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DECEMBER 8,  2018

SHORT TAKES ON THE DRIFTING WRECKAGE – AT 11:54 P.M. ET:

YOU CANNOT MAKE THIS UP – FROM CAMPUS REFORM:    A Minnesota professor suggested in a series of tweets that the Virgin Mary did not consent to the conception of Jesus Christ and suggested that God may have acted in a “predatory" manner.  Minnesota State University, Mankato psychology professor and sex therapist Dr. Eric Sprankle critiqued the story of the Virgin Mary in a tweet Monday, suggesting that the Virgin Mary did not consent to being impregnated by God.  “The virgin birth story is about an all-knowing, all-powerful deity impregnating a human teen. There is no definition of consent that would include that scenario. Happy Holidays,” Sprankle said.  Another Twitter user called the professor’s claim into question, noting that the Bible states that the Virgin Mary did, indeed, agree to God’s plan for her.  “The biblical god regularly punished disobedience,” Sprankle rebutted. “The power difference (deity vs mortal) and the potential for violence for saying ‘no’ negates her ‘yes.’ To put someone in this position is an unethical abuse of power at best and grossly predatory at worst.”  That is absolutely sick, and a stunning abuse of the role of professor.  Resign now.

HOW DECENT PEOPLE ACT – FROM DAILYWIRE.COM:  Dr. Bernice King, the daughter of Martin Luther King Jr., wrote a letter this week in support of a criminal justice reform bill that has bipartisan support and has been endorsed by President Donald Trump.  In a letter obtained by The Daily Wire from the National Diversity Coalition For Trump, King wrote in a "plea to Congress" that the "First Step Act" is an opportunity to take a "monumental" step "towards assisting and empowering the least of these in America."  "The bill would reduce mandatory minimum sentences for some crimes and grant judges greater discretion in sentencing nonviolent drug offenders," A Bloomberg editorial said about the bill. "It would also fund recidivism-reduction programs for low-risk inmates and allow some 2,600 drug offenders to petition for reduced sentences. Perhaps most important, the bill would require more research on criminal justice — a predicate to reducing guesswork in setting future policy on sentencing."   Whether one agrees with the legislation or not, the fact that Dr. King felt free to endorse something championed by President Trump indicates that there are still people who put country before partisan politics.

ICE IN ACTION – FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER:   Foreign nationals from 24 countries — including four people with Interpol warrants for their arrests — were among the 105 arrested by Immigration and Customs Enforcement during a five-day sweep.  The agency announced the arrests Friday in a news release.  “Our focus has been and will continue to be on arrests of illegal aliens who have been convicted of serious crimes or those who pose a threat to public safety,” said John Tsoukaris, director of the Newark field office.  The people arrested ranged in age from 18 to 65 years old. The agency said more than 80 percent had either prior convictions or pending charges for a variety of crimes, including sexual assault on a minor, child abuse, possession of narcotics, distribution of narcotics, extortion, DUI, fraud, domestic violence, theft, possession of a weapon, robbery, promoting prostitution, aggravated assault, resisting arrest, endangering the welfare of a child, credit card fraud, insurance fraud, shoplifting, and illegal re-entry.  The agency said the pre-planned sweep targeted criminal aliens, illegal re-entrants, and other immigration violators.  And there are leftists who want to abolish this agency.  Shame.

December 8,  2018     Permalink

A WORD TO THE WISE – AT 1:26 P.M. ET:   Mark Penn is a renegade Democrat who has been close to the Clintons.  He supports his party, but never hesitates to criticize it when he thinks it's gone astray.  Now, as the Dems start savoring the idea of impeaching President Trump, Penn implores them to be careful, and to remember the lessons of the past.  From Fox: 

The warning signs of partisanship taken too far come from what happened in 1998 with the impeachment of President Clinton by the House, and from the recent Senate confirmation battle that raged over the nomination of now-Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh.

In the Clinton case, voters reacted negatively to Republicans who tried to turn unsavory personal behavior into crimes to support the impeachment of the president in the House of Representatives.

