DAVID MARCUS: Tax-free overtime could be midterm magic for GOP

DAVID MARCUS: Tax-free overtime could be midterm magic for GOP

As the GOP's "big beautiful bill" heads to the Senate next month, one provisionlegislators from both partiesshould keep their sights squarely set on is no tax on overtime, because in my travels talking to working Americans, no policy comes up more often. It is not hyperbole to suggest that, if successfully implemented, vastly reducing overtime tax on America's workers would be the most politically significant measure in the bill, and could easily help Republicans sweep the midterms. Trump's 'Big, Beautiful Bill' Wins Support From Police For Overtime Elimination It is very rare, when I'm out talking to people on the road, for person after person to keep mentioning something I never even brought up. A clear example in the last election was Robert F. Kennedy Jr., now Secretary of Health and Human Services, who I couldn't get people to shut up about, even when the media wasn't focused on him. In the end, RFK Jr. played a vital role in putting President Donald Trump over the top. For the past couple of months, the thing I have heard over and over again from workers and employers is how much they desperately want no tax on overtime. Read On The Fox News App Regular readers of this column will recall the coal miner in Columbiana, Ohio who told me, "taxes are killing the working man," or Doug and Danny in Jeffersonville, Indiana, a steel cleaning plant owner and his foreman who also weighed in. Doug told me it will "encourage [younger workers] to give up their time, away from loved ones and produce for customers that we have, that need steel, that they want that we did not produce Monday through Friday and get it done." From Ohio, to Texas, to West Virginia, no tax on overtime has created excitement for the people the news media never seem to get around to talking to. A major reason that no tax on overtime has been largely ignored compared to its more popular cousin, no tax on tips, is that almost nobody who produces news has ever held a job that includes traditional overtime, while many likely had tipping jobs in college. This also explains exactly why the overtime provision is a much bigger deal. There are a handful of tipped jobs that one can raise a family on, but most are stepping stones. There are millions of jobs you can raise a family on that involve overtime. For the men and women who work these jobs in plants, mines and forges, a reduction in overtime tax is far more meaningful than any stimulus check could be. A stimulus check is like a winning scratch-off lottery ticket. No tax on tips is a raise. You can plan on it, build around it. This brings us around to the midterms. If by the fall of 2026, American workers have been keeping more of their money, not receiving largesse from the state, but keeping more money they worked for, then every GOP candidate will point at every Democrat incumbent in Congress and say, "they voted against it." One of Donald Trump's political superpowers is to find the issues American voters deeply care about that the media largely ignores. He did it by fighting wokeness, he did it opposing foreign interventionism, he did it by focusing on our kids' health. I don't know how he does it. I know how I do it. I spend hours and hours traveling and talking to people. Maybe Trump talks to the working-class people he employs, maybe he just judges based on crowd reactions at rallies, but however he does it, finger meets pulse. Click Here For More Fox News Opinion With no tax on overtime, Trump has done it again. Every Republican who is running for Congress outside of Silicon Valley and the Upper East Side would be wise to lead their campaign with, "President Trump and I promised no tax on overtime and we delivered." There seems to be some surprise that Trump's poll numbers are recovering after a brief dip occasioned by universal freakouts over his tariff policy. But there is a very good reason for it: On almost every policy the president is doing exactly what he told voters he would do. Once workers start seeing that bump in their weekly check they can start saving for a better vacation, put more money away for their kids, or even buy their girl an engagement ring. These are the riches of the working class. Senate Democrats should tread cautiously as the big beautiful bill lands in the upper chamber. They should decide if they really want to look their constituents in the eye and say, "You know that raise my opponent's party and President Trump gave you? I want to take it away." No tax on overtime may be Donald Trump's baby, but come the midterms, it could be a big bundle of joy for the Republican Party. Click Here To Read More From David Marcus Original article source:DAVID MARCUS: Tax-free overtime could be midterm magic for GOP

byDan Dunne

in

May 24, 2025

DAVID MARCUS: Tax-free overtime could be midterm magic for GOP

DAVID MARCUS: Tax-free overtime could be midterm magic for GOP As the GOP's "big beautiful bill" heads to the Senate next mont...

