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JANUARY 9,   2018

SHORT TAKES ON THE DRIFTING WRECKAGE – AT 11:56 P.M. ET: 

BANNON OUT OF BREITBART – FROM FOX:   Stephen Bannon has stepped down as executive chairman of the pro-Trump, populist website Breitbart News, less than a week after a dramatic falling out with President Trump.  Breitbart announced the news Tuesday afternoon on its website, saying it would work together with Bannon on “a smooth and orderly transition.”  “I’m proud of what the Breitbart team has accomplished in so short a period of time in building out a world-class news platform,” Bannon said in a statement on the site.  “Steve is a valued part of our legacy, and we will always be grateful for his contributions, and what he has helped us to accomplish,” Breitbart CEO Larry Solov said.  Yikes.  I guess the next step for Steve is the Witness Protection Program.

INCREDIBLE ACADEMIC BREAKTHROUGH – FROM COLLEGE FIX:   You’d expect the typical progressive to say that calling someone lazy is an ableist slur.  If you’re the department chair of higher education at the University of Denver, on the other hand, being called lazy is a badge of honor.  Prof. Ryan Evely Gildersleeve, whose background is “primarily out-of-classroom learning contexts with non-dominant youth,” argues today in the research journal Qualitative Inquiry that “lazy practices can become useful for postqualitative inquiry that seeks to disrupt normative explanations of the world.”  In fact, laziness is “a political stance”:  "As political action, laziness, then provides postqualitative inquiry with an additional tool for contributing to social justice via social research. Laziness combats the neoliberal condition in which academic research is situated and might serve as a virtue of postqualitative inquiry."  No question about it.  Absolutely no question.  I'm sold.  Just make sure to include the power steering.

OPRAH? – FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER:  At least one conservative think tank is taking the possibility of an Oprah Winfrey presidency seriously. Heritage Foundation President Kay Coles James just invited Oprah to join her for “substantive policy discussions and debates.”  Before the presidency of Donald Trump, that would probably seem more like a public relations gimmick than a legitimate offer. But in the era of celebrity politics, Oprah isn’t just an option — if she runs in 2020, she'd make a big splash, and even if she doesn't run, she has tremendous influence.  And while Oprah is clearly a liberal—she helped catapult Barack Obama to the White House in 2008—some conservatives see a real opportunity for bipartisan compromise.   What can one say?  If she runs, she'll probably choose a vice presidential candidate from a Super Bowl commercial.

January 9, 2018       Permalink

LENIN WOULD APPROVE – AT 11:09 A.M. ET:   Plans for the new Obama presidential library in battle-scarred Chicago are becoming, er, controversial.  Not exactly presidential.  From Fox: 

In their effort to break the mold, the planners of the Obama Presidential Center in Chicago are taking heat for some less-than-lofty features in the sprawling complex.
Namely, a “test kitchen.”

Reports first surfaced last fall that the monument to the first black president’s legacy was taking on an activity-center vibe. There would be a museum – but also a basketball court, possibly a room for yoga classes, and a test kitchen to teach visitors “about the full production cycle of nutritious food.”

It’s a reference to former first lady Michelle Obama’s campaign for healthy eating and lifestyles. 

But Chicago Tribune columnist Ron Grossman trashed the “test kitchen” idea as not worthy of the ideals and history for which the presidential center is supposed to stand.

“Mr. President, I’ve got to tell you: The renderings for your museum are ‘little plans,’ more likely to congeal than stir blood,” he wrote.

The problem, Grossman wrote, isn’t the design but the add-ons.

“What brought me up short was a space in the adjoining Forum building labeled ‘test kitchen.’ Presumably that reflects Michelle Obama’s war on junk food. The museum’s champions similarly suggest it could host yoga classes,” he wrote. “President Obama, is that how you want to be remembered? As the healthy-eating and meditation-advocating president?”

He added, “That’s not how I want the story to come down to my grandchildren’s children.” 

COMMENT:  Once again we see the unseriousness of Barack Obama, and his contempt for the traditions of the United States.

Presidential libraries are usually serious places.  But they can be jokes, and simply the extension of some president's ego.

Looks like this joke is on Chicago.

January 9, 2018       Permalink

HOLLYWOOD, OUR CENTER OF POLITICAL THOUGHT – AT 8:51 A.M. ET:   Can there be any doubt?  Who needs Lincoln when you have Oprah?  Who needs Jefferson when you have Meryl?  Who needs a Constitution when you have the edicts handed down by the "Academy"?  Look to Hollywood for political wisdom.  It'll only take a few seconds.  From Wes Pruden at the Washington Times: 

We’ve just completed the first presidential primary of the 2020 election year, and the decision is unanimous.