Clinton was acquitted on charges of perjury and obstruction of justice at his Senate trial, so the effort to remove him from office failed.

In the Kavanaugh confirmation fight, voters reacted negatively to Democrats on the Senate Judiciary Committee who went overboard with Spartacus moments and for the way they handled allegations of sexual misconduct.

Voters made clear in both the Clinton and Kavanaugh cases that they want their elected representatives in Congress to get the business of lawmaking done and not focus on partisanship.

Back in 1998, House Republicans considered Bill Clinton an illegitimate president who they believed the American public would support removing from office if Independent Counsel Ken Starr reported that Clinton lied under oath. The Starr report was a blockbuster, complete with graphic descriptions of Oval Office sexual activity between Clinton and then-White House intern Monica Lewinsky and stained-dress evidence.

But the plan backfired. In the 1998 midterm elections, Republicans actually lost seats in Congress as we Democrats used the theme “Progress, not Partisanship,” and the whole imbroglio toppled House Speaker Newt Gingrich, R-Ga.

And...

Sure, the Mueller report is going to be a collection of greatest hits against President Trump – a prosecutor’s tale carefully woven over two years to turn every utterance by Trump into obstruction and every contact with a Russian into collusion.

But, absent the caveat of some truly new and devastating information, the public is smart enough to distinguish the case against President Trump from the kind of actual obstruction of justice by President Nixon, who authorized hush money to organizers of the break-in at Democratic National Committee headquarters.

And...

So come January, the Democrats in the House will have a choice. They can accept the Mueller report and move on. Or, they can hold endless hearings all over again run by Rep. Jerrold Nadler, D-N.Y., who is expected to chair the House Judiciary Committee, and then vote to impeach the president or censure him for the actions described in the Mueller report.

And...

President Trump, like it or not, maintains significant and passionate public support that has even withstood unbelievably damaging tapes and countless critical stories and revelations in the media.

Trump’s approval ratings in polls right now are above where Presidents Clinton and Obama were at this same stage of their presidencies. According to the most recent RealClear Politics average of polls, Trump has an approval rating of about 43 percent and a disapproval rating of 52 percent.

The U.S. president is not viewed as negatively as French President Emmanuel Macron, whose approval ratings are below 20 percent.

In fact, members of Congress have Macron-like approval ratings, precisely because of their failure to get things done for the American people.

The question confronting Democrats at the start of the new year will be whether they want to repeat what the Republicans did in 1998, and whether it will have the same outcome. The most likely answers right now are yes and yes.

COMMENT:  Read the whole thing.  An incisive and experienced argument from a real pro.  His advice will, as he suggests, probably not be taken, and we could be in for a real mess.

December 8, 2018       Permalink

FRANCE EXPLODING – AT 12:31 P.M. ET:  And there seems to be so little interest here.  Not only is France getting wobbly, but this unrest can easily spread to other economically troubled European countries.  Western Europe, which loves to lecture America, is in no position to lecture anyone.  From Britain's Express: 

The yellow vest protests in the French capital escalated on Saturday with protesters firing tear gas canisters against police officers and holding up banners calling for France to leave the European Union. More than 400 people have already been arrested with thousands of protesters breaking police barriers to inundate the streets of Paris. The so-called gilets jaunes have been protesting against French President Emmanuel Macon's policies for the fourth weekend in a row.

8,000 officers and 12 armoured vehicles sent into Paris today as more than 1,000 people gathered in the city centre.

Protesters met at the Champs-Elysées and marched to a police cordon before stopping.

This is now the fourth weekend of protests, with last week seeing hundreds of people arrested and many injured on the streets.

Ministers have said the protests have been hijacked by “ultra-violent” protestors as four have died and hundreds more have been injured.

Despite the violence, the movement has garnered support from the French people, with 77 percent justifying the protests according to French news site Le Figaro.

That is an incredible figure.