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Operation Benjamin works to replace erroneous grave markers for Jewish American service members who died in battle

Operation Benjamin works to replace erroneous grave markers for Jewish American service members who died in battle

Ben Zion Bernstein served in one of the most elite fighting units in the US military during World War II – the First Special Service Force – a select group picked and put through rigorous training for among the most perilous missions. His first combat mission turned out to be his last. Bernstein, a technician fourth grade, was killed in the famous battle of Monte La Difensa on December 3, 1943, while storming a steep Italian mountain trying to overtake a Nazi stronghold. Bernstein's siblings and their descendants knew he was a war hero, but none of the details of his sacrifice. They also didn't know that despite being a proud Jew, he'd been buried under a Latin cross for more than 80 years at the Sicily-Rome American Cemetery in Nettuno, Italy, until a historian named Shalom Lamm contacted them. Lamm is with a non-profit organization called Operation Benjamin, which works with the American Battle Monuments Commission to help find Jewish soldiers who were buried in American military cemeteries around the world under Latin crosses and correct those inadvertent errors by replacing their headstones with a Star of David. Several of Bernstein's nieces, nephews, grandnieces and grandnephews traveled to Italy this month to participate in a ceremony to honor him and replace the cross with a Star of David to represent his Jewish faith. "It was a big part of his life. He went to a Jewish school. He was part of the Jewish organizations. He went to Palestine," said nephew Ben Sheridan, who is named for his uncle. "The best part is, you know, what Shalom Lamm and his organization has done to teach us so much about his legacy," he added. The afternoon before the ceremony, the Bernstein family climbed what they called the "easy part" of the mountain where their uncle died and saw the bunker where the Nazis threw a grenade that killed him. And a surprise guest came to meet them. Lamm invited Brad Hicks, the grandson of Major General Robert T. Frederick, a storied World War II military leader who organized, trained and led the First Special Service Force, which later became US Army Special Forces. "When Shalom asked me if I would do this, I didn't hesitate for a moment because I knew that my grandfather would not hesitate for a moment to do this for one of his men who fell on the battlefield," said Hicks, who traveled from Washington state to Italy for the ceremony. "I've had the privilege of meeting many members of our special forces. They know about the Battle of Mount La Difensa. They still study it as part of their training, and they know about the greatness of the men who undertook that mission. Today's special forces embody the legacy of Ben Bernstein," said Hicks. Lamm, whose organization has replaced more than 30 military headstones, said that many times the US military erroneously buried a Jewish service member beneath a cross because the service member intentionally left their religion off their dog tag. "These were true errors," Lamm explained. "America really tried to get it right, but when you had someone who put a 'P' or a 'C' for Protestant and Catholic on their dog tag and they did that to protect themselves in case of capture." "If you were captured by the Germans, in particular, that was really terrifying," Lamm added. "I think we need to look back and think America did a great job getting this right, but they naturally missed some, and our job is to come back after all these decades and find those guys and bring this home and do the right thing," Lamm said. Once Lamm has identified a service member who has been buried under the wrong religious symbol, he sets out doing the research to find proof of the error and the service member's closest living relatives since the only way to change a headstone in a military cemetery is with the approval of the service member's family. "The amount of proof we're required to deliver to the American Battle Monuments Commission is really huge. It's really tough and it should be tough. We're changing something for eternity," said Lamm. Lamm's research often gives families new information about their loved ones, like in the case of Bernstein. "It has happened again and again and again that I introduce people to someone who's just a shadowy figure in their memory, you know. When someone is a kid and he says, 'Hey Mom, there's a black and white photo above the hearth of a guy in a uniform, was that your brother?' and Mom starts to cry and little Johnny says 'I don't want Mom to cry,' and he never asks her again," Lamm explained. "Then I come along, and I say, wow, because of the American Battle Monuments Commission, we know everything about this guy. We went through his high school yearbook. We knew who his girlfriend was. We know what sports he played. We know what career choices [he made]. We know everything about him. And we're introducing families to the shadowy figure and bringing them to life. They were real flesh and blood human beings, and we know that story and it's great to share," he said. Second Lieutenant Paul Singer was a navigator alongside Second Lieutenant Sheldon Finder, a bombardier on the B-24 Liberator "Southern Comfort." On August 16, 1943, during a bombing raid on a German airfield near Foggia, Italy, the aircraft was attacked and caught fire. The crew bailed out, but neither Singer nor Finder's parachutes worked. They were the only two in the unit to die in that attack, and the only two Jewish soldiers on that plane. By happenstance, they are buried right next to each other at the Sicily-Rome American Cemetery. Finder's tombstone was a Star of David to reflect his faith, but, for decades, Singer's grave was inadvertently marked with a Latin cross. That mistake was rectified on the same day as that of Bernstein. Finding Singer's family was a bit more challenging, since he was an only child who was orphaned at age 16. Lamm did find second cousins, who traveled to Italy to honor Singer's service and sacrifice. Cousin Jodi Reff, one of Singer's cousins, spoke at the ceremony. "We, his living relatives, have met Paul through Operation Benjamin, where we are able to stand here 81 years after his tragic death and feel the connection as his descendants." She calls herself a "committed Jew" but more importantly, she said, she now knows that her cousin was too. "Paul lived as a Jew, fought for America and the free world as a Jew, and died as a Jew," she said, noting that now, more than 80 years later, he is finally buried as a Jew as well. Through the process of learning about Singer, Reff met other cousins whom she never knew, like Claudia Lewis. "It puts all the pieces together," said Lewis, standing arm in arm with Reff next to their cousin's grave. They also got to know the family of Finder, whose niece and nephew also made the trip. Even though Finder had long been buried properly, beneath a Jewish Star, no one from his family had visited, or even knew where he was buried. Jonathan Finder, Sheldon Finder's nephew, knew that his own father suffered deep grief from the death of his older brother, but didn't talk much about it with his children. "I know that in retrospect it was probably too painful for him. He was grieving, and I feel like by being here today, I honor his quiet grieving for his entire life,"he said somberly. For more CNN news and newsletters create an account atCNN.com

