‘Highest-ranking’ Stefanik

NEWS AND OPINION:

Rep. Elise Stefanik has been named among the “100 Most Influential People of 2024” — an annual list compiled by Time that includes a cross section of leaders in six categories — artists, icons, titans, leaders, innovators and pioneers. Here’s what the news organization has to say about the New York Republican, who was listed in the “leaders” section:

“Elise Stefanik is the highest-ranking woman in the House GOP and, since shedding her more moderate persona to fully embrace Donald Trump, is increasingly seen as a standard bearer for the party. First elected from upstate New York as the vanguard of a more bipartisan GOP, Stefanik, 39, now counts as one of Trump’s most powerful allies in Congress, having spent the past three years supporting his efforts to overturn Joe Biden’s win, amplifying false claims about election irregularities, and saying she would not have certified the 2020 election results. She’s now rumored to be on Trump’s short list of potential VP candidates,” wrote Charlotte Alter, a senior correspondent for Time.

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, by the way, was also included on the list, which can be found at Time.com.

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PRO-LIFERS STEP OUT

Pro-life canvassers are on the ground in eight presidential and Senate battleground states, according to Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America and its political action committee partner Women Speak Out PAC. Those states are Montana, Georgia, Arizona, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, Michigan and Ohio.

Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America is a network of more than 1 million pro-life Americans nationwide. They seek to elect national leaders and advocate for laws that “save lives,” and have a special calling to promote pro-life female leaders.

“President Joe Biden and extreme pro-abortion Democrats must be defeated in 2024. That’s why we’ve launched our most ambitious voter contact program in our history, spreading across eight battleground states that will determine control of the presidency and Senate,” said Marjorie Dannenfelser, president of SBA Pro-Life America, in a statement shared with Inside the Beltway.

“We’re taking the fight directly to voters as our canvassers spread the truth about the Biden-Harris agenda to enact a law forcing every state to allow brutal second and third-trimester abortions after the point when a baby can feel pain and even live outside the womb. We must stop the Democrats from their goal of abolishing every pro-life state law that protects unborn children – even children who have a heartbeat, smile, suck their thumbs, and feel pain,” Mrs. Dannenfelser said.

Find the organization at SBAProLife.org.

NIGHTSTAND READING

Alex Kershaw is the resident historian for the Friends of the National World War II Memorial in the nation’s capital, which is a powerful and heartfelt landmark just across the street from the Washington Monument. Mr. Kershaw has compiled a list of the “Top-10 D-Day books” for those who will pause to remember June 6, 1944, when over 150,000 Allied troops landed on the beaches of Normandy.

This year marks the 80th anniversary of that pivotal event. Mr. Kershaw has written two books centered on D-Day — “The Bedford Boys” and “The First Wave” — and has visited the aforementioned beaches many times.

“I know only too well that seemingly countless books have been published about the most famous of WWII’s many amphibious invasions. These are the ones I enjoyed most and would recommend to anyone wanting to visit Normandy or just to marvel, almost eighty years later, at the enormity and drama of one of the most important days in modern history. As with other top ten lists, the first is my favorite – the others are well worth checking out,” Mr. Kershaw wrote in a brief introduction to the list, published at wwiimemorialfriends.org.

Here are his recommendations:

• “The Longest Day, June 6, 1944,” by Cornelius Ryan, published in 1959.

• “The Guns at Last Light,” by Rick Atkinson (2013)‍.

• “Overlord: D-Day and the Battle of Normandy,” by Max Hastings (1984).

• “If You Survive,” by George Wilson (1987).

• “March Past,” by Simon Fraser (1979).

• “Parachute Infantry,” by David Kenyon Webster (2002).

• “Slightly Out of Focus,” by Robert Capa (2001).

• “Nothing Less Than Victory,” by Russell Miller (1998).

• “Pegasus Bridge,” by Stephen Ambrose (1994).

• “Forgotten Voices of D-Day,” by Roderick Bailey (2009).

A MOMENT WITH THE IC

Director of National Intelligence Avril D. Haines issued the following written statement on Wednesday:

“On behalf of the Intelligence Community (IC), I am excited to welcome Dr. Richard ‘Rick’ Muller as the Director of the Intelligence Advanced Research Projects Activity (IARPA). Dr. Muller takes the helm of IARPA after heading the Department of Energy’s Quantum Systems Accelerator and managing the Advanced Microsystems Group at Sandia National Laboratories, among an array of other accomplishments,” Ms. Haines said in a written statement shared with Inside the Beltway.

“His impressive credentials are rooted in science, academia, and leadership — all of which uniquely empower him to oversee technological innovation and scientific discovery for the IC. I look forward to working with him as we tackle some of the IC’s toughest challenges,” she said.

Ms. Haines also applauded Catherine Marsh, who will retire after two decades of “extraordinary service.” She has been IARPA director for the past four years. She previously served as chief scientist for the CIA’s Directorate of Science and Technology.

“Under her leadership, IARPA introduced 27 new high-risk, high-payoff research programs and brought many next-generation innovations into our community and national security enterprise. I want to thank Catherine for her tireless efforts and exemplary leadership. She will be greatly missed by many, and I wish her all the best in the future,” Ms. Haines said.

POLL DU JOUR

• 64% of U.S adults say national security is “very important” to them; 78% of Republicans, 61% of independents and 56% of Democrats agree.

• 28% overall say national security is “somewhat important” to them; 20% of Republicans, 26% of independents and 37% of Democrats agree.

• 6% overall say national security is “not very important” to them;  2% of Republicans, 9% of independents and 7% of Democrats agree.

• 2% overall say national security is “unimportant” to them; 1% of Republicans, 4% of independents and 1% of Democrats agree.

Source: An Economist/YouGov poll of 1,574 U.S. adults conducted April 14-16.

• Contact Jennifer Harper at jharper@washingtontimes.com.