This story was originally published by the WND News Center.

Hunter Biden's legal risks are far from over. After having been convicted of gun charges, in a few weeks he'll face a trial on tax charges.

Multiple observers say they expect Joe Biden to deliver a pardon before he leaves office, but right now it's Hunter Biden's lawyers who are in jeopardy.

It's because a judge concluded they misrepresented the facts in demanding that those tax counts be dismissed.

This story was originally published by the WND News Center.

Chinese President Xi Jinping issued a warning to his citizens, telling them they must prepare for "black swan" or "gray rhino" events to become more frequent, signaling China's decline into crises.

According to a report from Xinhua News Agency, Xi released a document during a third Plenary Session of the 20th CPC Central Committee, stating the world is accelerating toward conflict and China's development is going through a period of uncertainties.

A "gray rhino" is an event where the risk was foreseeable, but overlooked, while a "black swan" is an unexpected event that carries significant consequences.

Examples of "black swan" and "gray rhino" events include the territorial conflict with Taiwan, conflict in the South China Sea, and deteriorating relations with the Philippines. This also includes China facing economic strain, as the nation is now over $30 trillion in debt.

Other domestic issues like the current real estate slump and a rising crime rate are also causing concern to China's communist government.

After the assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump, the odds of Trump becoming the 47th president substantially increased, forcing China to admit they could face deepening economic woes if Trump makes it back to the White House.

During his first term, Trump imposed a 25% tariff on all Chinese exports coming into the U.S., and has promised to reestablish these tariffs, possibly increasing the tariffs up to 60%.

In the document, over 60 provisions and 300 reform tasks are dedicated to developing improvements to national defense security, defense technology optimization, as well as improving security through military and supply chain enhancements.

Meanwhile, researchers from Fudan University in China have found the nation's 1.4 billion population is on the precipice of a large decline, and will sustain 19 million deaths per year by 2061, according to a report from the South China Morning Post.

China's one-child policy has made the population growth come to a grinding halt, and it is close to not being able to recover. Fewer couples are willing to have children after the policy was dropped in 2015, and even fewer Chinese people want to be married.

The birth rate fell dramatically in 2021, reaching its lowest level since records began in 1949 – with only 10 births per 1,000 people. The overall global birth rate was 18 births per 1,000 people in 2021. The low birth rate was blamed on the COVID-19 pandemic, but broke records again in 2022, with only 9.56 million births, and dropped even lower in 2023.

This story was originally published by the WND News Center.

With apologies to T.S. Eliot, his poem "The Hollow Men" perfectly describes the end of President Joe Biden's career. Biden is one of those political figures whose only distinguishing characteristic is his longevity rather than any signature accomplishments. He failed upward his entire career, finally arriving in the White House essentially by default at an age when he was unable to take advantage of it or even enjoy it.

Joseph Robinette Biden Jr. was elected a councilor in New Castle County, Delaware, in 1970, spending an unremarkable two years opposing new highway construction. He won election to the U.S. Senate two years later at the age of 30 in a campaign that contrasted his own youth to the incumbent's advanced age – Cale Boggs was 63 at the time.

Biden occupied one of Delaware's two Senate seats for the next 36 years, rising to chair the Senate Judiciary Committee from 1987 to 1995. It was here that he earned national infamy for the way he treated Supreme Court nominees Robert Bork and Clarence Thomas. Biden worked with Sen. Ted Kennedy of Massachusetts to torpedo Bork's nomination, accusing him of being an unrepentant racist. In 1991, Biden oversaw what Thomas himself called "a high-tech lynching for uppity blacks who in any way deign to think for themselves."

In 1987, Biden launched his first presidential campaign. Despite being heralded as the front-runner early on, he was ultimately derailed when Maureen Dowd of The New York Times exposed his plagiarism of a speech by British Labour leader Neil Kinnock. It turned out that Biden was doing a lot of plagiarism, not only of Kinnock but of Robert F. Kennedy, John F. Kennedy, and Hubert Humphrey as well.

