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SECOND SUBSCRIPTION DRIVE – 2016 – WEEK TWO

ANOTHER GREAT DAY, BUT HELP STILL NEEDED!

(We had another fine subscription day yesterday, much like Monday.  Thank you to all who participated.  But we must keep it going.) 

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JUNE 22,  2016

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

MAJOR STRATEGIC INSIGHT – FROM THE WASHINGTON TIMES:  Attorney General Loretta Lynch told Florida’s LGBT community that the “most effective” weapon at America’s disposal against Islamic terrorism is “love.”  Mrs. Lynch told reporters in Orlando on Tuesday that an ongoing investigation will determine the precise motive for 29-year-old Omar Mateen’s June 12 massacre at Pulse, a gay nightclub. Mateen, a former security guard, called 911 and pledged allegiance to the Islamic State group while killing 49 people and wounding 53 others.  It's obvious.  People who chop other people's heads off will respond to love.  Get this woman another job.

POLICAL REVELATION – FROM FOX:  Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders acknowledged Wednesday that "it doesn't appear" he will be the Democratic presidential nominee.  Sanders made the comments during a taped C-SPAN interview, in which he didn't address the state of his campaign, but said he did expect to speak at the Democratic National Convention in Philadelphia.  “It doesn’t appear that I’m going to be the nominee, so I’m not going to be determining the scope of the convention," he said.   Well, I wouldn't have known that unless Bernie said it.  Hillary must be relieved.

THE GREATS ARE FADING AWAY – FROM RAVALLI REPUBLIC:  Now it’s down to one.  David Thatcher, one of the last two airmen from the fabled Doolittle Raiders of World War II, died early Wednesday in a Missoula hospital.  His son Jeff said Thatcher, 94, had been going downhill for the past month or so and suffered a massive stroke on Sunday, Father's Day.  “He was an incredible father, just a very humble, soft-spoken man,” the younger Thatcher said. “A man of few words, but significant actions.”  Thatcher’s death leaves Dick Cole of Comfort, Texas, as the lone survivor of the 80 Doolittle Raiders who flew 16 B-25s on a daring bombing foray over Japan on April 18, 1942 – months after Japan’s attack on Pearl Harbor. Cole, Col. Jimmy Doolittle’s co-pilot on the raid, turned 100 last September.  It is hard to contemplate that the greatest generation is dying off.  The youngest veteran of World War II would be about 87 today. 

June 22, 2016       Permalink

NOT QUITE ON THE RUN – AT 8:47 A.M. ET:  The president gives a smiling report on our famous victories against ISIS, but the basic facts lead us elsewhere.  From Rowan Scarborough at the Washington Times:   

The Islamic State terrorist group has created at least six functioning armies outside its Iraq-Syria base that threaten governments in Africa, the Middle East and Afghanistan, according to a new report to Congress.

Rather than shrinking, the Islamic State — also known as ISIL and ISIS — is metastasizing globally by attracting waves of henchmen in Libya, Egypt, Nigeria, Saudi Arabia, Yemen and Afghanistan, the Congressional Research Service said in a June 14 report for lawmakers.

The fact that six irregular Islamic State armies are operating in three world regions, not to mention various cells in Europe and the U.S., is in contrast to the Obama administration’s generally upbeat reports on containing the violent group.

In another break from that positive White House message, CIA Director John Brennan told the Senate intelligence committee last week that, while the Islamic State has lost territory in Iraq and Syria, as well as thousands of fighters in those two countries, its ability to direct or inspire terrorist attacks remains robust.

“Our efforts have not reduced the group’s terrorism capability and global reach,” Mr. Brennan said.
The Islamic State’s ability to operate terrorist franchises across multiple regions presents formidable challenges to stretched U.S. forces now focused on the group’s Iraq-Syria base.

COMMENT:  The reality is that we're in for a long fight, and that the president wants to downplay it.  When he leaves office in January he will leave this country less safe than it was when he was first inaugurated.  That is his true legacy, although the facts will undoubtedly be rewritten by his allies in the press and in the universities.

June 22, 2016       Permalink

ANOTHER GREAT ADVANCE IN EDUCATION – AT 8:16 A.M. ET:  The stories are coming more and more frequently.  We are teaching our children, at least some of them, that freedom isn't terribly important.  From Campus Reform: 

The University of California, Irvine has suspended its College Republicans chapter for an entire year after the group hosted controversial conservative pundit Milo Yiannopoulos.

