An enraged mother sounded the alarm on Loudoun County administrators this week; telling a board meeting her six-year-old asked if she was “born evil” because she is a “white person.”

“My six-year-old somberly came to me and asked me if she was born evil because she was a white person, something she learned in a history lesson at school,” said the mother.

Loudon County mom says that her daughter asked her if she was born evil because she is white:

"My six-year-old somberly came to me and asked me if she was born evil because she was a white person, something she learned in a history lesson at school." pic.twitter.com/gbojF6J9W1

— The First (@TheFirstonTV) October 29, 2021

Watch the mother’s comments above.

October 29, 2021 at 02:54PM - The First
WATCH: Loudoun County Mom Says 6-Year-Old Daughter Asked if She Was ‘Born Evil Because She’s White’
Read the full story by clicking this headline, at The First TV

Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen continued to push Joe Biden’s stalled economic agenda from Europe this week; bizarrely asserting that spending $2.8 trillion will somehow “push inflation down.”

“Two additional years of early childhood education, child care, helping women participate in the labor market, historic investments in healthcare for seniors,” began Yellen.

“Families will receive support!” she added.

Treasury Sec. Janet Yellen says that spending $2.8 Trillion will actually "push inflation down." pic.twitter.com/r8T1w8DU8N

— The First (@TheFirstonTV) October 29, 2021

Watch Yellen’s comments above.

October 29, 2021 at 01:54PM - The First
UP IS DOWN! Treasury Secretary Says Spending $2.8 TRILLION Will Actually ‘Push Inflation Down’
Read the full story by clicking this headline, at The First TV

Failing gubernatorial candidate Terry McAuliffe urged voters in his state to not “turn Virginia into Texas,” a comment mocked widely on social media by conservatives across the Commonwealth.

“We can’t stand by and let Glenn Youngkin turn Virginia into Texas. Get out and vote,” posted McAuliffe on Twitter.

We can’t stand by and let Glenn Youngkin turn Virginia into Texas. Get out and vote.

— Terry McAuliffe (@TerryMcAuliffe) October 29, 2021

Latest polls show McAuliffe and Republican Glenn Youngkin in a virtual tie just days before voters head to the polls.

October 29, 2021 at 01:20PM - The First
BACKFIRE: Terry McAuliffe Begs Voters to Not ‘Turn Virginia into Texas’
Read the full story by clicking this headline, at The First TV

Former President Donald Trump issued a two-word statement Friday on Joe Biden’s disastrous economic agenda; simply writing “Inflation Nation!”

Trump Statement:

“INFLATION NATION!” pic.twitter.com/huUlZhUaYk

— Benny (@bennyjohnson) October 29, 2021

The commentary comes as GDP slows to 2% and spending stalls across America. Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm dismissed higher gas prices while speaking with CNN’s Jake Tapper Friday; saying new costs are a result of energy supplies being less “robust then they had been.”

Read Trump’s terse statement above.

October 29, 2021 at 12:25PM - The First
DONALD STEPS IN: Trump Issues Two-Word Statement on Biden’s Disastrous Economy
Read the full story by clicking this headline, at The First TV

By Dana Loesch

When I brought my first child home from the hospital, my husband’s employer allowed him only enough time to collect me and our son from the hospital and drop me off at home. 

My husband went to work that morning and rushed back to the hospital to get us loaded into the car for home. I’ll spare you the details of my episiotomy and the related stitches which, as per my doctor, prohibited me from climbing stairs or lifting anything heavier than ten pounds for ten days. 

My husband hurriedly helped set me up before he rushed back to work; his bosses were already texting him about taking too long. 

My husband worked at a publication owned by a well-known progressive Democrat and the upper management was entirely comprised of progressive Democrat women. It was these women of the upper management who angrily needled him via text over taking too long with his wife and newborn. He had vacation and sick days but was not allowed to take them at this time for the purpose of acclimating or newly-expanded family at home. 

