atomic mission.

Since the Navy has lost the art and science and math, I, an Army Colonel will solve this math for the Navy with half my brain tied behind my back (hat tip to Rush):

There, I have solved the Navy’s math problem.  All things being equal, the Navy needs 4.92 shipyards involved in Submarine production to deliver 3.2 submarines a year.  We can round this to an even five shipyards.  The real answer will depend on several factors, but no matter how efficient NNS and EB are, and they are good, something has to change to hit a delivery mark of 3.2 submarines per year which means significant more production acreage.  This same law of proportions can be used to solve the Navy’s submarine maintenance crisis, the growing delays in frigate production, Arleigh Burke Destroyer production, etc.

South Carolina as a starting point

No matter how many O-6s through O-10s and political appointees stare at the Excel spreadsheet of the five-year Navy shipbuilding plan or lecture industry on profits, it’s not going to get better until a disruptive event occurs.  Disruptive can be a good thing like new shipyards, it doesn’t have to be a war, this may prevent a war. This Navy challenge with math is baffling; I don’t know if this math challenge is related to the Navy dropping standards for joining, CRT, DEI, or asbestos.

It is intuitive that additional yards need to be added to the partnering arrangement between HII/NNS and GD/EB where they barge major assemblies to one another. The arrangement is sound and logical, but simply not keeping up with throughput.

The answer is disruptive – as a starting point, add a third yard, close by that can participate in the barging arrangement (I helped load Crowley 4x1s for a season so have an affinity for the barging arrangement).

A logical candidate – resurrect the Charleston, South Carolina Naval Shipyard – at a close by location as a greenfield (i.e. totally fresh start), modern, state of the art facility. Get an Army General to run a Manhattan like effort to do the Civil Engineering in a Government Owned/Contractor Operated facility post haste upriver from the original Charleston Naval Shipyard.

Another new facility in the Gulf Region which is modernizing significantly is Austal in Mobile, Alabama.  They would be an ideal yard for even greater expansion to help in production of the new Constellation Frigate and also other ships.

Washington State along the Columbia River

New production of submarines is currently clustered on the East Coast.  However, new greenfield facilities on the West Coast can be of great assistance in addressing the maintenance throughput on all vessel types as well as new construction of frigates, destroyers, support vessels, and perhaps most importantly, autonomous vessels.  On the West Coast, there are not many options for a new yard without massive Federal eminent domain claims of land and terraforming/backfilling of coastal harbors on a scale not seen recently in America.  A possible site is the Vigor main shipyard in Portland Oregon; however, this facility is relatively boxed in by urban development and has little room for growth.  A new site downriver on the Columbia River, closer to where it meets the Pacific Ocean, makes sense.

Land acquisition, expansion, and outfitting for a close-by satellite yard would be a large undertaking and not helped by the strangulation of regulatory oversight by the Blue regimes dominating at the state and Local level, but the national urgency is a compelling necessity.

There are three places along the Columbia River in Washington State (Congressional District WA-3) that would be ideal for new, state-of-the art shipbuilding, and repair facilities.  These are Chinook, Oneida, and Longview, Washington.  These new facilities, like the Austal facility in Mobile, Alabama could be as automated, and AI enabled as much as possible for maximum efficiency.  All work should be done inside enclosed, climate controlled, 72-degree facilities that provide far greater worker safety, efficiency, and privacy from prying eyes.

A second drydock in the Pacific that can handle a carrier is needed – currently, there is only one and the Navy can’t figure out whether it is safe to use and it needs substantive work to handle a Ford Class aircraft carrier.  The construction of a super-size covered drydock should also be implemented at these new Columbia River facilities.

 Vertical integration with key partners like the PI, Taiwan, South Korea, and Japan

Navy Secretary Carlos Del Toro can’t figure out whether he’s Trumpian or Red Brandon.  He provides leadership on ship construction not seen since the Reagan days, then reverts to berating shipbuilders for daring to yield profits.  Maybe he’s been talked to.  He has now departed on a trip to Pacific Partner countries like South Korea and Japan which are world experts in efficient shipbuilding.  He should also visit the re-awakening yard in the Philippines which shows great potential as well as Taiwan that excels at shipbuilding.

