Good news rarely comes out of Capitol Hill, but last week’s
Senate vote to reject a Biden-era Consumer Financial Protection Bureau proposal marked a welcome exception. Lawmakers blocked a plan to impose price controls, taking an important step toward reviving the Trump administration’s efforts to rein in the agency. Those efforts included directing CFPB employees to stop developing new regulations.

The House is scheduled to vote on its version of the resolution on Wednesday.

The overdraft cap may be the latest counterproductive mandate from the CFPB, but it’s far from the first. Given its track record, the next step shouldn’t be reform but repeal.

Despite centuries of evidence that price controls often backfire, the Biden administration made them a central part of its economic agenda. From rent regulations to the so-called “war on junk fees,” the White House consistently pushed for caps and mandates.

The CFPB’s rule to limit overdraft fees — finalized just as the Bidens prepared to leave for Delaware — followed that same pattern.

The rule would impose a $5 fee limit on banks’ and credit unions’ overdraft charges. Yet as with most price control schemes, it is the very people it claims to help — lower-income Americans — who stand to lose the most.

The Senate,
led by Sen. Tim Scott (R-S.C.), who introduced the resolution, voted to repeal the cap, recognizing it for what it is: a performative policy that distracts from the inflation that has devastated family budgets. Scott noted that the rule changes the conversation, not consumers’ realities.

Whether covering a car repair, rent, or a medical bill, overdraft protection enables people to bridge temporary shortfalls without bouncing checks, defaulting on bills, or incurring additional late fees. It’s used most frequently, not by the reckless, but by responsible people in tight spots.

A flat government-imposed $5 cap on overdraft charges is both economically unworkable and fundamentally unfair. Banks incur actual costs when they provide this service. They must process the transaction, front the money, and take on the risk that the overdraft won’t be repaid.

When those costs can’t be recovered, businesses eliminate the service altogether or pass the costs on to other customers in other ways. In this case, that would mean millions of consumers losing access to a widely used and valued program. And that’s not just theory — previous attempts to regulate overdraft fees have led to similar consequences, including fewer banks offering overdraft coverage or more restrictive account terms.

Lower-income families aren’t the only ones who will suffer. Midsized and regional banks, many of which serve rural and working-class populations, would be forced to reassess whether they can afford to offer overdraft protection at all. That’s a problem because many rural communities are lucky to have even one bank.

Add it all up, and it’s clear this rule doesn’t punish Wall Street. It squeezes the very Americans the Biden administration claimed to champion — the forgotten men and women.

The CFPB’s proposed rule would set a troubling precedent. Once price controls take hold in one area of consumer finance, they become easier to expand into others.

History shows what happens when the government imposes arbitrary price limits: supply drops, access declines, and the people most in need — especially those on the margins — suffer the most.

As Milton Friedman put it, “There is no such thing as a free lunch.” A $5 cap on overdraft fees may sound appealing, but it carries real costs.

The House must now follow the Senate’s lead and repeal this flawed regulation. And Congress shouldn’t stop there.

The overdraft cap may be the latest counterproductive mandate from the CFPB, but it’s far from the first. Free-market advocates can’t point to a single action by the agency they support.

Given its track record, the next step shouldn’t be reform but repeal.

Since the Trump administration began reining in the CFPB, several Republican lawmakers have introduced bills to dismantle it entirely. Congress should bring those proposals to a vote and keep the political will to finish the job. This debate is long overdue.

​Joe biden, Donald trump, Consumer financial protection bureau, Overdraft fees, Banking, Credit card debt, Banks, Wall street, Regulations, Opinion & analysis 

While left-wing protesters are burning Tesla electric cars to “save democracy,” others are doing research to understand whether these protesters are just dumb or if they’re being paid.

And it appears it’s the latter.

Stu Burguiere of “Stu Does America” has found some receipts from reporter Asra Nomani, and they’re not pretty.

“I went to the Tysons, Va., #TeslaTakedown protest on Tyco Road for @FairfaxTimes last Saturday, locals calling on America to ‘deport @elonmusk,’ and saw familiar faces from local Democratic Party activism,” Nomani wrote in a post on X.

“I documented identical messaging to protests nationwide and then built a @DPearlProject database of 304 protests that reveals that indeed the protests are more Astro Turf than ‘grassroots,’” she added.

Nomani continued on to say that while these protests appear “spontaneous,” they’re actually the product of “well-funded, tightly coordinated campaigns led by national political organizations like the Indivisible Project, MoveOn.org, and professional protest firms.”

