Sen. John Kennedy compares Biden’s polling numbers to ‘chlamydia,’ torches ‘Bidenomics’
Sen. John Kennedy, R-La., ripped into President Biden‘s signature economic policy, known as Bidenomics, on Fox News’ “Hannity” Monday night and likened Biden’s poll numbers to an STD. Sean Hannity asked Kennedy about the current state of the economy as inflation continues to pick the pockets of Americans. Recent data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics reveals significant price hikes across various sectors, with grocery prices rising by 20% and home prices increasing by 18%. Energy costs have surged, with gasoline prices jumping by 52%, fuel oil by 45%, and electricity by 26%. HERE’S HOW BIDENOMICS IS CRUSHING DREAMS OF AMERICAN FAMILIES AND BUSINESSES “When you think of this number, that Americans spend more on food, more of their income as a percentage on food than at any other point in the past 30 years, Senator. I think those people see and feel the real impact of ‘Bidenomics’ in real-time. Will they get away with this shifting of blame?” Kennedy responded: “Unless you were homeschooled by a day drinker, you can see that shrinkflation and inflation are just different sides of the same coin.” “Any economist, any reputable economist who didn’t get his degree from Costco, will tell you that President Biden’s economic policies caused both inflation and shrinkflation,” Kennedy continued. “Now I don’t hate anyone, and that includes President Biden, but when he tries to blame shrinkflation and inflation on small business people you have to consider the source.” Shrinkflation is a term used to describe when companies reduce the size or quantity of a product while keeping the unit price the same, or even raise it to account for other rising costs. ANALYSIS FINDS AMERICANS NEED EXTRA $11,400 TO AFFORD THE BASICS AS GOP LAWMAKERS BLAME ‘BIDENOMICS’ “His inflation is a cancer on the American dream,” he went on. “And the American people have figured it out and that’s why, if you believe the polls, the president is polling right up there with chlamydia.” Rising prices for pantry staples are putting strain on consumers, leading them to prioritize essential purchases over discretionary spending. According to NielsenIQ data, average unit prices for dry groceries surged by 12% in the four weeks ending May 27 last year, well above pre-pandemic levels. BIDEN TOPS TRUMP IN NEW POLL, BUT LEAD SHRINKS AGAINST THIRD-PARTY CANDIDATES Household care products also saw significant increases, with insect sprays and napkins among the fastest risers. Additionally, other food items such as potato chips, mayonnaise and applesauce experienced substantial price jumps of 17%, 23% and 22%, respectively. “Sean, I did not think President Obama was a very good president, but compared to President Biden, President Obama just shoplifted,” Kennedy said. “President Biden stole the whole bank. President Biden’s inflation not only hurts people, but it hurts business.” A recent Quinnipiac University poll found that Biden currently leads in a hypothetical race against Trump by four points, locking in 49% support of likely voters over 45% who said they would vote for the former president. The results reflect a slight narrowing in the race, after a Jan. 31 poll found Biden leading Trump by 6 points, 50% to 44%.
PornHub parent company sued by Texas AG for failing to verify users’ ages
The Texas attorney general has filed a lawsuit against the parent company of adult website PornHub, alleging the pornography platform has failed to conform to the state’s new regulations. Attorney General Ken Paxton filed a lawsuit against Aylo Global Entertainment and Aylo USA, Incorporated for failing to verify users’ ages before granting access to its pornographic websites. “Instead of abiding by Texas law requiring purveyors of obscene sexual material to institute age verification systems, the company immediately presents minors who access their websites with pornographic content,” Paxton alleged in a press release announcing the lawsuit. PRO-FAMILY LEADER HAILS LEGAL VICTORY FORCING PORN SITES TO CRACK DOWN ON UNDERAGE ACCESS: ‘IT CAN BE DONE’ He added, “I look forward to holding any company accountable that violates our age verification laws intended to prevent minors from being exposed to harmful, obscene material on the internet.” House Bill 1181 was made law in Texas in June of last year, requiring adult websites to “use reasonable age verification measures to ensure those viewing their pornography are 18 years of age or older.” The success of the legislation made Texas the seventh state to implement age verification laws on pornography outlets. TEXAS AG KEN PAXTON SUES 5 CITIES OVER MARIJUANA AMNESTY POLICIES, CITES DRUG’S REPORTED LINKS TO ‘PSYCHOSIS’ Companies that violate the state law are subject to up to $10,000 a day for failing to verify age, an additional $10,000 per day if the sites retain user information, and an additional $250,000 if a child is exposed to pornographic material due to failures in verification. “AYLO GLOBAL ENTERTAINMENT, INC.’s and AYLO USA, INCORPORATED’s publication or distribution of sexual material harmful to minors on the internet without implementing the reasonable age verification methods required by Chapter 129B harms, and continues to harm, Texas children and adolescents,” Paxton’s office alleges in the lawsuit. Paxton alleges that Aylo is liable for up to $1,600,000 plus $10,000 a day from September of last year to the date of the lawsuit. CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP The attorney general is also seeking Aylo to pay out attorney’s fees and all other costs suffered by the state in filing the lawsuit against the company.