Breitbart News reports that a UCI administrator recently requested to meet with leaders of the CRs, during which CR President Ariana Rowlands suggested the possibility of bringing Yiannopoulos back to campus.

Just four hours after the meeting, the group received an email stating that it had been suspended for an entire year.

The email, however, apparently cited the group’s failure to provide proof of insurance for hired private security guards as grounds for suspension—making no mention of Yiannopoulos’ appearance on campus.

As Breitbart notes, the group had previously hosted David Horowitz on campus without being required to provide proof of insurance, nor was it penalized for not doing so.

Nonetheless, after Yiannopoulos’ visit to campus, the group has now lost its club status, meaning it will not be able to hold meetings, reserve space, or host events on campus.

Even before the event, the administration had attempted to complicate the process by requiring the CRs to dish out an additional $1,000 in security fees on the grounds that the group was not officially affiliated with the school—a claim that was later challenged by the CRs and eventually dropped.

COMMENT:  This reminds me of the tactics once used to prevent blacks from voting in the South – the poll tax, the rigged literacy test, the legal complications.  I do not see the so-called American Civil Liberties Union jumping into action.  It ceased being interested in civil liberties years ago, unless you're an approved group.

These anti-freedom tactics are growing.  We now have the spectacle of some campuses employing a "bias response team" to respond immediately to any complaint by any minority.  Hurt feelings have become a Constitutional crisis. 

Compare please to what American troops in the field have to endure every day.  I don't hear them complaining.

June 22, 2016       Permalink

THE PLOT SHE IS THICKENING – AT 8:03 A.M. ET:  Can the revolt against Trump succeed at the Republican National Convention?  Read on, from the Washington Times: 

Anti-Trump forces appeared to have been defeated after he ousted his remaining opponents from the race in early May and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, House Speaker Paul D. Ryan and Republican National Committee Chairman Reince Priebus all signaled that Mr. Trump had sewn things up.

But weeks of bad press stemming from Mr. Trump’s criticism of a federal judge and uneven handling in the aftermath of the Orlando, Florida, terrorist shooting have kick-started efforts to deny Mr. Trump the nomination on the convention floor.

The dump-Trump forces may have received another opening last week when Mr. Priebus tapped Utah RNC member Enid Greene Mickelsen and Massachusetts RNC member Ron Kaufman as Republican National Convention Rules Committee chairwoman and co-chairman, respectively.

Ms. Mickelsen and Mr. Kaufman are political consorts of Mitt Romney, the 2012 Republican presidential nominee, who has announced he would not support Mr. Trump and has worked to recruit a challenger.

Ms. Mickelsen, Mr. Kaufman or both could explicitly or implicitly encourage delegates committed to vote for Mr. Trump to “vote their conscience” instead. If enough of them vote for anyone else, they could deny the billionaire businessman the 1,237 votes requisite for first-ballot victory. It would be difficult for Mr. Trump to recover from such a loss on subsequent ballots.

Some anti-Trumpers are hoping to go even further — to get the convention to pass new rules freeing “bound” delegates from their commitments to vote for Mr. Trump on the first ballot. They held an organizing call Sunday to talk strategy and said there are plenty of alternatives to Mr. Trump if delegates aren’t bound to him.

COMMENT:  Hard to know how realistic this is.  But it would definitely become realistic if Trump continues to stumble through his campaign, and if his poll numbers are sinking when Republicans meet in Cleveland on July 18th.

What a novel.  Wish I had thought of it.

June 22,  2016     Permalink

JUNE 21,  2016

SHORT TAKES ON THE DRIFTING WRECKAGE – AT 5:40 P.M. ET:

EXPECT MORE LIKE THIS – FROM NBC:   Dozens of commuters ran out of a crowded Manhattan subway station Tuesday morning after one straphanger thought someone claimed to have a gun, according to the NYPD.  Straphangers stampeded out of the Central Park North - 110th Street subway station in Harlem at about 9 a.m. in what police are calling mass hysteria.  3 Nabbed With Loaded Guns, Knives, Armor on Way to NYC  Authorities said the commotion spurred from a fight between two people on a 2 train. It's not clear what led straphangers to believe someone had a gun. But police said that it doesn't appear that a gun was ever fired.  Rider Jessica Shockeness said that she heard three loud booms during a delay as her 2 train pulled into the station. She said after she got off she heard another commuter say "I think it was gunshots" and people started running out of the station.   Shockeness said she didn't think the noises she heard were gunshots, but she decided to run too.  "I see people running, I'm gonna run," she said.  It's the terror effect.  People are on edge, more so after an incident like Orlando.  Expect more incidents like this.