“These groups use digital platforms, pre-scripted chants, pre-printed signs, and nationwide toolkits to manufacture the appearance of grassroots activism, and the messages on Tyco Road mirror the language of protests nationwide,” she said, noting that this is called “AstroTurfing.”

Nomani found that 100% of the groups and individuals who organized the protests were allied with the Democratic Party, only 15 organizations and their affiliates are behind the protests nationwide, and the most involved groups promoting the #TeslaTakedown protests have combined revenues of at least $43.1 million.

“‘Oh, it’s just the average person,’” Stu mocks. “Just the average person and their $43 million dollars.”

Want more from Stu?

To enjoy more of Stu’s lethal wit, wisdom, and mockery, subscribe to BlazeTV — the largest multi-platform network of voices who love America, defend the Constitution, and live the American dream.

​Camera phone, Video, Video phone, Sharing, Free, Upload, Youtube.com, Stu does america, Stu burguiere, The blaze, Blazetv, Blaze news, Blaze podcasts, Blaze podcast network, Blaze media, Blaze online, Tesla, Elon musk, Tesla protests 

NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell said the league is likely to add another game to the NFL regular season but keep within a predetermined framework.

Goodell and league owners are looking to push more aggressively toward adding an 18th regular season game, with reports out of the annual owners meeting that the league would like to add the game before 2029, when the NFL has the ability to opt out of its current broadcasting rights contract.

League executives spoke to Yahoo Sports anonymously and pointed to talks about expanding the schedule at the Florida meetings.

“Everyone understands consensus-building time is coming for both [the league and NFL Players Association],” an executive said.

The unnamed source said the idea of the expanded schedule will start to “get some momentum in Florida” but could still take “a year or two” to hammer out the details.

In the 1960s, the NFL played 14-game seasons through the merger with the AFL in 1970, before expanding to 16 games in 1978. That format was kept all the way up to 2021, when the league announced the removal of one preseason game, adding a 17th game to the regular season. The next move to 18 games would be considered a rapid expansion of the schedule.

The only undefeated team in NFL history was the 1972 Miami Dolphins at 14-0.

Back in January, Goodell told Bloomberg’s David Rubenstein that the league intends to “keep within the 20-game framework,” which currently consists of three preseason games and 17 regular season games.

“We went to 16 and four, and now 17 and three. So 18 and two is a logical step,” Goodell said.

Goodell boasted that there has not been an increase in player injuries since the schedule change and pointed to player safety being paramount in the discussions.

Another discussion at the owners meeting regarding player safety is around the kickoff format.

Owners are talking about making 2024’s kickoff setup permanent, citing that injuries on kickoffs were cut in half last season.

In November 2024, President Trump criticized the kickoff format, as well as Guardian Caps, the pads on the exterior of player helmets.

“That thing looks weird!” Trump remarked.

Other adjustments included moving the starting position after touchbacks from the 30-yard line to the 35-yard line and adding the ability for a team to declare an onside kick at any point in the game — but only if they are behind in the score.

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​Fearless, Nfl, Kickoff, Injuries, Schedule, Roger goodell, Trump, Sports 

Seattle, Washington, one of the most liberal cities in America, has decided to honor all first responders once again and ditch the “defund the police” initiatives that have divided residents and decimated morale at the Seattle Police Department.

On March 25, council member Robert Saka introduced Resolution 32167, which recognized the vital work done by all first responders. In particular, it affirmed “the essential services provided by the Police Department.”

A news release from the city council added that the resolution explicitly “reverses any prior commitment or pledge by past Councils to defund or abolish SPD,” describing such efforts as a “failure.”

It also noted that anti-cop measures “were routinely cited by departing police personnel as a reason for leaving.” Since the city first embraced “defund the police” in the wake of George Floyd’s death in 2020, more than 700 officers separated from the SPD, resulting in record-low staffing, MyNorthwest reported.

The “defund” measures also took a toll on public safety as violent crime soared. In 2017, the city recorded 27 homicides, 255 rapes, and 2,474 aggravated assaults. By 2022, the number of homicides had jumped to 54, rapes to 347, and aggravated assaults to 3,516.

In addition to ending the “defund” initiatives, the resolution reiterated the importance of holding police accountable and of providing a “diversified public safety response,” which includes social workers and other “trauma-informed” personnel. It also celebrated the city’s diminishing need for federal oversight.

‘We acknowledge the critical role that police and fire fighters have in our community.’

Saka — who once wore a “Black Lawyers Matter” T-shirt to a Floyd-related protest and boasted of his belief “in the principles of BOTH the American Flag and the Black Lives Matter movement” — has apparently had a change of heart on the importance of police. He says he now sees anti-cop rhetoric as “very divisive.”

