Could Speaker Williams be in the future? The Congressman joins The Morning News and discusses - Speaker of the house and what's going on in Israel.

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With the news from the middle east over the weekend. Dakota Wood with The Heritage Foundation joins Hal and Ernie to discuss what's going on over seas.

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HUNDREDS OF ISRAELI’S KILLED IN HAMAS ATTACKS OVER THE WEEKEND, ISRAELI DECLARES STATE OF WAR, HOSTAGES TAKEN TOO

Fox News Radio’s JONATHAN SAVAGE HAS MORE.

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Ernie talks about his experience interviewing Charlton Heston, and his conversation about Ronald Reagan. 

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It's Texas/OU Weekend!

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The average rate on the popular 30-year fixed mortgage rose to 7.72% on Tuesday, according to Mortgage News Daily.

Mortgage rates follow loosely the yield on the 10-year Treasury
, which has been climbing this week following strong economic data. Rates have not been this high since the end of 2000.

At the beginning of this year, the 30-year fixed rate dropped to about 6%, causing a brief burst of activity in the spring housing market. But it began rising steadily again over the summer, causing sales to drop, despite strong demand. The current trend appears to be even higher, with the possibility of rates crossing over 8%.

The Federal Reserve did not raise interest rates two weeks ago but indicated the possibility of another hike this year and fewer cuts than expected next year. Investors were waiting to see the results of economic data in the first week of October.

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The Texas Rattlers will stage a culinary experience like no other, as a Chef Tim Love-hosted rattlesnake cooking competition, featuring 14 renowned chefs from the region, takes over the Fort Worth Stockyards.

Graham Elliott (Le Margot)

Blaine Staniford (Grace, 61 Osteria and Little Red Wasp)

Rodrigo Cardenas (Don Artemio)

Juan Rodriguez (Magdalena’s)

Kemel Rodriguez (Paloma Suerte)

Taylor McCreary (Lonesome Dove)

Bert Nichols (Tannahill’s Tavern)

Trevor “Big T” Sales (Brix Barbecue)

Christian Lehrmann (Tinies, Side Saddle Saloon)

Trevor Heim (Heim Barbecue)

Jon Bonnell (Bonnell’s, Waters, BUFFLAO BROS, Jon’s Grille)

Zach Lewis (Atico)

David Wetli (Dickies Arena)

Grant Morgan (97 West)

On Friday, October 6 a unique food festival will take over Mule Alley in the iconic Fort Worth Stockyards, as the Texas Rattlers, the Metroplex’s first-ever professional bull riding team, stage a rattlesnake cooking competition – Rattle Battle – curated and hosted by renowned Chef Tim Love. The competition, scheduled for Friday, Oct. 6, will feature 14 accomplished celebrity chefs from the region competing head-to-head for the title of who can create the best rattlesnake dish as voted on by attendees and a panel of esteemed experts.

Each of the 14 participating chefs will get to select the type of cuisine they cook, so long as the dish showcases rattlesnake. Those in attendance for the Rattle Battle, presented by Chef Tim Love, will each receive a Texas Rattlers token to vote on their favorite dish throughout the event. The Top 3 fan-voted dishes will then advance to celebrity judging, with the panel of three, to-be-announced distinguished culinary experts determining the inaugural 2023 Rattle Battle Champion.

Rattle Battle, hosted by Chef Tim Love, will begin at 3:00 p.m. CDT. Final judging will begin at 4:00 pm. CDT, followed by the reveal of the Champion at 4:15 p.m. CDT and the conclusion of the culinary extravaganza at 5:00 p.m. CDT. The winning Chef will receive a $2,500 cash prize, as well as a prize pack valued at more than $1,000, including Ariat Boots, an RTIC Cooler, TX Whiskey and more.  

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Jerry "J-Man" Joyner is an outspoken advocate for the marijuana industry and the host of a TV show and podcast called Weed & Whiskey. 

To recruit more cops, should police departments ignore past marijuana?

the stereotype of a model police officer probably doesn’t include a history of marijuana use. That impression might be harming public safety.