My husband’s employer wasn’t paying him to have babies or stay home with them — but it is interesting how some of the most vocal advocates of federally-mandated paid family leave are, themselves, their own reasons for supporting it. 

Even after this, I’m against federally-mandated paid family leave. It’s not for a business to tell family how to structure itself and it’s not for anyone but the people risking the capital, the time and the sweat to structure theirs. It’s always assumed that a policy like this cannot exist in practice without the federal government — or that it isn’t already happening without the federal government. 

Women think they’re helping themselves, but they’re not. 

Paid family leave is costly and employers will weigh this for women in lower-income positions by adjusting their overall compensation. Most women would prefer the income rather than the trade-off. Most women don’t want to be viewed as financial hiring risks under federally-mandated programs when competing for jobs against men (or even other women) who may not require the same financial consideration. When faced with paying one salary or paying for paid time off plus another temporary salary for the same position, the math dictates choice. 

It’s odd to discuss the issue in these terms during a time when jobs are plentiful and businesses are desperate for workers. The world was locked down for a year and businesses are competing to hire the best employees, increasing wages and benefits, adding perks all to attract the best workers. While you can argue that shutting down the economy was itself a policy for this, no action was required of congress to make businesses compete for workers. Democrats wanted paid family leave in their economic package but due to the high number of entitlements proposed (free everything from cradle to grave), Senator Joe Manchin told Democrats to trim it down.

The 90s had the coveted “soccer mom” demo, the aughts had “security moms,” and this wild era has “school board moms” fighting CRT and pornography presented as education. Democrats really wanted paid family leave to battle the school board moms across the country but nowhere more so than in Virginia, where embattled beltway barnacle Terry McAuliffe is struggling with Glenn Youngkin in a state Joe Biden took by +10 last year. McAuliffe so often stuffs his foot in his mouth whenever discussing CRT or parental involvement in schools you’d think he was trying to purposefully lose.

Instead of changing existing policy structure that burdens families, Democrats and some Republicans tell us that we must not put family first if we don’t accept their the proposal. 

If those politicians were serious about “families first” results, they’d first eliminate all spending unrelated to Article 1 Section 8 and stop abusing the general welfare clause to include statist, cradle-to-grave entitlement spending. They’d also abolish the IRS and stop thieving from the incomes of families they claim to want to put first, thereby allowing those families to invest in their own children. They’d implement a graduated consumption tax, pass school choice, eliminate or at least greatly reduce corporate taxes, and stop trying to run the private sector. 

This isn’t about just what government can do to get out of the way —be such an attractive asset as a potential hire that employers are compelled to offer perks to land the best employees. Uncle Sam isn’t a provider and neither are employers — the individual is the provider. 

Any policy that invites Uncle Sam’s participation or misconstrues the relationship between employer-employee is not conservative and does not practice limited government.

October 29, 2021 at 11:09AM - The First
LOESCH: Federally-Mandated Paid Family Leave Is Not a Conservative Policy
Read the full story by clicking this headline, at The First TV

Congresswoman Cori Bush exploded on a group of fossil fuel CEOs this week when she bizarrely declared that the use of oil and natural gas are a “striking example of white supremacy.”

“Black Americans are 75% more likely to live next to industrial facilities that directly harm us. For years, you all have continued to promote fossil fuels, despite knowing that promoting them means promoting environmental racism and violence in black and brown communities… This is a striking example of White Supremacy,” claimed Bush.

Rep. @CoriBush (D-Mo.) accuses energy companies of of being “a striking example of white supremacy” for selling oil and natural gas pic.twitter.com/gnDvx1UNYa

— Tom Elliott (@tomselliott) October 28, 2021

Watch Bush’s bizarre rant above.

October 29, 2021 at 10:25AM - The First
CORI IMPLODES: Squad Member Says ‘Fossil Fuels’ a ‘Striking Example of White Supremacy’
Read the full story by clicking this headline, at The First TV

Joe Biden met with Pope Francis in Vatican City Friday where the two exchanged gifts and joked about buying each other a drink.