The government have since said it is scrapping the fuel increases and has frozen electricity and gas prices for 2019.

However, protests have erupted over other issues, such as the need for higher wages, lower taxes, easier university requirements, better pensions and even President Emmanuel Macron’s resignation.

Protester Claude Rigolet told the BBC: "Everything is more expensive. Taxes are going up - housing, heating costs, cars. Everything is going up."

Protesters have organised themselves via social media, declaring this weekend as "Act IV" in a dramatic opposition to Macron’s policies.

The French President popularity rating plummeted to a new low of 23 percent in November - down by a massive six percentage points from October.

Despite the French President performing a U-turn against raising fuel taxes, another massive wave of violence hit the whole country on Saturday.

Arnaud Touati, co-founder of Paris-based law firm Alto Avocats, warned the damage done to France so far has been “devastating”.

He said: “Undoubtedly, we underestimate the considerable damage that this type of event has caused to France's reputation.

COMMENT:  Reputation is only a part of it.  Western Europe, where pomposity combines with weakness to produce a dangerous mix, will increasingly be seen as a region of the past unless it can solve its basic problems.  Why do I think those problems can best be solved by the nations themselves, without the heavy hand of the centralized European Union guiding them?

December 8,  2018     Permalink

DECEMBER 7,  2018

SHORT TAKES ON THE DRIFTING WRECKAGE – AT 11:55 P.M. ET: 

THIS IS DECEMBER 7TH, PEARL HARBOR DAY – FROM HAWAIINEWSNOW:    “For so long as there is a United States of America, a flag will fly over the USS Arizona Memorial and the National Park Service will continue to tell your story,” she said. “Your unconquerable spirits will live forever.”  Every year, survivors of the attack also urge younger generations to “never forget.”  That was Pearl Harbor survivor John Mathrusse’s message this year.  “We hope they never forget,” he said. “All the kids should come out here to see for themselves what happened.”  And that refrain is all the more poignant this year given not only who was at the Pearl Harbor ceremony, but by who wasn’t there: No one who survived the bombing of the USS Arizona battleship was in the audience.  That’s a first — all five of the survivors weren’t healthy enough to travel — and a stark reminder that World War II veterans aren’t getting any younger.  With each passing year, their numbers dwindle.  Soon there will be none.  And it is up to us to teach the next generation.  Sadly, the schools aren't doing it.

THE REMARKABLE WIRED WORLD – FROM AP:   Some 3.9 billion people are now using the Internet, meaning that for the first time more than half of the global population is online, the United Nations said Friday.  The UN agency for information and communication technologies, ITU, said that by the end of 2018 a full 51.2 percent of people around the world will be using the Internet.  "By the end of 2018, we will surpass the 50/50 milestone for Internet use," ITU chief Houlin Zhou said in a statement.  "This represents an important step towards a more inclusive global information society," he said, adding though that "far too many people around the world are still waiting to reap the benefits of the digital economy."   It can be a force for good, or for ill, or probably for both.  It doesn't replace the challenging education provided by a good, politically free school.

YOU CAN'T MAKE IT UP – FROM DAILYWIRE.COM:   Thanks to the excesses of the #MeToo movement, sexual encounters have morphed into an episode of South Park. In the midst of an otherwise romantic night, gals, you might be asked to create a so-called "consent video" so your understandably petrified partner can cover his behind against any future false accusation leveled against him.  A consent video is exactly what it sounds like: a woman telling a camera lens that she is fully onboard with having sex with so-and-so once the record button is turned off.  And they say romance is dead.  And you may be sure that a new industry will grow up to teach people how to direct consent videos, light them, write them, and make them legally valid.  I see an entirely new set of awards for best actress in a consent video, best performance by a frightened teenager, best consent video based on a real-life story.  I love art, don't you?

December 7,  2018     Permalink

HE MAY BE ON A MILK CARTON – AT 4:38 P.M. ET:  The president of France, a severe critic of our president, is apparently AWOL.  We will help, if asked.  From AP:

PARIS (AP) — As anti-government protests rage through France and Paris locks down, fearing new riots, the man whose presidency has unleashed the anger is nowhere to be seen.