Biden apologized for the plagiarism but never stopped lying. He claimed to have been arrested trying to visit Nelson Mandela in prison, said he walked with civil rights marchers, and boasted about graduating in the top half of his law school class. None of it was true.

Despite having to exit the 1988 presidential campaign in disgrace, the people of Delaware saw fit to send Biden back to the Senate for another 20 years. He resurfaced in 2008 with another short-lived campaign before accepting Barack Obama's invitation to serve as his vice president. During that campaign, he told black Americans that Republican candidate Mitt Romney would put them all back in chains.

Biden's most famous moment as vice president might have been boasting about getting the Ukrainian prosecutor who was investigating Burisma, a gas company on whose board Hunter Biden sat, fired.

Biden declined to run in 2016 but returned in 2020, launching his campaign based on the debunked lie that President Trump had praised neo-Nazis and white supremacists in Charlottesville. Despite the 2020 Democratic primary being initially led by Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont, the party establishment circled the wagons. Biden won the South Carolina primary after having lost in Iowa and New Hampshire, and most of the remaining candidates dropped out and endorsed him leading into Super Tuesday. Biden promised to put a woman of color on the ticket as vice president, and accordingly picked Sen. Kamala Harris of California, despite her having previously accused him of being a racist.

Biden remained in his basement for much of the 2020 campaign, counting on the media to carry his water and nationwide mail-in ballots to do the rest. His term as president has been a series of carefully choreographed media appearances in between long vacations, making it increasingly clear that Biden was merely a figurehead for the deep state bureaucracy. The way in which his career is ending is yet more confirmation that America has not really had a president for the past four years.

As of this writing, Biden's last appearance was on Wednesday, July 17, shortly after announcing he had tested positive for COVID-19. He arrived at a Delaware airport and got into his motorcade, presumably bound for home where he would rest and recuperate. On Sunday, July 21, Biden's Twitter account announced that he had decided not to accept nomination for a second term, despite weeks of defiantly stating that he was definitely running.

Even though there was no proof that Joe Biden was even aware of this statement, the media and political machines fired up. Journalists posted paeans to Biden's supposed courage for being willing to relinquish power, while Democratic politicians lined up behind Vice President Kamala Harris. Biden's voice was heard on Monday afternoon calling Harris' campaign headquarters by phone, but that did not quell speculation about the president's true condition.

So ends the career of one of the most undistinguished political figures in recent memory. Rather than retiring at the end of his career and spending time with his grandchildren (including the one he refuses to acknowledge), Biden's last days are full of speculation about his physical and mental capacity as he vainly holds on to a veneer of power.

What a sad end.

In this last of meeting places
We grope together
And avoid speech
Gathered on this beach of the tumid river

Sightless, unless
The eyes reappear
As the perpetual star
Multifoliate rose
Of death's twilight kingdom
The hope only
Of empty men.

This story was originally published by the WND News Center.

In the immediate aftermath of President Biden's major announcement on Sunday, stating that he was dropping out of the presidential race, a flood of responses was quickly posted online.

Political pundits were weighing in. Cultural commentators were sharing their perspectives. Social media influencers were having their say. After all, this was a seismic announcement.

But since I have nothing of political substance to add to the many perspectives that have been shared on TV, in online video commentaries, in articles, and in memes, I'll offer up a prayer for President Biden instead.

This story was originally published by the WND News Center.

Joe Biden officially quit the 2024 presidential race Sunday and endorsed Kamala Harris to be the Democratic nominee at the top of the ticket.

"My fellow Democrats, I have decided not to accept the nomination and to focus all my energies on my duties as President for the remainder of my term," Biden said on X.

"My very first decision as the party nominee in 2020 was to pick Kamala Harris as my Vice President. And it's been the best decision I've made. Today I want to offer my full support and endorsement for Kamala to be the nominee of our party this year. Democrats — it's time to come together and beat Trump. Let's do this."

"It has been the greatest honor of my life to serve as your president," Biden wrote in a farewell-to-the-campaign letter he posted on X.