Rashida Tlaib ‘proud’ to not vote for Biden in Michigan Democratic primary
Rep. Rashida Tlaib, D-Mich., said she was “proud” to cast a protest vote against President Biden in Michigan’s Democratic primary on Tuesday. Tlaib’s comments were shared in a video by Listen To Michigan, a group dedicated to getting Democrats in the Great Lakes State to vote “uncommitted” in the primary election. Biden’s stance on Israel’s war in Gaza has earned him fierce backlash from Arab American and Muslim community leaders, particularly in Michigan, which is home to one of the largest Muslim communities in the U.S. “Hi everyone, it’s Rashida. I was proud today to walk in and pull a Democratic ballot and vote uncommitted. We must protect our democracy, we must make sure that our government is about us, about the people,” Tlaib said. “When 74% of Democrats in Michigan support a ceasefire yet President Biden is not hearing us, this is the way we can use our democracy to say listen.” TRUMP SAYS SOUTH CAROLINA IS ‘BIGGER WIN THAN WE ANTICIPATED,’ LOOKS FORWARD TO SAYING ‘JOE, YOU’RE FIRED’ “Listen to the families right now that have been directly impacted, but also listen to majority of Americans that are saying enough. No more wars, no more using our dollars to fund a genocide. No more. So please, take your family members, use our democratic process to speak up about your core values, where you want to see our country go.” Tlaib said it was the first time her 18-year-old son had voted in an election. Progressive-led campaigns and lawmakers have hammered Biden’s re-election campaign over the U.S.’s handling of the Middle East conflict. In addition to Listen To Michigan, a group called Abandon Biden has been pushing voters to actively oppose the president for his failure to call for a permanent cease-fire in Gaza. TRUMP ‘REALLY NOT THINKING ABOUT’ HALEY AFTER SOUTH CAROLINA VICTORY, SAYS HE’S FOCUSED ON BEATING BIDEN Abandon Biden is specifically targeting voters in swing states, which could prove critical in the 2024 race that is likely to pit Biden against his old political foe, former President Trump. Tlaib has been among Biden’s most vocal left-wing critics in Congress in the wake of Oct. 7, when Hamas militants launched a surprise invasion in southern Israel, killing over 1,000 people and taking dozens more hostage. NATO MEMBERS BRACE FOR TRUMP WIN AS RECORD NUMBER OF MEMBERS MOVE TO MEET SPENDING PLEDGES Israel has responded with heavy bombardment and a ground invasion of the Gaza Strip. The Hamas-run Health Ministry, which does not distinguish between civilians and fighters, has said nearly 30,000 Palestinians have been killed in the resulting conflict. Tlaib, the only Palestinian-American in Congress, has spent the last day urging Michiganders on social media to also protest Biden in the Democratic primary. She wrote in one post on her Instagram Story, “We attend marches and protests all the time! We can stand at a polling station for EVERY CHILD KILLED in Gaza. Don’t stay home. Help the uncommitted campaign.” Fox News Digital reached out to Tlaib’s campaign to ask whether she would similarly oppose Biden in the general election if he did not call for a permanent cease-fire. Biden’s campaign did not immediately return a request for comment.
