UPDATE 5.20.26: Despite Gov. Kathy Hochul’s slowdown of green mandates in New York, progressive Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez has been silent on the issue. Politico’s Marie French implies that AOC is trying not to rock the boat in order to shore up her footing for a future run for higher office. French writes:

ALBANY, New York — As Gov. Kathy Hochul unravels a signature climate law, Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez has remained silent.

Her reticence marks a stark change. Right after her first election win in 2018, the Congressmember joined protesters in the office of then-House Speaker Nancy Pelosi to call for aggressive action on climate. And for years, she’s championed the “Green New Deal,” an ambitious framework for transitioning the nation off fossil fuels.

But the nationally recognized progressive star may be moderating on some issues, or at least picking her battles more carefully, as she mulls her next potential electoral office. Ocasio-Cortez leads the Democratic field in an early poll for the 2028 presidential election and has been perennially discussed as a challenger for a Senate seat in New York.

“Anyone potentially eyeing higher office has got to pick their battles — with SCOTUS green-lighting a red-state gerrymander-us-out-of-democracy blitz, the elements mounting existential threats are more obvious targets,” said Amit Bagga, a Democratic political strategist.

Originally posted March 24, 2026.

… And Coming Your Way?

In the Manhattan Contrarian, Fracis Menton discusses the situation as NYC approaches the Green Energy Crisis. In a three-page memo from the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA) to the Governor’s office, it reveals that implementation of what New York calls its “cap and invest” program — actually, an artificial scarcity program intentionally designed to drive prices up and impoverish the people that would cost every New York household thousands of dollars in increased energy costs.

The only proper response to Gov. Hochul’s piece, according to MC, is scorn and derision, and no matter how much, it still won’t be enough. The Governor and her staff approach the subject of energy policy as morons and treat voters like morons.

They have never done any credible assessment of either feasibility or cost of the Climate Act mandates. Now that the mandates are approaching, it is obvious that they cannot be achieved at any remotely reasonable cost; but our leaders have no plan forward. Their only idea is to pretend that the Climate Act plan is real when it is not, and that it is moving forward when it is not, and then postpone the hard deadlines until after the current Governor is gone.

Mr. Menton gives readers a few choice quotes, with thoughtful translations:

Gov. Hochul: All New Yorkers should be immensely proud that their home state is a national leader for clean energy and climate action. As Governor, I take that role very seriously, knowing it is our mission to leave our world better than we inherited it… Since I have been Governor, more than $88.7 billion has been invested in clean energy through programs that have made us an example for the rest of the nation.

MC Translation: We have wasted $88.7 billion of taxpayer dollars on wind and solar projects and related infrastructure that are completely useless. (Hochul doesn’t break down how much of the $88.7 billion is New York taxpayer money versus federal.) For a fraction of that money, we could have re-powered our natural gas power plants into more efficient combined-cycle plants, but we didn’t do that because the enviro zealots were against it, and we do whatever they say without ever considering whether it makes sense.

Gov. Hochul: President Trump has denied the science, calling climate change a hoax. Just this week, he again vowed to block all new offshore wind projects and is actively attempting to dismantle those already under construction. At the same time, the federal government is also canceling grants and tax credits for solar and wind, electric vehicles, heat pumps, and other pollution-reduction initiatives while rolling back key scientific findings and regulations that would have helped the nation move toward reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Without a federal partner, there is only so much states can do on their own. . . . The fact is, we will be dealing with a White House outright hostile toward renewable energy for at least another three years, making it impossible for us to meet our targets without imposing higher costs on homeowners, renters, and businesses.

MC Translation: We claimed to be the “climate leader,” but in fact we never had any intention of spending much, if any of our own money on this, and we were planning to stick almost all the exorbitant cost to the federal taxpayers. Now that President Trump has nixed that scam, we realize that this is completely unaffordable. So we will call President Trump a bunch of nasty names, even though we must admit that he is completely right on this issue.

[A]dvocates . . . took the extreme step of suing the state to force it to issue regulations to meet the Climate Act’s 2030 emission reductions targets. A judge agreed and ruled that the state must swiftly issue regulations to achieve what now would be costly and unattainable targets, unless the law is changed. . . . We need more time, and so I am proposing we amend the law to require regulations to reduce statewide greenhouse gas emissions to be issued at the end of 2030.

MC Translation: I’m running for another term, which will likely be my last. The final day of that term is 31 December 2030. So let’s make that the mandated date for Climate Act compliance regulations to take effect. I will do nothing, and the next guy will take office on 1 January 2031 and find him or herself immediately in default and under court injunction to do something. HAHAHAHAHAHA!!!

