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DECEMBER 22,  2018

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

GOOD COMPANIES – FROM THE WASHINGTON TIMES:  Several major firms are resisting calls from director Judd Apatow and other Twitter liberals to boycott Tucker Carlson’s TV show because he opposes illegal immigration.  Pacific Life, Indeed.com, IHOP and several other companies did pull their ads from the Fox News Channel show “Tucker Carlson Tonight,” but the resisters include such major firms as Farmer’s Insurance, Mitsubishi and John Deere.  In a statement to the Daily Beast, Farmers Insurance said it “invests in advertising across a broad range of networks and programs that reflect the diversity of opinions and viewpoints found across the nation.”  When Farmers advertisers on political shows, the company explained, it “should not be construed to be an endorsement of any kind as to a show’s content or the individuals appearing on the show.”  The Japanese auto and ship giant concurred, telling the Beast that “our advertising media spend is determined based on demographics and psychographics, not politics.”   Glad to see some corporations are actually resisting political correctness, rather than joining it.

WHAT HARVARD ACCEPTS – FROM THE NEW YORK POST:   Parkland shooting survivor and anti-gun activist David Hogg is heading to Harvard.  The graduate of Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School — where 17 students were shot and killed in February — took to Twitter to share the news of his acceptance.  “Thank you all for the well wishes, I’ll be attending Harvard in the fall with a planned major in Political Science,” Hogg tweeted Saturday morning.  Hogg and other Parkland survivors were launched into the national spotlight as they fought for gun control after the shooting.  Jaclyn Corin, another Parkland survivor, tweeted this week that she was also accepted into Harvard.  He turned into a little demagogue after the shooting, exploiting the event for his own political future.   He is vicious.  I guess, though, that if you take the "correct" position on gun control, fair Harvard will accept you. 

THE ETERNAL QUEST – FROM CBS LOCAL:  PHILADELPHIA (CBS) — Could the secret to eternal youth be found in blood transfusions from young people? Some claim that transfusions with “young blood” from teenagers can reverse the aging process.  It’s being tested in patients over the age of 35 as part of a clinical trial called ambrosia, where people paid $8,000 to get the rich growth factors found in bloods plasma platelets.  Dr. Jesse Karmazin said.  Results of the trial have not been published.  Dr. Karmazin, who plans to open a business selling young blood, says patients who’ve had it say they feel amazing, and he says he’s seen evidence of reversing the aging process in rats.  “Their brains are younger, their hearts. Their hair, if it was gray, it turns dark again,” he said.  There has also been encouraging Alzheimer’s research using young blood at Stanford University.  “We found that it was safe and feasible to administer infusions of young plasma weekly,” Dr. Sharon Shaw, an Alzheimer’s researcher at Stanford, said. Dr. Shaw is a researcher who says they have seen evidence of improvement in functional ability.  “It’s all very exciting that there can be components in blood that can be healing,” Dr. Shaw said.  I wonder if we can give "old" blood to Democratic members of Congress, so they can stop acting like teenagers.  Just askin'.

December 22, 2018       Permalink

A DAY IN HISTORY – AT 1:52 P.M. ET:   I'm a sucker for American military history.  We recall that Christmas of 1944 was hell for American forces in Europe.  The Nazis surprised us with a major, desperate offensive, soon to be called the Battle of the Bulge.  From Daily Caller: 

Today, December 22, marks the 74-year anniversary of American Brig. Gen. Anthony C. McAuliffe’s legendary reply to the Germans during the Battle of the Bulge.

During the Battle of the Bulge, German forces had surrounded the Americans holding Bastogne and the area around the town.

German forces approached the men of the 101st Airborne Divison to demand their honorable surrender or face annihilation. In the absence of General Maxwell Taylor, McAuliffe was in charge of the 101st. The German message was delivered to him around noon, and read in part:

This time the U.S.A. forces in and near Bastogne have been encircled by strong
German armored units. More German armored units have crossed
the river Ourthe near Ortheuville, have taken Marche and
reached St. Hubert by passing through Hompre-Sibret-Tillet.

Libramont is in German hands.

There is only one possibility to save the encircled
U.S.A troops from total annihilation: that is the honorable
surrender of the encircled town. In order to think it over
a term of two hours will be granted beginning with the
presentation of this note.

If this proposal should be rejected one German
Artillery Corps and six heavy A. A. Battalions are ready
to annihilate the U.S.A. troops in and near Bastogne. The
order for firing will be given immediately after this two
hours’ term.

What did McAuliffe do? Did he order his men to throw their weapons down and surrender to the Germans, who had them outnumbered and encircled?  Did he cave to the enormous threat from the enemy?

No, he simply replied with one word: NUTS! His full message read:

December 22, 1944

To the German Commander,

N U T S !

The American Commander

What happened next was unbelievable — and one of the greatest accomplishments in the history of American warfare. The American forces defended Bastogne, pushed the Germans back and didn’t give a damn inch to the enemy.

COMMENT:  Read the whole thing.  It's terrific.  And it harks back to a time when Americans really did believe in themselves and their country, flaws and all.