"And while it has been my intention to seek reelection, I believe it is in the best interest of my party and the country for me to stand down and to focus solely on my duties as president for the remainder of my term."

"I will speak to the nation later this week in more detail about my decision."

"For now, let me express my deepest gratitude to all those who have worked so hard to see me reelected.

"I want to thank Vice President Kamala Harris for being an extraordinary partner in all this work. And let me express my heartfelt appreciation to the American people for the faith and trust you have placed in me."

"I believe today what I always have: that there is nothing America can't do – when we do it together. We just have to remember we are the United States of America."

Interestingly, at 7:16 p.m. Saturday night, just 18 hours before posting his campaign resignation letter, Biden posted a video of former President Trump, who said: "This will be the most important election in the history of our country. This is going to be the most important election."

Biden noted atop the video: "It's a miracle, folks. Donald told the truth for once. It's the most important election of our lifetimes. And I will win it."

Elon Musk reacted on X, saying "Exactly" to a commenter who posted: "The Democratic elite, corporate media, and billionaire donors successfully pressured the candidate chosen by Democratic primary voters to drop out because he's down in the polls and losing.

"Democrats destroy democracy in pursuit of power."

In response to Biden's announcement, DNC Chair Jaime Harrison said: "The American people owe President Biden an enormous debt of gratitude for the unparalleled progress he has delivered over the last four years – and we will honor that legacy, and the decision that he has made today, through a firm commitment to nominating and electing a Democratic president this November who will carry that torch into the next four years.

"The work that we must do now, while unprecedented, is clear. In the coming days, the party will undertake a transparent and orderly process to move forward as a united Democratic Party with a candidate who can defeat Donald Trump in November. This process will be governed by established rules and procedures of the party. Our delegates are prepared to take seriously their responsibility in swiftly delivering a candidate to the American people.

"Democrats are prepared and united in our resolve to win in November. As we move forward to formally select our party's nominee, our values as Democrats remain the same – lowering costs, restoring freedom, protecting the rights of all people, and saving our democracy from the threat of dictatorship. We have and will continue to make this case to the American people."

Other reaction online was more comical, including:

This story was originally published by the WND News Center.

In 2020, Samuel Sell successfully fulfilled the requirements of Wright State University's Reserve Officers' Training Corps program in Ohio to become a commissioned officer in the U.S. Air Force. Shortly after, he was selected to participate in an experimental pilot training group at Randolph Air Force Base in San Antonio, Texas. But the prestigious opportunity would soon be pulled from under his feet, and he would be detained, handcuffed and facing court-martial – because of his Christian beliefs.

What happened? When Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin's now-rescinded 2021 COVID-19 military vaccine mandate began to roll out, the young lieutenant refused to consent to any unapproved product with only an Emergency Use Authorization, while also requesting a religious accommodation as a Christian. Only EUA products were being offered, and nearly all requests for religious accommodation were being denied across all branches of military service.

Even before the mandate, Sell shared his views with classmates that the vaccine wasn't necessary for those who had acquired natural immunity after recovering from COVID-19 – "natural immunity" being one of the most fundamental and universally recognized realities of Immunology.

This story was originally published by the WND News Center.

Iran long has boasted of its plans, and its ability, to assassinate President Trump.

But when a 20-year-old sniper on July 13 shot at Trump, nicking his ear, the rogue Islamic regime was quick to say they had nothing to do with that scheme.

According to a report from the Middle East Media Research Institute, Iran's threats against Trump have been around since the January 2020 killing by the U.S. military of IRGC Qods Force commander Qassem Soleimani.

It was just 72 hours after the attempted assassination that happened at a Trump rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, CNN revealed the Secret Service recently had boosted security for Trump "because of intelligence on Iranian regime plans to assassinate him."

MEMRI explained that "presumably" would be to avenge the killing of Soleimani in an American airstrike near Baghdad in January 2020, while Trump was president.