The vertically integrated, internationally sourced, “Boeing-like” American final assembly of ships can yield incredible time and cost savings as the Maritime Administration just demonstrated.  The ships are being delivered on time, on budget – and getting little attention.  Might be because it started as a Trump initiative.  Regardless of who gets credit, this is a model for a leap ahead for solving the Navy’s problems while returning America to an era of maritime leadership.  We just need to find the right Army General to run this massive planning and civil engineering exercise for the Navy to help Navy Secretary Del Toro solve the Navy math problem.

The post Solving the Navy Math Problem appeared first on The Gateway Pundit.

This story originally was published by Real Clear Wire

By Ross Pomeroy
Real Clear Wire

At Frontiers in Psychology, it seems that users on X are now part of the peer review process.

On January 4th, the paper “Meta-analysis: On average, undergraduate students’ intelligence is merely average,” was accepted to the journal. That same day, the abstract was published with the notice that the “final, formatted version of the article will be published soon.”

Soon thereafter, the paper went viral, quickly accruing over 54,000 views, wide discussion on X and Reddit, and coverage in popular media (including RCS). It garnered this attention for its intriguing yet simultaneously obvious finding: over the past 80 years, as a far greater proportion of North Americans attended college, the average IQ of college undergraduates dropped from around 120 to 102, just slightly above the average of 100.

As the authors, Bob Uttl, a psychologist and faculty member at Mount Royal University, and his students Victoria Violo and Lacey Gibson, noted, “The decline in students’ IQ is a necessary consequence of increasing educational attainment over the last 80 years. Today, graduating from university is more common than completing high school in the 1940s.” College students no longer come solely from the ranks of the highly intelligent and privileged, they come from all corners of society. Uttl and his colleagues noted that this has implications. For example, academic standards and curricula might have to be adjusted. Moreover, employers can’t assume that applicants with university degrees are more capable or smarter than those without degrees.

A little over a month after Uttl, Violo, and Gibson’s paper was accepted and the abstract published, they were abruptly notified by email that it was rejected. They were apprised that Specialty Chief Editor Eddy Davelaar, a Professor of Psychology and Applied Neuroscience at Birkbeck, University of London, overrode the three peer reviewers who approved the paper and even his own handling editor. His reasons were subsequently forwarded to Uttl and his colleagues.

While Davelaar raised a couple of issues with the paper’s methods, the vast majority of his focus was on its tone. He wrote that the use of the word “merely” in reference to college students’ just-above-average IQ was “demeaning.” He also noted that the authors’ critiques of other scientists’ works “could have been packaged more sensitively.” He also called unfounded the authors’ opinion that the widening participation policies of universities were the cause of undergraduates’ falling IQs.

In emails viewed by RealClearScience, Uttl extensively refuted Davelaar’s issues the same day the paper was rejected (Feb. 6), to which he received no reply from Davelaar or Frontiers for six days. On February 12, Frontiers replied saying that Davelaar’s concerns remained. If they were addressed, “the manuscript could be reconsidered for publication.”

Uttl subsequently published his refutations of Davelaar’s methodological criticisms online. Lending strength to his arguments is that fact that three peer reviewers and even Davelaar’s own handling editor did not find fault with Uttl’s paper.

Davelaar’s problems with the paper’s tone and conclusions were harder to address, because they were his opinions. It seemed strange that an editor’s opinions should supplant those of the paper’s authors. It’s not his paper, after all.

In response to a request for comment, Frontiers stated that an article can be rejected at any stage before official publication. A public relations manager then quoted their editorial process, “…if a manuscript does not meet our editorial criteria and standards for publication, or if peer-review or research integrity concerns are raised by any review participant or reader (abstracts are published online ahead of official publication), the journal’s chief editors and Frontiers’ Chief Executive Editor will investigate these concerns, regardless of peer review or acceptance stage.”