“You are the most significant warrior for peace I’ve ever met,” said the President. “With your permission I’d like to be able to give you a coin… It has the US Seal on the front, what’s different with this coin is on the back of it I have the state of Delaware.”

“Next time I see you and you don’t have it you have to buy me a drink!” he added.

Joe Biden tries and fails an awkward joke with Pope Francis, offering to buy him drinks. pic.twitter.com/ptzkNV74zC

— The First (@TheFirstonTV) October 29, 2021

Watch Biden’s comments above.

October 29, 2021 at 09:17AM - The First
WATCH: Biden Gives the Pope a Coin, Offers to Buy Him Alcohol
Read the full story by clicking this headline, at The First TV

One of the more explosive stories these days is the saga of the alleged sexual assault in a high school in Loudon County, Virginia. The basic facts of the case are that a 15-year-old boy is reported to have assaulted a ninth-grade girl in the bathroom of the high school. From there, the waters get muddy.

When the story originally broke in mid-October, it began with a Daily Wire report that contained a number of explosive allegations. The original story reported that the rape was committed by a boy wearing a skirt and that the school tried to cover up the attack. The victim’s father was arrested at a school board meeting back in June in which the superintendent was defending the school district’s transgender bathroom policy.

Superintendent Scott Ziegler told the crowd, “To my knowledge, we don’t have any records of assaults occurring in our restrooms.”

The victim’s father, Scott Smith, challenged the superintendent and things got heated. Ultimately, Smith was forcibly removed and arrested. A video of the incident went viral.

The circumstances of the attack are both tragic and appalling, but not all of the allegations are supported by evidence. NBC Washington does confirm that the boy’s family has said that he identifies as gender fluid and was wearing a skirt the day of the attack. It is also true that Virginia law requires that the superintendent be notified of sexual assaults within the school system.

An additional truth is that the accused rapist was transferred to another school while the case was pending. He is accused of sexually assaulting a different student while at that school. At the time, the boy was being monitored electrically as he waited for his trial. Investigators were also waiting for DNA evidence from the rape kit.

In other words, it’s true that there was an assault by a skirt-wearing, transgender boy and that Loudon County school officials handled the problem abysmally. As the parent of 13-year-old girl, it’s tough to blame Scott Smith for losing his cool. I don’t know what I would do in a similar situation.

On the other hand, there are reports that the school tried to cover up the incident and did not report the attack to police. Virginia’s WTOP reports that this is not true. An email from Ziegler to school board members has emerged since the story broke. That email, dated May 28, shows both that Ziegler was aware of the sexual assault, although it does not contain the details about the sexual preferences of the attacker, and it also notes that the Loudon County Sheriff’s Office was investigating.

The email also notes that the girl’s parent came to the school and “caused a disruption using threatening and profane language.” The short message notes that additional law enforcement units responded to the school to assist with the parent.”

What is not clear is why Superintendent Ziegler denied that there were any sexual assaults related to the school’s bathroom policy. He did offer an explanation in a statement, saying, “I wrongly interpreted as incidents involving transgender and gender-fluid students. I did this because I was viewing the question in light of the general questions and debate around policy 8040 [the transgender bathroom policy] that was occurring at the time.”

That isn’t a clear answer at all.

The superintendant said that the attack was not made public during the investigation to protect the identities of both the alleged rapist and the victim since both are minors. Ziegler also said that the school followed federal Title IX procedures but that those guidelines were inadequate.

Earlier this week, a county juvenile court judge ruled that the accused rapist was guilty of forcible sodomy and forcible fellatio. At the trial, a more complete picture of the chain of events began to emerge.

As WTOP describes, the attack was not random. The two teens had been texting using the Discord app for several weeks. Some of these conversations were “sexually charged.” The pair had reportedly met in bathrooms at the school twice to “hook up” and have sex.

Per the report, on May 28, the boy texted the girl, who was 14 at the time of the attack, and asked her to meet him in the bathroom again. She agreed to meet him but did not consent to sex on that occasion. The boy forced himself on her anyway. After the attack, the girl reported the incident to school officials and was interviewed by sheriff’s office investigators. She did not initially disclose the previous encounters.