I'm sure there are many who, today, regard themselves as "educated" or "sophisticated," and who chuckle at that moment in American history.  They are neither educated nor sophisticated.  They're just childlike fools.

December 22, 2018       Permalink

THE PRESIDENT IN TROUBLE – AT 1:18 P.M. ET:  Another resignation in protest over Syria.  This ain't funny.   From Fox: 

Brett McGurk, the U.S. envoy for the global coalition to defeat Islamic State (ISIS), has resigned in the wake of President Trump’s decision to pull U.S. troops out of Syria, Fox News confirmed Saturday -- coming on the heels of the resignation of Defense Secretary Jim Mattis earlier this week.

U.S. officials said this week that the Trump administration is making plans to pull all 2,000 troops out of Syria, and Trump later tweeted that “we have defeated ISIS in Syria, my only reason for being there during the Trump Presidency.”

Ground troops moved into Syria in 2015 to combat ISIS in the region, amid an escalating Syrian civil war. Trump had talked about pulling out of Syria before, but military leaders had warned about ISIS re-emerging should the U.S. do so. There is also concern about abandoning the U.S.'s Kurdish allies.

On Thursday, Trump announced that Mattis was retiring in February. Mattis’ resignation letter said that Trump had a right to a Defense Secretary “whose views are better aligned with yours” on policy.

Sources told Fox News this week that Mattis' resignation was "in protest" over the president's national security policies and that more resignations could be coming.

COMMENT:   And Mr. Trump is facing opposition, and dismay, from major Republican figures in the Senate, senators who had been supporting him on foreign policy.

In the last few days Urgent Agenda has received more messages critical of the president than in the entire Trump presidency, starting in January of 2017.

This is not good.  Presidents get into trouble, but they are in serious trouble when their own party starts doubting them.  Remember that Nixon was forced to resign, in the midst of the Watergate investigations, because support in his own party was eroding.  He resigned before being impeached by the House.  His fate in the Senate would have been in doubt.

I've never believed that Nixon was forced out by Watergate.  Watergate was the proximate cause, the excuse.   He was forced out because he was Richard Nixon.   Even though he had carried 49 states in the 1972 presidential election, he was less than popular, and rather disliked by fellow Republicans.

The same thing is true of Trump.  He is disliked within his own party.  He has made unnecessary enemies, and few friends.  If he gets into trouble because of the Mueller probes, he might find little enthusiasm for him to stay in office.  The current erosion of support because of his Syria decision is a serious warning to him. 

All is not lost.  Please recall that Harry Truman was widely regarded as hopeless before his spectacular come-from-behind victory in the presidential race of 1948.  And Franklin D. Roosevelt lost considerable support during his second term over his scheme to pack the Supreme Court and his decision to go for an unprecedented third term.  He not only won a third term, but a fourth as well. 

Don't underestimate Trump's political skills.  But don't overestimate them either.  Some of his allies say that he will survive, and win re-election, because there is no one else to take his place.  Recall the French proverb, that the graveyards of the world are filled with indispensable men.

December 22,  2018     Permalink

DECEMBER 21,  2018

SHORT TAKES ON THE DRIFTING WRECKAGE – AFTER MIDNIGHT, BUT WE'LL COUNT IT AS PART OF FRIDAY'S EDITION:

IRRITATING – FROM STUDY FINDS:  KENT, England — A third of natural-born Americans have thought about packing up and living elsewhere — outside the United States — at some point in the future, but it may not be for the reason you think, a new study finds.  Researchers from the University of Kent in the United Kingdom and Tufts University in the U.S. say that the most popular reason (87.4 percent) to live abroad is the simple desire to explore the world. Surprisingly, whether a person identifies as liberal or conservative politically had no correlation to their hopes of moving overseas.  “While one might think that ideological orientation plays a role, at least in this pre-Trump survey, we found out that it did not, at least not directly,” says Dr. Amanda Klekowski von Koppenfels, of Kent’s Brussels School of International Studies, in a release.  Hard to interpret this without knowing how Americans felt, say, 20 or 40 years ago.  I haven't seen any research on that.

A WARNING TO US – FROM THE SUN:   CHINA has successfully tested a submarine-launched missile that can unleash a nuclear holocaust anywhere in the United States, sources have revealed.  The game-changing Chinese military flight tested the Julong-3 missile that will be deployed with the next generation of ballistic missile submarines, which are in the pipeline.  Chinese authorities have denied the test but a well- placed source within the American military has confirmed to The Diplomat the launch took place last month.  A US Department of Defence report said: “China’s four operational JIN-class SSBNs represent China’s first credible, seabased nuclear deterrent.”  Geopolitical analysts widely fear a showdown between the United States and China over who controls the South China Sea as well as the independence of Taiwan which could spiral out of control and lead to World War III.  More and more, it is China, not Russia, that appears the greater threat in the future.  Chinese research and development are relentless.  Russia is secondary.