Frontiers added:

The Speciality Chief Editor (SCE) reviewed the paper in line with our clearly stated editorial process when concerns were raised about the abstract, particularly about underlying bias. The SCE assessment concurred with some reviewers’ judgements, identifying substantive flaws in the meta-analysis and bias in the tone of the paper. The authors were given further opportunities to revise the paper in line with reviewer and SCE comments. These requested revisions were not made but once again disputed.

RealClearScience reached out directly to Davelaar for comment, but he has not replied.

Uttl was curious what brought on the sudden rejection of his already accepted paper, so he asked representatives at Frontiers. He was told that “several posts” on X triggered Dr. Davelaar’s review. As readers were only able to view the abstract, and thus weren’t able to assess the authors’ methodology, it seems clear that they complained purely about the authors’ tone and provocative conclusions. Davelaar only found ‘problems’ with Uttl, Violo, and Gibson’s methods afterwards.

Uttl and his co-authors were not apprised of the content of the X posts.

“I think an editor or whoever owes it to us to tell us what the issues are, allows us to respond, before rejection,” he told RCS in an email.

Uttl, Violo, and Gibson have since had their publication fees refunded and have submitted the paper for publication at another journal.

The post X Users Didn’t Like a Paper’s Tone and Findings, So They Got It Rejected appeared first on The Gateway Pundit.

The US Supreme Court on Wednesday agreed to hear Trump’s presidential immunity claim in Special Counsel Jack Smith’s January 6 case in Washington, DC.

The high court will hear oral arguments on an expedited schedule the week of April 22 and decide by the end of the term in June or sooner.

Judge Tanya Chutkan postponed the March 4 trial date indefinitely as Trump’s immunity argument makes its way through the courts.

Jack Smith’s January 6 trial may be postponed past November.

“If the Supreme Court decides quickly to reject Trump’s bold immunity claim, it may permit a final trial on the 2020 election interference to occur later this summer or fall. But there’s no guarantee a final decision will actually come before November.” far-left The New Republic reported.

“Former appeals court Judge Michael Luttig predicted that it is now probably “unimaginable” that Trump will be tried in special counsel Jack Smith’s federal election interference trial before the 2024 election.” – TNR reported.

Earlier this month President Trump asked the US Supreme Court to pause the immunity ruling in Jack Smith’s January 6 case in DC.

A federal appeals court stacked with Biden judges previously denied Trump immunity in Jack Smith’s DC case.

The three-judge panel for the DC Circuit Court of Appeals ruled on Trump immunity claims: Florence Pan (Biden appointee), Michelle Childs (Biden appointee), and Karen Henderson (George W. Bush appointee).

“We have balanced former President Trump’s asserted interests in executive immunity against the vital public interests that favor allowing this prosecution to proceed,” the three-judge panel wrote.

“We conclude that ‘concerns of public policy, especially as illuminated by our history and the structure of our government’ compel the rejection of his claim of immunity in this case,” they wrote.

Trump’s lawyers argued that Trump is immune from federal prosecution for alleged ‘crimes’ committed while he served as US President.

“In 234 years of American history, no president ever faced criminal prosecution for his official acts. Until 19 days ago, no court had ever addressed whether immunity from such prosecution exists,” Trump’s lawyers wrote in last month’s filing, according to CBS News. “To this day, no appellate court has addressed it. The question stands among the most complex, intricate, and momentous issues that this Court will be called on to decide.”

On January 9 a three-judge panel heard oral arguments and appeared skeptical of Trump’s immunity claims – one judge, a Biden appointee, asked attorney John Sauer if Trump would be subject to criminal prosecution if he ordered SEAL Team 6 to assassinate his political rivals.

The post BREAKING: Supreme Court Agrees to Hear Trump Presidential Immunity Claim in Jack Smith January 6 Case – Trial May be Postponed Past November appeared first on The Gateway Pundit.

Tyler Jay Boebert (Source: Rifle Police Department)

Tyler Boebert, the 18-year-old son of U.S. Representative Lauren Boebert (R-CO), was arrested on Tuesday as part of an investigation into a series of alleged property thefts and vehicle trespasses, according to local authorities.