Even though the girl was 14 at the time of the encounters and the age of consent in Virginia is 18, the state also has a “Romeo and Juliet” law with exceptions for sex between teenagers. However, this law only applies to 15- to 17-year-olds. Even though the boy was 15 during their consensual encounters, Virginia law does not allow a 14-year-old to consent to sex. Consensual sex between a 14 and 15-year-old would be a Class 4 misdemeanor, but rape is a felony.

The situation is a complex one. The school definitely handled the situation poorly, but at the same time, a lot of the hysteria seems unfounded. While the pair’s previous sexual encounters do not excuse the attack, they do show that the incident does not fit the mold of a random attack by a transgender predator. At least not in the first attack. Few details are available on the second.

Second, the transgender bathroom policy 8040 was not in force when the attack occurred. The rape occurred on May 28 and the school board did not approve the new policy until August. It’s difficult to blame a policy that did not yet exist for the assault.

Third, while the outrage about sending the boy to another school is understandable, we should remember that he had not been convicted of a crime at that point. It was only a few short years ago that many of the people now saying that the boy should have been locked up immediately were saying that women should not be automatically believed in cases that ranged from Brett Kavanaugh to Roy Moore to Donald Trump.

I agree with those previous statements. No one should be believed automatically. The only way to handle these cases justly is to look at the evidence. Even accused rapists are entitled to due process because not all women tell the truth. (Although way too many women have experienced rape and many of them suffer silently without ever making a public accusation.) If an accused rapist is deemed dangerous, he should be locked up until he can be tried. Loudon County dropped the ball on that score, but as they say, hindsight is 20/20.

Should Loudon County have known that the boy was dangerous? Even consensual sex would have been criminal, and the school did not know about the consensual encounters at that point. We also don’t know whether the boy had a history of problems or whether this was his first time in trouble. Regardless, with an accusation as serious as a rape on school property during school hours, it seems that more precautions should have been taken.

I take rape and sexual assault very seriously. My long-time readers may remember that my wife is a rape survivor (as she discussed in 2018) who knows all too well that school districts can try to sweep such embarrassing incidents under the rug. Over the years, I’ve been surprised and dismayed to hear a great many women listen to her story and then relate the experience of their own attacks. Sexual assault is a lot more common than most of us care to realize.

Sexual assault cases should not be political, however. Many people on the right are concerned about the Loudon County case because it fits their culture war agenda. When the chips are down, both parties make excuses for members of their tribe who behave badly. After all, isn’t the Supreme Court or a Senate seat or the White House more important than an individual who is probably lying anyway since they are attacking someone I like?

In fact, Loudon County isn’t the only school sex scandal going on right now. ProPublica recently released a report on how Liberty University allegedly exhibited a pattern of covering up rapes of its students. In many cases, students say that when they reported attacks to faculty, the school did not act on the allegations and administrators would even accuse the women of violating the Liberty Way, the school’s code of conduct which bans drinking, being alone with members of the opposite sex, and premarital sex. Scott Lamb, a former official at the university, filed suit this week claiming that he was fired for raising concerns about how the school handled sexual assaults.

Should these allegations be dismissed because Liberty University is a respected Christian and conservative institution? The answer should be a resounding “no” from all sides of the political spectrum.

And what about the Southern Baptist Convention’s failure to address similar concerns? The denomination has had a bitter fight over the past few years over how to handle reports of systematic abuse by some Southern Baptist pastors and church officials and the failure of church leaders to adequately respond to abuse victims. Messengers to the Southern Baptist Convention voted overwhelmingly to set up an independent investigation of the matter last summer. (Full disclosure: My wife’s rape did not occur at church, but a Southern Baptist pastor was one of the people who gave her bad advice on how to handle the matter.)

The point here is not to engage in whataboutism. The evidence is that Loudon County handled the sexual assault poorly, even if all the details were not accurately reported.