GALLUP GALLOPS BACK – FROM POLITICO:   Gallup, the country’s best-known polling firm, is once again scaling back on the political surveys that have made it so famous.  Only a year after Gallup switched its presidential tracking poll — the ever-present reading of the president’s approval rating — from daily to weekly, the company will announce Friday that it plans to measure President Donald Trump’s job-approval rating only on a monthly basis. It's all part of what the company calls its new, "more global perspective," which de-emphasizes U.S. politics.  It also includes a leadership change, with Mohamed Younis — who has focused more on polling outside the United States in nearly a decade at Gallup — replacing Frank Newport as editor in chief. Newport has served in that role since 1990.  Too bad, but Gallup has increasingly become a voice of the past.  It used to be one of a very few major polling organizations.  Now there are many. 

December 21, 2018       Permalink

BULLETIN:  It's midnight, but we'll still consider this part of Friday's report.  The government has partially shut down.   As Johnny Carson used to ask, notice the difference?

The yappers are still yapping, and it's highly unlikely you'll feel any real change from earlier today, when the government was still functioning, which may be an exaggeration of its actual state.  From Fox: 

Funding for a slew of federal agencies lapsed at midnight after Congress and the White House failed to pass a spending package amid a bruising fight over border wall funding.

The missed deadline means nine of 15 Cabinet-level departments and dozens of agencies will close just as the Christmas break begins. But it does not mean the whole federal government is affected: Only about a quarter of the government is actually shutting down.

Congress had been facing a Friday deadline to fund a portion of the government or risk the partial shutdown. But even though negotiations continue, lawmakers left the Capitol on Friday without a deal to fund the government by midnight’s deadline.

Over the last few weeks, Republicans and Democrats had been at a standstill over the president’s demands for $5 billion to fund the border wall.

COMMENT:  If you sent holiday cards or gifts through the mail, not to worry.  The Post Office, which is independently funded, will continue to operate.

We get bits and pieces of the "negotiations" presumably underway.  Yawn.  If something important happens, we'll let you know.  There are some brave souls hinting that a deal could be reached this weekend, but the president is now so invested in getting funding for his border wall, that he really cannot give much.  He is trying to turn the "crisis" to his advantage by saying he's fighting for America's security, and the Dems are opposing him.  It might work.  Don't underestimate Trump's political instincts.

December 21, 2018       Permalink

THE SHUTDOWN? – AT 1:44 P.M. ET:  Will there be a government shutdown tonight?  The short answer is no because critical parts of the federal government are actually funded into next year.  So, if there's a shutdown, it will only affect certain agencies.  The country will not go to hell in a handbasket.

But the drama is high.  The gulf between Republicans and Democrats appears unbreachable.  From dailywire:   

President Trump on Friday said he's prepared for a government shutdown over the contentious battle to fund his oft-promised wall on the U.S.-Mexico border -- and put the blame squarely on Democrats.

"The Democrats now own the shutdown!" Trump wrote on Twitter Friday morning.

Trump's declaration comes after the House added $5.7 billion for construction of the southern border wall. The Senate is set to take up the proposal at noon today.

Trump had more -- much more -- to say about the wall and the coming Senate vote.

"Shutdown today if Democrats do not vote for Border Security!" he warned.

"Senator Mitch McConnell should fight for the Wall and Border Security as hard as he fought for anything. He will need Democrat votes, but as shown in the House, good things happen. If enough Dems don’t vote, it will be a Democrat Shutdown! House Republicans were great yesterday!" Trump wrote.

The president said McConnell, the Senate Majority Leader, should employ the "nuclear option," a move that makes it so only a majority vote of 51 supporters is necessary.

"Mitch, use the Nuclear Option and get it done! Our Country is counting on you!"

COMMENT:  Presumably there are talks going on, but we really have nothing solid.  We may well have the partial shutdown tonight.

The president is holding firm on his demand for funding for the border wall.  A Senate vote is formally underway on a proposal that would avoid a shutdown tonight, but the vote is stalled pending the return of some senators to Washington.  

Most reporters are saying the odds favor a shutdown.

December 21, 2018       Permalink

JUSTICE GINSBURG'S CONDITION – AT 12:30 P.M. ET:  We should state that we have no ill will toward the justice, and wish her well.  However, her physical condition is a subject of intense public interest for obvious reasons.  So we report this as a news story.  From the New York Post: 

Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg underwent a pulmonary lobectomy in Manhattan on Friday and two malignant nodules were removed from her lung, the court announced.

The 85-year-old underwent the procedure at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center after the nodules were discovered in the lower lobe of her left lung, the court announced.

The discovery was made during tests performed at George Washington University Hospital to diagnose and treat rib fractures she sustained in a fall on Nov. 7.

Dr. Valerie Rusch, a thoracic surgeon, said both nodules were found to be malignant after preliminary tests, but there was no evidence of any remaining disease after the surgery.

COMMENT:  A Supreme Court judgeship is a lifetime appointment.  Because people are living longer and working longer, it would probably be wrong to change that rule, or impossible to get support.  But Justice Ginsburg's condition is worrying.  She's had a number of close calls.

Maybe Supreme Court justices could be subject to regular medical evaluations by an impartial panel.  We expect them to be in reasonable physical shape and excellent mental shape.  I think we might gently explore some evaluation procedure, which would not apply to any sitting justice, but would apply in the future.

December 21,  2018     Permalink