BUILDING THE DEMOCRATIC PARTY – FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER:   With the Supreme Court readying its decision on President Obama's illegal immigrant amnesty programs, a new report shows that nearly 5 million aliens would be eligible for just two of the president's initiatives, or nearly half of the total population of undocumented immigrants.  What's more, the interactive map of those eligible for amnesty finds that the 2016 presidential battleground states would be heavily impacted, since 716,000 live in those nine states.  Overall, some 4,948,000 illegals would be eligible for Obama's deportation deferral programs, Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, or DACA, and Deferred Action for Parents of Americans and Lawful Permanent Residents, or DAPA, according to a report from the Center for American Progress, which supports Obama.  I believe in a fair, just immigration system.  But let's face it, part of Obama's plan is to build support for the Democratic Party, particularly his left-wing branch of the party.

THE TROUBLE WITH TRUMP – The trouble with Donald Trump (among other troubles) is that a man who should appear larger than life now appears very small.  Stumbling statements, ridiculous boasting, and lack of knowledge, are defining him.  The latest problem, as we reported below, is a cash shortfall.  And Donald's response?  For the next two days he'll match every dollar contributed with a dollar of his own...up to two million dollars.  Oh, come on.  In presidential politics, that's the equivalent of a mom and pop store.  Things like this are also raising suspicions that Trump isn't worth as much as suggests he is.  He's simply got to establish the size and stature of a presidential candidate.  The next week will be crucial.  The revolt against him continues to build.

June 21, 2016       Permalink

BRAINWASHING OUR KIDS – AT 11:09 A.M. ET:  When our kids go to college, what do they find?  Left wingers, that's what.  And unless this changes, we're going to have a future led by brainwashed graduates. 

The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill is one of our most important universities.  But look at this breakdown.  From College Fix:   

Professors registered as Democrats outnumber those registered as Republicans by a ratio of roughly 12 to one at the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill – and in 15 departments zero registered Republican professors can be found – according to educators’ registered party affiliations.

The College Fix researched the political party registrations of 1,355 UNC Chapel Hill professors using the state’s online public voter database, maintained by the State Board of Elections.

Of those, 615 were registered Democrats, while only 50 were registered Republicans, a ratio of about 12 to one.

The remaining party affiliations included 299 professors who are unaffiliated (in North Carolina, voters can register as unaffiliated), 291 professors whose names could not be found in the database, and 98 professors whose party affiliations could not be determined. Two professors are registered Libertarians.

Even with the high number of professor party affiliations that could not be determined, the results found Democrat professors outnumber Republican ones in every single department surveyed, and what’s more, nearly half of the 34 departments probed found no registered Republicans at all.

Those 16 departments are:

African-American Studies
American Studies
Anthropology
Art
Asian Studies
Biology
Classics
Communications
Environmental Science
Genetics
Geology
History
Linguistics
Marine Sciences
Public Policy
Women’s Studies

Asked by The College Fix to comment on the results, University of North Carolina Chapel Hill spokesman Jim Gregory said via email that the university “does not hire faculty based upon their political affiliation, but instead upon academic merit.”

“That said, we also feel that it is important for students to be confronted with views that they may not agree with or have not previously been exposed to, which we believe leads to the development of critical thinking skills,” he said.

COMMENT:  What a laugh.  In practice the "views" that students are exposed to are all on the left.  And it's clear that many professors see their role not as educators but as "change agents." 

June 21, 2016       Permalink

FOLLOW THE MONEY – AT 9:54 A.M. ET:   With all of Donald Trump's boasting about his business skills, the fact is that his campaign is in terrible shape financially.  It's embarrassing, and could subject him to major ridicule.  After all, money is his business.  From CNN: 

Washington (CNN) Donald Trump faces an extraordinary money deficit unheard of in modern presidential politics, entering the month with tens of millions of dollars less than Hillary Clinton.

