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JANUARY 20,  2018

SHORT TAKES ON THE DRIFTING WRECKAGE – AT 10:56 P.M. ET:

SHUTDOWN CONTINUES – FROM REUTERS:  Democrats stuck to demands that any short-term spending legislation must include protections for young undocumented immigrants known as “Dreamers.” Republicans in turn said they would not negotiate on immigration until Democrats gave them the votes needed to reopen the government.  U.S. government workers were told to stay home or, in some cases, work without pay until new funding is approved in the first federal government shutdown since a 16-day funding lapse in October 2013.  The Republican-controlled Senate and House of Representatives held rare weekend sessions on Saturday, facing a political crisis that could affect November congressional elections. By about 7 p.m. both chambers resigned themselves to failure and agreed to resume work on Sunday.  Both Republicans and Democrats had dug in during the day, each side blaming the other.  Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said the Senate would vote at 0100 EST (0600 GMT) Monday on a bill to fund the government through Feb. 8, unless Democrats agree to hold it sooner.   One of the great dangers for Trump is that the shutdown can break the psychology of support he was receiving in the weeks before the shutdown began.  That in turn can have economic effects as people pull back from optimism.  Do the Democrats care?  I doubt it.

MORE MADNESS – FROM COLLEGE FIX:  A school district in Wisconsin is mulling over whether to remove the classic Harper Lee novel “To Kill a Mockingbird” from its high school curriculum after a parental complaint.  Parent Tujama Kameeta  wants the Monona Grove School District in Monona, Wisconsin town to remove the novel due to the “48 racial slurs directed at African Americans in the book.”  “The n-word is used so many times that it numbs the readers to its potency,” Kameeta told Madison365. “Reading the book just perpetuates racist thoughts and attitudes in a school district that actively discriminates against children of color.”  Kameeta added that students learning the epithets will enable them “to use [the words] for power over people of color.”  "To Kill a Mockingbird" is widely considered one of the great anti-discrimination novels.  I have no idea what this chap is talking about.

IMPORTANT MOVE TOWARD JUSTICE – FROM THE LOUISVILLE COURIER-JOURNAL:  Rene Boucher, the 58-year-old Bowling Green man accused of attacking U.S. Sen. Rand Paul at his home in November, has been charged with assaulting a member of congress resulting in personal injury.  The charges – a federal felony – were announced Friday by Josh J. Minkler, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Indiana.  “Assaulting a member of Congress is an offense we take very seriously,” Minkler said. “Those who choose to commit such an act will be held accountable.”  Boucher has signed a plea agreement, according to Minkler's statement. No date has been set for the taking of his guilty plea.   Please note that there was a shooting attack against GOP congressmen last June, in which Rep. Steve Scalise was critically wounded.  We are not a banana republic.  Attacks like this must be vigorously prosecuted. 

January 20, 2018       Permalink 

PENCE IN EGYPT – AT 1:44 P.M. ET:  Attention is focused on the shutdown, but other important stuff is happening.  The vice president is in Egypt, attending the problems in the Mideast.   He will also visit Jordan and Israel. 

It's important to watch Mike Pence carefully.  He may be president.  From ABC News:

Vice President Mike Pence and Egyptian leader Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi pledged a united front against terrorism in the Mideast as Pence, the highest-level American official to visit the U.S. ally in nearly a decade, began a trip through the region after leaving behind a government shutdown in Washington.

Pence and el-Sissi held 2 hours of talks at the presidential palace in Cairo, with acknowledgements of friendship and partnership between the two countries. Through a translator, Pence listened intently as el-Sissi cited the need to address "urgent issues," including "ways to eliminate this disease and cancer that has terrified the whole world."

Pence pointed to President Donald Trump's efforts to forge stronger ties with el-Sissi in his first year in office, "after a time when our countries seemed to be drifting apart."

Pence said "we stand shoulder to shoulder with you and Egypt in fighting against terrorism," and that "our hearts grieve" for the loss of life in recent terrorist attacks against Egyptians.

And...

His visit to the region came more than a month after Trump announced his decision to recognize Jerusalem as Israel's capital, a step that's enraged Palestinians. El-Sissi identified "the peace issue" as one of the most important issues in their discussions, but the two leaders did not elaborate...

...Pence planned to travel to Jordan later Saturday and then to Israel on Sunday. He was not expected to meet with Palestinians officials.

COMMENTS:  Once again the Palestinian leaders, to quote a late statesman, "never miss an opportunity to miss an opportunity."  They are refusing to see Pence because of the Jerusalem issue, and want the United States out of the peace process.  Gee, what great negotiating.  The United States will always be the key nation in the Mideast peace process, and is preparing a detailed peace plan.  You'd think the Pals would want to be involved in influencing that plan.  No geniuses they.

January 20, 2018       Permalink 

TRUMP'S FIRST YEAR – AT 12:57 P.M. ET:  This is the first anniversary of Mr. Trump's inauguration.  Of course, it is naturally being marked in Washington by a "women's march," meaning a march of left-wing women wearing funny hats and saying unfunny things.  They claim to "represent" American women, which, of course, they don't.   No one ever voted for them.