A World of Make Believe

Meanwhile, asks the MC, what about “we need more time?” For what?

Nothing significant about this is going to be any different four years from now. Electricity generation from wind and sun will still be intermittent and in need of full backup to be usable on the grid. Cost of energy storage may fall a little, but nothing near the factor of a hundred or more that would be needed for a wind/solar/ storage grid to be an economically viable replacement for a grid powered by dispatchable generators. The magical “dispatchable emissions-free resources” talked about by New York energy bureaucrats will be no closer to existence than they are today.

Nothing About Green Energy Transition Is Real…

… except for the ongoing costs getting stuck to the taxpayers and ratepayers. Gov. Hochul and her bureaucratic posse — have no idea what they are doing, so they are closing their eyes and hoping the whole thing goes away.

If the Climate Act deadlines were a stand-alone piece of legislation, it would likely need to go through public hearings at the Capitol, and it would attract substantial attention. So watch for this to treated as part of the “budget” negotiations and emerge as one piece in a massive omnibus budget bill with little or no further mention.

Meanwhile, continues Mr. Menton, “tens of billions of taxpayer and ratepayer dollars continue to be wasted on useless wind turbines and solar panels and grid-scale batteries and additional transmission and delivery infrastructure. I guess we can be thankful that it’s only tens of billions, versus the hundreds of billions that would have been wasted if the federal taxpayers remained on the hook.”

Morons on the Loose …
Debbie Young

When you look at today’s U.S. Treasury bill (T-bill) rates, you’re seeing a different picture compared to longer bonds.

Your Survival Guy learned about T-bills or the risk-free rate of return at Babson. Dick Young refers to it as his North Star. It’s an easy way to get a lay of the land.

How is your lazy cash doing? Is it sitting on your couch or in a checking account earning next to nothing? Is it time for a summer job?

Action Line: If you’re looking to put your extra cash to work, let me know. Email me at ejsmith@yoursurvivalguy.com. And click here to subscribe to my free monthly Survive & Thrive letter.

Originally posted on Your Survival Guy. 

Does Your Lazy Cash Need a Summer Job?
E.J. Smith - Your Survival Guy

FBI Director Kash Patel has announced historic declines in crime during President Trump’s first year in office. The FBI announced:

On May 13, 2026, the FBI’s Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) Program released the First Look: 2025 Crime Data on the FBI’s Crime Data Explorer (CDE). These estimates are based on data submitted by more than 17,000 agencies, covering 96% of the population, for 2025. This increased from 16,675 agencies in 2024. More than 15,000 agencies submitted data via the National Incident-Based Reporting System (NIBRS) for 2025. These agencies cover nearly 90% of the population. Nearly 500 more agencies reported via NIBRS in 2025 compared to 2024.

This historic early release provides an overview of preliminary 2025 crime statistics and trends. The preliminary data show violent crime decreased an estimated 9.3% from 2024 to 2025.

• Murder and non-negligent manslaughter decreased an estimated 18.1%
• Rape decreased an estimated 7.6%.
• Robbery decreased an estimated 18.5%.
• Aggravated assault decreased an estimated 7.2%.

Property crime decreased an estimated 12.4% from 2024 to 2025.

“The 2025 crime data in this report shows the single largest decrease in violent crime and murder since 1937 – as well as huge decreases across the board in terms of aggravated assault, rape, and robbery,” said FBI Director Kash Patel. “Over the last 14 months, we made major transformations at the FBI, and these results show those changes are working. This FBI will continue to stack these wins for the American people under President Trump and always Back the Blue every step of the way.”

May is the earliest the FBI has been able to release preliminary annual crime trends. An early release is possible, in part, due to our transition to monthly data releases.

“The FBI’s Uniform Crime Reporting Program is proud to announce this historic early look at annual crime figures,” said FBI Criminal Justice Information Services Division Assistant Director Tim Ferguson. “This early release demonstrates the FBI’s commitment to transparency while also ensuring we provide the necessary time and care for accurate data in the annual report.”

The data are considered preliminary and are subject to change prior to the release of Reported Crimes in the Nation, 2025, which is slated for later this year.

Patel posted on X.com about the decline in crime:

Thanks to @DC_Reporter – this FBI is full throttle and the historic results show it – 20% drop in the national homicide rate, 112% increase in violent crime arrests, 31% more fentanyl seized, 30% more child abusers off American streets, and more.

President Trump makes it all…

— FBI Director Kash Patel (@FBIDirectorKash) May 19, 2026

The FBI’s full presentation is below:

Crime Plummets Under Trump Administration
Richard C. Young

The Office of the Under Secretary of War for Research and Engineering selected Shield AI to integrate its Hivemind autonomy software into the LUCAS program, a new class of low-cost, one-way attack drones designed for mass deployment.