byDan Dunne

in

May 24, 2025

Operation Benjamin works to replace erroneous grave markers for Jewish American service members who died in battle

Operation Benjamin works to replace erroneous grave markers for Jewish American service members who died in battle Ben Zion Bernstein served...

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In their words: How recent presidents have honored America's fallen on Memorial Day

In their words: How recent presidents have honored America's fallen on Memorial Day

WASHINGTON (AP) — From Arlington National Cemetery outside the nation's capital to the American burial ground in Normandy, France, presidents customarily commemorateMemorial Dayon hallowed ground. In somber wreath-laying ceremonies and poignant speeches, presidentsremember the military memberswho died serving the country, even as many Americans associate the holiday with a three-day weekend and shopping sales. Here's a look at what recent presidents have said on Memorial Days past. All spoke at Arlington in Virginia, except for President George W. Bush: RONALD REAGAN "The willingness of some to give their lives so that others might live never fails to evoke in us a sense of wonder and mystery. One gets that feeling here on this hallowed ground. And I have known that same poignant feeling as I looked out across the rows of white crosses and stars of David in Europe, in the Philippines and the military cemeteries here in our own land. Each one marks the resting place of an American hero." — May 31, 1982. BILL CLINTON "My fellow Americans, on this Memorial Day, let us commit ourselves to a future worthy of their sacrifice." — May 25, 1998. GEORGE W. BUSH "The day will come when no one is left who knew them. When no visitor to this cemetery can stand before a grave remembering a face and a voice. The day will never come when America forgets them. Our nation and the world will always remember what they did here, what they gave here, for the future of humanity." — May 27, 2002; Colleville-sur-Mer, France. BARACK OBAMA "Our nation owes a debt to its fallen heroes that we can never fully repay, but we can honor their sacrifice, and we must." May 30, 2011. DONALD TRUMP "They were generals and privates, captains and corporals, of every race, color, and of every creed. But they were all brothers and sisters in arms. And they were all united then, as they are united now forever, by their undying love of our great country." — May 28, 2018. JOE BIDEN "This is the mission of our time. Our memorial to them must not be just the day when we pause and pray. It must be a daily commitment to act, to come together, to be worthy of the price that was paid." May 30, 2022.

byDan Dunne

in

May 24, 2025

In their words: How recent presidents have honored America's fallen on Memorial Day

In their words: How recent presidents have honored America's fallen on Memorial Day WASHINGTON (AP) — From Arlington National Cemetery o...

