More bad news for California drivers will be coming on Saturday.
Nike has some explaining to do.
And Virginia Democrats have decided to go after a hundred and fifty year old institution. The Trump administration is looking to save it.
The News
- The Washington Post is laying off 300 employees, about 1/3 of its staff. This comes on the heels of Amazon laying off 16,000 employees due to restructuring.
- Valero is closing an oil refinery in California four months ahead of schedule.
- Refineries are fleeing the Golden State as regulations drive operating costs 26 to 37% higher than the national average. Chevron moved its operations from the Bay Area to Texas, while Phillips 66 powered down its 140,000-barrel-per-day Los Angeles refinery in October.
- California has the second highest gas prices in the country at $4.37. We’re going for number 1!
- This comes before California is set to raise gas taxes by $.03 in July.
- Get ready for $7 dollar gas.
- The national average is $2.88 a gallon. It is Lefty states like Hawaii, California, Illinois, and New York that are keeping the average gas prices that high.
- Embattled Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass secretly altered the official Palisades Fire response report to downplay the failures made by the city and fire department when the deadly blaze erupted, a new report said.
- Bass, after seeing an early draft of the after-action report, wanted key findings of the Los Angeles Fire Department’s shortcomings scrubbed or watered down — and even warned then-interim Fire Chief Ronnie Villanueva the unedited conclusions could expose the city to legal liability, sources close to the Democrat’s staff told the Los Angeles Times.
- The federal agency that enforces U.S. workplace discrimination laws said Wednesday it is investigating Nike over allegations that its diversity initiatives unlawfully discriminated against White employees and job applicants, according to a court filing.
- Reuters reported that the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) said Nike has refused to comply with a subpoena seeking information, including data on the racial and ethnic makeup of the global athletic apparel and footwear company based in Beaverton, Oregon.
- The commission said the investigation centers on claims that Nike deliberately treated White employees and job applicants unfairly, including allegations that they were disproportionately targeted for layoffs.
- The agency said it is seeking the records to determine whether Nike violated federal anti-discrimination law.
https://nypost.com/2026/02/04/us-news/la-mayor-karen-bass-secretly-altered-palisades-fire-analysis-to-downplay-las-failures-report/?utm_term=Autofeed&utm_campaign=nypost&utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitter#Echobox=1770242914
https://www.foxbusiness.com/markets/nikes-diversity-initiatives-under-eeoc-scrutiny-alleged-discrimination-against-white-workers
https://nypost.com/2026/02/04/us-news/valero-shuts-california-refinery-early-as-gas-prices-poised-to-spike/?utm_term=Autofeed&utm_campaign=nypost&utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitter#Echobox=1770232527
They Only Destroy
According to the Daily Wire:
The War Department is monitoring efforts by Virginia Democrats to potentially cripple the Virginia Military Institute, The Daily Wire can first report.
Cadets at VMI, the nation’s first state-sponsored and supported military college, have grown increasingly anxious about the fate of their institution since Virginia Governor Abigail Spanberger entered office and appointed former Democratic Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam to VMI’s Board of Visitors.
Northam had ordered an audit into alleged racism and sexism at VMI in 2021, amid the Democrat-led wave of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion measures in universities across the nation — measures supported by then-President Joe Biden and his administration.
Now, Virginia Democrats suggest that the military institution is still rife with racism, sexism, and cultural barriers. They proposed two measures taking aim at the school: their proposed House Bill 1377 establishes a task force evaluating whether VMI should still be funded by the state, and House Bill 1374 would end VMI’s Board of Visitors and give the state full oversight of the institution.
Revoking VMI’s state funding would likely lead to the school’s demise.
Chief Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell told The Daily Wire on Tuesday that the War Department “reserves the right to take extraordinary measures to protect the integrity of VMI.”
So why do these people hate VMI?
Some state representatives who support the measures, like Democrat Michael Feggans of Virginia Beach, point to VMI’s roots in the Civil War, arguing that the institution has buildings on campus named for Confederate military figures.
Democrat state Rep. Dan Helmer of Fairfax, frustrated that VMI did not renew the contract of VMI’s first black superintendent, told one local outlet: “For those of us, like me, who care deeply about service and care deeply about producing leaders of character, we need to ensure that VMI has turned the page.”
That’s Going to Fix the Prison System
According to the Post Millennial:
Socialist NYC Mayor Zohran Mamdani has appointed ex-convict Stanley Richards as the city’s newest Department of Correction commissioner. Per Gothamist, Richards spent two-and-a-half years on Rikers Island on robbery charges in the 1980s and spent an additional four-and-a-half years in state prison before being released in 1991. This marks the first time an ex-convict has held the role.
Mamdani said in a news conference, “Stanley will make history in this role as the first ever formerly incarcerated person to serve as commissioner. That achievement is not merely symbolic. It is a testament to the thought and leadership he will bring to every member of correction staff and incarcerated New Yorkers underneath his purview.”
After his release, Richards began working as a counselor with the Fortune Society, which provides housing and re-entry services for ex-convicts leaving jail. He served as the society’s president until his appointment, as well as a deputy correction commissioner under former Mayor Bill de Blasio and the city’s Board of Correction.