The Rifle Police Department detailed the arrest on their Facebook page, revealing that the young Boebert faces multiple charges.

“On February 27, 2024, at approximately 2:30 p.m., officers with the Rifle Police Department arrested Tyler Jay Boebert, 18. The arrest comes after a recent string of vehicle trespass and property thefts in Rifle,” the statement read.

The charges presented against Tyler are severe, including four felony counts of Criminal Possession of Identification Documents pertaining to multiple victims, one felony count of Conspiracy to Commit a Felony, alongside over 15 additional misdemeanor and petty offenses.

The Garfield County Jail confirmed that Tyler Boebert is currently being held on 22 possible charges, predominantly misdemeanors.

As of Wednesday morning, he was listed as a current inmate without any bond information being made available, according to CBS News.

Rep. Lauren Boebert issued a heartfelt statement regarding her son’s arrest, saying, “I love my son Tyler, who has been through some very difficult, public challenges for a young man and the subject of attention that he didn’t ask for. It breaks my heart to see my child struggling and, in this situation, especially when he has been provided multiple opportunities to get his life on track.”

She further emphasized the importance of personal accountability, noting that, “as an adult and father, Tyler will take responsibility for his actions and should be held accountable for poor decisions just like any other citizen.” Previously, her office had shared the news that Tyler had become a father himself in June 2023.

This arrest adds to the series of legal issues confronting the Boebert family.

According to CBS, Lauren Boebert’s ex-husband, Jayson Boebert, was involved in legal proceedings concerning two separate altercations. Additionally, this month, Rep. Boebert obtained a temporary restraining order against Jayson following allegations of threats and unauthorized home entry.

The congresswoman also encountered controversy last year when she was escorted out of a Denver theater during a “Beetlejuice” show for disruptive behavior, an incident she later apologized for.

“The past few days have been difficult and humbling, and I’m truly sorry for the unwanted attention my Sunday evening in Denver has brought to the community. While none of my actions or words as a private citizen that night were intended to be malicious or meant to cause harm, the reality is they did and I regret that,” Boebert said in a statement at the time.

“There’s no perfect blueprint for going through a public and difficult divorce, which over the past few months has made for a challenging personal time for me and my entire family. I’ve tried to handle it with strength and grace as best I can, but I simply fell short of my values on Sunday. That’s unacceptable and I’m sorry.

“Whether it was the excitement of seeing a much-anticipated production or the natural anxiety of being in a new environment, I genuinely did not recall vaping that evening when I discussed the night’s events with my campaign team while confirming my enthusiasm for the musical. Regardless of my belief, it’s clear now that was not accurate; it was not my or my campaign’s intention to mislead, but we do understand the nature of how this looks. We know we will have to work to earn your trust back and it may not happen overnight, but we will do it.

“I’m deeply thankful to those in the 3rd District who have defended me and reached out this week and offered grace and support when I needed it the most. I’ve learned some humbling lessons these past few days but I vow moving forward, I will make you proud,” she concluded.

The post Rep. Lauren Boebert’s 18-Year-Old Son Arrested, Faces Over 20 Charges Linked to Alleged Vehicle Trespass and Thefts appeared first on The Gateway Pundit.

New York Attorney General Letitia James is now seeking to punish the worlds largest producer of beef products.

A far-left judge recently ordered Trump to pay a $355 million judgment (which has now swelled to $464 million with interest) and banned Trump from doing business in New York for 3 years after Letitia James sought to destroy the former president.

Now she’s waging a war on meatpacking giant JBS USA Foods Co.

“The lawsuit filed in a New York state court in Manhattan seeks a $5,000 civil fine per violation of state business laws, and to recoup ill-gotten gains from false sustainability claims.” – Reuters reported.

“I’m suing @JBSFoodsUSA, the world’s largest beef producer, for misleading the public about its environmental impact,” Letitia James said on X. “The beef industry is one of the largest contributors to climate change, and JBS has falsely advertised its commitment to sustainability and endangered our planet.”