But then only one day later, 96 hours after the assassination attempt, "senior members of the Iranian diplomatic corps vehemently denied Iranian involvement in the assassination attempt."

The report noted Iran's acting Foreign Minister Ali Bagheri Kani told CNN, asked whether Iran was retaliating, "I told you explicitly that we would resort to legal and judicial procedures and frameworks at the domestic level and international level in order to bring the perpetrators and military advisers of General Soleimani's assassination to justice."

He said the regime would use "Iranian and international" procedures.

"Until now, we have done it, and this is our right and of course we will continue it. And the Americans openly said that, that they assassinated the senior Iranian military commander. So it is our natural right in order to follow this issue, and those who are accused in this case, they should be brought to justice in a – in a just court," he said.

The report noted, spokesman Nasser Qan'ani for Iran's foreign ministry added, "Iran is determined to bring Trump to justice for his direct role in the murder of Gen. Qassem Soleimani, but denies any involvement in the recent attack or any such intention."

Iran's mission to the United Nations elaborated, "From the perspective of the Islamic Republic of Iran, Trump is a criminal who must be prosecuted and punished in a court of law for ordering the assassination of General Soleimani. Iran has chosen the legal path to bring him to justice."

The statements all contradict months, even years, of pledges by regime officials about "their desire and intention to assassinate Trump."

This story was originally published by the WND News Center.

JERUSALEM – Israel's parliament – the Knesset – voted overwhelmingly Thursday to reject the notion of establishing a Palestinian state west of the Jordan River. The vote was 68 in support of a statement nixing the idea, and nine against.

National Unity Party Member of Knesset Ze'ev Elkin – a former housing and construction minister – sponsored the vote, with support from Yisrael Beytenu – which former defense minister Avigdor Lieberman leads – and The Land of Israel lobby, which has members from across the spectrum, such as Likud, Shas.

The text of the vote read, "The Knesset of Israel is firmly opposed to the establishment of a Palestinian state west of the Jordan River. The establishment of a Palestinian state in the heart of the Land of Israel would constitute an existential threat to the State of Israel and its citizens, perpetuate the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, and undermine regional stability.

"It would only be a short matter of time before Hamas takes over the Palestinian state and turns it into a base of radical Islamic terrorism, coordinated with the Iran-led axis, to annihilate the State of Israel. Promoting the idea of a Palestinian state would reward terrorism and only encourage Hamas and its supporters, who would see it as a victory due to the October 7 massacre and a prelude to a jihadist Islamic takeover of the Middle East."

Lawmakers from Opposition Leader Yair Lapid's center-left Yesh Atid party left the plenum to avoid backing the measure, even though he personally has spoken in favor of a two-state solution. The only ones to back the resolution were parliamentarians from the Labor, Ra'am and Hadash-Ta'al parties – the latter two of which are Arab factions.

Gideon Sa'ar MK, a former protege of Israel's current Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, and who was once seen in the Likud Party as a potential successor, leads the National Unity Party. Some commentators have viewed the vote as a challenge to the prime minister – who was not in the parliamentary chamber for the ballot – from his political right; and as a potential challenge before his much-vaunted address at the U.S. Congress.

The message of the text is not only at odds with – but seemingly provokes direct confrontation with both the Biden administration and large swathes of the Democratic Party, which are wedded to the idea of a two-state solution to the Israel-Palestine conflict. The administration's Israeli critics argue its policy toward Israel and Palestine is not based on facts on the ground, and is the result of deep confusion in the realm of foreign affairs.

An increasingly fractious Democratic Party, including many members who are fearful for their immediate political futures with a clearly ailing Joe Biden still currently at the top of the ticket, is torn on Netanyahu's imminent appearance in the Congress. While some of its members plan to attend Netanyahu's address out of loyalty to the long-standing U.S.-Israel relationship, a growing number of their more radical colleagues have said they will not attend, in protest of Israel's conduct during the nine-month long war with Hamas.