Five-term Indiana Mayor Tom Henry says he has late-stage stomach cancer
Fort Wayne Mayor Tom Henry said Monday he has been diagnosed with late-stage stomach cancer and will begin chemotherapy treatments next week. The five-term mayor of Indiana’s second most populous city announced the diagnosis during a news briefing outside his office Monday afternoon. INDIANA TEACHER FOUND DEAD IN SCHOOL STAIRWELL AFTER NOT COMING OUTSIDE FOR RELATIVE TO PICK HIM UP “My initial scans have shown that the cancer is currently spreading through my lymph nodes and to other organs in my body. Because of that, my prognosis is not good,” Henry said. He said he plans to continue carrying out his duties as mayor. “I also have confidence in my ability to carry out my term as your mayor for as long as God permits,” Henry said. Henry, 72, was elected to his fifth term as mayor of the city of about 270,000 residents in November. Henry pleaded guilty to operating a vehicle while intoxicated endangering a person in November 2022, had his license suspended for 90 days and received a suspended one-year jail sentence. He was arrested the month before with a blood-alcohol level of 0.152, or nearly twice Indiana’s legal limit of 0.08. CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP Henry’s wife, Cindy, died at age 67 on Jan. 20 after battling pancreatic cancer for more than a year.
Wisconsin Democrat governor asks Republicans to release $125M to combat ‘forever chemicals’ pollution
Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers reiterated Tuesday that he will veto a Republican bill that would create grants to fight pollution from so-called forever chemicals and again asked GOP lawmakers to release to environmental regulators $125 million set aside to deal with contamination. Republicans who control the Legislature’s powerful finance committee didn’t immediately respond to Evers’ request, raising the possibility that the money will go unspent indefinitely as municipalities across the state struggle with PFAS contamination in their groundwater. DEMOCRAT WISCONSIN GOVERNOR SIGNALS HE WON’T SIGN BILL TO FIGHT FOREVER CHEMICALS AS LEGISLATIVE SESSION ENDS “Wisconsinites should not have to wait any longer than they already have,” Evers wrote in a letter Tuesday to finance committee leaders state Sen. Howard Marklein and state Rep. Mark Born. “Partisan politics should not stand in the way of addressing PFAS contamination in communities across our state.” PFAS, short for per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, are man-made chemicals that don’t easily break down in nature. They are found in a wide range of products, including cookware and stain-resistant clothing, and previously were often used in aviation fire-suppression foam. The chemicals have been linked to health problems including low birth weight, cancer and liver disease, and have been shown to make vaccines less effective. Municipalities across Wisconsin are struggling with PFAS contamination in groundwater, including Marinette, Madison, Wausau and the town of Campbell on French Island. The waters of Green Bay also are contaminated. Republicans created a $125 million trust fund in the state budget last summer to address PFAS pollution. Evers has been trying to wrestle the money from them for months but the committee has yet to release a dollar. Republican state Sens. Eric Wimberger and Rob Cowles authored a sweeping bill that calls for spending the money on grants for municipalities, private landowners and waste disposal facilities to test for PFAS in water treatment plants and wells. Landowners with property that became contaminated through no fault of their own also would be eligible for grants. The state Senate passed the bill in November and the Assembly followed suit earlier this month. But Evers has said he won’t sign the legislation into law because the bill doesn’t actually release any money and he’s concerned about language that would limit the Department of Natural Resources’ authority to hold polluters liable. Multiple environmental groups have urged Evers to veto the legislation, saying the limits on DNR enforcement are a deal-breaker. Wimberger and Cowles have argued that the limits are necessary to protect landowners who aren’t responsible for PFAS pollution on their property from fines. Evers directed the DNR in December to ask the Legislature’s Republican-controlled Joint Finance Committee to simply release the $125 million to the agency, but the committee has taken no action. The governor promised in his letter Tuesday that he will veto the bill. He wrote that even if he signed it, there was no guarantee the committee would release the money. Evers said in the letter that he has ordered DNR officials to again ask the committee to release the $125 million to the agency, this time promising it would be spent according to the parameters laid out in the Wimberger-Cowles bill. The governor called the request a compromise. Aides for Marklein and Born didn’t immediately respond to Tuesday emails seeking comment on Evers’ request. CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP Wimberger said in a statement that the bill would protect landowners and that Evers is deliberately mischaracterizing them as polluters, which amounts to “oppressive bureaucratic domination.” The statement didn’t address the governor’s latest request to release the money to the DNR.
