Monday Edition

A series of recent high-profile failures for House Republicans have some people questioning Speaker Mike Johnson’s leadership. (Ink Stained Wretches)

Ink Stained Wretches podcast co-host Chris Stirewalt on the GOP’s failed attempt to impeach Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas on Tuesday: “It's a dead letter in the Senate, even more than [Sen. James Lankford’s bipartisan immigration and foreign aid] bill was in the House. But they're doing it anyway so they can say that they were doing something. And then they failed to pass the measure. And I thought, well, that's pretty amazing. But then you're like, well, rookie speaker with an effort that's spearheaded by [Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga.]. You don't have the A-Team.”

Stirewalt on the GOP’s failed attempt to pass a solo Israel aid bill later that same day: “They brought forward an Israel funding bill that was supposed to say, well, we've already passed an Israel funding bill, and the Senate has this bad bill. We have a good bill to fund Israel. And that failed. What is going on in the world where you have back-to-back, embarrassing failures? That's not about [Donald Trump], right? That's about a speakership and a leadership team that is not competent.”

Big picture, it sure feels like there’s a competency crisis brewing at the highest levels of government. A special counsel report released Thursday described President Biden as an “elderly man with a poor memory” and raised serious questions about his mental fitness. The failure of Lankford’s bipartisan deal is a sign of Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell’s fading influence with the GOP.

U.S. counties are blocking the construction of new wind and solar plants, throwing a wrench into the government’s goal of reaching 100% clean energy over the next decade. (USA Today)

A new USA Today analysis:

• At least 15% of U.S. counties have stopped new large-scale wind and solar projects through bans, moratoriums or construction hurdles.

• Clean Grid Alliance vice president Jeff Danielson: “It’s 15% of the most highly productive areas to develop wind and solar.”

• 183 counties got their first commercial wind-power project in the past decade.

• 411 counties blocked new wind development in the past decade.

• Renewable energy developers report one-third of wind and solar siting applications in the past five years were canceled, with zoning issues and community opposition being major reasons.

Wall Street Journal reporter Jennifer Hiller noted people oppose clean energy projects for a variety of reasons, including noise and concerns about farmland: “Increasingly, many communities are concerned that the rapidly expanding size of wind and solar farms will irreparably alter the complexion of where they live.”

The trend: The federal government has planned up to $3 trillion in green energy investment. Wind and solar energy from commercial sources are expected to reach 19% of U.S. energy by 2025 and surpass coal electricity production this year. The outlook for fossil fuels has slowed, with natural gas production projected to grow by only 2% in 2024.

San Francisco, a liberal city with a reputation for a progressive approach to handling crime, has used aggressive policing to stem an epidemic of car break-ins. (San Francisco Chronicle)

San Francisco reduced car break-ins by investing in longer-term investigations, using new tools like bait cars and committing to vigorously prosecute cases.

• There were 6,703 car break-in reports from Sept. 1 to Nov. 26 in 2022.

• During the same period in 2023, there were only 3,399 car break-in reports.

A statement from Mayor London Breed: “Pulling these organized (burglary) crews off our streets has a dramatic impact on numbers, and so does sending a clear, unified message from our city leaders that we will hold those accountable who break the law.”

San Francisco has in some ways been the poster child for lax on crime policies. In the wake of George Floyd’s death and the peak of the Black Lives Matter movement, Breed pledged to divert $120 million in police funding to address racial inequality. Former San Francisco District Attorney Chesa Boudin campaigned on refusing to prosecute “quality-of-life" crimes like public camping, offering or soliciting sex or public urination.

The trend: The criminal justice reform wave that swept the country after Floyd’s death has given way to an anti-crime backlash in San Francisco and much of the U.S. A 2023 poll found 77% of San Francisco residents say the city is on the wrong track, citing crime and street cleanliness. Voters worried about crime ousted Boudin in a 2022 recall election, and Breed’s rhetoric has noticeably shifted.

There's been debate lately over the need to overhaul Social Security before it runs out, but comparatively less attention has been paid to how state retirement benefits are also facing a funding quandary. (The Center Square)

A new report by the American Legislative Exchange Council showed how much states are on the hook for unfunded post-retirement benefits. The cost reached $1.14 trillion in 2022. New Jersey, California, New York, Texas, and Illinois each hold deficits over $100 billion.

The American Legislative Exchange Council’s assessment: “By ignoring the problem, state policymakers are putting promised benefits in jeopardy and saddling taxpayers with hundreds of billions of dollars in debt.”

Social Security has been a hot topic during the GOP primary, and it came up last month during a debate between Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and Nikki Haley. Haley is one of the few politicians to suggest raising the minimum eligibility age for Social Security, which is heading toward insolvency in the near future, according to estimates. 80% of Americans oppose raising the Social Security retirement age.