Other American women, elsewhere, have very different opinions.  From Reuters: 

(Reuters) - The first year of Donald Trump’s unorthodox presidency may have been a dizzying ride, but Belinda Miller has never regretted voting for him in 2016.

“My 401(k) and my 403 have soared, and if anybody doesn’t realize that, they’ve been asleep for a year,” said Miller, a 50-year-old emergency room nurse from Audubon, Pennsylvania, referring to her retirement accounts’ growth in a booming stock market.

“I look overall not at what he says but what he does. All that other stuff is just rhetoric, smoke and mirrors,” she added.

The Philadelphia suburb where Miller lives in Montgomery County was key to Trump’s surprising 2016 triumph. In a sign of its importance, his campaign dispatched his daughter Ivanka to the region late in the race to woo women there.

In interviews with more than half a dozen Trump supporters in the region, mostly women, his backers remained largely committed to him, citing his immigration policies and a belief that tax reform will create jobs amid a growing economy. Many of them were unfazed by Trump’s combative style and provocative language.

Trump’s strength among his base is reflected in Reuters/Ipsos polls of Trump’s approval ratings, which show his support among Republicans has slipped only slightly over the year, dropping from 84 percent in his first month to 78 percent in the last month.

COMMENT:  As we've been noting, the president's approval numbers are inching upward.  Some people have noticed.  The Dems have not.  We must surprise them in November. 

January 20, 2018       Permalink

SHUTDOWN – AT 11:53 A.M. ET:  The federal government is shutting down, after the Senate failed to pass a continuing resolution that would have kept it going for a time.  As Johnny Carson used to ask, "Notice the difference?"

The White House is hard at work, and effectively so, putting the blame on the Democrats, which is correct.  The Democrats do care more about illegal immigrants than about the troops and emergency-service personnel who will not be paid during the shutdown.  From CNBC: 

A House-passed stopgap bill that would avoid a government shutdown fizzled out in the Senate late Friday night, leaving Congress negotiating frantically as the midnight deadline to fund the government passed.

The measure failed in a procedural vote by a 50 to 49 margin. Five Democrats — Joe Manchin of West Virginia, Joe Donnelly of Indiana, Heidi Heitkamp of North Dakota, Doug Jones of Alabama and Claire McCaskill of Missouri — had backed it. Four Republicans — Lindsey Graham of South Carolina, Jeff Flake of Arizona, Rand Paul of Kentucky and Mike Lee of Utah — opposed it. So did Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell for procedural reasons.

As nearly all Democrats and some Republicans opposed the measure that failed to work its way through Congress on Friday, lawmakers saw government funding lapse, at least temporarily. The proposal that failed in the Senate would have funded the government through Feb. 16 and reauthorized the popular Children's Health Insurance Program for six years.

As the vote remained open into early Saturday morning, several bipartisan senators appeared to confer about a way forward. McConnell and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer then walked off the Senate floor together, only to return and continue talks with other senators. Numerous senators crowded around Schumer as the clock hit midnight.

COMMENT:  Early signs are that, surprisingly, many in the media are going along with the idea that the Democrats are mostly to blame.  If that thought grows, it could put a big dent in Democratic dreams for the 2018 midterms.

This is a day-by-day story.  I wouldn't be shocked if some agreement were reached early in the week to keep the government going, especially if the Dems realize they're losing.

January 20,  2018     Permalink

JANUARY 19,  2018

SHORT TAKES ON THE DRIFTING WRECKAGE – AT 11:52 P.M. ET:   

PRESIDENT MOVES UP IN POLLS –  The RealClearPolitics average of polls now has presidential approval at about 40%.  That's hardly the catastrophe that the anti-Trump press has been screaming about.  And some respected polls have Mr. Trump higher.  Rasmussen is at 45.  CNN, incredibly, is at 43.  Economist/YouGuv is at 42, as is Harvard/Harris.  The trend recently has been upward, probably thanks to the tax reform legislation that Mr. Trump signed.  If he can keep up the momentum, and if the economy continues to make progress, I can easily see the president hitting 50%.  President Obama spent most of his presidency in the mid-40s.

TRUMP REPORTEDLY PASSES ON PRE-SUPER-BOWL INTERVIEW – FROM CNS:   Citing an unnamed source, Variety magazine is claiming “exclusive” news that President Donald Trump will break the tradition of presidents giving pre-game Super Bowl interviews on the game-broadcasting networks.  The “person familiar” with the news told Variety, exclusively, that Trump declined NBC’s request for an interview, even though he gave a pre-game interview last year.  I see no reason for the president to grant the interview.  This "tradition" has no real meaning, and simply boosts the network hosting it. 

HHS STRIKES A BLOW FOR RELIGIOUS LIBERTY – FROM BREITBART:   For eight years, the Barack Obama administration’s Health and Human Services (HHS) tried to force nuns and others of faith to act against their moral convictions by complying with mandates put forth in the Affordable Care Act, or Obamacare, including contraceptives, abortion, and assisted suicide.  But on Thursday, the agency announced a new division in its Office of Civil Rights (OCR), established to protect Americans from discrimination based on their religious beliefs.  Roger Severino, director of HHS’s OCR, announced the new conscience and religious freedom division and spoke about how the development was set in motion by an executive order issued by President Donald Trump.   A very good move.  Freedom of conscience has been under assault in recent years, almost entirely from the left.  This is an important step to restore the balance.

