"The Federal Reserve is expected to raise interest rates this week for the first time since late 2018, and economists anticipate further hikes throughout the year as policymakers seek to combat soaring inflation.

"While the central bank's actions are closely monitored by Wall Street, folks on Main Street will be impacted, too.

"An increase in interest rates means higher borrowing costs, so consumers and businesses can expect to pay more for car loans, mortgages, and credit card balances. Those additional costs cause shifts in consumer behavior. ...

"But rising interest rates could have a silver lining for Americans overall in the way of bringing inflation under control, which has a direct impact on your wallet."

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"For years, world leaders have accused Russia of funding environmental groups in Europe to steer nations away from energy independence and strengthen Russia's iron grip over the continent. As nations across the globe begin shunning Russian oil in response to the country's invasion of Ukraine, U.S. leaders are also questioning how deep Russia's ties go in the environmental community.

"'The Russians actually fund some of the most rabid environmental groups in Europe because they sic them on the energy projects that aren't Russian,' James Carafano, vice president of the Kathryn and Shelby Cullom Davis Institute for National Security and Foreign Policy at the Heritage Foundation, told Fox News Digital in a recent phone interview. ...

"Republicans on the House Energy and Commerce Committee are now holding three environmental groups' feet to the fire.

"The Republicans, led by Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers, are demanding that the League of Conservation Voters, the Natural Resources Defense Council, and the Sierra Club disclose their ties to a San Francisco-based nongovernmental organization that Russian President Vladimir Putin allegedly uses to wield power over American energy production.

"'Provided the public reporting of Putin's dark money influence in Europe and the concerns surrounding similar efforts in the United States, we write today to explore your connections with Sea Change,' the Republicans wrote in the letter to the three groups last week. 'Any action by President Putin, the Russian government, or Putin's allies to undermine American energy security must be addressed.'

"'It is vital to our national security to know if Vladimir Putin, the Russian government, or Putin's allies are meddling with America's energy affordability and security. If the League of Conservation Voters, the Natural Resources Defense Council, or Sierra Club have nothing to hide, then we look forward to seeing the evidence they provide by March 25th,' House Energy and Commerce Committee Republican leader McMorris Rodgers told Fox News Digital."

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"Some stories make so little sense that all you can do is scratch your head. Others are so infuriating that you want to pull your hair out. Then there are those that are so outrageous your head feels as if it will explode.

"This story provokes all three reactions.

"It starts with a strange, little-known fact: Russia is acting as a go-between for the United States in nuclear talks with Iran.

"When I first read that, I thought it couldn't possibly be true. With Russia then massing troops on the Ukraine border, I assumed that even the Biden White House couldn't be foolish enough to trust Vladimir Putin to do anything in good faith or certainly anything in America's interest.

"Unfortunately, the story was true, and even more alarming, Russia continues to direct the nuclear talks with America's approval while its army simultaneously turns Ukarine's cities into rubble, mercilessly killing civilians and creating the largest refugee crisis since World War II."

Read the entire article here.

"Inflation popped up to nearly 8% for the 12 months ending in February. Joe Biden has said it's all Vladimir Putin's fault and there's nothing he can do about it. Wrong and wrong! Inflation and energy prices have been rising for more than a year. ...

"As far as blaming Putin, I'm more than happy to blame the Russian dictator for as many things as possible, but I can't blame him for massive federal deficit spending and Federal Reserve money creation.

"Those two factors, along with Biden's regulatory octopus that is strangling the oil and gas industry, are responsible for the four-decade high inflation rate we are now experiencing. ...

"[T]he increase in prices is widespread, covering virtually all aspects of American life and now people are really being hurt, not only from gasoline at the pump and groceries when they're on the shelves, but pretty much everywhere -- housing, rent, apparel, cars, recreation, commodities, services. You name the item, and I'll tell you its price is rising.

"That can only happen from fundamentally flawed government policies and yes, we last saw this in the stagflationary 1970's -- a dark hole that I'm afraid we are falling into again. Curing this problem is not going to be easy.

"One step toward a cure would be a president and administration that owns its policy failures. That does not seem likely."

Read the entire article here.

"Never mind that gas prices had already risen 75% before Putin even invaded Ukraine. Never mind that inflation hit a 40-year high before the invasion. Never mind that Republican voters are just as supportive of banning Russian oil imports as Democrats are. All that matters is that now, whenever any voter complains about inflation, Biden will blame Putin because, hey, maybe that will get people off his back.

"But the biggest driver of inflation in the United States is not Putin -- it is Biden. He is the one who pushed a $1.9 trillion stimulus bill, the largest peacetime deficit spending bill in history, when he first took office. All he had to do was implement Trump's vaccine distribution plan and let the country reopen, and the economy would have recovered from the pandemic just fine. Instead, Biden, not Putin, sent hundreds of billions to millions of households, regardless of whether they were working or not. He gave hundreds of billions more to states, almost all of which already had budget surpluses.

"The result, according to former President Barack Obama's own top economic advisers: the rampant inflation we are seeing today. And this is not our opinion but that of Obama National Economic Council Director Larry Summers, Obama Council of Economic Advisers Chairman Jason Furman, and Obama auto bailout czar Steve Rattner.

"Voters are smart enough to remember that inflation and gas prices were out of control long before Putin invaded Ukraine, and they will probably act accordingly this coming November. But in the Democrats' defense, given that they are unlikely to reverse course and increase domestic fossil fuel production, blaming Putin is probably their best hope."

