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JULY 2,  2018

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

SLIPPING – FROM BLOOMBERG: It’s the first drop below 50 percent since Gallup started asking the question 17 years ago.  An estimated 47 percent of U.S. adults are “extremely proud” to be Americans this year, according to a Gallup survey issued in advance of the Fourth of July holiday.  “Left-leaning groups’ antipathy toward Donald Trump and their belief that other countries look unfavorably on the president are likely factors in their decline in patriotism, particularly the sharp drops in the past year,” Gallup said. “The declines began before Trump was elected” and “accelerated in the past year,” the polling organization added. It’s the first drop below 50 percent since Gallup started asking the question 17 years ago.  The far left is doing its job, sadly.

MARCHING TOWARD MEDIOCRITY – FROM COLLEGE FIX:    The chancellor of the California community college system has stated that institutions’ algebra requirements are “the biggest barrier” for “underemployed or unemployed Americans,” and as such is … a civil rights issue.  According to NPR, Chancellor Eloy Ortiz Oakley is “among a growing number of educators who view intermediate algebra as an obstacle to students obtaining their credentials — particularly in fields that require no higher level math skills.”  In an interview with the chancellor, NPR’s Robert Siegel pointed out the low graduation rate in the community college system (48% for an associate’s degree), and then asked Oakley if ditching algebra wasn’t just the “easy way out.”  Oakley retorted “I hear that a lot and unfortunately nothing could be farther from the truth. Somewhere along the lines, since the 1950s, we decided that the only measure of a student’s ability to reason or to do some sort of quantitative measure is algebra.  You know where this is going.  Lower those standards instead of teaching those students.  We study algebra not simply because it can be useful, but because it trains the mind in logic and precision.  But who needs those things when you're "woke"?

ANOTHER GENIUS HEARD FROM – FROM CNBC:   One solution to income inequality is giving out free cash, according to the British billionaire entrepreneur Richard Branson.  “A basic income should be introduced in Europe and in America,” Branson told David Gelles of The New York Times.  Branson was responding to the question, “What do you think those in positions of power should do to address social problems like income inequality?”  In a report published in January, the global charity Oxfam found that 82 percent of the growth in global wealth in the previous year went to the top 1 percent of individuals ranked by riches. Meanwhile, the bottom 50 percent had no increase in their wealth, the report says.  “It’s a disgrace to see people sleeping on the streets with this material wealth all around them,” Branson said.   The road to ruin.  People getting free cash have no incentive to improve themselves. 

July 2, 2018       Permalink

AND ANOTHER CLOSE CALL – AT 11:18 P.M. ET:  If you looked hard enough in American media, you might have found something about anti-Iranian-government rallies in Europe.  Apparently, the Iranians are not amused.  From Reuters: 

BRUSSELS/PARIS - An Iranian diplomat has been arrested along with two people suspected of plotting a bomb attack on a meeting of an exiled Iranian opposition group in France attended by Donald Trump's lawyer Rudy Giuliani, Belgian authorities said on Monday.

Three other arrests were made in France but two of them were later released.

Several former European and Arab ministers also attended the meeting of the Paris-based National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI) - an umbrella bloc of opposition groups in exile that seek an end to Shi'ite Muslim clerical rule in Iran.

Iran's foreign minister called the news a sinister "false flag ploy" and said Tehran was ready to work with all concerned parties to get to the bottom of it.

Two suspects in Belgium were intercepted by Belgian police on Saturday, with 500 grams of TATP, a home-made explosive produced from easily available chemicals, as well as a detonation device found in their car, a joint statement by the Belgian prosecutor and the intelligence services said.

The 38-year-old man and a 33-year-old woman, identified only as Amir S. and Nasimeh N., were charged with attempted terrorist murder and preparation of a terrorist act, it said.

The diplomat at the Iranian embassy in the Austrian capital Vienna was arrested in Germany, the Belgian statement said. Iranian President Hassan Rouhani is due to visit Austria on Wednesday.

COMMENT:  Glad to see Rudy Giuliani attending the protests.  He wouldn't be doing this without the president's approval.  I can't imagine Field Marshal Obama having anyone close to him at a pro-democracy rally.

July 2, 2018       Permalink 

STUNNING – AT  1:52 P.M. ET:  We just had a close call on terror.  Fortunately, the plot seems to have been stopped.  From Fox: 

A man who pledged allegiance to Al Qaeda sought to kill members of the military and conducted reconnaissance in downtown Cleveland for a planned attack on July 4 -- but the Independence Day plot was foiled after a months-long investigation, federal officials said Monday.