This was the Hollywood primary — not to be confused with the California primary — and after the votes were counted, there wasn’t a dry eye or a deplorable in sight.

The winner was Oprah Winfrey, the onetime actress, sometime activist and full-time talk-show hostess and now a presidential nominee.

You might even call her the front-runner of the Pity Party.

Or so the Hollywood branch of the Pity Party decided, assembled as it was in Beverly Hills for the annual dinner of the Golden Globes, one of the endless occasions of the Hollywood glitterati to exchange prizes with one another. This is a rite that has yet to catch on with plumbers, morticians and other professionals, with prizes for the most effective use of say, a bathroom plunger or, the most skillful application of rouge on a dearly departed.

Miss Winfrey had a very good night, with a moving speech celebrating a hero and a heroine “of color.” She invoked pathos (and even a touch of bathos) reciting how she watched an Academy Awards telecast as a little girl, “sitting on the linoleum floor of my mother’s house in Milwaukee,” and how thrilled she was when Sidney Poitier — “the most elegant man I had ever seen, his tie was white and of course his skin was black” — was called up to the stage to accept his Oscar.

And...

But Hollywood, suffering from a long bout of feelings of irrelevancy, is back with the gaga. Seth Meyers, the emcee at the Golden Globes, credited his remarks at a dinner of the White House Correspondents Association for goading Donald Trump into the 2016 race for president (the goad was actually a speech by Barack Obama). Meryl Streep says Oprah has no choice, now that she carried the Hollywood Primary, but to run. Indeed, Mzz Streep is ready to be secretary of State in the Oprah administration, eager to negotiate with heads of state, since she once portrayed Margaret Thatcher in a movie.

Stedman Graham, Oprah’s fairly significant other, thinks she’s up for a run for the White House.

“It’s up to the people,” he says, generously. “She would absolutely do it.” Tom Hanks is widely tipped already for Oprah’s running mate, though her natural running mate is Beyonce, but only if she has been winked at, and it’s hard to imagine that she hasn’t.

COMMENT:  Politically, Hollywood is a joke.  You can be sure that most of the speeches made by the "stars" who spoke – "stars" most of us have never heard of – were written by PR men or interns at talent agencies. 

What many people don't realize about Hollywood is that it's actually a rather boring place.  Yes, there are plenty of good, hard-working people, but there is so much fluff on top that you often can't see the work.  And then there is the characteristic that links Hollywood with its sister industry, the federal government.  And that is the colossal waste of time.  When I was out there I sometimes thought that the objective of most of those I met was to do nothing.  No one in Hollywood is fired for doing nothing.  It's when you do something that you get in trouble. 

I don't believe that most voters care what Meryl Streep stands for.  Or Streisand.  Or the hopeless Michael Moore.  They care what's on their dinner table, and they care about the schools their kids attend.  And they watch movies for entertainment, not politics. 

Will Oprah be president?  I hope not...unless she first learns where North Korea is.

January 9, 2018       Permalink

TRUMP AND IRAN – AT 7:45 A.M. ET:  Have you noticed that there's a rebellion brewing in Iran?  You know, there were big demonstrations in the streets last week, until they were put down by the thugs.  You can be forgiven for not knowing because the mainstream media hasn't exactly headlined the story.  How important could it be compared with an anti-Trump book by a New York gossip reporter?

But there is still simmering tension in Iran.  And we can assess the reaction of foreign leaders to the call for democracy coming from the dissenting groups.   The great Andrew Malcolm gives Trump high grades, which, in my view, is the correct call.  From McClatchy: 

If you’ve got a minute to pause from our collective obsession with a gossipy book of dubious veracity, here’s an issue of compelling importance that reveals another side of this president and his administration: Iran and how Donald Trump addresses the deadly anti-regime demonstrations now convulsing that historic land that clearly is the linchpin of any future regional stability, or the opposite.

The last time such nationwide protests erupted there — the Green Revolution of 2009 — Barack Obama was painfully reluctant to involve the U.S., even rhetorically. His tardy and limp comments about peaceful demonstrations came only after congressional resolutions and John McCain’s Senate tongue-lashing for their absence.

Hillary Clinton later admitted, “We were too restrained in our support of the protests in June 2009, and in our condemnation of the government crackdown that followed.”

Though there’s little media attention these days, there’s no confusion this time. “Oppressive regimes cannot endure forever,” Trump has said. “The people of Iran are finally acting against the brutal and corrupt Iranian regime.”

Vice President Mike Pence gave a lengthy interview to Greta Van Susteren for Voice of America to broadcast in Farsi: “We're going to continue to send, from the very outset of this effort on the streets of Iran, an unambiguous message that the American people stand with freedom-loving people in Iran and around the world.”