Clinton's campaign had $42 million in the bank as of May 31, according to its report filed with the Federal Election Commission Monday. Her super PAC Priorities USA has $52 million.
Trump's campaign has $1.3 million.

The gulf emerges as Democrats lay out plans to spend that cash on an onslaught of television advertising that Trump has shown no urgency in matching. Clinton and her allied groups are planning to spend $117 million between Tuesday and Election Day on television -- much of it anti-Trump television -- while Trump and his groups have $700,000 in time awaiting him thus far.

Trump, who just began actively fundraising last month with a $3.1 million haul, also has a super PAC benefiting him -- but it has only $500,000 in the bank. Two other big-money groups will not be required to disclose their fundraising position until next month.

The New York billionaire can presumably close the money gap with one check, but hasn't indicated he will do so. The candidate and his allies have consistently emphasized the ability to run a leaner campaign than Clinton's.

On Tuesday, Trump appeared to dismiss the fundraising issue, telling NBC's "Today," he's willing to "do what i did in the primaries."

"I spent $55 million of my own money to win the primaries. 55, that's a lot of money by even any standard," Trump said. "I may do that again in the general election."

Trump added that he had "a lot of cash" but added that "it would be nice to have some help from the party."

COMMENT:  I'd be more concerned about that massive Clinton ad buy.  The Clintonistas are attempting to define Donald Trump even before the general-election campaign starts its September home stretch, and they will probably succeed.

The Republican convention begins July 18th.  If Trump doesn't show some serious life by then, the convention may become a nasty, contested affair.

June 21, 2016        Permalink

POLLING LATEST – AT 9:31 A.M. ET:  A new CNN poll shows Trump five points behind Hillary.  That's not bad overall, but the internal numbers show a worsening position for Donald. 

Presidential elections aren't held nationally.   As you know, they're held state by state.  From CNN:

(CNN) Democrat Hillary Clinton tops Republican Donald Trump by a 47% to 42% margin in the race for the presidency, according to a CNN/ORC Poll released Tuesday, and just 22% of registered voters say their minds could change between now and November.

Clinton continues to lead Trump when Gary Johnson of the Libertarian Party and Jill Stein of the Green Party are included in the list of options. Nationwide in that match-up, Clinton holds 42%, Trump 38%, Johnson 9% and Stein 7%.

Neither Johnson nor Stein is guaranteed a ballot slot in all states, but one or both will appear in several key competitive states, including Florida, Colorado and Ohio. Johnson will appear in a town hall on CNN this week.

And...

When asked whether they would be excited by a Trump or Clinton presidency, fewer than 3-in-10 muster that level of enthusiasm for either. More say they would be afraid (56% if Trump were elected, 46% Clinton) or embarrassed (56% if Trump won, 39% if Clinton did), and just a handful say they would be proud (35% say so about Clinton, 24% Trump). About half (47%) say they would be hopeful if Clinton won, while 44% say so if Trump were to win.

And...

(CNN) A new poll of three crucial battleground states shows Hillary leading the Donald Trump in Florida while the two are statistically tied in Ohio and Pennsylvania.

According to the Quinnipiac University poll released Tuesday, the presumptive Democratic nominee has her largest lead in Florida, where she bests the presumptive Republican nominee 47% to 39%. But in Pennsylvania, where she leads Trump 41% to 40%, her edge falls within the poll's margin of error. And Clinton and Trump are tied 40% to 40% in Ohio.

If third party candidates are factored into the poll -- including Libertarian Gary Johnson and Green Party candidate Jill Stein -- Clinton still leads Trump in Florida by 6 points and edges him in Ohio and Pennsylvania by 2 and 3 points, but both candidates receive lower total support. Johnson garners around 7-8% support, while Stein draws about 3-4% in each state.

COMMENT:  Imagine what a politically capable Republican nominee would be doing right now.  Trump has made every mistake in the book, and is still within shooting distance.  If he stops making mistakes, shooting off his mouth, blundering very day, he might actually win this thing. 

Trump fired his campaign manager yesterday, and we were promised a new direction.  Prove it to me.

June 21,  2016     Permalink