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I appeared on Silvio Canto Jr's talk show from Dallas last night.  It's here.

JANUARY 18,  2021

SHORT TAKES ON THE DRIFTING WRECKAGE – OVERNIGHT:

MIGHTY TRUMP – FROM FOX:    While Trump’s numbers among GOP voters have taken a hit, they still remain very healthy.  Trump’s approval rating among Republicans stands at a sky-high 87% in the NBC News/Wall Street Journal poll, down just two points from October. CNN puts the outgoing president’s approval rating at 80%, down 14 points from three months ago.  Trump’s approval rating among Republicans in the ABC News/Washington Post survey remains a robust 79%, a drop of 9 points from October. And the president’s approval rating in the Pew Research poll stands at 60%, down from 77% in August of last year.  Frank Luntz noted that "Republicans have always been the 'law and order' party. Their opinions of Trump have taken a hit because of continued focus on the events of January 6th and their embarrassment about the violence and destruction. "  Trump remains popular on the right because his policies remain popular.  However, it remains an open question as to whether he can retain that popularity and attract sufficient support to lead a new movement, or even run again.  There would have to be a genuine "wanting" of Trump, but newer, fresher faces, with none of Trump's considerable baggage, will be coming along.

January 18, 2021       Permalink

ABORTION RETURNS AS AN ISSUE – OVERNIGHT:  But how will the America of 2021 respond?  From Western Journal:   

As the head of Planned Parenthood says, it is an “exciting” time to support abortion.

On Wednesday, President-elect Joe Biden takes office after winning what Planned Parenthood called a “life or death” election when it endorsed him.

Biden has said he plans to jettison the pro-life policies of President Donald Trump, some of which he can do with a pen and others that will require Congress to act.

“We have a ton of work to do to undo the harm over the last four years, but knowing we have champions there who understand what needs to happen in the first 100 days is tremendously exciting,” said Alexis McGill Johnson, president and CEO of Planned Parenthood, according to NBC.

In one of his first acts as president, Trump reinstated what is known as the Mexico City policy, first adopted by former President Ronald Reagan. The policy bars foreign organizations funded by American dollars from providing information, referrals or services for abortions.

Biden said that he will reverse that policy, something he can do on his first days in office through executive action.

Biden had pledged on his campaign website that he would “restore federal funding for Planned Parenthood.”

“The Obama-Biden Administration fought Republican attacks on funding for Planned Parenthood again and again. As President, Biden will reissue guidance specifying that states cannot refuse Medicaid funding for Planned Parenthood and other providers and reverse the Trump Administration’s rule preventing these organizations from obtaining Title X funds,” the campaign website said.

Title X program, which provides health care to the poor, does not directly fund abortions. The Trump administration blocked recipients of Title X funds from providing abortions with other funding or from referring patients to abortion providers.

COMMENT:  But times have changed.  Europe has placed new restrictions on abortions, and many in the upcoming generation are reported to be increasingly troubled by the practice.  New medical developments, such as photo-quality sonograms and pre-natal surgery have given the fetus an identity.  Democrats may be in for a surprise if they believe they can reverse Trump's policies without a fight. 

January 18,  2021     Permalink

TWO MORE DAYS – AT 7:30 P.M. ET:  Two days from now, Joe Biden will be president.  Look, you don't have to watch.

An odd inauguration.  The outgoing president is under impeachment, the pandemic will place all participants in the ceremony in masks, and six feet apart, and Mike Pence, who emerged from the recent Washington chaos as a larger political figure, will be there to measure the podium for a possible future visit. 

And there are security concerns, which are being taken seriously.  But how those concerns are described should make us uneasy.  From Fox: 

Acting Secretary of Defense Chris Miller said in a statement on Monday that the Department of Defense has not received any intelligence indicating a potential insider threat to the inauguration of President-elect Joe Biden on Jan. 20.

However, Miller added that the department is "leaving no stone unturned in securing the capital," noting that all National Guardsmen deployed to Washington, D.C. will be vetted.

"This type of vetting often takes place by law enforcement for significant security events. However, in this case the scope of military participation is unique," Miller said. "The D.C. National Guard is also providing additional training to service members as they arrive in D.C. that if they see or hear something that is not appropriate, they should report it to their chain of command. We appreciate the support of the FBI in assisting with this task and for each of the more than 25,000 Guardsmen who answered their Nation’s call and rapidly deployed to the [North Capital Region]."

The announcement comes after defense officials expressed concerns over the potential for an insider attack, following a riot at the Capitol on Jan. 6 by pro-Trump protesters that left five dead and resulted in dozens of arrests.

The FBI warned in a memo earlier this month of potential plans for protests staged in all 50 state capitals which could occur before, on and after Inauguration Day.

While members from across the military were at President Trump’s rally prior to the riot, Army Secretary Ryan McCarthy told the Associated Press it's unclear how many were there or who may have participated in the breach at the Capitol.