FBI Special Agent in Charge Stephen Anthony said Demetrius Pitts, also known as Abdur Raheem Rahfeeq, was arrested at 10 a.m. Sunday by the joint terrorism task force. Authorities were initially notified about Pitts in 2017, when he lived in Cincinnati and allegedly made statements supporting Al Qaeda and advocating violence against U.S. military members.

"This case illustrated that law enforcement can not sit back and wait for Mr. Pitts to commit a violent act," Anthony said.

Authorities said Pitts made Facebook posts with "disturbing" messages, saying "We as Muslims need to start training like this every day. We need to know how to shoot guns, throw grenades, hand to hand combat," Anthony said during a news conference.

After moving to Cleveland, authorities said Pitts continued to express his "radical ideology." During a meeting last week with an undercover FBI agent, Anthony said Pitts noted "their holiday is coming up."

"What would hit them at their core? Blow up in the, have a bomb blow up in the 4th of July parade,"  he said.

In the last week, Pitts then went downtown to conduct reconnaissance at Voinovich Bicentennial Park and the Coast Guard station, among other locations, according to officials. He also continued to voice hatred for the military, saying he wanted to "chop off heads and hands."

COMMENT:  If this were the Obama administration they'd probably describe him as a misunderstood patriot who secretly wants to be George Washington, or at least Elvis.

No, he's a dangerous guy, and we are warned once again that terrorism is an ongoing threat requiring eternal vigilance.  We got this one.  What about the next one?

July 2, 2018       Permalink

BOUNCING BACK – AT 12:15 P.M. ET:  After a sudden drop in approval, brought on by early mishandling of the immigration issue, President Trump is bouncing back.  From Rasmussen:

The Rasmussen Reports daily Presidential Tracking Poll for Monday shows that 48% of Likely U.S. Voters approve of President Trump’s job performance. Fifty-one percent (51%) disapprove.

The latest figures include 35% who Strongly Approve of the way Trump is performing and 40% who Strongly Disapprove. This gives him a Presidential Approval Index rating of -5.

COMMENT:  That's pretty much where Trump was before the "separation of families " issue surfaced.  He seems back in stride, and on track to nominate a new Supreme Court justice next Monday.  We're hoping he'll start to top 50 percent.

The Democratic opposition isn't helping its case against the president by calling for the abolition of ICE.  No major group thus far polled favors that idea.  The Dems have dug a hole, and are jumping in it.

July 2,  2018     Permalink

JULY 1,  2018

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

CONGRATS – FROM PAGE SIX:  Olivia de Havilland, the lone surviving cast member of the Hollywood epic “Gone with the Wind,” turned 102 Sunday.  The two-time “Best Actress” Oscar winner – who was appointed a “Dame” by Britain last year — has lived in Paris since 1956.  “So how do I feel about older age?” she said in an interview with “Entertainment Weekly” before her 99th birthday.  “Crazy about it! Wouldn’t trade it for anything!” De Havilland’s role as the sweet, suffering “Melanie” in the 1939 epic “Gone with the Wind” rocketed her to fame and she went on to win Academy Awards for her roles in “The Snake Pit” and “The Heiress.”  "Gone With the Wind" could probably not be made today because of political correctness. 

THEY COME AND GO – FROM BLOOMBERG:  Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador was elected as Mexico’s first left-wing president in recent times, riding a public revolt against rampant crime, corruption and poverty and handing a crushing defeat to the business-friendly parties who’ve run the country for decades.  The earliest figures announced by the electoral board gave Lopez Obrador 53 percent of the vote. Ricardo Anaya, leader of a right-left coalition, had about 22 percent and Jose Antonio Meade, the candidate of the incumbent PRI party, took 16 percent.  Check us in a year to see if it makes any difference at all.

SUPREME CHOICE – FROM DAILWIRE.COM:   After meeting with several candidates on Saturday, President Donald Trump promised that Americans would have a new nominee for the Supreme Court by Monday, July 9th...Trump has, reportedly, narrowed his list down to a handful of Federal judges: Brett Kavanaugh, Amul Thapar, Thomas Hardiman, Raymond Kethledge and Amy Coney Barrett. Barrett has emerged as a popular favorite, with conservatives citing her recent Senate confirmation hearings for the Federal bench, where she was accused, by Sen. Dianne Feinstein, of fully espousing Catholic dogma.  Trump would only say that he believes Barrett is an "outstanding woman," when speaking with reporters on Air Force One this weekend, careful not to reveal too much insider information about his selection process.  Whoever is nominated will face a brutal confirmation fight, including the possibility of mass demonstrations.  The Dems will oppose any Trump nominee, and Trump may even have trouble keeping all Republicans on board.  Stand by for major fireworks.