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At West Point, Trump rips DEI policies in rally-style speech

At West Point, Trump rips DEI policies in rally-style speech

By Jeff Mason WEST POINT, New York (Reuters) -President Donald Trump ripped U.S. diversity and inclusion policies, knocked NATO, and took credit for building up the military on Saturday in a campaign-style commencement speech at the prestigious West Point Military Academy in New York. Trump, wearing a suit and his signature red "Make America Great Again" cap, mixed advice to "work hard" with a list of his top grievances about cultural and political issues while speaking to a stadium filled with cadets, family members and a largely supportive crowd. "The job of the U.S. Armed Forces is not to host drag shows, to transform foreign cultures," Trump said. "The military's job is to dominate any foe and annihilate any threat to America, anywhere, anytime, in any place." Since coming into office for the second time in January, Trump has rolled back diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) programs in the military and throughout the government as part of a larger effort to rescind policies enacted by his predecessor Joe Biden. "We've liberated our troops from divisive and demeaning political trainings," Trump told the 1,002 cadets graduating from the academy. "There will be no more critical race theory or transgender for everybody forced onto our brave men and women in uniform, or on anybody else for that matter in this country." Trump has been a strong supporter of the military even as he has put his own stamp on it, as he has other branches of government. In February he fired the then chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Air Force General C.Q. Brown, and pushed out five other admirals and generals in an unprecedented shake-up of military leadership. It was the second time Trump addressed graduates of the academy on the Hudson River following his appearance in 2020 at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, when cadets sat further apart and wore masks to prevent spread of the virus. West Point aims to educate the next generation of Army leaders for a military that is meant to be apolitical and is sworn to defend the U.S. Constitution. In a speech full of partisan rhetoric on Saturday, Trump took credit for rebuilding the Army and referenced his tariff-fueled trade war while repeating his longstanding criticism of NATO allies for not spending more on defense. "We've been ripped off by every nation in the world on trade. We've been ripped off at the NATO level," Trump said. "We've been ripped off like no country has ever been ripped off, but they don't rip us off anymore." The president will preside over the Army's celebration of its 250th anniversary on June 14 with a parade on one of Washington's main thoroughfares. The anniversary coincides with Trump's own birthday. This week Trump spoke about a signature piece of his military vision, announcing he had selected a design for the $175-billion Golden Dome missile defense shield and named a Space Force general to head the program aimed at blocking threats from China and Russia. Trump said on Saturday the shield would protect West Point. Experts have said the Golden Dome could provoke other states to launch similar systems or develop more advanced weapons to evade the missile shield, escalating an arms race in space. (Reporting by Jeff Mason; Additional reporting by Nathan Layne; Editing by Don Durfee and Daniel Wallis)

byDan Dunne

in

May 24, 2025

At West Point, Trump rips DEI policies in rally-style speech

At West Point, Trump rips DEI policies in rally-style speech By Jeff Mason WEST POINT, New York (Reuters) -President Donald Trump ripped U....

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Credibility crisis: When CNN criticized questioning Biden's mental fitness

