Democrats Spark "Manufactured Power Crisis" In Maryland As Left Begins To Panic

 Maryland's deepening energy crisis and the resulting hyperinflation in power bill costs that have steamrolled working-class families are a stark reminder of why local elections matter. It's also a case study in what happens when one-party rule goes unchecked. Under far-left Democratic leadership, the state has been so epically mismanaged that it now faces multiple cascading crises, whether fiscal, energy-related, or tied to illegal aliens or violent crime. 

Last week marked a significant inflection point for the panicking Maryland Democratic Party, which can no longer ignore the power bill crisis. 

Governor Wes Moore, speaking from a swanky vineyard in northern Baltimore County, was forced to address the crisis and now has blamed skyrocketing power bills on the regional grid operator, PJM.

Moore's claim that PJM is somehow responsible for Maryland's power crisis is a masterclass in political deflection.

What's actually happened is that Moore and the Democratic Party have championed failed globalist "green" policies that led to the premature retirement of reliable fossil fuel power generation across the state for intermittent solar and wind, leaving the grid more fragile than ever. Meanwhile, baseload capacity has stagnated, forcing the state to import a significant portion of its electricity from neighboring states just to keep up with the soaring demand driven by data centers, EVs, and reshoring efforts. 

The power crisis is entirely self-inflicted and a result of failed green policies pushed by far-left state and local officials wearing climate-crisis blinders. These crazed leftists have no business managing the state's energy infrastructure, let alone its future. 

Local TV station WBFF Fox Baltimore's Gary Collins spoke with Maryland Del. Ryan Nawrocki, a Republican representing Baltimore County, who called the energy crisis in the state "manufactured" by failed green policies of the Democratic Party. 

Our reporting makes one thing clear: the power bill crisis is a political disaster for Moore and the Democrats. The optics are terrible, and worse, they have no real plan to fix the crisis. Instead, they're deflecting blame onto PJM. But let's be very honest with readers, anyone paying attention saw this trainwreck coming from a mile away: 

• Goldman Says Mid-Atlantic Power Prices "Finally Caught Up To AI Data Center Load Growth Story"

•  Maryland "Can't Import Itself Out Of Energy Crisis" Amid Urgent Need To Boost In-State Power Generation

• "Another Reason To Leave": Top Maryland Power Official Warns Of Regular Rolling Blackouts

• Green Agenda Fallout: Democrat-Led Northeast Now Has Highest Electricity Prices In Nation

• Maryland Democrats Scramble As Green Energy Agenda Sparks Power Bill Hyperinflation

• Brace For Soaring Electricity Bills: Biggest US Power Grid Sets Power Costs At Record High To Feed AI

• "You're Welcome": Pennsylvania Boasts About Saving 'Green' Maryland From Near Power Grid Collapse

State Democrats had to call in their dark-money funded NGO network to flood the airwaves with propaganda in a desperate attempt to quell growing dissent over the power bill crisis and the broader turmoil unfolding... 

• Far-Left Panic: Dark Money NGO Floods Baltimore Airwaves With Propaganda To Save Governor

GOP (or America First) strategists in Maryland, and every state run by far-left Democrats, should take note: hammering the Democrats on their failed green policies is a winning angle. These policies are directly fueling economic pain for the working poor. It's not a complicated strategy. 

Can't make this up: Democrats in Maryland were too focused on condoms for kids rather than actually resolving their own power crisis. 

https://www.zerohedge.com/ai/democrats-spark-manufactured-power-crisis-maryland-left-begins-panic

'What's The Most Realistic Scenario In Which The West Might Replace Zelensky?'

 by Andrew Korybko via Substack,

They might wait until after Russia agrees to a ceasefire (if it ever does) since replacing him with Zaluzhny while hostilities still rage could further weaken Ukraine to Russia’s benefit.

Russia’s foreign intelligence service (SVR) published a report in late July alleging that the Anglo-American Axis organized a secret meeting in the Alps with Zelensky’s Chief of Staff Yermak, GUR chief Budanov, and former Commander-in-Chief-turned-Ambassador-to-Britain Zaluzhny over Ukraine’s future. According to them, Yermak and Budanov agreed with the Anglo-American Axis’ proposal to replace Zelensky with Zaluzhny, which could be advanced on anti-corruption pretexts and “reset” Ukraine’s ties with the West.