July 1, 2018       Permalink

TRUMP DERANGEMENT SYNDROME – QUOTE OF THE DAY – AT 10:53 A.M. ET:   It gets worse by the hour.  There's a serious danger of violence.  From the great Michael Goodwin, at the New York Post: 

In a nutshell, our visit to the tortured mind of a Trump hater explains everything from Saturday’s mass marches to why a Virginia restaurant owner declared No Soup for Sarah Huckabee Sanders.

Their loathing for Trump is bone-deep and all consuming. This is war and they take no prisoners.
For most marchers, border policies offer a chance to vent. They didn’t make a peep when Obama did the same thing.

If children are their main concern, they could help the 23,000 New York City kids living in shelters. Or they could have attended the funeral of Lesandro Guzman-Feliz, the innocent Bronx teen hacked to death by a Dominican gang.

Instead, they give in to Trump Derangement Syndrome, which causes them to immediately and absolutely adopt the opposite position of the president’s — facts and common sense be damned.
Alas, they may look back on the last few months as the good old days. For Trump, despite his stumbles and the Mueller shadow, is finding a political sweet spot.

He is reaching a high-water mark in his presidency, with his support growing and expanding. Events, including big Supreme Court rulings and Kennedy’s retirement, give him chances to pad his advantage.

It’s a swift reversal from just 11 days ago, when Trump was sucking wind. The media was — again — treating him like a piñata over the separation of families on the border, and the White House was ready to fight a war it couldn’t win.

Then the president suddenly called off the dogs to sign an executive order ending family separations.

Much of the hot air instantly came out of the resistance balloon, though protests continue because the left is embracing little or no border control as its passion of the moment.

Whether it’s because of Trump’s quick reversal and/or the left’s overreaction, polls are capturing the president’s rising fortunes. One survey showed most Americans were not nearly as sympathetic to the illegal border crossers as the media.

COMMENT:  Well stated.  Read the rest.  The Democrats are now uniting around the idea of abolishing ICE  (Immigration and Customs Enforcement), to satisfy the most extreme, Marxist wing of their party.  But major polls show it is an extremely unpopular idea.  ICE arrests thousands of criminals every year.

The Democrats seem to get their inspiration from the Japanese kamikaze, the suicide bombers.  Japan lost.

July 1, 2018        Permalink

BOLTON ON TRUMP/RUSSIA – AT 9:32 A.M. ET:   No one is tougher on America's enemies than John Bolton, the president's national-security adviser.  He speaks out on Mr. Trump's approach to Vladimir Putin in their upcoming summit, and dashes the idea that the president is "soft on Russia."  From Fox: 

In his first interview since meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow last week, National Security Adviser John Bolton told "Fox News Sunday" that critics are wrong to suggest President Trump has been too soft on Russia.

President Trump’s upcoming summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin will take place in Helsinki, Finland, on July 16, the White House announced last week.

"I don't think anybody ought to have a case of the vapors" about President Trump's rhetoric on NATO and Russia, Bolton said.

"The main rationale to have a bilateral meeting between Trump and Putin: let them discuss these issues and see exactly where there might be room for progress, or where they might find there's no room at all," he added.

The meeting would allow the leaders to cut through "political noise" about alleged Russian collusion, Bolton said.

"I think the president will want to have a conversation about this and say we don’t want to see meddling in the 2018 election," Bolton said.

The national security adviser had said last year, before joining the Trump White House, that Russia's alleged meddling in the 2016 election was “act of war” and warned: “We negotiate with Russia at our peril.”

Bolton cited Trump's historic nuclear summit with North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un as evidence that a one-on-one meeting can have unexpected, positive results.

Noting that North Koreans once referred to him as a "very ugly fellow," Bolton offered an anecdote from the Singapore meeting.

"At one point in our lunch, Kim Jon Un said, 'The two of us need to get a picture together, I need to show my hardliners you're not such a bad guy.'"

COMMENT:  The critical issue in any negotiations is the simple matter of who's doing the negotiating.  I never trusted Obama or John Kerry, for good reason.  And the result of their "negotiations" was one American loss after another.  I do trust Donald Trump and John Bolton, and Secretary of State Mike Pompeo.  They have a proved record of putting American interests first.

Now we'll see the results, although results often take some time to pan out.

July 1,  2018     Permalink