Hivemind will act as an “AI pilot,” allowing groups of drones to coordinate, adapt, and operate together in real time under the control of a single operator. The goal is to enable large-scale drone swarms that can overwhelm enemy defenses while keeping humans focused on overall mission decisions.

The system is designed for “collaborative autonomy,” where drones independently handle navigation and coordination, dynamically adjust to battlefield conditions, and execute missions even in environments with limited communications. A demonstration is planned for later this year.

Shield AI also notes that Hivemind is already being used across multiple US and allied defense platforms, highlighting its growing role in autonomous and networked warfare systems.

U.S. “Shahed-Style” Drone Program Gets AI to Overwhelm Air Defenses
Steve Schneider

At the Pabradė Training Area in Lithuania, near the Belarusian border, U.S. and allied forces conducted Project Flytrap 5.0, a major counter-drone exercise under Saber Strike 26, reports the Department of War. Soldiers trained in an environment filled with friendly and opposing drones to learn how to operate effectively in modern three-dimensional battlefields shaped by unmanned aerial systems and electronic warfare.

The exercise involved the US Army’s 2nd Squadron, 2nd Cavalry Regiment, the 52nd Air Defense Artillery Brigade, and the United Kingdom’s 3rd Parachute Regiment. Together, they tested more than 50 technologies provided by industry partners, including radar systems, radio-frequency jammers, kinetic interceptors, launched effects, and unmanned ground vehicles. These systems were connected through a combined U.S.-U.K. tactical network and evaluated against a live opposing force.

Project Flytrap has expanded steadily since earlier versions held in Germany and Poland during 2025. Initial exercises focused on determining which counter-drone systems worked best at small-unit levels and developing tactics for soldiers facing drone threats. Flytrap 4.5 further improved operator skills and tested newer technologies, while Flytrap 5.0 marked the first full squadron-level integration of these systems.

Military leaders emphasized that the project is designed to adapt the Army for future warfare, where low-cost drones and electronic warfare play a major role. The exercise also allows soldiers to provide direct feedback to industry developers, helping companies quickly improve equipment before it is fielded widely. Army officials noted that even failures during testing are valuable because they reveal weaknesses and lead to better solutions.

Flytrap 5.0 also supports NATO’s Eastern Flank Deterrence Initiative, which aims to improve multinational coordination, speed up battlefield decision-making through digital networks and artificial intelligence, and lower the cost of countering drones. The next phase, Flytrap 6.0, will expand the program to the brigade level, involving even larger numbers of soldiers, systems, and operational challenges.

Project Flytrap 5.0 Tests Counter-Drone Warfare in Lithuania
Steve Schneider

Is America a dying empire, as many foretell? Victor Davis Hanson explains in American Greatness that America continues to produce astonishing levels of food, ship construction, and industrial output.

Beijing’s miraculous 30-year leap out of poverty into first-world affluence and Westernized power is hardly the same as parity with the US. Trump held all the cards at the current summit, and VDH expects Trump to hold them again when Xi Jinping visits the US this autumn. The US leads China by sizable margins—in wealth, economic output, fuel, food, and military strength.

With a population four times that of the US, China has only about 60% of our GDP. Looking at this asymmetry, one US citizen accounts for 40 percent more goods and services than his four Chinese counterparts. Americans enjoy a per capita GDP (roughly $95,000) over six times higher than China’s (roughly $15,000).

The US is the largest gas and oil producer and exporter in history. China requires 11-12 million barrels per day.

The US is also the greatest food exporter in history.

China, for all its miraculous increases in agricultural productivity, still must import 30–40 percent of its food, a number that keeps rising as China becomes more affluent and more diverse in its food consumption.

The US spends almost three times as much on defense.

Its nuclear forces are roughly six times larger, and its 11 carrier strike groups are nearly four times more numerous than China’s three conventionally powered carriers. The US has more than 100 years of experience in carrier warfare; China has less than 15 years.

American universities’ science, technology, engineering, and mathematics departments dominate global rankings.

In terms of market capitalization, eight US companies are in the world’s top ten. American companies, along with NASA, have regained prior American primacy in space exploration. In new frontiers such as robotics, drones, artificial intelligence, nuclear fusion, cryptocurrencies, and bioengineering, a once sluggish US has woken up, rebounded, and is reasserting its preeminence.

Yes, it’s true, the US fertility rate is down to 1.7. China’s is 1.0. China faces a population that is rapidly shrinking and aging.

But most importantly, notes VDH, China is an autocracy.