Biden running out of time to fulfill 2020 campaign pledge to abolish federal death penalty
President Biden is running out of time to fulfill his 2020 presidential campaign promise to abolish the death penalty, leaving an opening for his opposition to capitalize on the issue. During Biden’s 2020 campaign, he vowed to end the federal death penalty and, after taking office three years ago, his incoming administration considered several possible options to do so. However, none came to fruition, and there are about eight months until the November election. While Biden has yet to act on capital punishment, former President Trump has taken the issue on the campaign trail with him, vowing to extend the penalty to drug dealers. SOUTH CAROLINA SEEKS TO RESTART EXECUTIONS WITH ELECTRIC CHAIR, FIRING SQUAD; SAYS PAINLESS DEATH NOT REQUIRED In January 2021, Biden initially considered an executive order, people familiar with the matter told The Associated Press, but the White House did not issue one. It also did not push Congress for legislation barring it. Six months into the administration, Attorney General Merrick Garland announced a moratorium on federal capital punishment to study it further. The narrow action has meant there have been no federal executions under Biden, but it simply put the death penalty on a temporary hold. IDAHO’S MOVE TO RESURRECT FIRING SQUAD ‘MAKES SENSE’ AS ‘QUICKEST, SUREST’ DEATH PENALTY OPTION, EXPERT SAYS A White House spokesperson told Fox News Digital that Biden remains concerned about how federal executions are applied. “The President has long talked about his concerns about how the death penalty is applied and whether it is consistent with the values fundamental to our sense of justice and fairness,” said White House assistant press secretary Robyn Patterson. “He supports the attorney general’s decision to issue a moratorium on federal executions while the Department of Justice conducts a comprehensive review of the practice.” The hold has been apparently lifted as the Justice Department has pushed for the death penalty against the suspects charged in the Pittsburgh and Buffalo, New York, mass shootings — Payton Gendron, who killed 10 Black people at a Buffalo’s Tops supermarket in 2022, and Robert Bowers, who killed 11 congregants at Pittsburgh’s Tree of Life synagogue in 2018. WASHINGTON GOVERNOR SIGNS BILL ELIMINATING DEATH PENALTY IN STATE Biden is the first president to openly oppose capital punishment, and his 2020 campaign website declared that he would “work to pass legislation to eliminate the death penalty at the federal level, and incentivize states to follow the federal government’s example.” Similar language does not appear on his website this year. Whether Biden intends to act on the death penalty before November is not immediately clear, although such action is not usually pursued in an election year. Additionally, Biden does not discuss the death penalty much today. Some Biden supporters have been left frustrated as the president has been empty-handed on executions. Conversely, Trump has consistently vowed in campaign speeches across the country to implement capital punishment against those who sell or transport deadly fentanyl as part of his national crackdown on crime. “It’s always been used as a political talking point. It has for centuries, and it probably always will be,” said Robin Maher, executive director of the nonprofit Death Penalty Information Center. “But I think the American public is seeing through that now and is really looking for more serious answers to these very serious problems in our communities.” According to Gallup, support for the death penalty has continued to fall over the last 30 years. In 1994, 80% supported executions for convicted killers. This support has fallen to 53% last year. In November, Gallup found in a separate poll that a majority of Americans believe the death penalty is unfairly applied, 50% to 47%. In addition to the federal government, 21 states allow the death penalty. The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Republican presidential candidate Ryan Binkley drops out, endorses Trump
Republican presidential candidate Ryan Binkley dropped out of the race on Tuesday and immediately endorsed former President Donald Trump. “Today, I am suspending my campaign for the Presidency of the United States of America and offering my endorsement and unwavering support for President Trump,” Binkley wrote on X. Binkley, a Texas pastor and businessman turned presidential candidate, thanked his family, friends, campaign team, more than 80,000 financial supporters and the hundreds of volunteers. “When I began this journey, it was with a message in my heart that our country needs to awaken to the fact that the unsustainable deficit spending and debt path we are on will undoubtedly lead us to a generational economic disruption,” Binkley wrote Tuesday. “I believe that we can get off that path and begin a journey to balance the federal budget by transforming and demonopolizing the healthcare system which has been bankrupting our nation. I also felt deeply that as bad as the U.S. fiscal and monetary policy is, the political corruption and cultural divide in our country is an even greater threat. Throughout my campaign, I have seen our party struggle to find a place for a new vision while weighing the corrupt allegations and indictments against President Trump. He will need everyone’s support, and he will have mine moving forward.” NIKKI HALEY SAYS GOP BECOMING ‘PLAYPEN’ FOR TRUMP Binkley, the co-founder and current CEO/president of Generational Equity Group, a merger and acquisitions business advisory in Texas, announced his bid in April of last year. “Currently our nation is lost, divided, and in financial trouble. Here’s the good news: united, we can rise to change it as we restore our faith in God, freedom, and each other,” Binkley’s website said. He withdrew his 2024 bid for the White House after less than a year on the campaign trail. Binkley’s campaign focused on issues like immigration reform and border controls, boosting the economy, privatizing health care, utilizing cheap energy sources like nuclear energy and supporting pro-life policies. “While it is time for me to go back to my family, business, and church and care for the responsibilities I have been given, I remain steadfast in my commitment to my plans for the economy, border security, and healthcare,” Binkley’s message continued Tuesday. “I look forward to considering other ways I can make an impact and promote my policy positions. Thank you again for being with us on this journey. Let’s continue to pray for our nation, and our leaders. When we look to each other for wisdom and strength, our future can be better than we can imagine. I look forward to seeing what tomorrow holds.” Fox News’ Andrew Murray contributed to this report.