Meanwhile, the Hostages Families Forum has urged Netanyahu – who is due to fly to the U.S. Thursday – to seal a deal for the release of their kidnapped family members, still languishing in Hamas captivity in Gaza. Former hostages will appeal to the prime minister in a special statement. It follows Netanyahu's controversial – and what the hostage families explained were deeply painful remarks – about the hostages saying they "were suffering but not dying." The survivors will testify Thursday evening that each day in captivity could turn the hostages' suffering into death. Since the last deal, at least 13 hostages have been killed in captivity.

In February, Netanyahu sponsored a Knesset resolution that rejected the unilateral imposition of a Palestinian state as there were other nations pushing for international recognition. These included Norway – whose foreign minister Espen Barth Eide was this week barred from entering Israel on the back of his government's support for attempting to unilaterally recognize a Palestinian state and for his government's failure to declare Hamas a terrorist organization.

This latest vote is not the same as the February resolution, as it rejects entirely the proposition of the establishment of a Palestinian state in Judea and Samaria.

This story was originally published by the WND News Center.

There are many American-made products in the home goods category that I could name, but this time I'm listing items I have personally bought, used, and like.

My wife and I have relocated from Orlando to St. Louis, and the new area offers an education of regional brands specific to where we now live. As we accent our new home, we have chosen many American-made products we may have otherwise not been considering.

Few things are simpler than getting soap dishes for the bathrooms and kitchen. I ordered two from www.mycluckhut.com, and I’ll probably order more. At $5.00 each, the price is hard to beat. If you don’t mind spending a little more for a fancier soap dish, I would recommend Fern Valley Soaps, which are in the $15.00-$17.50 range. You can also browse their selection of American-made soaps, lip balm, gift boxes, and more.

We literally just ordered outdoor patio furniture from POLYWOOD, which has been manufacturing in Syracuse, Indiana, since 1990. The company also opened a new facility in North Carolina in 2023, boosting their employment to 1,550 American jobs. All products are backed with a 20-year warranty.

POLYWOOD products are made of reusable and recycled plastics, which means the products themselves are recyclable.

We ordered a sofa table from Mueller Furniture, and we will be ordering more furniture from this company in the future. Mueller doesn’t sell any furniture that isn’t made in the USA, so there are no questions or second-guessing when we shop. The stores are local to the St. Louis area, so you would have to be in the area to take advantage of this all-American store, but if you happen to be passing through, you should check them out.

When you need a wide range of cleaning products like mops, brooms, brushes, buckets, dust pans, squeegees, scrubbers, and sponges, look no further than Libman ( https://libman.com/). Their website says “most” of the products are made in the USA, but I have personally not seen any in retail stores that are not.

We have bought many American-made treats for our cats over the years, but the most recent is by Grandma Lucy's. The treats are all natural, GMO-free and contain no by-products. Our cats love them.

Retail chain Target offers many Brightroom products from storage bins and totes to kitchen & food storage and waste baskets. Not all products are made in America, but the waste baskets we bought for our bathrooms certainly are.

For more than 30 years, Whitinsville, Massachusetts-based August Ceramics has been designing and hand-crafting attractive and charming ceramic giftware. But, of course, giftware can always be gifted to yourself. All ceramic products from dog and cat themed ornaments, plates, and plaques are fired in a kiln and painted by hand, so slight variations occur and mean that no two products are alike. You can also personalize your ceramic giftware.

And, last but not least, is Yaupon Brothers American Tea Co., which is based in Central Florida where I lived for 38 years and supplies the tea I drink almost every day. Yaupon is known to be the America's only native caffeinated plant. Each tea leaf is carefully hand-plucked, then dried or fire-roasted, graded, milled, and packed by hand in their Crescent City, Florida organic farm facility. No aspect of production is outsourced.

One of the most unique and interesting things about Yaupon tea is that it is tannin-free, and as a result, is naturally sweet. It’s also impossible to over-steep, and I get at least two cups from a single sachet. Yaupon Brothers American Tea Co. also has an excellent rewards program where you can easily gain 20% off your order after only a few purchases. All these aspects combined make for a very affordable and enjoyable American tea experience. Adios, imported tea.