It is superficially efficient, but its technology is ultimately derived from the free and wide-open atmosphere of the West and especially of the US. There are usually around 300,000 Chinese students here in the US—and they are not art history majors, but sent here to master and appropriate US scientific expertise and then return home to clone it.

It matters whether China’s ascendance will permanently continue and whether its political system, food and fuel capacity, military, and scientific community are on par with those of America.

China, like all the other US rivals of the last hundred years, VDH reminds readers, has not come close.

Who Is the Real Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon?
Debbie Young

When you think about how you got to where you are with your investments, you can probably tick off a few names who helped you along the way: your parents, your grandparents, or someone else like Richard C. Young, who taught you, or them, how to invest.

In my conversations with you, it’s not uncommon to hear: “My dad followed Richard Young for years and turned me on to him.”

What made Richard C. Young’s Intelligence Report effective was that you knew if you didn’t act on his ideas this month, you’d feel like you missed the boat the following issue.

Every month, he offered his best ideas, and it was up to you to put them to work in your portfolio. It’s why readers enjoyed his introduction so much, because you knew the homework section hadn’t quite started yet. Who doesn’t love recess?

But life can’t always be about recess. We all need a little help to get us going and to keep us going.

It’s why when you have others depending on you to show up, whether it is at the golf course, the pickleball court, your book club, or the gym, you feel a little pressure to be there.

That’s not a bad thing. It helps you take action, and often you feel better for having done it. Not always, but mostly.

Action Line: When you want someone to help you take action with your retirement investments, I know just the guy. Email me at ejsmith@yoursurvivalguy.com. And click here to subscribe to my free monthly Survive & Thrive letter. I’ll help you get out of the house, and on your way.

Originally posted on Your Survival Guy. 

Who Helps You Get Out of the House?
E.J. Smith - Your Survival Guy

American industry has been chained to the floor by “green” regulations that have put it at a distinct disadvantage to manufacturers and builders in China, Vietnam, India, and other countries. The Trump administration has been working hard to streamline and reduce the burden on American businesses, and today released a summation of what it has done so far to achieve that goal. The administration has detailed efforts on permitting reform, coal energy, minerals, oil and gas, EV mandates, finance, electricity, and reducing burdensome regulations. Read the achievements below:

Breaking the Chains of Green Energy Regulations
Richard C. Young

On the eve of what was going to be a resumption of attacks on Iran by the American military, President Trump announced that, in response to pleas from the leaders of the Gulf Arab states, he had decided to hold off on renewed hostilities. He wrote on Truth Social:

I have been asked by the Emir of Qatar, Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, the Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia, Mohammed bin Salman Al Saud, and the President of the United Arab Emirates, Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, to hold off on our planned Military attack of the Islamic Republic of Iran, which was scheduled for tomorrow, in that serious negotiations are now taking place, and that, in their opinion, as Great Leaders and Allies, a Deal will be made, which will be very acceptable to the United States of America, as well as all Countries in the Middle East, and beyond. This Deal will include, importantly, NO NUCLEAR WEAPONS FOR IRAN! Based on my respect for the above mentioned Leaders, I have instructed Secretary of War, Pete Hegseth, The Chairman of The Joint Chiefs of Staff, General Daniel Caine, and The United States Military, that we will NOT be doing the scheduled attack of Iran tomorrow, but have further instructed them to be prepared to go forward with a full, large scale assault of Iran, on a moment’s notice, in the event that an acceptable Deal is not reached. Thank you for your attention to this matter! President DONALD J. TRUMP

Trump Calls Off the Attack, Again
Richard C. Young

The United States Army is seeking a new low-cost interceptor missile for the Patriot missile system that would cost under $1 million per round—far cheaper than the current PAC-3 MSE interceptor, which now costs over $5 million each. The goal is to create a more affordable missile capable of defending against drones, cruise missiles, and short-range ballistic missiles while improving the system’s cost-efficiency and easing pressure on stockpiles, reports The War Zone.

The Army is encouraging multiple defense companies to compete by developing separate components such as rocket motors, seekers, and guidance systems, with an open-architecture approach that avoids dependence on a single contractor. The new interceptor would work with existing Patriot launchers and the Army’s Integrated Battle Command System (IBCS).

The push reflects growing concerns about missile inventory shortages, high production costs, and the increasing use of Patriot systems in conflicts such as the recent fighting involving Iran and ongoing support for Ukraine. A cheaper interceptor could also be produced more quickly and in larger numbers, helping the US prepare for future large-scale conflicts while maintaining strong air and missile defenses.

Pentagon Wants Cheaper Patriot Interceptors for Modern Threats
Steve Schneider