Opinion & Reporting
Ann McElhinney and Phelim McAleer are award-winning journalists and best-selling authors whose work has been featured in major media outlets like The Wall Street Journal, Fox News, and The New York Post. They are columnists with Townhall and their work focuses on reporting untold stories and challenging the mainstream narrative.
2020 Reporting & Op-Eds
“Green Policies Backfire Against the Coronavirus,” The Wall Street Journal
We really knew there was a crisis when San Francisco, which 13 years ago banned single-use plastic bags in grocery stores, would now prohibit reusable bags as part of its effort to prevent spread of the novel coronavirus. Read More.
“The Truth Has Not Changed for Misleading Fracking Filmmaker,” Townhall
Josh Fox has been accused of lying – again. For those of you who don’t know who Josh Fox is – allow me to explain. Fox produced and directed the documentary Gasland and its follow up Gasland II. His documentaries popularised the now-debunked claim that fracking causes contaminated water . . . Read More.
“New Documentary Shows the Clarence Thomas You’ve Never Known,” Townhall
Forget whatever you think you know about Clarence Thomas – you’re wrong. Thomas is seen as one of the biggest conservatives on the bench. In response, the left tries to demonize him as a friend of the right – rich and out of touch . . . Read More.
“Five Reasons Harvey Weinstein May Be Found Not Guilty,” The Daily Wire
Most people probably believe that Harvey Weinstein is guilty of sexual assault and will be convicted at the end of his ongoing trial in Manhattan. But as the prosecution case comes to an end, it’s clear the case is not as strong as the headlines, or some activists, suggest. There is a very real possibility that Weinstein will be cleared of the charges and emerge from the courtroom a ruined but officially innocent man . . . Read More.
“The Outrage Over Out ‘FBI Lovebirds’ Play,” Townhall
Well that didn’t take long. The venom and hatred from the far-left and the mainstream media for anything that challenges their beliefs is shockingly predictable. They just can’t stand it when a movie, book, play, or any other form of entertainment doesn’t conform to their Hollywood culture. They really, really hate it if the piece of art is the truth or based on a true story. Read More.
“‘The Hunt’: Why Every Conservative Must Go And See This Movie [Review],” The Daily Wire
The movie “The Hunt” was cancelled late last year in a wave of allegations and bad publicity. The majority of the negative publicity around the film came from the Right and conservative commentators. Read More.
“After Dems Vilify Corporations, Big Business Helps Save The Day,” The Daily Wire
Until recently, corporations and their CEOs were the villains of the liberal political class and their activist friends. For years, the Left has railed against the “millionaires and billionaires” and targeted large corporations and businesses with the harshest of rhetoric and regulations. Read More.
“Faced with Truth Global Crisis, The Left’s Costly Climate Hysteria Comes Back to Haunt Us,” The Daily Wire
Over the last few weeks, many key figures on the left have been outspoken about the danger of the coronavirus and claim that President Trump has done little to address the crisis. Democratic presidential frontrunner Joe Biden has urged the president to be even bolder in his actions to combat the virus and condemned him for “wasting time” when the pandemic first emerged. Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) made similar comments and has urged drastic action. Read More.
“VIDEO: California’s Coronavirus Problem No One Is Talking About,” The Daily Wire
Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti has been on the “cutting edge” of local leaders who have implemented strict shutdowns in the name of fighting the coronavirus and protecting the public. Politicians like Garcetti claim that they must coerce residents to remain in their homes for weeks, or months, on end in order to ease the burden on hospitals and healthcare workers. Read More.
2019 Reporting & Op-Eds
“Mrs. Robinson and the Missing Princess,” The Wall Street Journal
Sheikha Latifa bint Mohammed al-Maktoum wasn’t seen in public for almost a year. In March 2018 Princess Latifa, the 33-year-old daughter of Dubai’s absolute ruler, was planning to claim asylum at the U.S. Embassy in India when she was allegedly seized by Indian and Emirati special forces from a yacht in the Arabian Sea and, apparently, returned home. Then—silence. Read More.
“5 Reasons BuzzFeed’s Story Should Never Have Been Accepted by the Mainstream Media,” Townhall
The Special Counsel’s office has issued a statement debunking the BuzzFeed “bombshell scoop” that President Trump directed Michael Cohen to lie to Congress. The story was widely regurgitated by the mainstream media, with the smallest of caveats, and then they marched full on pointing out that suborning perjury is an impeachable offense. They were excited, gleeful almost but here are five reasons they should never have reported the story in the first place. They are five red flags about Jason Leopold, one of the journalists behind the story, that meant they should not run a story on the report without independent verification. Read More.
“Abortion Law Is Already Extreme,” The Wall Street Journal
A legislative effort to loosen restrictions on late-term abortion died last week in the Virginia General Assembly. The problem was that Gov. Ralph Northam was a little too honest about what the bill would mean. When an interviewer asked him what would happen to a baby born alive during a third-trimester abortion, the governor—who also works as a pediatric neurologist—said calmly: “If a mother is in labor, I can tell you exactly what would happen. The infant would be delivered. The infant would be kept comfortable. The infant would be resuscitated if that’s what the mother and the family desired, and then a discussion would ensue between the physicians and the mother.” Read More.
