SHORT TAKES ON THE DRIFTING WRECKAGE – OVERNIGHT:

THE GOP MUST END THIS INTERNAL CONFLICT QUICKLY – FROM FOX:   Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell defended Wyoming Rep. Liz Cheney on Monday following intense criticism of her decision to vote in favor of former President Donald Trump’s impeachment.  Cheney has faced calls to resign from her post as House GOP conference chair since she and nine other Republicans crossed party lines to impeach Trump. McConnell, R-Ky., is the most prominent GOP leader to date to rally to Cheney’s defense.  "Liz Cheney is a leader with deep convictions and the courage to act on them," McConnell said in a statement. "She is an important leader in our party and in our nation. I am grateful for her service and look forward to continuing to work with her on the crucial issues facing our nation."  McConnell has not ruled out voting to convict Trump on the impeachment charge.  Republicans have a great chance to take back both the House and Senate in 2022, but it won't happen if they're engaged in a civil war.  Sadly, there is no elder statesman in the party who can come in and arbitrate this.  But remember Ronald Reagan's "11th Commandment":  "Though shalt not speak ill of any fellow Republican."

HE'S TEACHING SOMEONE'S CHILDREN – FROM COLLEGE FIX:  Months after receiving nearly a million dollars to study “intellectual humility” toward political opponents, a professor expressed glee at the deaths of his political opponents.  Mark Alfano will face no repercussions from Macquarie University because no one has formally complained about his online comments, a spokesperson for the Australian public institution told The College Fix.  The associate professor in the Department of Philosophy shared a Jan. 15 New York Times tweet on the death of a Donald Trump supporter during the Jan. 6 riots outside the U.S. Capitol.  His tweet, which remains live as of early Tuesday, reads: “More of this please.” Alfano proceeded to argue with fellow Twitter users who criticized his tweet.  The professor works in moral psychology, which encompasses both philosophy and social science, according to his curriculum vitae. I wonder if he ever heard of Aristotle, or, for that matter, Lincoln.  And I think someone should identity the lunkheads who gave him a million dollars.

February 1, 2021