I’m suing @JBSFoodsUSA, the world’s largest beef producer, for misleading the public about its environmental impact.

The beef industry is one of the largest contributors to climate change, and JBS has falsely advertised its commitment to sustainability and endangered our planet.

— NY AG James (@NewYorkStateAG) February 28, 2024

Letitia James absurdly claimed families are willing to pay more for food if their products are better for the environment.

“Families [are] willing to spend more of their hard-earned money on products from brands that are better for the environment,” James said in a statement. “JBS USA’s greenwashing exploits the pocketbooks of everyday Americans and the promise of a healthy planet for future generations.”

JBS greenwashed its environmental harms to drive sales and exploited hardworking families.

Companies cannot deceive people about their impacts on our planet.https://t.co/tYM9DJ0VqC

— NY AG James (@NewYorkStateAG) February 28, 2024

Reuters reported:

JBS (JBSS3.SA), opens new tab, the world’s largest beef producer, was sued on Wednesday by New York state’s attorney general, which accused it of misleading the public about its impact on the environment in order to boost sales.

Attorney General Letitia James said JBS USA Food Co, the Brazilian company’s American-based unit, has “no viable plan” to reach net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2040, making its stated commitment to achieving that goal false and misleading.

James said JBS has admitted its “Net Zero by 2040” commitment did not incorporate the vast majority of greenhouse gas emissions from its supply chain, including from deforestation in the Amazon.

She also said reaching the goal was “infeasible” given JBS’ plan to increase production and therefore its carbon footprint, on top of greenhouse gas emissions that had by 2021 exceeded those of the entire country of Ireland.

The post New York AG Letitia James Files Lawsuit Against Worlds Largest Beef Producer for ‘Misleading Public’ About its Impact on Climate appeared first on The Gateway Pundit.

James O’Keefe on Wednesday released footage from an encounter with creepy New York Judge Arthur Engoron, who recently hit President Donald Trump with a massive $355 million judgment for his honest business practices and job creation in the state of New York.

O’Keefe received tips from others who had seen Engoron at the Equinox Gym in Long Island and decided to follow up.

One source sent him a video of Engoron checking a woman out and appearing to flirt with her. The message says he’s often “creeping girls out” and “does this every visit.” In the video below, one woman is seen putting her hand up to gesture “back off.” 

Engoron was in the gym wearing a creepy muscle shirt and revealing loose sweatpants. He should probably put on some underwear…

Arthur Engoron’s crotch visible in sweatpants

far left Judge Arthur Engoron fleeced $355 million from President Trump for taking out loans in New York State and paying them back on time and with interest. The charges were brought against Trump by crazed New York State Attorney General Letitia James. There were no victims in the so-called crime. The banks did their due diligence before they loaned Donald Trump the money and testified they would gladly do it again.

Source: Wheatley Alumni Association Newsletter

Tune in here -> https://t.co/Ogp8l82qlT

— James O’Keefe (@JamesOKeefeIII) February 28, 2024

When O’Keefe arrived at the gym, one member recognized him and said, “I love you. Can I take a selfie with you?” He then said, “I know why you’re here too… Absolutely 100%.”

O’Keefe approached Engoron, saying, “Huge fan, thank you for what you did.” Engoron laughs, and James says, “Man, that must have felt good. We gotta get these MAGA people out of NY state. Just thank you from the bottom of my heart.”

Engoron was clearly flattered, saying “I’m strong” when James and him were discussing the hate he has received for Communist-style persecution against President Trump.

Watch below:

BREAKING: Judge Arthur Engoron Tells James O’Keefe on hidden camera inside his Gym he gets “lots of hate mail” but he’s “strong”.

An insider where the Judge works out at Equinox in Great Neck, NY, also recorded Judge Engoron “creeping girls out.” Sources say Engoron does this… pic.twitter.com/KSXT7OLSlA

— James O’Keefe (@JamesOKeefeIII) February 28, 2024

The post BREAKING: O’Keefe Media Group Confronts Total Creep New York Judge Arthur Engoron After Sources Tell Him Engoron Frequently Goes to Gym and is “Creeping Girls Out” – Engoron Wears Revealing Sweatpants and No Underwear? (VIDEO) appeared first on The Gateway Pundit.