January 19,  2018     Permalink

A SERIOUS WARNING – AT 12:33 P.M. ET:  While the White House press corps frets over the president's weight, and his mental health, serious people are thinking about serious things.  From Fox:

The U.S. military's advantage over Russia and China is "eroding," according to an unclassified summary of the Pentagon's new National Defense Strategy unveiled Friday by Defense Secretary Jim Mattis in Washington. The document also says that ISIS no longer remains a top threat.

“Great power competition, not terrorism, is now the primary focus of U.S. national security,” Mattis said. “We face growing threats from revisionist powers as different as China and Russia, nations that seek to create a world consistent with their authoritarian models.”

Mattis named the rogue regimes in North Korea and Iran as top threats as well. But the strategy does not ignore the ability of terrorist groups to persist and evolve. ISIS has largely been defeated in Iraq and Syria, but Mattis warned the group will keep trying to reestablish itself and make a comeback like Hezbollah and Al Qaeda.

He warned that America's ability to respond to threats has diminished.

"Our competitive edge has eroded in every domain of warfare - air, land, sea, space, and cyberspace - and is continually eroding,” Mattis warned, adding at one point: “America has no pre-ordained right to victory on the battlefield."

COMMENT:  Fortunately, Secretary Mattis is devising a new national-security strategy that will counter thre threats we face.  Problem is, most of the press isn't interested, or is far to the left, and the Democratic Party is hostile to national defense.

The legacy of Obama is haunting us.  It is a defeatist legacy.  Mattis is a brilliant secretary of defense who understands what needs to be done.  But will he have Congress with him?

January 19, 2018       Permalink

YES, WE ACTUALLY HAVE LAWS – AT 11:40 A.M. ET:   There is a serious confrontation coming between the Trump administration and some states and cities over sanctuary for illegal immigrants.  This could get very tough, and involve physical showdowns.  From Fox: 

Acting ICE Director Tom Homan hit back Thursday at California's Democratic senators, who criticized his agency over reports of planned immigration sweeps in the sanctuary state. 

Local law enforcement officials have reportedly stated they will not assist ICE in raids aimed at apprehending 1,500 illegal immigrants in northern California. 

California Sens. Dianne Feinstein and Kamala Harris wrote a letter to the agency, asking for a briefing on the raids. 

They argued the action would be "an abhorrent abuse of power" and a diversion of resources to "score political points" and "punish" the state for its policies toward illegal immigrants. 

Homan forcefully denied the accusation on "The Ingraham Angle," questioning why Congress would want any federal agency not to enforce the laws. 

"I didn't think Congress was in the business of enacting laws they didn't want law enforcement to enforce. ... We enforce the laws that Congress enacted," he said, adding that the state's sanctuary law is "forcing" him to devote more enforcement resources to California. 

"No one asks the FBI or DEA or ATF or local police departments not to enforce the law."

Homan said the agency is going after illegal aliens who have been arrested previously, not "choir boys."

COMMENT:  You know, some of these "local authorities" in sanctuary states and cities remind me of the old Southern segregationist governors.  They even use some of the same language.  Ah, those state's rights.  How convenient to have them again.

Director Homan is absolutely right.  The laws of the United States must be enforced.  Gee, what an unusual concept.

January 19, 2018       Permalink

THE OTHER WOMEN'S MARCH – AT 10:38 A.M. ET:  There's another women's march on Washington, but you won't hear about it in much of the media.  These, after all, are not legitimate women.  From The Hill: 

You probably won’t hear much about the National March for Life in the nation’s capital today.

Despite the fact that over half a million people are projected to gather on the National Mall and march their way to the Supreme Court, you may not even see footage.

On the other hand, the chances that you will see wall-to-wall coverage of another march taking place the following day is extremely high. If last year is any indicator, Saturday’s march will get expansive coverage, countless hashtags, and more celebrity opinions than an episode of TMZ. I am referring, of course, to the Women’s March.

If the March for Life isn’t outright overlooked, it will be painted as a gathering of extremists who, as Justin Trudeau put it this week, aren’t “in line with” society. Whatever the case might be, one narrative will emerge loud and clear this weekend: there is only one march that empowers women — and it’s not the March for Life.

And...

The March for Life will include many women who once believed that abortion means empowerment, but now know that isn’t true. They will be marching, not only for themselves, but to keep other women from believing that same lie. They will be marching to share their own stories and show other women they have a “choice” of another kind, one that brings dignity and respect — choosing life.

COMMENT:  No matter where you stand on abortion, please read the whole piece.   I've noticed that in "progressive" Europe, of all places, the debates on abortion have been quite serious, and thoughtful restrictions have been enacted.  But here, those who are pro-life are often ridiculed and hated.

Abortion has actually been declining in America, and the new generation coming up behind the millennials appears, from polling, to have a more open approach to pro-life arguments.  The debate is ongoing, and far from "settled."

January 19,  2018     Permalink