SHORT TAKES ON THE DRIFTING WRECKAGE – OVERNIGHT:

OLD SOLDIERS NEVER DIE – FROM CBS SPORTS:  The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are Super Bowl LV champions after completing a victory that exceeded expectations and made all kinds of history on Sunday night at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Florida. In dominating the Kansas City Chiefs 31-9, the Bucs won their second Super Bowl and became the first team to win a Super Bowl in their home stadium. Quarterback Tom Brady secured his seventh Lombardi Trophy, two more than any player in NFL history and one more than any entire NFL franchise has achieved.  Brady's performance at age 43 was nearly flawless, and the suffocating pressure of Todd Bowles's defense was a perfect compliment to the offense's effort. The future Pro Football Hall of Fame quarterback completed 21 of 29 passes for 201 yards and three touchdowns, including a pair to his long-time favorite target, tight end Rob Gronkowski and another to wide receiver Antonio Brown.  At 43 he's the old man of football.  He proves that no one should give up just because of age.  We're an overly youth-oriented society, but it was the ancient warrior, with years of experience, who won. 

THE SWEETNESS OF INNOCENCE...NOT – FROM FOX:    Rep. Maxine Waters, D-Calif., has publically denied encouraging supporters to confront and harass members of the Trump administration.  The California Democrat was asked whether she ever "glorified or encouraged" violence against Republicans in a Sunday interview with MSNBC's Ali Velshi.  "As a matter of fact, if you look at the words that I used, the strongest thing I said was tell them they're not welcome," Waters claimed. "[I said] Talk to them. Tell them they're not welcome. I didn't say go and fight. I didn't say anybody was going to have any violence. And so they can't make that stick."  Waters came under fire in 2018 for telling the same network that she had "no sympathy" for administration officials who defended Trump's "zero-tolerance" immigration policy, and urged her supporters to "absolutely harass them" when appearing in public.  "They’re not going to be able to go to a restaurant, they’re not going to be able to stop at a gas station, they’re not going to be able to shop at a department store," Waters said at the time. "The people are going to turn on them, they’re going to protest, they’re going to absolutely harass them."  Her comments came after then-Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen and former press secretary Sarah Sanders were confronted with their families in public over Trump's controversial family separation policy.  One of the worst and most useless members of Congress, Waters lives in a multi-million-dollar home outside her district.  Her vile statements about President Trump and Republicans generally, if they don't specifically advocate violence, come awfully close. 

February 7, 2021