French President Emmanuel Macron has stayed out of the public eye all week, leaving his unpopular government to try to calm the nation. In response, “Macron, resign!” has become the main slogan of the “yellow vest” demonstrators.

The protesters’ anger has been directed at the French leader, who they feel has been the “president of the rich” and is out-of-touch with ordinary people.

Macron’s pro-business reforms have aimed to make the French economy more competitive globally, but French workers see the changes as brutal and weakening their rights.

Macron, whose popularity plummeted in recent months, is also widely seen as arrogant, which comes out when he tells an unemployed man he can find a job if he “crosses the street,” or advising a retiree not to complain.

The 40-year-old leader mostly spent the week holding closed-door meetings in the Elysee presidential palace, which many protesters see as an ivory tower where he is hiding away from the people.
The president’s office said he would not speak before Saturday’s anti-government protests.

Normally Macron is a president who likes the limelight, one who has sought a prominent place on the world stage since his surprise election last year.

Just a week ago, he was basking in the international limelight at the Group of 20 summit in Argentina, challenging U.S. President Donald Trump on climate change and protectionist trade measures.

As he met with other world leaders last weekend, images of burning barricades in Paris and the Arc de Triomphe monument in a cloud of tear gas were all over the television screens.

COMMENT:   This is the chap who was lecturing President Trump a few weeks ago.  I think we should offer him political asylum.  But make him pay rent, and don't include the parking space.

December 7, 2018       Permalink

THE PRESIDENT HOLDS – AT 3:40 P.M. ET:  The president's standing in the Rasmussen tracker is steady.  From Rasmussen:   

The Rasmussen Reports daily Presidential Tracking Poll for Friday shows that 50% of Likely U.S. Voters approve of President Trump’s job performance. Forty-nine percent (49%) disapprove.

The latest figures include 36% who Strongly Approve of the way Trump is performing and 41% who Strongly Disapprove. This gives him a Presidential Approval Index rating of -5.

COMMENT:  As we always caution, this is only one poll.  But remember that pollsters will now be tracking attitudes toward the new, Democratic House of Representatives.  It may well be that, while critical of the president, the voters will turn out to be more critical of the Democrats.  Dislike of Hillary Clinton, after all, was a major factor in giving Trump the White House.

I'd like to see Mr. Trump move above 50% in Rasmussen, especially as he ranks lower in other polls.

December 7,  2018     Permalink

A DECLINE – AT 1:52 P.M. ET:  There are some signs of economic slowdown.  This isn't good, especially as the parties will soon be starting their presidential election preparations.   From CNBC:

Job growth slowed in November amid fears that economic growth is losing steam.

Nonfarm payrolls increased by 155,000 for the month while the unemployment rate again held at 3.7 percent, its lowest since 1969, the Labor Department reported Friday. Economists surveyed by Dow Jones had been expecting payroll growth of 198,000 and the jobless rate to hold steady.

Average hourly earnings, a closely watched sign of whether inflation pressures are building, again rose at a 3.1 percent pace from a year ago. The monthly earnings gain of 0.2 percent fell short of estimates for a 0.3 percent increase. The average work week edged lower by 0.1 hours to 34.4 hours.

Stock futures turned positive following the weak report as traders bet it may mean the Federal Reserve is less aggressive next year on rate hikes.

A separate gauge that includes discouraged workers and those holding part-time jobs for economic reasons, sometimes called the real unemployment rate, rose from 7.4 percent to 7.6 percent.

COMMENT:  It will take several more months of measurements to determine if we're in a real slowdown.  If so. Trump will probably be blamed.  He will certainly be blamed by the press. 

If the president also is having problems with Robert Mueller and his merry band of investigators, we could see a perfect storm develop. 

But never count Trump out.  Others have made that mistake, and are collecting unemployment insurance.

December 7,  2018    Permalink