Credibility crisis: When CNN criticized questioning Biden's mental fitness

A CNN anchor is the co-author of a buzzy new book that sheds light on PresidentJoe Biden's apparent mental decline in office and the cover-up orchestrated by his team, but various CNN figures were critical in the past of narratives that questioned his fitness. As Jake Tapper and co-author Alex Thompson promote "Original Sin," an account of the cover-up that features high-level Democratic sources, media critics have noted CNN and other mainstream outlets downplayed or were even hostile to the suggestion that Biden could be losing his grip before last year's debate against PresidentDonald Trump. Here are four examples at CNN. New Book Reveals Biden's Inner Circle Worried About His Age Years Before Botched Debate Performance Videos of Biden freezing upor appearing confused at various events went viral throughout 2024, but the White House aggressively pushed back, saying some of them were edited in a misleading fashion or didn't show what they purported. The term "cheap fakes" was popularized, andpress secretary Karine Jean-Pierrenoted from the podium that fact-checkers and mainstream outlets also embraced the term. Read On The Fox News App CNN White House correspondent Arlette Saenz pushed the White House's narrative last year about a video of Biden appearing to freeze up at a fundraiser with Jimmy Kimmel, saying Biden had merely "looked out at the crowd for a few seconds" before walking offstage withPresident Barack Obama, adding that "Republicans and right-leaning media outlets" "used this moment to say that President Biden froze." Moments later during a panel discussion, CNN commentator and formerKamala Harrisadviser Jamal Simmons called Biden's fundraiser moment an "obviously selected video." "These are cheap fakes, [as] the White House and Biden people are calling them," Simmons told CNN's Erin Burnett. Tapper feels differently about them. Jake Tapper Declares Biden White House Lied About 'Cheap Fakes' After Cnn Peddled Narrative In 2024 "The Biden White House falsely- when people showed that clip and asked what was going on- said it was a 'cheap fake.' They did this all the time when there was video that seemed to show Biden acting in an odd or unusual, seemingly out-of-it way, they would call it a 'cheap fake.' It was not fake. It was actual video," Tapper said last week. In a story in the aftermath of the Robert Hur report where Biden was memorably described as an elderly man with a poor memory, CNN's website published an article expressing concerns about both Biden and Trump and what type of cognitive ability was normal for a person in their 80s. The article cited a professor who said Biden's issues with word recall were not necessarily indicative of someone having memory issues. Biden at timesduring the interview with Hurhad difficulty remembering when he was vice president and the year of his son Beau's death in 2015. The article concludedwith the professor saying that ageism was codified in how people talk to one another, suggesting that the skepticism about Biden was a form of prejudice against the elderly. "Ageism is not just what people do to each other. Ageism is also a mindset that you carry within yourself," the professor said. "It actually impacts your health negatively." Jake Tapper's Past Coverage Of Biden's Cognitive Decline Under Scrutiny Ahead Of His New Book Ex-CNN media reporter Oliver Darcy repeatedly hammered proponents of the idea that Biden was in mental decline in his "Reliable Sources" newsletter before leaving CNN last year. "For years, and particularly over the last few months, MAGA Media has portrayed Biden as a senile, mentally incapacitated elderly man who cannot remember what he had for breakfast, let alone run the federal government," Darcy wrote in a newsletter last June, before the then-president's disastrous debate. Darcy declared the debate would give Biden an easy chance to "puncture the narrative" that he lacked fitness for office, suggesting Republicans had stupidly lowered the bar so much that Biden would easily clear it and come out of the debate stronger. "That's a worry for right-wing media figures, which risk seeing their bogus narrative about Biden being ripped up in real time," he wrote. Darcy also blasted the Wall Street Journal report last June about Biden's behind-the-scenes decline in his newsletter, saying it "owes its readers —and the public— better." Asked for comment byFox News Digitalabout his past coverage, Darcy, who left CNN last year to start his own newsletter called Status, pointed to his newsletter Wednesday where he declared conservative media outlets were taking an undeserved victory lap. Biden Insider Exposes How White House 'Gaslit' The Public About Former President's Decline "For years, right-wing media pushed a warped narrative of Joe Biden as a brain-dead puppet controlled by sinister, shadowy forces. Now they're demanding vindication—but they do not deserve it,"he wrote. Even after Biden dropped out of the race last July, "The View" co-host and CNN commentator Ana Navarro was committed to defending his mental acuity in office. Later that week, Manhattan Institute official Reihan Salam wondered if Biden should even stay in office until his term ended, but Navarro erupted that any talk about his state behind the scenes was mere speculation. "No, it is speculation! It is speculation! Because actually, unlike you, I've actually seen the guy at 9:00 at night. I have seen him after he has had five different events in 24 hours,"Navarro saidat one point. Navarro appeared to have a strong interest in Biden, beyond that of a typical media pundit. Although she continues to identify as a Republican, the left-wing commentator is an avid supporter of the Democratic Party, hosted the second night of the 2024 Democratic National Convention, and hasreferred to Biden and Harrisas "Uncle Joe" and "Auntie Kamala." CNN has stood behind Tapper's past reporting in light of his new job, pointing to examples when he aggressively covered the subject. For his part, however, Tapper hassaid he feels "humility"about his past work on Biden and praised conservative media outlets for discussing what was in plain sight. Fox News Digital's Joseph A. Wulfsohn contributed to this report. Original article source:Credibility crisis: When CNN criticized questioning Biden's mental fitness

byDan Dunne

in

May 24, 2025

Credibility crisis: When CNN criticized questioning Biden's mental fitness

Credibility crisis: When CNN criticized questioning Biden's mental fitness A CNN anchor is the co-author of a buzzy new book that sheds ...

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