But we shouldn’t limit our outrage to our political enemies. We should follow the evidence and objectively go where it leads. Just because a person holds a position of power, sexual assaults should not be overlooked and excused. The attitude that the end justifies the means has led both parties into a race to the bottom in which they find themselves defending sexual predators.

Superintendent Ziegler has apologized for the incident and one school board member has resigned. For what it’s worth, Ziegler has also announced several reforms aimed at preventing a similar occurrence. These include instituting new measures to isolate accused rapists from the rest of the student body. Parents are calling for Ziegler’s removal, but unless there are additional revelations, I think he should face the voters to determine his fate.

Scott Smith, the victim’s father seems to have acted poorly as well, even if he acted understandably. His alleged behavior on the day of the attack did not help matters. His outburst at the meeting several weeks later is can be understood in light of Ziegler’s denial. Smith was found guilty in the school board scuffle and given a suspended sentence of 10 days in jail. He is also suing the school system.

Sexual assaults have been with us since the days of Genesis. In our fallen world, they won’t be going away, but that doesn’t mean we should tolerate them. And that’s especially true within Christian organizations.

---

NOTE: I’ve referenced Brett Kavanaugh and the Supreme Court in this piece. While Kavanaugh was accused, I don’t believe the evidence supports his accuser. I’m not saying this because he’s conservative justice, however. I’m saying it because the accusation was very thin and not supported by facts. Granted, this may be because it is difficult to find evidence in a decades-old case.

If you or someone you know is the victim of a rape or sexual assault, my advice would be not to keep it a secret. Talk to your parents, friends, the school, and/or law enforcement. Save any evidence that you have. Leave a paper trail.

Victims of sexual violence can find help at https://www.rainn.org/ or by calling 800-656-HOPE (4673).

The First TV contributor network is a place for vibrant thought and ideas. Opinions expressed here do not necessarily reflect those of The First or The First TV. We want to foster dialogue, create conversation, and debate ideas. See something you like or don’t like? Reach out to the author or to us at [email protected]. 

Follow David Thornton on Twitter (@captainkudzu) and Facebook

October 29, 2021 at 08:31AM - David Thornton
TRUTH OR FICTION? The Truth About the Loudon County Sexual Assault | David Thornton
Read the full story by clicking this headline, at The First TV

Dana Loesch called-out Vice President Kamala Harris Thursday after the Democrat called for “generational investments in working people,” pointing-out the job of the federal government is not to invest in people but get out of the way.

“We are confident we will pass our Build Back Better Framework, which will make generational investments in working people, our children, the climate, and transform the care economy,” posted Harris on Twitter.

Government isn’t for investing in people. It’s for staying out of the people’s way. Stop stealing incomes and preventing people from investing into their own families. https://t.co/EJpXuIGOxC

— Dana Loesch (@DLoesch) October 28, 2021

“Government isn’t for investing in people. It’s for staying out of the people’s way. Stop stealing incomes and preventing people from investing into their own families,” fired-back Loesch.

October 29, 2021 at 08:29AM - The First
LOESCH to KAMALA: ‘Stop Stealing Incomes and Preventing People From Investing in Their Own Families’
Read the full story by clicking this headline, at The First TV

Joe Biden continued to confuse Americans when speaking about the stalled US economy Thursday; informing the public electric vehicles can go “all the way across America on a single tank of gas.”

“When you buy an electric vehicle, you can go all the way across America on a single tank of gas… It’s not gas. You plug it in. 500,000 of them. These stations. Along the way,” said the President.

Joe Biden on electric cars:

"When you buy an electric vehicle, you can go across America on a single tank of gas figuratively speaking. It's not gas. You plug it in." pic.twitter.com/uUPaaboBV6

— The First (@TheFirstonTV) October 28, 2021

Watch Biden’s comments above.

October 28, 2021 at 01:35PM - The First
OL’ JOE: Electric Cars ‘Can Go All the Way Across America on a Single Tank of Gas’
Read the full story by clicking this headline, at The First TV