Ceasefire Holding 

The ceasefire announced yesterday between Israel and Hamas seems to be holding -- for good reason. While Hamas declared victory yesterday, in reality it was increasingly desperate to end the fighting.

Some Israelis are frustrated that Hamas wasn't totally defeated, but the jihadists took a beating. Their terror tunnel complex was exposed and decimated. Top leaders and hundreds of fighters were killed. Many weapons caches were destroyed. And reports suggest Hamas may have had only a month's worth of rockets left in its arsenal. 

The New York Times reports that while Hamas may be putting on a happy face, "it had abandoned most of its demands, ultimately accepting an Egyptian-brokered deal that differs little from one proffered on the battle's seventh day." Israeli Intelligence Minister Yuval Steinitz said, "Hamas destroyed Gaza, harmed itself, and didn't achieve anything. Hamas knows the truth. They can celebrate, but they know the truth." 

Israel is agreeing to relax some elements of its trade restrictions on Gaza. Humanitarian aid and building supplies will be allowed in. Let's hope Hamas uses the materials this time to build homes and schools rather than terror tunnels. 

In exchange, Hamas has agreed, in principle, to discuss the demilitarization of Gaza at a future date. Consider me skeptical. A Hamas spokesman said the truce was "paving the way for the next phase of liberating Jerusalem and the land of Palestine. Today, we are closer to Jerusalem."

The annihilation of the Jewish state is Hamas' ultimate goal, reflected in its charter. As long as Hamas controls Gaza and enjoys the support of the Palestinian people, the jihadists will remain a long-term threat to Israel's security. 

The Jihadi Threat To America's Security 

Yesterday a spokesman for the National Security Council confirmed reports that an American citizen from San Diego, California, was killed in Syria fighting for ISIS. Douglas MacArthur McCain converted to Islam in 2004 and referred to himself as "Duale ThaslaveofAllah." 

NBC News reports that McCain was born in Illinois and graduated from high school in Minnesota. While there, he became best friends with Troy Kastigar, who "was killed fighting for the Al-Shabaab terror group in Somalia in 2009." 

McCain's death highlights the growing threat of radical Islam within America. According to one report, government intelligence agencies are attempting to track "as many as 300 Americans who are fighting side by side with the Islamic State group in Iraq and Syria." What happens when these battle-hardened jihadists come home? 

Law enforcement agencies are clearly worried. As a result of the airstrikes President Obama recently ordered against ISIS in Iraq, the FBI and the Department of Homeland Security are warning local police departments to be vigilant and on the lookout for extremists "plotting against targets of opportunity."

It's already happening, but most media outlets are refusing to cover it. Ali Muhammad Brown went on a cross-country killing spree this summer, murdering four people as "vengeance" for U.S. actions in the Middle East. 

Obama To "Shame" America 

Back from vacation, Barack Obama has put down his golf clubs and picked up his pen and phone again. The Obama White House is working to impose a new cap and trade scheme through the United Nations. Even the New York Times seems incredulous. Consider this excerpt:
 

"The Obama administration is working to forge a sweeping international climate change agreement to compel nations to cut their planet-warming fossil fuel emissions, but without ratification from Congress. …But under the Constitution, a president may enter into a legally binding treaty only if it is approved by a two-thirds majority of the Senate.

"To sidestep that requirement, President Obama's climate negotiators are devising what they call a 'politically binding' deal that would 'name and shame' countries into cutting their emissions."

Let me remind you that cap and trade is such a radical idea that it failed to pass the Senate when Democrats controlled a super majority in 2009 and 2010. Rep. John Dingell (D-MI) once admitted that a carbon cap and trade scheme was "a great big tax." Warren Buffett has called cap and trade a "huge tax" and a "regressive tax," meaning it hurts the poor the most.

What might such a huge and regressive tax look like? Skyrocketing utility bills. Barack Obama promised that under his cap and trade plan "electricity rates would necessarily skyrocket" and that it would also "bankrupt the coal industry." Food prices could skyrocket too. And gas prices could double to $7.00 a gallon. 

Carbon emissions are directly linked to economic activity. A growing economy requires energy. Cap and trade would cap energy use by dramatically taxing it. In the process it would trade away our economic prosperity. The United States has the biggest economy, which means we have the most to lose. 

But because Obama can't ram this radical job-killing idea through Congress, he is willing to circumvent the Constitution and use the U.N. to shame his own country. 

By the way, millions of Americans might be thankful for a little global warming. Environmental regulations already imposed by the EPA could force massive blackouts if we experience another cold winter.