Sputnik shared the following assessment of SVR’s report by former US Marine Corps intelligence officer Scott Ritter:

“SVR and its press service are ‘not a media outlet,’ Ritter pointed out. ‘They're not there to inform the public when they release information. It's usually done to achieve an objective or purpose’ - in this case signalling the desire to ‘inflict the most harm on Zelensky at a time when he is deemed to be most vulnerable,’ and ramp up divisions within his government, and between him and Zaluzhny”.

SVR’s report followed the Financial Times’ critical piece about Yermak, who SVR claimed had “set up” Zelensky by convincing him to crack down on anti-corruption institutions to justify any Western effort to replace him on this pretext, which came almost a year after Bloomberg’s own critical piece about him. Ritter’s assessment of SVR’s intentions is therefore credible, but seeing as how they and even Putin predicted Zelensky’s impending fall in the past, it remains to be seen whether it’ll happen anytime soon:

* 12 December 2023: “Naryshkin’s Scenario Forecast About The West Replacing Zelensky Shouldn’t Be Scoffed At”

* 22 January 2024: “Why’d SVR Publish Its Prediction About An Impending Bureaucratic Reshuffle In Ukraine?”

* 7 May 2024: “Russia Hopes To Influence Ukraine’s Possibly Impending US-Backed Regime Change Process”

* 22 June 2024: “How Likely Is It That The US Replaces Zelensky In The First Half Of Next Year?”

* 15 August 2024: “Assessing The Veracity Of SVR’s Latest Report About Impending Political Changes In Kiev”

* 14 November 2024: “The US Is Unlikely To Coerce Zelensky Into Holding Elections Without A Ceasefire First”

* 7 February 2025: “Russia’s Foreign Spy Agency Claims That NATO Wants To Depose Zelensky Through New Elections”

Returning to SVR’s latest report, Trump’s new three-pronged escalation of American involvement in the Ukrainian Conflict and his country’s recent subordination of the EU as its largest-ever vassal state via their totally lopsided trade deal might nullify any supposed prior US imperative to replace Zelensky. After all, Trump was just manipulated into mission creep in spite of his well-known spat with Zelensky at the White House in spring, and his new EU vassals already prioritize the proxy war over all else.

Therefore, it’s arguably the case that the West already “reset” its ties with Ukraine even though Zelensky is still in power instead of replacing him for that purpose like SVR said that they’d soon seek to do, which Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Seymour Hersh also reported is in the cards 11 days before SVR did. Nevertheless, Zelensky’s most likely successor does indeed appear to be Zaluzhny just like SVR and Hersh reported, but the West might wait to install him until after Russia agrees to a ceasefire (if it ever does).

That’s because replacing him while hostilities still rage could further weaken Ukraine to Russia’s benefit. Doing so after they end could symbolically herald a new era for Ukraine, however, and also serve as a reward to Russia for compliance with the ceasefire by fulfilling its requirement for a legitimate Ukrainian leader with whom Putin might then sign a peace deal. These calculations make the most sense from the perspective of Western interests, but they could always change depending on the course of the conflict.

https://www.zerohedge.com/geopolitical/whats-most-realistic-scenario-which-west-might-replace-zelensky

NYC would lose 300K parking spots and $3B under this lefty City Council traffic plan

 NYC drivers would lose roughly 300,000 parking spots and taxpayers would be in the hole for $3 billion under a bill being fast-tracked by far-left City Council members.

The NYC Council’s Progressive Caucus announced this week that it plans to push the full Council to approve legislation by year’s end requiring the city to remove all parking spaces located within 20 feet of crosswalks — and replace them with bike racks, bollards and other structures that block vehicles.

Proponents of the so-called “Universal Daylighting” bill, introduced in December by Councilwoman Julie Won (D-Queens), say it would increase road visibility at intersections, cut down on traffic-related deaths and put the city in compliance with an existing state law banning parking within 20 feet of intersections that the Big Apple has long been exempted from.