Joe Biden on Wednesday delivered remarks on his so-called ‘actions to fight crime and make communities safer.’

This is while he’s allowing millions of military-age males from some of the most dangerous parts of the world to invade the US.

Venezuela emptied its prisons and some of its most dangerous gang members and murderers have illegally crossed into the US on Joe Biden’s open border invitation.

Biden’s open borders policies are getting Americans killed.

22-year-old Laken Riley, a University of Georgia student, was murdered by a Venezuelan illegal last week.

According to an affidavit unsealed, the barbaric savage who murdered Laken Riley “disfigured her skull.”

Lakin Riley was brutally murdered by one of Joe Biden’s illegal aliens last week and he didn’t even mention her name during his remarks on crime.

Biden also hasn’t called Lakin Riley’s parents.

He ignored reporters after mumbling through remarks.

WATCH:

Biden’s contempt for the American people is truly pathetic, embarrassing, and sad pic.twitter.com/HbLXJhJVTt

— RNC Research (@RNCResearch) February 28, 2024

Biden did however have time to crack a joke about himself.

Of course he did.

A reporter asked Biden about his annual physical at Walter Reed Medical Center this morning.

“They think I look too young,” Biden said.

WATCH:

Biden on his physical exam: “They think I look too young” pic.twitter.com/xpPBwzqP0g

— RNC Research (@RNCResearch) February 28, 2024

The post Biden Cracks a Joke About His Age After Refusing to Mention Georgia College Student Killed By One of His Illegal Aliens (VIDEO) appeared first on The Gateway Pundit.

Kamala Harris met with leaders of “voting rights groups” at the White House to announce plans to pay students to register voters.

Kamala Harris met with “voting rights leaders” at the White House on Tuesday to announce new ways the Biden regime will help register Americans to vote in 2024.

The Biden regime announced plans to pay college kids to register voters.

AXIOS reported:

The Democratic plan includes a call to reinforce the Voting Rights Act of 1965, which has been weakened by recent Supreme Court decisions. Harris also is announcing new strategies that federal agencies will use to encourage millions of Americans to vote in November.

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton has secured a victory against the Biden administration as a federal judge deemed the $1.7 trillion spending bill passed by the Democrats at the end of 2022 unconstitutional.

This ruling, delivered on Tuesday by Judge Wesley Hendrix of the Lubbock Division of the Northern District of Texas, opens the possibility of blocking Biden’s allocation of billions in taxpayer funds through subsequent litigation.

The omnibus bill, signed by Joe Biden in 2022 amid a family vacation in St. Croix and flown to the location to meet a December 30 deadline, earmarked 45 billion for Ukraine among other contentious allocations.

These included the passage of the Electoral Count Act, 2.6 billion towards January 6 investigations, nearly 600 million for the Environmental Protection Agency, and 11 million targeting gun owners. Notably, the bill lacked funding for border security, a critical point of contention for many Americans and Republicans.

AG Paxton filed a lawsuit early in 2023 challenging the implementation of the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2023, bringing into question the constitutionality of the House’s quorum during its passage. The bill was passed with less than half of U.S. Con­gress phys­i­cal­ly present.

“Texas filed this case in mid-February 2023 challenging parts of the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2023–a $1.7 trillion appropriations bill passed by Congress and signed by President Biden in December 2022. Texas claims to be injured by two unrelated provisions of the Act: (1) a $20 million allocation to DHS’s “Alternatives to Detention” case management pilot program, which uses less expensive and more humane tools like GPS to monitor noncitizens who would otherwise be unnecessarily detained; and (2) the “Pregnant Workers Fairness Act,” which newly requires covered employers–defined to include states as employers–to provide certain accommodations for pregnant employees. Although Texas seeks only to block these two provisions, its legal claim is that the Act is invalid because the House of Representatives allegedly did not have a quorum when it passed the Act (some members voted by proxy, which Texas argues was invalid),” Litigation Tracker wrote.