In a Washington Post op-ed Pence wrote, “We stand with the proud people of Iran because it is right. And because the regime in Tehran threatens the peace and security of the world.”

Obama’s abiding reluctance to confront Iran on anything was tied to his consuming desire for the coveted nuclear pact he sought with Tehran, a leaky pact Trump has now declined to certify Iran is obeying.

Any president, especially one like Trump not known for nuance, walks a tightrope in these situations. He must make clear America’s support for a people’s democratic strivings without creating false hopes of direct U.S. intervention, as arose during the Hungarian Revolution of 1956, ultimately squashed by Soviet tanks.

COMMENT:  Read the whole thing.  Andrew Malcolm gives us a thoughtful view of a shrewd president who thinks clearly, acts strategically, and is far from nuts.

January 9,  2018    Permalink

JANUARY 8,  2018

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

THE LATEST ON THE SEX BEAT – FROM ABC LOCAL:   COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. - A two-star general who recently headed the 4th Infantry Division at Fort Carson was denied a promotion to three-star after referring to a congressional staffer as "sweetheart" during a meeting in 2016.  That's according to military news outlet Stars and Stripes, which reports that Maj. Gen. Ryan Gonsalves was administratively reprimanded after an investigation into the incident. His specific punishment, aside from being denied the promotion to lieutenant general, wasn't released by the Army.  It stems from a meeting in October 2016 between Gonsalves and office staff with Rep. Jim Langevin (D-Rhode Island) at Fort Carson. According to a report, Gonsalves called a female staffer "sweetheart," and commented on her age.  Gonsalves also told the staffer to take notes "since she was a Democrat and did not believe in funding the military," according to a report from the Army Inspector General.  Other staffers called Gonsalves' comments sexist, though others stood up for him as a professional.   Well, it is some mildly inappropriate language, requiring the general to be cautioned, but I don't think it requires denying him an earned promotion.  Some of this stuff is getting out of control, and will destroy the basic issue of appropriate behavior.

GREAT MOMENTS IN NUTRITION – FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER:   Chocolate may go extinct as soon as the year 2050, according to scientists from the University of California, Berkeley. The reason for this catastrophe? Climate change is affecting the natural source of chocolate, apparently.  Not to worry, however. UC Berkeley scientists are collaborating with candy manufacturer Mars, Inc. in order to combat this dilemma before chocolate becomes completely eradicated from the Earth.  According to their research, cacao plants are dissipating due to higher temperatures around the world, supplemented with drier conditions in weather. Unfortunately, these conditions aren’t suitable for cocoa farming and might even put the processing of chocolate to a halt.  "We're trying to go all in here," Barry Parkin, the chief sustainability officer of Mars, expressed to Business Insider. "There are obviously commitments the world is leaning into but, frankly, we don't think we're getting there fast enough collectively."  If chocolate is not saved, nothing else is worth it.  This is about civilization itself.  Imagine stopping at a service station food mart and not finding a Milky Way.  I can't face the thought.

THE INTERNET STRIKES AGAIN – FROM THE NEW YORK POST:    LONDON – A couple, who met on a dating site and began researching how to make homemade explosives and the deadly poison ricin, were found guilty on Monday of plotting Islamic State-inspired chemical and bomb attacks on Britain.
Munir Hassan Mohammed, 37, from Derby in central England, began sharing extremist material within weeks of meeting Londoner Rowaida El-Hassan, 32, who in turn helped him find information on making ricin.  “This then rapidly escalated and El-Hassan, a qualified pharmacist, readily passed on her knowledge to Mohammed giving him the technical assistance he needed in preparing for a terrorist attack,” said Detective Chief Inspector Paul Greenwood.  Get a load of the photos.  Would you want to meet either of them on a dating site? 

January 8, 2018       Permalink

IT WAS ONCE THE PARTY OF ROOSEVELT, TRUMAN, AND KENNEDY – AT 11:52 A.M. ET:  Now it's the party of Barack Obama, amateur psychiatrists, and assorted nuts.  From Fox: 

After months of shying away from the toxic topic, Democrats increasingly are embracing political rhetoric that flirts with the impeachment of President Trump – signaling a strategy that could work its way into the mainstream in the 2018 midterms.

From the base, the party sees encouragement. A petition with 4 million signatures demanding Trump’s impeachment and a survey showing 70 percent of Democrats backing at least hearings on the matter could nudge Democrats further into the impeachment camp in the new year.

The publication of the “Fire and Fury” tell-all, meanwhile, has only emboldened Trump’s critics, by seeming to raise questions about his stability – which the president openly confronted in a weekend tweet-storm declaring he is a “very stable genius.”

Democrats must win 24 House seats and two Senate seats to regain control of Congress in 2018, but have a historically tough time motivating their voters in non-presidential years.