“Why the Left Was Worried About Our Peter Strzok Play,” Townhall
Peter Strzok was one of the most senior FBI agents. In fact, a congressman has described him as one of the top counter intelligence agents on the planet. He was having an affair with Lisa Page, one of the FBI’s most senior lawyers. Along with bitching about work, they also worried and plotted to scupper the Trump candidacy and then his presidency of the United States. Read More.
“How Enviros Lie About America (And Why),” Townhall
There is a big lie environmentalists love to spread. They claim America is an environmental hellhole because of rapacious capitalism and American companies export even worse environmental practices to the developing world. Read More.
“‘Gasland’ Filmmaker Has a Problem—and It Spells Trouble for Dem Presidential Candidates,” Townhall
The filmmaker and activist Josh Fox has a problem. And it’s a problem that spells serious trouble for the dozens of Democratic candidates running for president. Read More.
“Planned Parenthood ‘Hate Crime’ Arson Attack Was Really Attack On Worker By Violent Partner,” The Daily Wire
An arson attack on a Planned Parenthood facility that was reported as a hate crime inspired by undercover videos was actually an incident of domestic violence, a senior executive of the organization has been forced to admit in a San Francisco court room. Read More.
“WATCH: Planned Parenthood Doctor Who Boasted About Providing Intact Baby Limbs From Abortion Confronted,” The Daily Wire
A Planned Parenthood abortion doctor secretly filmed boasting that a company purchasing baby parts gave her “oohs and aahs” of appreciation because she was so skilled at removing intact limbs was less talkative outside a San Francisco courtroom today. Read More.
“Self-identifying Whistleblowers Can Be Villains,” Townhall
It appears to be the year of the Whistleblower. Or perhaps it is the year of the worship of the whistleblower. But why? And what is so “honorable” about whistleblowers to start with? Read More.
“WATCH: Planned Parenthood Exec Confronted About Using ‘Less Crunchy’ Abortion Technique To Increase Profit,” The Daily Wire
A Planned Parenthood CEO refused to answer questions Friday about her failure to reprimand a doctor who was secretly filmed boasting about “less crunchy” abortion techniques so as to acquire better body parts for sale. Read More.
“Abortion Doctor Doesn’t Get The ‘Big Deal’ About Changing Procedures To Get More Valuable Hearts, Lungs, Livers,” The Daily Wire
A Planned Parenthood doctor who was secretly recorded stating she changed abortion techniques to get intact hearts, lungs and livers to sell has defended her comments in a San Francisco courtroom. Read More.
“Judge In Planned Parenthood Trial Orders Guilty Verdict Against Journalist,” The Daily Wire
The judge in the “Baby Body Parts” trial of activist and journalist David Daleiden has ordered the jury find him guilty of trespassing at Planned Parenthood conferences and clinics — before the jury retired to consider a verdict. Read More.
“Lisa Page Interview Is the Latest Chapter in Misinformation Campaign About the FBI Lovebirds,” Townhall
Lisa Page has finally emerged after almost two years of silence in a long and emotional interview with The Daily Beast. Page was most recently one of the most senior lawyers in the FBI. Read More.
“The ‘Inaccuracies and Omissions’ in the IG Report Should Come As No Surprise,” Townhall
The Inspector General’s Report, into the Trump-Russia investigation includes more than its fair share of bombshell revelations. They’re not revelations the Democrats were hoping for, however. Quite the opposite. Read More.
Other Pieces
“A Big Mac Attack, or a False Alarm?,” The Wall Street Journal
Morgan Spurlock shot to national attention with his 2004 film, “Super Size Me.” For the film, he ate nothing but McDonald’s food for 30 days straight and chronicled his ill health during that time. Mr. Spurlock won the Grand Jury Prize at the Sundance Film Festival and was nominated for an Academy Award. Read More.
“Climate Alarmists May Inherit the Wind,” The Wall Street Journal
Five American oil companies find themselves in a San Francisco courtroom. California v. Chevron is a civil action brought by the city attorneys of San Francisco and Oakland, who accuse the defendants of creating a “public nuisance” by contributing to climate change and of conspiring to cover it up so they could continue to profit. Read More.
“Making a film about abortion in the US opened my eyes,” The Irish Times
Working on the movie and book about Kermit Gosnell, the Philadelphia abortion doctor convicted of murder, I acquired a swift education on abortion, legal and illegal. Most of what I have learned was news to me and appears to be absent from the abortion debate in Ireland. Read More.
“What Pro-Abortion Gorsuch-Opponents Really Want,” The Christian Post
President Trump’s Supreme Court pick has animated abortion activists who are sounding dire warnings about what will happen if conservative judge Neil Gorsuch is confirmed. Planned Parenthood’s Cecile Richards said Judge Gorsuch has ” an alarming history of interfering with reproductive rights and health.” At the recent Women’s March in Washington, she vowed to fight any attempt to roll back these rights. Read More.
The Folly of Experts, Townhall
I know I’m not supposed to say this, but I’m really really tired of experts. I mean really tired. I can’t stand so-called “Dream Teams” and their journalist promoters who give them credibility that is rarely deserved. Read More.