4

The Council’s Progressive Caucus announced its plans to push approving legislation by requiring NYC to remove parking spaces located within 20 feet of crosswalks — replacing them with bike racks and structures that block cars.Helayne Seidman

“This bill will make our streets exponentially safer for all: drivers, pedestrians, and cyclists,” said Won, a caucus member whose district includes parking-challenged Long Island City.

But the bill faces fierce opposition, including from the unlikeliest of sources: transportation honchos in Mayor Eric Adams’ administration who’ve also long been pushing an anti-car agenda.

During an April hearing on the legislation, city DOT officials cited an agency study that found increased visibility at intersections could encourage speeding and sharper turns.

“If this … were implemented citywide, we think we could expect an increase of up to 15,000 injuries in a year,” DOT Deputy Commissioner Eric Beaton told Council members.

He also said installing bollards or other infrastructure blocking parking spaces at each of the city’s roughly 40,000 intersections would cost $3 billion.

Won’s bill doesn’t include a timeline for when such a project must be finished, but it would require the DOT to install such infrastructure on at least 1,000 corners a year.

4

NYC drivers would lose roughly 300,000 parking spots and taxpayers would be in the hole for $3 billion under the bill being fast-tracked by far-left City Council members.DOT

The agency has already made such changes near several hundred intersections over the past few years through redesigns aimed at reducing traffic, and parking is already restricted near many other intersections, including corners with bus lanes.

Twenty-seven of the City Council’s 51 members — including the 18 caucus members — have signed onto the bill as sponsors.

Although the legislation already has a majority needed to pass, an additional seven votes would be needed to override a mayoral veto.

4

The DOT, which opposes the “Universal Daylighting” legislation because it believes it could cause more traffic accidents, has already updated several hundred intersections over the past few years.DOT

“This bill is so bad that even the inept DOT is against it, which tells you just how radical it is,” said Councilman Robert Holden (D-Queens).

“Daylighting should be applied based on data and safety studies at busy and dangerous intersections — not imposed as a blanket policy pushed by a progressive caucus that isn’t serious about governing.”

Councilwoman Inna Vernikov, a Republican who successfully lobbied the city earlier this year to retain precious parking spaces in Sheepshead Bay and other parts of southern Brooklyn, agreed, saying “when even the anti-car woke activists at DOT are raising red flags, you know this bill is a problem.”

“This universal daylighting mandate is a reckless, one-size-fits-all proposal that would eliminate hundreds of thousands of parking spots and hurt everyday New Yorkers — particularly seniors, families, and small business owners — without making our streets meaningfully safer,” she said.

4

Proponents of the bill say it would increase road visibility at intersections, cut down on traffic-related deaths and put the city in compliance with an existing state law banning parking within 20 feet of intersections that NYC has long been exempted from.DOT

“The progressives in the Council should stop trying to play urban planner and start listening to the people who actually live here.”

Shannon Phipps, a North Brooklyn activist and founder of the Berry Street Alliance, also blasted the bill, saying she believes it will encourage reckless riding by cyclists and is being driven behind the scenes by lobbyists pushing an anti-car agenda on New Yorkers.

“The city’s taken away so many parking spots already,” she said. “[City officials] don’t seem to care about seniors and people with disabilities who need to get around by car.”

https://nypost.com/2025/08/02/us-news/nyc-would-lose-300000-parking-spots-3b-under-city-council-plan/

Oh, Canada’s hypocrisy! ‘Freedom Convoy’ protesters face ludicrous jail terms for mere ‘mischief’

 

According to Canada’s top prosecutors, the only thing worse than tyranny is “mischief.”  And the worst possible “mischief” is objecting to tyranny.

In a sentencing hearing earlier this week, the Canadian government sought a ludicrous eight-year sentence for Chris Barber, one of the leaders of the Covid “Freedom Convoy” protest that riled Ottawa in early 2022. For another leader, Tamara Lich, the Crown asked for an outlandish seven years.

In April, a court ruled that Barbers and Lich were not guilty of obstructing police or intimidation during the demonstrations. But they were convicted of “mischief” — in part because the truckers in the 40-mile convoy honked their horns to protest some of the most oppressive Covid mandates in the world. 