Rajya Sabha elections: BJP wins eight seats, SP bags two in Uttar Pradesh
The eight BJP candidates who secured victories are former Union Minister RPN Singh, former MP Chaudhary Tejveer Singh, Amarpal Maurya, Sangeeta Balwant , BJP spokesperson Sudhanshu Trivedi, former MLA Sadhna Singh, Naveen Jain and Sanjay Seth.
Looming shutdowns, Hunter’s testimony, maybe an impeachment: Congress’ blockbuster week
There are blockbuster weeks on Capitol Hill, and then there are weeks like this one. Hunter Biden is testifying. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin is explaining. A partial government shutdown is looming. “Congress hasn’t even finished our deadlines from the previous fiscal year. I mean, Oct. 1 was the deadline,” fumed Rep. Warren Davidson, R-Ohio, on FOX Business. “Before I was in Congress, I was in manufacturing. And if you were making bad parts, you would at least stop making bad parts.” Davidson observed that Congress continues to even make “bad parts, and we’re not even in session.” Some conservatives say they are okay with a shutdown starting this weekend. They believe a shutdown would at least harness some spending. “A government shutdown is not ideal. But it’s not the worst thing,” said the House Freedom Caucus Chairman Rep. Bob Good, R-Va. “The only leverage we have, when we have one branch, is to be willing to say no. To be willing to walk away.” BURNING DOWN THE HOUSE: FEBRUARY HAS BEEN AN UNMITIGATED DISASTER FOR REPUBLICANS Conservatives are begging House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., to abandon a government spending pact he crafted with Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., and others in early January. The accord did not fund the government — hence the funding problem lawmakers face this weekend. That agreement simply established the size of the money pie for fiscal year 2024. Leaders agreed that Congress would spend a grand total of $1.59 trillion for fiscal year 2024. But on what? And how? Those issues remain unresolved. That is why lawmakers have toiled over for nearly two months now – trying to slice $1.59 trillion into 12 separate appropriations bills. It was thought there may be an agreement over the weekend. However, matters imploded. Johnson told Fox News Tuesday that he is working to prevent the government spending from lapsing. “We’re gonna prevent the shutdown. We’re working on it,” Johnson said. “The problem is that Speaker Johnson is indecisive. He’s weak. He’s inexperienced and he does not have the votes. Not only because it’s a tight majority. But also because there is a far right group of House Republicans who are blocking him everywhere he wants to go,” said Tom Kahn, a distinguished fellow at American University and former House Budget Committee staff director. “I think he’s afraid to make decisions because he’s afraid to lose his job. He saw what happened to his predecessor, (former House Speaker) Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif.” So, conservatives are now pushing an interim spending bill — something which was anathema to many on the right just a few months ago. They used to demand that Congress pass spending bills “by the book.” One by one. Now, conservatives are okay with a stopgap plan, known as a continuing resolution (CR). Federal spending climbs year after year. A CR simply renews all the old funding — without an increase. This gambit maintains the old spending levels. It is not a cut, but there is no new funding. Thus, to conservatives, it saves money. “This is why I support a continuing resolution, which actually is going to force a 1% cut. $100 billion savings and maybe stabilize this inflation issue” said Sen. Roger Marshall, R-Kan., on Fox. Democrats — and some Republicans — find this thinking outrageous. “It’s very disappointing to see that the House has been so unwilling to compromise and work together,” said Sen. Jeanne Shaheen, D-N.H. “We’ve just had obstacles every step of the way.” However, most lawmakers are resigned to believing a CR may be the only way to avoid a shutdown. “Things are pretty uncertain right now,” said Sen. John Cornyn, R-Tex. “I think we’re heading toward a CR for some uncertain duration.” The deadline is Friday night at 11:59:59 p.m. ET. “It’s going to be hard enough to meet that 72-hour requirement by Friday,” said Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin, D-Ill. “So I don’t know if a CR is possible.” Here is what is at stake. A partial shutdown stalls transportation and housing programs. It suspends money for agriculture and military construction. A government closure holds up energy and water projects. However, a full shutdown for the entire federal government could hit at the