NewsNation Chief Washington Anchor and On Balance host Leland Vittert was a foreign correspondent for four years in Jerusalem. He gives you an early look at tonight’s 9 pm ET show. Subscribe to War Notes here.
Watch tonight: Our friend Jillian Michaels just left the White House for a major “MAHA” (Make America Healthy Again) announcement about chronic disease in America’s kids.
- Yes, we keep spending more on health care and getting worse results
- Yes, America’s kids keep getting more unhealthy while taking more medicine.
- Yes, we have a problem.
- “We can’t afford not to do something about this,” says MAHA.
- But we might not be able to afford to do “something.”
- The economics of taking out ultra-processed foods from America’s diet — especially low-income Americans’ diets — appear not to work.
Perspective: Much will be said — see below — about the assassination of two Israeli diplomats in D.C. today.
- They are rightfully remembered as a young, idealistic couple representing their country on the eve of their engagement.
- Too often, though, we focus on the crime and the criminal rather than the victim.
- That was certainly the case in 1975 when actor Kelsey Grammer’s sister Karen was kidnapped and murdered.
- Her brother, known as Frasier on TV, just wrote a book remembering his sister and the lessons we can all learn about love and loss.
- Order the book here — Grammer joins us tonight. I found it incredibly moving.
Going bankrupt: Republicans’ “Big Beautiful Bill” ended America’s last best chance to deal with:
- An exploding national debt
- Out-of-control entitlements
- The world moving away from endless bankrolling of America’s fat and happy spending
- It’s a shame, really — what a missed opportunity to cement America’s dominance for the next 100 years.
Ernest Hemingway wrote in “The Sun Also Rises”:
- “‘How did you go bankrupt?’ ‘Two ways. Gradually, then suddenly.’”
- It’s one of George Will’s favorite quotes.
- He started warning us about this in the 1990s when the debt was one-seventh what it is now.
- Mr. Will joins us tonight on whether we have reached the “sudden” phase.
- He started warning us about this in the 1990s when the debt was one-seventh what it is now.
Not Surprised
The murder of two Israeli diplomats by a man who then wrapped himself in a keffiyeh and yelled “Free Palestine” is the single most predicted and predictable thing of 2025.
- For nearly 18 months, the Left in America justified, coddled and explained away tens of thousands marching demanding the eradication of Israel.
- Let’s revisit the chants on the streets of major American cities and at college campuses across America:
- “From the river to the sea” advocates for a Middle East without Israel or Jews
- “Globalize the intifada” means taking the violent uprising against Israel to Jews around the world
- There are more — the Anti-Defamation League has a helpful guide
- Let’s revisit the chants on the streets of major American cities and at college campuses across America:
- It should be no surprise that someone took all the wannabe radicals up on their offer.
- The Left in America typically accuses the Right of what they themselves are doing.
- “A threat to democracy.”
- Well, turns out former President Biden’s wife and closest advisers were running the country while Biden could only work 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
- “Political violence”
- Just look at the two assassination attempts against Trump and now this
- Antisemitism
- The BLM movement morphed into the pro-Gaza types on America’s college campuses.
- “A threat to democracy.”
- Yet, the Left will cry that the Department of Homeland Security threaten to ban Harvard from accepting foreign students because they wouldn’t kick out the terrorist sympathizers.
- About this time in Trump’s first term, a few dozen neo-Nazis dressed up and carried tiki torches shouting “Jews will not replace us” in Charlottesville, Virginia, and America was rightly outraged.
- Democrats said we needed a national reckoning on hate — every Republican was forced to answer for Charlottesville.
- Yet, for 18 months, we’ve had progressives chanting about killing Jews and nobody cares. Why is that?
- Yes, some Palestinians are hurting — but they are hurting because of Iran, Hamas and Turkey — not Israel.
Personal privilege: The wink and nod from the Democrats to the pro-Hamas types over the past 18 months must stop.
- It’s pretty simple — as George W. Bush once said, “Either you are with us or you are with the terrorists.”
More to come: Before the killings, The Wall Street Journal published a great op-ed from Jukka Savolainen, “The Alienated ‘Knowledge Class’ Could Turn Violent.”
- Most of the recent international terror list organizations and similar individuals came from leftist ideology:
- The Red Army Faction
- Action Directe
- The Weather Underground
- Red Brigades in Italy
- Alleged UnitedHealthcare assassin Luigi Mangione
Tune into “On Balance with Leland Vittert” weeknights at 9/8 CT on NewsNation. Find your channel here.
The views expressed in this article are those of the author and not necessarily of NewsNation.