 Marcus Jones, the Montgomery County police chief, wants to relax the rules restricting past marijuana users from joining the county’s police force. He is one of many leaders across the country responding to twin realities: Law enforcement agencies have recently struggled to attract recruits; and recreational marijuana is legal in a great number of states.

 His request to the Maryland Police Training and Standards Commission deserves to be granted — and other agencies ought to follow suit.

 A report from the Police Executive Research Forum on staffing shortages explains how departments are adapting to the challenges. Adjusting eligibility criteria is key. The idea, agencies have said, is to draw in the best candidates from a more diverse, less typical pool, rather than settle for “a lower-quality version of the traditional officer.”

 In Montgomery County, this has already meant swapping out the physical fitness test — known to stymie otherwise qualified female applicants — for a medical examination. Elsewhere, as in Akron, Ohio, it has meant no longer banning officers from wearing beards. And elsewhere still, including in Fairfax County, it has meant ditching the prohibition on past marijuana use. Now, the Virginia locality considers “duration and frequency” of use, plus how long ago the candidate used.

 The Montgomery County proposal is even more modest; the chief is asking only that any marijuana use more than one year before a recruit’s completing the police academy no longer be an automatic disqualifier. That would allow prospective officers to stop smoking weed right when they decide to try for the force — instead of punishing them for experimenting before they knew they wanted to be cops.

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According to AAA, the average price for a gallon of gasoline is $3.78 –  56 cents higher than at the beginning of this year. Most experts believe that the markets will be under supplied for Q4 of 2023 and Q1 2024, due to extended output cuts by Saudi Arabia and Russia. The result will be even higher energy prices.

Unfortunately for consumers, when energy prices rise, so do the costs of nearly everything else. Industries like farming, ranching, shipping and manufacturing all require a lot of energy, and their operating expenses skyrocket when energy prices increase –  expenses that get passed on to consumers.  

As of August 2023, food prices were 4.3 percent higher than the same time last year. The U.S. Department of Agriculture predicts food prices will increase a total of 5.8 percent this year compared to last. That’s is on top of the 11 percent increase from 2021 to 2022. Consumers – and our economy – cannot afford to continue down this road.

Rather than utilize America’s abundant energy resources to meet demand, lower energy prices and tame inflation long-term, the Biden Administration has continually begged OPEC+ to increase their energy output, even though OPEC+ has repeatedly ignored international pleas to increase production. In the last year, OPEC+ has cut production several times, lowering output by a total of 4.66 million barrels per day, or 4.5% of global demand. The Biden Administration’s strategy is especially shocking considering our environmental goals, as our very own Gulf of Mexico produces the second lowest emissions intensive barrels of oil in the world.

Domestic energy advocate Scott Angelle discusses why domestic energy can and should be our long-term solution to energy affordability and taming inflation; and how American energy is better for our environment and economy.

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An apparent cyberattack on a major building automation systems manufacturer is gathering national attention after reports that it may have compromised some data belonging to the Department of Homeland Security.

Why it matters: Government contractors are a ripe target for cyberattacks, and the Biden administration has made it a priority to apply tougher cybersecurity rules to any business working with the government.

Driving the news: CNN reported Monday that DHS is investigating whether a reported ransomware attack targeting Johnson Controls International affected sensitive physical security information, including building floor plans.

Johnson Controls has not yet determined the full extent of the incident, saying in a statement only that the company is continuing "to assess what information was impacted" and is "executing our incident management and protection plan."

Details: Johnson Controls has been responding to a reported ransomware attack for at least a week, according to BleepingComputer.

The company manufactures security equipment, industrial control systems, fire safety equipment and other physical security devices.
Customers have included international aerospace manufacturers, universities and medical facilities.

The intrigue: No ransomware gang has claimed responsibility for the reported attack yet — suggesting that if this is a ransomware incident, the company could still be in negotiations over whether to pay a ransom to unlock its systems.

Between the lines: Johnson Controls is far from the first government contractor to face a cyberattack or espionage campaign.

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