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Fauci & Collins Brushed Off 'Impressive' Data For COVID Natural Immunity Newly released emails reveal that senior Biden administration health officials privately grappling with research suggesting recovery from Covid-19 infection provided stronger protection than vaccination alone - at the very moment the federal government was preparing sweeping vaccine mandates in 2021. (from l) Bill Gates, former NIH director Dr. Francis Collins and former NIAID director Dr. Anthony Fauci. The correspondence, released under the Freedom of Information Act to the watchdog group Protect the Public’s Trust and shared with the Daily Caller News Foundation, offers the clearest documentary evidence to date that top officials recognized scientific uncertainties around one-size-fits-all vaccination policies, even as they publicly dismissed the value of natural immunity. At the center of the internal debate was a massive Israeli study of nearly 800,000 people that found prior infection conferred substantially stronger protection against reinfection than two doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine. In private emails, Dr. Anthony Fauci described the findings as “rather impressive,” acknowledging both the scale and rigor of the research, which had received prominent coverage in Science. "The data [in the Israeli study] as reported in the news article look rather impressive . . . . but I would imagine that it is more complicated than we think . . . . [I]t is conceivable and possibly likely that those who have had a serious systemic infection develop a high level of immunity that even surpasses that of full vaccination," Fauci wrote in an Aug. 27, 2021 email with the subject line "RE: Post infection protection vs vaccine immunity." Yet the same emails reveal officials’ concern that such findings could undermine the administration’s push for universal vaccination - and later, mandates - by complicating public messaging. The documents lend new weight to claims made over the past four years by critics inside and outside government that federal agencies sidelined natural immunity not because of weak evidence, but because it was administratively inconvenient. Verifying prior infection, several officials suggested, would make policy enforcement harder and public guidance less uniform. Acknowledging the Evidence - Privately In exchanges with colleagues that included the surgeon general, the NIH director, and the CDC director, Fauci weighed the Israeli data against a far smaller CDC study of a few hundred Kentuckians. That CDC analysis, published in the agency’s Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, suggested vaccination after infection reduced reinfection risk more than infection alone. As Just the News points out, "The Biden administration often used MMWR, also not peer-reviewed, to push weak research that justified its policies." The contrast was stark. The Israeli research - though a preprint at the time - showed natural immunity was many times more protective against reinfection and symptomatic disease. Fauci conceded the Israeli work was compelling, even while noting its retrospective design and voluntary testing. He also speculated that the strength of natural immunity likely varied with illness severity, suggesting that recovery from “serious systemic infection” might offer better protection than vaccination - an assessment that ran counter to the administration’s public insistence that vaccination was superior across the board. Bureaucracy Over Nuance The emails echo statements later made by Paul Offit, a pediatrician and longtime FDA vaccine adviser, who admitted on a podcast four years ago that senior officials discussed - but ultimately rejected - recognizing natural immunity as a basis for exemption from vaccine mandates. According to Offit, the group broadly agreed that prior infection mattered immunologically. The obstacle, he said, was bureaucratic: how to document it. NEW FOIA'd documents show that Fauci privately acknowledged "impressive" data…

Democrats Are Trying To Weaponize The 25th Amendment Again, And It Won't Work After spending nearly four years pretending that Joe Biden was fit for office, congressional Democrats are now calling for President Trump to be removed from office under the 25th Amendment after he linked his pursuit of Greenland to being snubbed for the 2025 Nobel Peace Prize. In that text, sent Sunday, Trump told the Norwegian leader he no longer felt obligated to "think purely of Peace" after his country decided not to award him the prize for having stopped or prevented at least eight wars. Invoke the 25th Amendment. pic.twitter.com/hGtiluTGiG — Ed Markey (@SenMarkey) January 19, 2026 25 pic.twitter.com/zgDAZVm5rj — Rep. Eric Swalwell (@RepSwalwell) January 19, 2026 The president of the United States is extremely mentally ill and it’s putting all of our lives at risk. The 25th Amendment exists for a reason—we need to invoke it immediately. pic.twitter.com/HaywXdWxDK — Congresswoman Yassamin Ansari (@RepYassAnsari) January 19, 2026 Removing Trump under the 25th Amendment would require Vice President Vance and a majority of Cabinet members to declare to Congress that the president cannot discharge his duties. Congress would then have 21 days to ratify the decision, but two-thirds majorities in both the Senate and House would be needed to affirm removal. The mechanics make clear why this is political theater rather than serious governance. Vance and Trump's Cabinet are not going to declare him unfit over a text message. But the real problem is that it’s impossible to take any of these Democrats seriously on this issue. Democrats have played this card repeatedly for years, turning what should be a serious constitutional matter into a tired old political stunt. Once Trump took office in 2017, Democrats and their media allies pushed baseless narratives about cognitive decline. They called for mental assessments. They amplified armchair diagnoses from partisan psychiatrists. They did all this despite zero evidence of actual impairment. The noise grew so loud that Trump requested a cognitive assessment from his physician a year into his presidency. He aced it, but his critics were not satisfied. Former FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe claimed that Justice Department officials briefly discussed invoking the 25th Amendment mere months into his first term after Trump fired FBI Director James Comey in May 2017. The media routinely gave airtime to mental health professionals willing to claim Trump was certifiably unfit. Democrats even got 350 health professionals to sign a petition declaring his mental health was deteriorating. Weeks before the 2020 election, then-House Speaker Nancy Pelosi publicly questioned President Trump’s fitness to serve and unveiled legislation to establish a commission that would allow Congress to intervene under the 25th Amendment and strip the president of executive authority—citing a “strange tweet” from Trump as justification. While questioning Trump’s mental fitness was a constant theme during his first term, Democrats routinely ignored or denied Joe Biden’s cognitive decline during his presidency until Biden was forced to drop out of the 2024 presidential race after a humiliating debate performance against Trump that June. Up until that point, the media was largely defending Joe Biden from accusations of cognitive impairment. In March 2024, MSNBC’s Joe Scarborough insisted that Joe Biden was at the top of his game. “I've said it for years now: he's cogent,” he insisted. “But I undersold him when I said he was cogent. He's far beyond cogent. In fact, I think he's better than he's ever been intellectually, analytically. Because he’s been around for 50 years.” He added, “Start your tape right now, because I'm about to tell you the truth. And eff you if you can't handle the truth. This version of Biden, intellectually, analytically, is the best Biden ever. Not a close second. And I've known him for years. The Brzezinskis have…

Leftists Call For Political Purge Of MAGA If They Return To Power You might have thought it wasn't possible, but leftist activist rhetoric has become even more unhinged than usual in the past month as ICE agents try to do their lawful jobs in Democrat controlled sanctuary cities like Minneapolis. During the Obama Administration, ICE carried out millions of deportations of illegal aliens without a peep from progressives. Suddenly, under Trump these same operations are now being called "fascism" and grounds for insurgency. The reason these arrests have led to more violence today is not because of ICE, it is because NGO paid and trained activists are getting in the way. First, impeding law enforcement officials, blocking roads, sabotaging vehicles and physically assaulting agents is not a legal form of protest. Second, the American public voted for mass deportations to happen; not just for migrants who break the law after they sneak into the US, but for all migrants who sneak into the US. Democrats and a radical minority of activists are therefore attempting to disrupt the democratic process and prevent the Trump Administration from carrying out the will of the people. But it doesn't stop there. A narrative is building among Democrat politicians and NGO activists alike which is essentially calling for a political purge of conservatives if progressive leaders return to government power in the next few years. Multiple blue city mayors, governors and police administrators have already threatened to "arrest ICE agents" for carrying out deportations within sanctuary city jurisdictions. Jacob Frey and Tim Walz made thinly veiled threats suggesting that local police could intervene. Walz called on residents of Minneapolis to film all ICE agents so that they could be "prosecuted later." Jacob Frey says residents are calling on Minneapolis police to fight ICE agents. Watch the police chief’s face when he says this.pic.twitter.com/fwHVCTsxd7 — Breanna Morello (@BreannaMorello) January 15, 2026 These speeches echo sentiments of leftists on social media calling for a Stasi-like purge if Democrats get back control of Congress and the White House. They assert that ICE agents can be identified and later imprisoned for enforcing basic immigration laws, even if their deportation arrests were legal and constitutional at the time. TIM WALZ: "If you see these ICE agents in your neighborhood, take out that phone and hit record." "Help us create a database of the atrocities against Minnesotans, not just to establish a record for posterity, but to bank evidence for future prosecution." pic.twitter.com/V7fCMY3WZ1 — Fox News (@FoxNews) January 15, 2026 The Trump Administration and ICE have responded, asserting that such actions would constitute an insurrection. In other words, blue cities would be at war with the federal government. Philadelphia “Sheriff” @PhilaSheriff Rochelle Bilal should resign before she embarrasses herself any further. “Arresting ICE officers”? Try it. See what happens. pic.twitter.com/IZgvHN9RyV — U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (@ICEgov) January 10, 2026 The insanity of leftists, however, is not to be taken lightly. Activist influencers want Trump and anyone associated with him thrown in the gulag. They are even suggesting that they can drag Trump and his allies before a tribunal and Democrats will "find the crimes" they are guilty of. As Lavrentiy Beria, head of Stalin's secret police in the Soviet Union allegedly stated: "Show me the man, and I'll show you the crime..." Ex-CNN host Jim Acosta and Democrat podcaster Jennifer Welch recently agreed that the left needs to take revenge on President Donald Trump. Not just by winning elections, but by putting him in prison for winning his election. WEAPONIZATION: Democrat activists Jennifer Welch and Jim Acosta say mass prosecutions of Trump and Republicans would be necessary for national reconciliation when Democrats regain power, arguing that expanding the SCOTUS would be…

Netflix Craters On Disappointing Guidance, Stock Buyback Pause It was already an ugly quarter for NFLX shareholders who have been caught in a painful takeover battle for Warner Bros Discovery which has hammered the stock. And it only got uglier moments ago when Netflix reported Q4 earnings which came in solid, along with record subscribers for 2025, but it was the company's disappointing guidance due to higher program spending, together with the halt of stock buybacks (to fund the pending WBD deal) that slammed the stock to levels last seen during the Liberation day panic. Here is what NFLX reported for Q4 results: EPS 56c vs. 43c y/y, beating estimates of 55c Revenue $12.05 billion, +18% y/y, beating estimates $11.97 billion US & Canada revenue $5.34 billion, +18% y/y, beating estimates $5.26 billion EMEA revenue $3.87 billion, +18% y/y, beating estimate $3.84 billion Latin America revenue $1.42 billion, +15% y/y, matching estimate $1.42 billion APAC revenue $1.42 billion, +17% y/y, missing estimate $1.44 billion Operating income $2.96 billion, +30% y/y, beating estimate of $2.89 billion Operating margin 24.5% vs. 22.2% y/y, beating estimate of 24.2% Cash flow from operations $2.11 billion, +37% y/y, beating estimate of $1.68 billion Free cash flow $1.87 billion, +36% y/y, beating estimates $1.46 billion So far so good, because absent a small miss on APAC revenue, the quarter was generally in line (as a reminder, Netflix stopped providing regular updates on its subscriber total, directing investors to focus on more traditional financial metrics). Some more details on Q4 results: Q4 revenue grew 18% year over year (+17% on a foreign exchange (F/X) neutral basis), driven primarily by membership growth, higher pricing, and increased ad revenue. Despite unfavorable F/X movements during the quarter, revenue was 1% above our guidance due to stronger-than-forecasted membership growth and ad sales. Operating income in Q4 was $3.0B, up 30% year over year, and operating margin expanded two percentage points year over year to 25% - both slightly ahead of our forecast due primarily to the revenue upside. Diluted EPS amounted to $0.56 vs $0.43 in Q4’24 (+31% year over year), slightly above our forecast (adjusted for our 10-for-1 stock split). Net income included ~$60M of costs (booked in interest expense) related to our recent Warner Bros.