4

Canada’s truck drivers protested a vaccine mandate in early 2022.REUTERS

Crown prosecutor Siobhain Wetscher justified the harsh prison sentences saying “it’s difficult to imagine an offense of mischief with greater impact.”

Ironically, that was the same way that many truckers felt about the Canadian government’s Covid mandates.  And now Canadian prosecutors are hounding the former protestors, pretending that a Canadian judge did not raze their entire legal house of cards a year ago.

From the start of the pandemic, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau acted as if Covid entitled him to absolute power. Anyone who refused to get the approved Covid vaccines was castigated as a public enemy.

4

Tamara Lich was one of the leaders of the “Freedom Convoy.”REUTERS

Trudeau responded to the trucker protest by invoking the Emergencies Act, effectively dropping a legal nuclear bomb on his opponents. Canada’s Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland announced that the government was “broadening the scope of Canada’s … terrorist-financing rules so that they cover Crowd Funding Platforms and the payment service providers they use.”

The Trudeau government did not formally redefine horn-honking as a terrorist offense but that didn’t impede their crackdown. Banks were authorized to freeze the personal accounts of anyone suspected of donating to the truckers. 

The Covid vaccines were catastrophically failing to prevent infections at the same time Trudeau dropped an iron fist on anti-vax protestors. Almost 90% of Canadian adults had been vaccinated by the start of 2022 as Covid cases were soaring, setting records almost every week.  Even though he was vaxxed and boosted, Trudeau himself came down with Covid during the trucker protest. 

4

At the end of July, Lich attended a sentencing hearing for her role in the protests. The Crown asked that she be sentenced to seven years.REUTERS

Trudeau pretended that no Canadian had a right not to get injected because he personally proclaimed that the Covid vaccine was safe. But the rushed approval process ignored potential adverse side effects. (The Food and Drug Administration now requires formal warnings about Covid vaccine risks of pericarditis — stabbing chest pains — and myocarditis.)

In January 2024, Canadian federal judge Richard Mosley ruled that Trudeau’s use of the Emergencies Act had been unreasonable, illegal and unconstitutional. Trudeau’s regulations “criminalized the attendance of every single person at those protests regardless of their actions.”  The judge slammed “the absence of any objective standard” for freezing bank accounts, but the court decision provided no relief for any of the victims whose bank accounts were unjustifiably seized or whose freedom and privacy was shredded. 

America saw similar absolute immunity for politicians who fueled fear and fabricated emergencies to seize absolute power, including New York Governor Andrew Cuomo’s disastrous decree forcing nursing homes to accept Covid patients, President Joe Biden’s illegal vaccine mandate for large private companies and Covid Czar Tony Fauci’s presidential pardon for sending U.S. tax dollars to the Wuhan Institute of Virology that killed 7 million people worldwide.

4

The Canadian government sought an 8-year sentence for Chris Barber (center).AP

The persecution of trucker protestors is a stark reminder of the two-class system that permeated the pandemic in Canada and the U.S. There were no true “lockdowns.” Instead, the laptop class and officialdom stayed home and enjoyed full salary, while the comparatively downtrodden delivered their groceries, fancy meals, and endless knick-knacks from Amazon.

But all those doorstep deliveries were forgotten when the Canadian political and media elite teamed up to vilify any citizen who didn’t submit to official commands. All the judicial precedents established since THE Magna Charta CARTA? were practically expunged by a ruling class that justified even Quebec’s idiotic Covid decree prohibiting people from leaving their homes at night

Perhaps the best punishment for the two Canadian trucker protest leaders would be to televise them standing in front of a blackboard where they write a hundred times: “I’m sorry I objected to tyranny.”  An even more apt punishment would be to compel all the Canadian politicians and officials who enforced oppressive Covid policies to wear ashes, sackcloth, and a sign: “I’m sorry for my tyranny.”

Is a little “mischief” the only way to get politicians to heed a Constitution?

James Bovard is the author of 11 books, including “Lost Rights: The Destruction of American Liberty.“

https://nypost.com/2025/08/02/opinion/freedom-convoy-protesters-facing-ludicrous-prison-sentences-for-mere-mischief/