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"Just when it looked like the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's (CDC) COVID management and messaging was going to get some long-overdue oversight, President Biden made a move to protect this gargantuan example of failed bureaucracy with a proposed $22 billion in new spending for the agency, doubling its budget. ...

The failure of the CDC to manage COVID-19 more effectively points to an endemic problem of bureaucracy -- namely, seeking to appear more relevant as a means to grow bigger. Over the last three decades, the CDC has de-emphasized its principal mission of protecting Americans from novel microbes and viruses that, if uncontrolled, can kill millions. Instead of modernizing its information systems, to choose but one example, the agency has sought a role in solving more high-profile social problems. Shamefully, it has encouraged a promiscuous use of the term 'epidemic' to describe conditions that its methodologies are powerless to affect, including racism, gun violence, child abuse, sex trafficking, opioid abuse, obesity and loneliness. The CDC won't be the agency that ends those crises, and trying to do so only distracts from its critical core mission.

The enormous infusion of funds headed to the CDC is part of the president's newly unveiled COVID National Preparedness Plan, a document that seems a little late in coming. With its publication, the White House spares the CDC critical examination of its performance. Rewarding failure, however, will surely result in an even less effective response to the next pandemic."

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"Steve Forbes, chairman and CEO of Forbes Media, outlined the 'basic things' President Biden should do to curb inflation amid the war between Russia and Ukraine.

"On 'Varney & Co.' Monday, Forbes argued that the first thing the administration should do is give 'a green light for U.S. oil & gas production, instead of this crazy war they're waging.'

'"We can increase production in the next few months by 1.5 million barrels a day, and that should be done,' he continued.

"Forbes made the comment as the Biden administration has faced increased criticism from both sides of the aisle in recent days for not taking more action to focus on American energy production in response to Russia's invasion of Ukraine, which has disrupted energy markets worldwide."

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"Tesla CEO Elon Musk urged the United States to increase its oil and gas production following Russia's invasion of Ukraine, despite the negative impact on his company.

"'Hate to say it, but we need to increase oil & gas output immediately. Extraordinary times demand extraordinary measures,' Musk tweeted on Friday.

"'Obviously, this would negatively affect Tesla, but sustainable energy solutions simply cannot react instantaneously to make up for Russian oil & gas exports,' he added."

"There's no getting around it. The nation's electricity transmission system is growing increasingly undependable. Aging infrastructure, severe weather, and the rapid pivot away from baseload power to intermittent solar and wind are all contributing. Supply chain problems and local opposition to building new power lines and siting renewable projects are also turning into increasingly tall hurdles. Expectations of increased demand driven by electric vehicles are only compounding the challenge.

"The energy transition is happening but the question we must ask is how do we responsibly manage it? It's becoming apparent that the transition to renewables is vastly more difficult and complicated than some believed. Those who want to shut down every coal and natural gas plant ignore that fossil fuels supply 60% of America's electricity. There's growing alarm that America's haphazard approach to the energy transition is taking apart the existing grid and the reliable generating capacity that long underpinned it far faster than we're adding reliable alternatives. ...

"There remains an opportunity for an energy policy reset -- both at the state and federal levels -- to tackle this reliability and affordability crisis head on. First, we must recognize the need for dispatchable fuel diversity and fuel security. That must also include a commitment to increasing capacity reserve margins in electricity markets instead of letting them continue to shrink. As we grapple with the complexities of the energy transition and the challenges posed by integrating renewable power and building transmission infrastructure, we need a reliability and affordability insurance policy. The insurance we can provide is recognizing the value of the generating capacity we already have and the importance of dispatchable fuel diversity. Responsibly navigating the road ahead means building on the shoulders of our existing baseload capacity, not taking it apart."

Read the entire article here.

"Whether he is reporting news in cryptic sound bites on Twitter or speaking from a gloomy subterranean bunker or darkened streets, Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky continues to demonstrate the enormous impact of harnessing powerful messages and sharing them with the right tone and authority.

"In addition to his undeniable bona fide leadership skills, Zelensky is also providing a master class in strategic communications. Political leaders across the globe could learn much from Zelensky's skillfully straightforward talk -- so different from the usual Washington partisan sniping or smoke-and-mirrors repartee we often seen. Zelensky's eloquence has not only captured the attention of the world, it has proven the catalyst to major policy shifts.

"'I need ammunition, not a ride,' was Zelensky's retort when the United States offered to evacuate him out of the capital as Russian forces descended on Kyiv. Politicians know the power of a quotable quip, but Zelensky mastered it like few before him, in part because there's seemingly nothing contrived about what he says. ...

"Zelensky's gripping videoconference with leaders of the European Union reportedly left many participants teary-eyed. Zelensky's passionate pleas hardened the resolve of previously reluctant countries -- such as Germany -- to move forward with crushing financial sanctions against Russia. And his candid admission that his call might be the last time any of them saw him alive hit home with force.

"In part due to Zelensky's actions, Europe has demonstrated the greatest show of unity in decades. Countries across the continent have collectively enacted the most far-reaching sanctions in history, as a direct result of Zelensky's candid pleas to help his countrymen uphold democracy.

"In other words, policy is being shaped in real time during a global crisis as the result of Zelensky's effective and authentic crisis communications."

Read the entire article here.