-related bridge loan and associated bridge reduction financings (which was not included in our guidance). With our strong Q4 results, we met or exceeded all of our full year 2025 financial objectives. We grew revenue 16% to $45B (+17% on a F/X neutral basis) and we increased our operating margin to 29.5% for the year, up from 26.7% in 2024. We also made great progress growing advertising revenue. In 2025, which was only our third year selling advertising, ad revenue grew by more than 2.5x vs. 2024 to over $1.5 billion. The streaming leader said it plans to increase spending on films and TV shows by 10% in 2026 while forging ahead with plans to buy the studio and streaming business of Warner Bros., a deal that would unite two of the world’s largest entertainment companies. Netflix spent about $18 billion on programming last year, with subscribers growing almost 8% to top 325 million. The strong subscriber metrics and results were to be expected in a quarter that had a particularly strong programming lineup to close the year, including the final episodes of Stranger Things, a documentary series about hip-hop mogul Sean Combs and a new Frankenstein film. But while Q4 was solid, it was the company's forecast that was the first alert, with the company reporting revenue, operating income and margins all of which came below estimates. Sees EPS 76c, missing estimates of 82c. Sees revenue $12.16 billion, missing estimates of $12.17 billion Sees operating income $3.91 billion, missing estimates of $4.18 billion Sees operating margin 32.1%, missing estimates of 34.4% Extending the forecast to the full year, there…

By The Numbers... Trump's (Second) First Year In 10 Charts Authored by Emel Akan and Andrew Moran via The Epoch Times, Trump’s policies have influenced everything from economic growth and stock market performance to gas prices and mortgage rates. Stock Market Performance Since President Trump took office in January 2025, stock indexes have reached new highs. The S&P 500 Index rose nearly 16 percent through Jan. 14, compared to a 24 percent increase over the same period in Trump’s first term. In the past 12 months, the Dow Jones Industrial Average increased 13 percent and the Nasdaq gained 20 percent. Economic Growth After a 0.6 percent contraction in the first quarter, U.S. economic growth accelerated and exceeded economists’ expectations in 2025, avoiding a feared recession. GDP grew by 3.8 percent in Q2 and 4.3 percent in Q3—the strongest performance in two years. Although official data for October 2025 through December 2025 are pending, the Atlanta Federal Reserve estimates growth at around 5 percent. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent expects 2026 to be a “gangbuster year,” with continued strong economic growth. Inflation Inflation reached 9.1 percent in 2022, the highest level in decades. Although consumer prices remained elevated through 2025, inflation rates were lower than those recorded during the Biden administration. The annual rate began 2025 at 3 percent, fell to 2.3 percent in April, and rose back to 3 percent five months later. In November and December, price pressures eased, with the 12-month rate slowing sharply to 2.7 percent thanks mainly to falling gas prices. Trade Despite the trade deficit widening in the first three months of 2025 as businesses rushed to front-run President Donald Trump’s global tariffs, America’s monthly trade balance has improved substantially. Since peaking at $136 billion, the U.S. goods and trade deficit fell to $29 billion in October—the lowest level in 16 years. Employment Since last summer, the U.S. labor market has been characterized by what some economists call “low fire, low hire,” with companies neither reducing nor expanding their workforce. In 2025, employers added 584,000 jobs in total, averaging 49,000 per month. However, job growth slowed as government payrolls fell by 277,000, reflecting the administration’s efforts to shrink the federal government bureaucracy and support private sector jobs. Gas Prices One of the major achievements of the Trump administration has been the substantial decline in gas prices. From record production to loosening regulations, businesses and consumers have seen lower energy costs. Crude oil prices are trading below $60, while two dozen states are enjoying average gasoline prices below $2.80 a gallon. Market watchers expect the same trends in the year ahead. Mortgage Rates When President Donald Trump started his second term at the White House, the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage was around 7 percent. Since then, it has fallen significantly, even temporarily sliding below 6 percent for the first time in more than three years. This has been driven by a blend of falling Treasury yields and federal housing strategies to bring down costs. Border Security President Donald Trump has emphasized border security as a central policy priority. By securing the border, the United States has experienced a 93 percent reduction in border crossings, 622,000 deportations, and 1.9 million self-deportations. This has been accomplished by bolstering enforcement personnel and tightening procedures. Executive Actions While the administration secured a major legislative victory with the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, President Donald Trump has used the power of the executive branch to advance many of his policy objectives, including tariffs and regulations. Some of the more than 220 signed executive orders have also drawn legal scrutiny from advocacy organizations, companies, and states, leading to battles that have reached the Supreme Court. Tyler Durden Tue, 01/20/2026 -…