National Debt over Four Times Greater than Reported, Accounting Group Says
The U.S. Treasury says the national debt is roughly $39 trillion, but a nonpartisan accounting group estimates that the true number is $170.3 trillion.
Unlike the Treasury’s calculations, Truth in Accounting included all of the federal government’s unfunded obligations in its debt assessment, including unfunded promises like Social Security and Medicare benefits.
COMMENTARY
Commentary: China Dominates the World’s Critical Minerals Production
Critical minerals are mined all over the world but the majority of the supply ends up passing through China. For a broad range of key metals and minerals, China is either the largest miner, the dominant refiner, or both. This is true for rare earths, lithium, cobalt, graphite, nickel, and many other metals and minerals that are essential to defense, energy and high-tech applications. It is less about where ores are dug out of the ground and more about where they are turned into usable components. In other words, Chinese processing plants are essentially the gatekeepers of global supply.
Australia and South America host much of the world’s lithium, while Congo supplies the lion’s share of cobalt and copper. But the rocks themselves can’t become a battery or magnet without intensive downstream processing and refining. China built those downstream industries at scale over decades through state support and investment. The result is clear — China has effectively monopolized refining for most critical minerals while the rest of the world depends on it for much-needed supply. China is listed as the dominant refiner for 19 of 20 minerals analyzed by the IEA in their Global Critical Minerals Outlook for 2025, making up roughly 70% of the global processing capacity overall.
ENTERTAINMENT & LIFESTYLE
Music Spotlight: Stefanie Joyce
Stefanie Joyce is a genre-defying artist whose music lives at the intersection of country, indie rock, and western noir—think Patsy Cline meets David Lynch. She was born in Chicago and raised in Vancouver, Canada. But she now lives in Nashville permanently. However, how she got here is as unique as any artist I’ve featured.
Joyce started out aspiring to be a professional ballerina. She was bullied terribly in middle school, and ballet was an escape from it. She stated, “Dance is similar to singing. It's just doing something with your body to music instead of your mouth. And it's funny because even in ballet, like I was drawn to the stories of the old ballets like Swan Lake and Giselle for all these ghost stories of these haunted women. I've always been really drawn to that archetype of female pain, which has transmuted into something beautiful through art.”
Latest News
National Debt over Four Times Greater than Reported, Accounting Group Says
The U.S. Treasury says the national debt is roughly $39 trillion, but a nonpartisan accounting group estimates that the true number is $170.3 trillion.
Unlike the Treasury’s calculations, Truth in Accounting included all of the federal government’s unfunded obligations in its debt assessment, including unfunded promises like Social Security and Medicare benefits.
Commentary: China Dominates the World’s Critical Minerals Production
Critical minerals are mined all over the world but the majority of the supply ends up passing through China. For a broad range of key metals and minerals, China is either the largest miner, the dominant refiner, or both. This is true for rare earths, lithium, cobalt, graphite, nickel, and many other metals and minerals that are essential to defense, energy and high-tech applications. It is less about where ores are dug out of the ground and more about where they are turned into usable components. In other words, Chinese processing plants are essentially the gatekeepers of global supply.
Australia and South America host much of the world’s lithium, while Congo supplies the lion’s share of cobalt and copper. But the rocks themselves can’t become a battery or magnet without intensive downstream processing and refining. China built those downstream industries at scale over decades through state support and investment. The result is clear — China has effectively monopolized refining for most critical minerals while the rest of the world depends on it for much-needed supply. China is listed as the dominant refiner for 19 of 20 minerals analyzed by the IEA in their Global Critical Minerals Outlook for 2025, making up roughly 70% of the global processing capacity overall.
Live to 100: Dr. Omar Hamada on How to Improve Your Brain Health by Measuring and Working on Your Brain Reflex Speed
In an exclusive interview Friday on The Michael Patrick Leahy Show, Dr. Omar Hamada shared a compelling perspective on longevity that goes beyond diet and exercise and focuses on improving how the brain performs in real time.
“This is really incredible stuff,” Hamada said as he introduced his philosophy. “When we look at health, most people just consider physical health, but there's actually a triad of health.”
U.S. Adds 178k Jobs in ‘Strong’ March Report amid Iran Conflict
The U.S. economy added 178,000 jobs in March, exceeding expectations, after one month of conflict between the United States and Iran. The unemployment rate dropped to 4.3%, according to a new report from the U.S Bureau of Labor Statistics on Friday.
The March job's report shows a significant uptick from Februrary's "dismal" loss of 133,000 jobs. The healthcare, construction, transportation and warehousing industries drove most of the increases in March.
Suspect Accused of Fatal Hit and Run That Killed Elderly Man in East Tennessee Reportedly Held on ICE Detainer
A man accused of fatally striking a 73-year-old pedestrian while driving in Sevierville, then fleeing the scene of the accident to Knoxville, is reportedly being held by the Sevier County Sheriff's Office (SCSO) at the request of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
According to the Sevierville Police Department, 34-year-old Enrique Estrada Martinez was charged with leaving the scene of an accident involving death and driving without a license. He is accused of fleeing from the scene of the accident that killed Henry Smith, a 73-year-old man reported to be from Kentucky, who was found deceased in the street by police that morning.
Tennessee House to Vote on Immigration Detainer Bill
The Tennessee State House will vote on a bill next week that would help local law enforcement agencies combat illegal immigration.
State representatives will debate House Bill (HB) 2018, which was introduced by State Representative Mark Cochran (R-Englewood).
Justice Alito Was Taken to a Hospital in March: CNN
Supreme Court Associated Justice Samuel Alito was brought to a hospital in March after falling ill during a Philadelphia event, CNN reported, citing "people with knowledge" of the matter.
Alito, 76, is one of the court's most conservative-leaning justices. He reportedly became ill at a March 20 dinner for the Federalist Society. Alito was taken to the hospital, but returned to his home in Virginia the same evening.
Nashville ‘Language Access Study’ Polls Residents in 10 Languages, Including Somali and ‘Three Kurdish Dialects’
Metro Nashville this week began conducting a "language access survey" to determine how the city's government agencies interact with non-English speaking residents, polling residents in a total of 10 languages, including three dialects of Kurdish.
Building off a 2017 study that found 73 percent of Metro departments report encountering residents who speak at least one foreign language, the 2025 Language Access Study seeks to examine "current language access practices" throughout the city, determine existing "barriers" to non-English speaking residents living in the city, and then create "actionable strategies for equitable access to Metro services."
Trump Admin Declares War on Microplastics in Drinking Water
The Trump administration announced Wednesday that it would seek to remove microplastics and pharmaceuticals from drinking water as part of its effort to improve water standards.
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Lee Zeldin, along with Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Robert Kennedy, unveiled the Sixth Contaminant Candidate List, which identifies substances that may require regulation under the Safe Drinking Water Act. The move is in tandem with the announcement of the Systematic Targeting Of MicroPlastics (STOMP) program, which aims to crack down on microplastics and pharmaceutical drugs found in drinking water.
Blue States Scrambling to Keep Gender Counseling Censorship Alive After SCOTUS Ruling
Democrat-led states are searching for ways to keep censoring counselor conversations about gender after a near-unanimous Supreme Court came down against viewpoint discrimination.
In an 8-1 ruling on Tuesday, the Supreme Court held Colorado’s so-called “conversion therapy” ban regulated Christian counselor Kaley Chiles’ speech based on viewpoint.
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