As I mentioned earlier, I no longer reside in Central Florida. My new address as listed on www.howtobuyamerican.com is 1136 Washington Ave., #910, St. Louis, MO 63101. The toll-free number is the same, which is 1-888-US OWNED (888-876-9633). You can still email me at roger@howtobuyamerican.com.

Also worth mentioning, I am planning a fourth edition of "How Americans Can Buy American: The Power of Consumer Patriotism" to be published in 2025, which promises to be the best edition yet, so stay tuned!

Thank you for your continued support and for your "Buy American Mention of the Week" email subscription!

About Roger Simmermaker

Roger Simmermaker has written multiple books on buying American and trade policy since 1996, and has been a frequent guest on Fox News, Fox Business Network, CNN, and MSNBC. Roger has also been quoted or featured in The Wall Street Journal, USA Today, BusinessWeek, and The New York Times, among many other publications.

This story was originally published by the WND News Center.

Many politicians, media personalities and social media activists are urging America to unity after the weekend's failed attempted assassination of President Donald Trump.

The 20-year-old assailant was shot and killed by police.

But one analysis suggests that such "unity" won't happen – because of the agenda of one party.

It is John Daniel Davidson, an executive with The Federalist, who pointed out, “You can’t incessantly use rhetoric designed to incite violence and then call for calm when violence inevitably erupts.”

He pointed out that Joe Biden, after the attack on Trump, wanted "unity." So did Kamala Harris "and scores of other Democrats."

But Davidson, senior editor at the Federalist whose writings have appeared in the Wall Street Journal, New York Post and more, said it's "not going to happen."

"There can be no unity with the people and institutions who have spent years whipping the left into a violent frenzy over Trump. This goes for Democrats and the corporate media alike," he explained.

"President Biden has spent the last few years declaring over and over that Trump is a 'threat to democracy.' Everyone is outraged about Biden's recent call with donors when he said it's 'time to put Trump in the bull's-eye,' but far worse rhetoric from Biden has been commonplace for years."

He cited Biden's "infamous Red Wedding speech in Philadelphia," when he addressed the nation and insisted that his political opponents are a threat to democracy, a message he's harped on constantly since then.

Davidson explained it's more than Biden, as, "Democrats and the media have encouraged political violence against Trump for years, with a constant stream of overheated rhetoric designed to provoke riots, terrorist attacks, and assassinations."

He said, "Now that their rhetoric has led to an actual assassination attempt against Trump, they say they want to cool the rhetoric and call for national unity. I don't think so. You don't smack someone in the face with a hammer and then insist everyone needs to calm down."

One of the Democrats' favorite mantras is that Trump is a "Hitler."

"The June issue of The New Republic is devoted to comparing Trump to Hitler, one of the greatest mass murders in human history. It's full of essays about how grim life will be under Dictator Trump. The editors justified this…"

Its speculation is about "all the ways Trump will destroy America if he wins a second term."

In fact, writer David Frum declared, "the gunman and Trump, at their opposite ends of a bullet's trajectory, are nonetheless joined together as common enemies of law and democracy."

The Democrats created the narrative of Trump as an agent of a "malign foreign power" and "they never let go of that narrative."

Essentially, such rhetoric is "routine" for Democrats.

Just on Friday, Biden charged, "I mean this from the bottom of my heart, Trump is a threat to this nation."

Davidson noted, "The purpose of such talk was to prepare the ground for an attempt on Trump's life, and it worked. After all, if you believe a second Trump term will usher in a fascist dictatorship then surely it's morally justified, arguably even your duty, to do whatever it takes to stop him."

Further, Democrats took action on their agenda, already trying to deprive Trump of Secret Service protection if certain events occur.

"To most people, that looks like a deliberate attempt to make it as likely as possible that something like Saturday's attack on Trump's life would happen — and succeed," he wrote, and, "That's why Democrat calls for unity and calm ring hollow now. They don't want unity and calm, they want violence."