The U.S. Army said in a statement on Sunday that it would work with the Secret Service to determine if any service members on hand needed additional background screening. As part of the Threat Awareness and Reporting Program, military personnel are required to report "any information regarding known or suspected extremist behavior that could be a threat to the department or the U.S."

COMMENT:   Of course, one can imagine that even a member of an American military unit can have chilling ideas – the Ford Hood massacre of 2009 was carried out by an Army major – but this emphasis on vetting our own soldiers, combined with a certain indifference to the violence committed in American cities over the summer, suggests a rather strange set of priorities. But, of course, it's the Democrats in charge.

January 18,  2021     Permalink 

JANUARY 17,  2021

SHORT TAKES ON THE DRIFTING WRECKAGE – OVERNIGHT: 

THE PHONINESS FLOWS – FROM ALPHANEWS:   Casinos, bars, and restaurants on Native American tribal lands in Minnesota have remained open throughout the COVID-19 emergency, despite restaurants and bars being forced to shut down everywhere else in the state.  Establishments on reservations have advertised buffets and free shuttles, encouraging patrons to visit for in-person meals.  Bars and restaurants were closed from Nov. 20 to Jan. 10 under an executive order issued by Gov. Tim Walz, but casinos were packed with customers who didn’t always wear masks and disregarded social-distancing requirements, according to pictures from earlier this month. Mystic Lake Casino Hotel invited Minnesotans to dine at its steakhouse on Thanksgiving. At the time, Minnesotans were prohibited from holding private gatherings with members of other households.  What a fraud.  I guess it depends on who you know and how many votes you can bring in.

A NEW VENTURE – FROM THE CHICAGO TRIBUNE:   The patriarch of the family that owns the Chicago Cubs is getting back in the newsgathering business.  The Omaha World-Herald reported on Sunday that billionaire businessman and philanthropist Joe Ricketts is hiring staff to launch an online national news source called Straight Arrow News.  “I think there’s a gap in the market — there’s no source for unbiased, fact-based news,” Ricketts told the World-Herald in an emailed response to questions last week. “And I believe there’s a business opportunity there.”  It isn’t the politically conservative Ricketts’s first journalistic endeavor.  He launched DNAinfo, a news website that provided local coverage in Chicago and New York, in 2009. He later bought Gothamist, another New York-based news site, and then merged the two.  But by November 2017, amid staff unionization efforts, the Tribune reported, Ricketts shut down DNAinfo and the Gothamist sites, saying the ad-supported business model was not viable. The staff’s decision to unionize made it harder for the business to be financially successful, a DNAinfo spokesperson said at the time.   We wish him luck.  The more news organizations, the better.  We're not going to change the mediocre ones we have now, so a new venture is always welcome.

January 17, 2021       Permalink

THE BACKLASH BEGINS, AND IT WILL CONTINUE – AT 9:55 P.M. ET:  The ridiculous events of the last two weeks will come with a price tag.  Those Republicans in the House who voted to impeach Trump are feeling the heat, especially as the case against the president was so incomplete and so rushed.  From Fox: 

Rep. Jaime Herrera Beutler, R-Wash., one of 10 House Republicans who voted to impeach President Trump on charges of "incitement of an insurrection," is facing criticism from her district's conservative base.

"On behalf of our entire membership, the [Clark County Republican Women] Executive Board is unified in condemning your actions to betray a sitting Republican President. And this vote will never be forgotten, as your action is a personal affront to the 70 million plus Americans who voted for our President," Clark County Republican Women wrote in a letter to Herrera Beutler.

Herrera Beutler represents Washington's Clark County, near the Washington-Oregon border.
With 10 Republican votes, Trump's second impeachment was the most bipartisan one in history. By comparison, five Democrats voted to impeach Bill Clinton in 1998. Herrera Beutler was not the only Washington state Republican to vote for impeachment; Rep. Dan Newhouse also did.

In this Thursday, Jan. 7, 2021 photo image taken from video, Rep. Jaime Herrera Beutler, R-Wash., speaks as the House debates the objection to confirm the Electoral College vote from Pennsylvania, at the U.S. Capitol.

Joel Mattila, chair of Clark County Republicans, said Herrera Beutler's vote sparked "anger in the ranks."

"I can tell you that from old-time party regulars — people that traditionally and typically support Congresswoman Herrera Beutler — all the way down to your average ordinary everyday Republican voter, I can report to you that there is a lot of anger in the ranks because of her impeachment vote," Mattila told The Columbian.

Clark County Republican Women vowed to back a primary challenge to Herrera Beutler over the impeachment vote.

"If you cast this vote to impeach, you will never receive our support or votes again at any time in the future," the group said in the letter to Herrera Beutler. "Additionally, we will do everything in our power as the largest Republican Women's organization in Washington State to recruit and elect a conservative candidate who will represent our values."

COMMENT:  An impeachment of a president seeks to remove the highest elected official in the land.  It is a reversing of the people's will.  The notion that it can be done in one day, with no witnesses, with no examination of the written or legal record, offends common decency and the Constitution itself. 

January 17,  2021     Permalink