COMMENT:  I believe we have a Constitution, and that Constitution provides the basis for impeachment.  You can't impeach a president because someone wants to.

The Democratic Party is a disgrace to the country.  It is an embarrassment.  This is the party that led the United States through the Depression, through World War II, that built the defense structure that eventually won the Cold War, and that pledged that the United States would pay any price in defense of freedom.  Look at that party today.  Its chairman is a hard leftist who uses filthy language in speeches, even if children are present.  Its deputy chairman was a front man for the Nation of Islam, a hate group.

Unless America has lost its soul, I can't image it embracing the modern Democratic Party.  But I could be unpleasantly surprised.  The Democrats have the support of a left-wing media, and the support of the educational establishment.  Sadly, that's a good start for them.

January 8, 2018       Permalink

PRESIDENT OPRAH?  MY PILLS!  MY PILLS! – AT 9:35 A.M. ET: There was some kind of an awards show in Hollywood last night.  I never watch these things.  I've been in two industries – show business and journalism – where people spend considerable time giving awards to each other. 

But Oprah Winfrey made a speech at last night's awards bash, and, according to press reports, the audience of show biz types – think junior high school – went into hysterics, begging her to run for president.  From The Hill: 

Oprah Winfrey is sparking rumors of a potential 2020 run for president after delivering a moving speech at the Golden Globes as she accepted a lifetime achievement award.

Donning black like many other celebrities in a statement about sexual harassment, Winfrey paid homage to the press and to victims of sexual abuse as she accepted the Cecil B. DeMille Award for lifetime achievement. 

“So I want all the girls watching here and now to know that a new day is on the horizon.” Winfrey said.

“And when that new day finally dawns, it will be because of a lot of magnificent women, many of whom are right here in this room tonight, and some pretty phenomenal men fighting hard to make sure that they become the leaders who take us to the time when nobody ever has to say, ‘me too’ again.”

Winfrey in an interview after the show denied that she is preparing to run for president, but the momentum of her speech had already begun, and the talk-show host’s first name was trending in the nation’s capital Monday morning.

But Stedman Graham, Winfrey’s partner for the last several decades, expressed to The Los Angeles Times that a run for the Oval Office could happen.

“It's up to the people,” Graham told the newspaper. “She would absolutely do it."  

COMMENT:  Must we be put through this?  Her speech reads fine, and I've heard sound excerpts as well, but it's right out of the 1960s.  She sounds like Hillary with a better voice.

I recall a Hollywood personality who ran for president.  His name was Ronald Reagan.  But along the way he was a six-time union president and a two-term governor of our largest state.  And he wrote and lectured.

Get some experience, Oprah.  Learn what the 21st century is about.  Then we'll talk.

January 8, 2018        Permalink

REMARKABLE – AT 8:03 A.M.  ET:  Lost in the rush of positive economic reports are figures that the journalistic establishment never thought possible.  Blacks and Hispanics, two groups that we were told would be ignored by the Trump administration, are actually doing better than they ever have.  From Fox: 

Democratic warnings that President Trump would make life worse for minorities were discredited once again Friday, with the release of new unemployment statistics for December. In just under one year in office, the president and the Republican Congress have helped minorities make dramatic gains.

Since taking the reins from President Obama, President Trump and the GOP-controlled Congress have embraced free-market and pro-liberty economic policies. Now – after a year of reducing regulations, approving a tax cut, and encouraging stricter standards for numerous welfare programs at the state level – the economy is thriving. Working-age minorities are benefiting in ways they have rarely, if ever, have enjoyed in the modern era.

The U.S. Labor Department reported Friday that the unemployment rate for African-Americans fell to 6.8 percent in December – the lowest rate since record keeping began in 1972. That’s an astounding drop from the 8.3 percent black unemployment rate in October 2016, just before Donald Trump was elected president.

Hispanic unemployment was at a near-record low of 4.9 percent in December – down from 5.7 percent the month before the election of President Trump. Additionally, there were four months in 2017 in which the Hispanic seasonal unemployment fell below 5 percent – the only time that has occurred in a single year over the past 44 years.

COMMENT:  Oh my, how to explain this.  Trump has put new energy into the economy, and, just as important, into the psychology that drives the economy.  This administration understands that a strong overall economy, linked with tax reduction, will benefit every group in the nation.

I have no idea what the Democratic economic plan is.  I do know that the president's vision is working, and that this is likely to have a profound effect on how people vote in November. 

The GOP, in its historic shortsightedness, has long ignored groups it believed it could never win.  That's defeatist thinking. Mr. Trump may not be able to produce majorities in minority communities, but he and his economic results may draw enough votes away to change the national political map. 

Never surrender anywhere.

January 8,  2018     Permalink