Richards said, “The future of Rikers is not endless confinement, scapegoating or demonizing. It is safety, transformation and rehabilitation.”
Benny Boscio, the president of the Correction Officers Benevolent Association union said in a statement, “Despite the many false narratives that have portrayed COBA as an ‘obstacle to reform,’ we have been ready, willing and able to meet and work with anyone, as long as they respect the rights of our Correction Officers and understand that their safety and security matter. The jails cannot and will not operate as safely as possible if the concerns of our members are brushed aside. It is our hope that Mr. Richards understands that dynamic as he takes on this new role and demonstrates a commitment to putting safety and security before any political ideology.”
Richards said in a statement, “I am deeply honored and grateful to Mayor Mamdani for this appointment. This role represents the culmination of my lifelong commitment to criminal justice reform, drawing directly from my own experience of incarceration on Rikers, which fueled my decades of work at The Fortune Society and with the Department of Correction, helping thousands rebuild their lives through reentry programs, leadership roles, and advocacy.”
“This appointment is an opportunity to lead from the top, advocating for both incarcerated individuals and correction officers to create safer jails and real pathways to rehabilitation. This is a chance to drive upstream change, connecting people to services like those at Fortune Society that transformed my own life. I will work tirelessly with this administration to ensure that we prioritize humane and safe conditions and ensure justice for all New Yorkers.”
So, what is the Fortune Society?
Mission and Purpose
The organization’s core mission is to support successful reentry from incarceration and promote alternatives to incarceration, with the goal of strengthening communities. It emphasizes belief in individuals’ capacity to change and works to create a more fair, humane, and rehabilitative justice system.
What They Do
The Fortune Society provides a “one-stop-shop” of services for people with justice involvement, including help with housing, employment, education, health, mental health, substance use treatment, and family support. Each year, it serves thousands of people—over 8,000 to 13,000 annually in recent descriptions—through both direct services and advocacy.
Key Programs and Services
Major service areas include supportive and transitional housing (such as its residences The Castle and Castle Gardens), job readiness and placement, educational programs (literacy, GED, and college prep), and counseling. The organization also helps with benefits enrollment, health and mental health care connections, substance use treatment, and creative arts programming.
Advocacy and Systems Change
Beyond direct services, The Fortune Society engages in policy and advocacy work aimed at reducing barriers to housing, employment, and education for people with records. It works to advance reforms that make the criminal justice system more rehabilitative and less reliant on incarceration.
https://thepostmillennial.com/mamdani-appoints-ex-con-as-nyc-department-of-corrections-head
https://www.perplexity.ai/search/what-is-the-fortune-society-onhlxeSjTw2fZgucFc5EDQ
I’ve Got a Weird Take
According to Fox News:
A string of recent incidents in which ICE agents and Department of Homeland Security leadership have been refused service at corporate gas stations and hotel chains has raised questions about whether private businesses can lawfully deny service to federal law enforcement officers.
The incidents — including ICE agents who were turned away from hotels and a Border Patrol commander being denied service at a gas station — have prompted debate over whether such refusals amount to lawful private discretion or illegal discrimination against federal law enforcement carrying out official duties.
The most recent flashpoint unfolded at a Speedway gas station, where video captured by conservative activist Cam Higby showed U.S. Border Patrol Cmdr. Gregory Bovino being followed out of the store by a man identifying himself as a manager.
Bovino himself was silent on the matter when asked by Higby among the crowd outside Speedway, while Deputy Homeland Security Secretary Tricia McLaughlin said similar situations had transpired at several different gas stations where agitators stalked agents.
When Higby asked the man why he refused Bovino service, he replied: “Because I wanted to. I don’t support ICE and nobody here does.”
The man remained silent when asked if he thought it was legal to deny service to federal agents based on their role, while the employee could be heard saying, “If it is [illegal] I personally don’t care.”
They Have a Big Opinion of Themselves
According to the Post Millennial:
A few leftist men out in Minnesota decided to make a parody of the Iwo Jima flag raising, only instead lifting up the Minnesota flag, which was recently scrutinized for looking somewhat similar to the flag of Somalia.
Video of the “flag raising” was posted by Anton Treuer, who is a professor at Bemidji State University and claims to be an “Indigenous language warrior” on X.
Treuer, although it is unclear if he was pictured in the video, said in the caption, “We stand for justice and a future worth fighting for! #MNStrong #iceout #Minnesota #peace #solidarity.” The clip, which has not gone viral on social media, depicts six people holding up the Minnesota flag in the position from the famous Iwo Jima flag raising photo from World War II.
Many reacted to the post online, slamming the group of leftist as people wanting to cosplay as soldiers as the Trump administration has been surging ICE into the region to detain illegal immigrant criminals.
Human Events Daily host Jack Posobiec said of the video, “Leftists in Minneapolis are now staging the flag-raising of Iwo Jima with their fake Somali flag Good Lord, we’re reaching levels of cringe that have never been seen.”