The suit highlighted that the House permitted proxy voting, a move that Paxton argued contradicts over two centuries of legislative practice under the Constitution’s Quorum Clause.

According to the press release at the time:

Attorney General Paxton is suing President Biden and members of his Administration over the unlawful signing and implementation of the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2023, which was the latest omnibus spending bill.

The U.S. Constitution requires that a quorum of members of the U.S. House of Representatives be present for the lower chamber of Congress to conduct business. When the House passed the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2023 in December 2022, fewer than half of its members were present and more than half voted by proxy.

The U.S. Constitution empowers a quorum-less House only to “adjourn from day to day” or “compel the attendance of absent members.” Because “attendance” means physical presence, the U.S. Constitution does not allow voting by proxy to constitute a quorum. And because the omnibus spending bill wasn’t passed when a quorum of the House was present, it was never lawfully enacted, is unconstitutional, and the federal government should be enjoined from implementing it.

Judge Hendrix’s 120-page opinion meticulously dismantled the Justice Department’s defense of the spending bill, addressing the arguments one by one. In particular, he dismissed the notion that federal courts lack jurisdiction to scrutinize the legislative process, citing Supreme Court precedent that requires resolving any challenges to a quorum rule before applying the enrolled bill doctrine.

Hendrix wrote in his ruling:

“For over 235 years, Congress understood the Constitution’s Quorum Clause to require a majority of members of the House or Senate to be physically present to constitute the necessary quorum to pass legislation. This rule prevents a minority of members from passing legislation that affects the entire nation. But despite the Constitution’s text and centuries of consistent practice, the House in 2020 created a rule that permitted non-present members to be included in the quorum count and vote by proxy. Pursuant to that novel rule, the House passed a new law included within the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2023, and that particular provision affects Texas. Like many constitutional challenges, Texas asserts that this provision is unenforceable against it because Congress violated the Constitution in passing the law.

[…]

And because the House only had a quorum due to this unconstitutional provision of its proxy rule, the House violated the Quorum Clause when it passed the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2023. Finally, the Court finds that Texas has carried its burden to show its entitlement to a permanent injunction of the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act. In light of these conclusions, the Court enjoins the defendants from enforcing the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act against the State of Texas.”

You can read the full ruling here.

“Congress acted egregiously by passing the largest spending bill in U.S. history with fewer than half the members of the House bothering to do their jobs, show up, and vote in person,” said Attorney General Paxton.

“Former Speaker Nancy Pelosi abused proxy voting under the pretext of COVID-19 to pass this law, then Biden signed it, knowing they violated the Constitution. This was a stunning violation of the rule of law. I am relieved the Court upheld the Constitution.”

The Texas Public Policy Foundation served as co-counsel. “This meticulous, 120-page opinion was written after a full trial on the merits,” said TPPF senior attorney Matt Miller. “The Court correctly concluded that the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2023 violated the Quorum Clause of the U.S. Constitution because a majority of House members was not physically present when the $1.7 trillion spending bill was passed. Proxy voting is unconstitutional.”

Rep. Chip Roy (TX-21) issued the following statement in response to Judge James Hendrix’s ruling:

Article I of the Constitution has always made it clear that House and Senate members be physically present when conducting certain legislative business. For our constitutional system to work, it must be followed.

During passage of Pelosi’s $1.7 trillion lame duck FY 2023 omnibus in December 2022, I noted a physical quorum was not present. Indeed, a majority of Members – 226 – elected to vote by proxy on the bill’s final passage.

While this ruling’s reach will not be immediate, it is a critically important first step in forming judicial precedent against unconstitutional proxy voting. Thank you to Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton and the Texas Public Policy Foundation for leading this effort in court. And thank you to the Mountain States Legal Foundation for their work on the amicus brief we led in the case. I also want to thank former Speaker Kevin McCarthy for working with me to challenge the constitutionality of proxy voting which the Supreme Court did not take up, but represented the right legal and philosophical position — a position underscored by yesterday’s judgment.

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