end of the day on March 8. Top bipartisan Senate leaders are trying to avert a shutdown. “The margin for error on any of these is razor thin. And unfortunately, the temptation to choose chaos and disorder instead of cooperation will be strong for some here in the Capitol,” said Schumer. Schumer secured backup from Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky. “Once more, a shutdown this week is entirely, avoidable,” said McConnell. “Shutting down the government is harmful to the country. And it never produces positive outcomes – on policy or politics.” However, not all lawmakers are focused on government spending. Hunter Biden testifies behind closed doors on Wednesday before House investigators. Austin will explain to livid lawmakers on Thursday as to why he failed to inform the president or other Pentagon officials about his medical leave. Then, we’re on to a partial government shutdown Friday. This is just an average winter in Congress these days. GROWING FRUSTRATION AMONG MAYORKAS IMPEACHMENT MANAGERS ABOUT NOT STARTING A TRIAL What about an impeachment trial for Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas? The House impeached Mayorkas on Feb. 13. No one really knows the timing of a Senate trial. Eleven House members will serve as “impeachment managers” to prosecute the case before the Senate. But as to their roles and when a Senate trial might begin? The new uniform pants in Major League Baseball are more transparent. Several of the managers expressed frustration at the dearth of information about what roles they might play in an impeachment trial. One told Fox they had “no clear guidance” from the GOP brass as to what to expect. In late 2019 and early 2020, Democratic House impeachment managers held “mock trial” sessions and engaged in parliamentary calisthenics behind closed doors to prepare
Palestinian singer running to represent Iceland at Eurovision contest
Bashar Murad said he wants to use his song to ‘illustrate’ the difficulties Palestinians face in order to be heard. Palestinian pop singer Bashar Murad is hoping to represent Iceland at the Eurovision Song Contest in May and bring “a Palestinian voice to the main stage”. Iceland is expected to pick its contestant on Saturday for the annual song competition, which is being held in the Swedish city of Malmo. Murad is competing in the national final with a song co-written by Einar Stefansson of the Icelandic band Hatari, known for raising a banner showing Palestinian flags during the 2019 Eurovision Contest. While the competition bills itself as a non-political event and can disqualify those it considers to be in breach of the rule, the global political backdrop frequently weighs in on decisions. In 2022, Russia was banned from participating in the contest after several countries called for its removal due to its invasion of Ukraine. In light of the war in Gaza, some artists have called on the competition organisers to also exclude Israel from the competition. The European Broadcasting Union (EBU), which organises the competition, said last week that they were scrutinising the lyrics of Israel’s song submission for possible references to the October 7 Hamas attack, which would go against the rules of the competition. Israel has threatened to drop out of the competition if its song, Eden Golan’s, October Rain, is rejected. Protesters take part in a demonstration organised by ‘Together for Palestine’ to demand a ceasefire and exclude Israel from the Eurovision Song Contest, in Stockholm, Sweden, February 17, 2024 [TT News Agency/Fredrik Persson via Reuters] But in Iceland’s domestic qualification, singers of any nationality can participate if they sing their song in the first semifinal in Icelandic. Murad, who was born in and lives in occupied East Jerusalem, said it was difficult to learn the song in Icelandic, but he found some similarities to Arabic. His entry, Wild West, tells the story of challenging boundaries and chasing dreams against all odds. “I wanted to illustrate how many obstacles as Palestinians we have to go through in order to be heard … we’re excluded from every mainstream platform,” he said. “Everyone has theories about my participation. And everyone is politicising my existence when I’m really just a human who had a dream and applied for this competition fair and square.” When asked if Murad wants Israel to participate in the competition, he said, “Of course, I don’t want my occupier to be there.” “But my main focus right now is to be able to bring, for the first time in history, a Palestinian voice to the main stage.” Israel has won the competition four times and sees the contest as a barometer of its standing internationally. Adblock test (Why?)