Council member Maritza Rivera claimed her constituents have voiced concerns about “defund the police” measures for some time. Some have even asked her and other council members to “take a stance against the defund rhetoric that we’ve seen in the past in this city,” she said.

For his part, Mayor Bruce Harrell seems pleased with the current trajectory of the police department. “We have created one of the most robust police accountability systems in the country. We hired more police officers last year than we lost for the first time in years, and applications are soaring,” he said.

“Seattle’s first responders do amazing and heroic work every day to save lives, stop and solve crimes, and ensure people in crisis get the help and support they need. I join the City Council in celebrating the dedication and hard work of our public safety professionals and in recognizing the importance of a diversified emergency response system.”

Resolution 32167 initially passed with four council members voting for it, none opposing it, and one absence. The final resolution was adopted by the full council on Tuesday.

“This resolution is about the future of public safety in Seattle,” Saka said in a statement. “I’m grateful to my colleagues for their support as we continue to partner together with the mayor and the Seattle Police Department, Seattle Fire Department, and CARE Department in ensuring that everyone in Seattle feels safe and supported.”

Lieutenant Kenny Stuart, president of the Seattle Fire Fighters Union, IAFF Local 27, likewise cheered the passing of the resolution. “Firefighters work hard day and night to keep our city and residents safe,” he said.

“This resolution announces that Seattle has moved away from the divisions of the past and we acknowledge the critical role that police and fire fighters have in our community.”

H/T: The Post Millennial

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​Blm, Black lives matter, Seattle, Defund the police, Anti-cop, City council, Politics 

Attorney General Pam Bondi
sent a message Monday night to radicals: “If you take part in the wave of domestic terrorism against Tesla properties, we will find you, arrest you, and put you behind bars.”

Bondi made clear that this was not an idle threat, noting that Cooper Frederick, 24, has been charged in connection with the
March 7 firebombing of a Tesla dealership in Loveland, Colorado.

“All of these cases are a serious threat to public safety,” said the attorney general. “Therefore, there will be no negotiating. We are seeking 20 years in prison.”

The Department of Justice
announced Tuesday that Frederick was indicted by a federal grand jury on one count of malicious destruction and attempted destruction of property by fire and one count of possession of an unregistered destructive device.

‘It’s incredibly challenging to keep our citizens safe.’

On March 7, just after midnight, Loveland Police officers responded to a report of arson at the local Tesla dealership, where similar incidents resulting in
federal criminal charges occurred on Jan. 29, Feb. 2, Feb. 7, and Feb. 24. Police indicated that an incendiary device had been thrown at the building, then ignited between Tesla vehicles, “putting several occupants inside Tesla at risk.” Vehicles at the location were apparently also damaged by rocks in the attack.

Loveland Police Chief Tim Doran expressed frustration at the time over the perceived light touch that a previous alleged arsonist received, noting, “It’s incredibly challenging to keep our citizens safe from copycat behavior when there are no repercussions to lawlessness.”

Fortunately, repercussions were imminent.

Loveland Police
arrested Frederick, a Fort Collins resident, on March 13, and slapped him with five state felony charges, including second-degree arson; criminal mischief; criminal attempt to commit a class 5 or 6 felony; and use of explosives or incendiary devices during the commission of a felony.

Frederick was
released on a $20,000 cash surety bond the following day and left the state; however, the FBI caught up with the alleged firebomber and arrested him on federal charges in Plano, Texas.

“You can run, but you cannot hide,” Bondi said in her video in reference to Frederick’s arrest.

Kelly Page, Frederick’s attorney,
told CNN that her client had not run from the law but had moved back to Texas to live with his parents.

“Despite the insinuation by Ms. Bondi that Mr. Frederick fled and was apprehended in Texas, DOJ was notified of this move by counsel, and Mr. Frederick remained fully cooperative with the courts and the investigation until he was arrested on the warrant at his home in Texas,” said Page.

The FBI
formed a dedicated task force last month to bring an end to the ongoing attacks against Tesla vehicles, dealerships, and charging stations.

The bureau has
urged the public to “exercise vigilance and to look out for suspicious activity in areas occupied by Tesla dealerships or Tesla-related entities.” Concerned citizens keen to report a threat can call 1-800-225-5324 or visit tips.fbi.gov.

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​Tesla, Firebombing, Tesla attack, Elon musk, Cooper frederick, Terrorism, Domestic terrorism, Loveland, Colorado, Plano, Texas, Pam bondi, Politics, Crime