Please note that you can leave a comment on any of our posts at our Facebook page.  Subscribers can also comment at length at our Angel's Corner Forum.

Our Angel's Corner archive is here.

MARCH 31,  2017

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

JUST WHAT WE'VE ALWAYS WANTED – FROM THE WASHINGTON TIMES:    Santa Claus will be depicted in a forthcoming children’s book as a gay black man in an interracial relationship, its publisher confirmed.  Harper Design said the picture book, “Santa’s Husband,” will go on sale Oct. 10 just in time for Christmas, Time reported Tuesday.  The book will tell “the true story of a Black Santa and his White husband (who often fills in for him at malls),” according to a preview shared on Twitter this week by its author, Daniel Kibblesmith.  Another cultural advance.  Look, I've got a suggestion:  Why don't these social justice warriors leave traditional stories and characters alone, showing respect for others, and develop their own?  Huh?

NUTS – FROM DAILY CALLER:   Newly elected Democratic National Committee chairman Tom Perez campaigned for Democrats in Newark, New Jersey Friday by telling a crowd the Republican Party doesn’t “give a ****” about them.  Perez, speaking at a rally hosted by the New Jersey Working Families Alliance, first congratulated protesters on showing up in droves to Washington, DC on January 21, the day after President Trump’s inauguration.  Perez claimed those people gathered and proclaimed, “Donald Trump, you don’t stand for our values… Donald Trump you didn’t win the election.”  Later in his speech, President Obama’s secretary of labor added that he doesn’t “care” if people take issue with his speech, just like how “Republicans don’t give a **** about people.”  Very nice, very classy.  The new Democratic leadership.  I'm so grateful to learn that Trump didn't win the election.  As Rick says in "Casablanca," I was misinformed.

YOU MEAN THIS HAPPENS? – FROM THE DAILY WIRE:   Authorities in New Hampshire are investigating hundreds of potential voting fraud cases based on data showing that at least 458 people may have lied about their residency when casting their vote in the 2016 presidential election.  On election day last year, a total 5,903 people voted in New Hampshire using an ID from other states, which is permitted by state law. However, that law requires those without a New Hampshire ID to produce evidence of domicile in the state, notes NH1.  Following up on the votes cast with proof of out-of-state IDs, the NH Secretary of State sent out "6,033 letters to voters with no proof of domicile and so far 458 of the letters have bounced back as undeliverable – a clear sign those who filled them out lied," suggests the American Mirror.  I cannot believe there is voter fraud.  Can you?  It's just a Trump fantasy?  That's right, isn't it?  Well, uh, maybe a few votes here and there.

March 31,  2017     Permalink

WHILE CNN ISN'T WATCHING – AT 10:35 A.M. ET:   It is clear that a confrontation is building between the United States and North Korea.  Many mainstreamers don't really care, but the American people will care if things get seriously hot.  From NBC News: 

LONDON — After years of North Korea thumbing its nose at the international community, on Friday Defense Secretary James Mattis appeared to signal enough was enough.

"Right now, [North Korea] appears to be going in a very reckless manner … and that has got to be stopped," Mattis said at a press conference in London.

He didn't give any details about how the administration of President Donald Trump plans to deal with the reclusive nation, which, under Kim Jong Un, has drastically increased its missile and nuclear-testing program.

But Mattis's remarks continue a recent trend of Trump officials taking a harder line on North Korea.

Earlier this month, Secretary of State Rex Tillerson said that the "diplomatic … efforts of the past 20 years to bring North Korea to a point of de-nuclearization have failed."

He also said that military action was "on the table."

Many experts say that Trump's options are limited, however.

Kim has pledged to develop a weapons capable of striking the U.S. and its allies. Three of the country's nuclear tests were completed under his rule and he conducted more missile tests over the past four years than in the rest of the country's history.

COMMENT:  Hard to see exactly what can be done immediately, especially without strong support from our allies.  But, clearly, some action needs to be taken to curtail North Korea's weapons programs, and, very importantly, its export of technology to countries like Iran.

One step that could be taken, short of military action, is to assist allies in the region, Japan and South Korea, in building their defenses dramatically. 

A military strike against a missile base or nuclear test center will probably be contemplated, and well deserved.  The problem is that North Korea, thanks to feckless Western diplomacy, now has the means to strike back powerfully, even with nuclear weapons.  Thanks, Obama.  Thanks, Bush.  Thanks, Clinton.

North Korea is one of the most difficult challenges we face, and there are no good options.  There are only risks.

March 31, 2017       Permalink 

ACTUAL PROGRESS – AT 10:14 A.M. ET:  And how rare in Washington.   The Trump effect is changing our southern border.  From Fox: 

Attorney General Jeff Sessions told Fox News' "The O'Reilly Factor" Thursday that illegal border crossings "are down 60 percent due to President Trump’s strong leadership."

Sessions gave a wide-ranging interview and said that the administration would look at other possible actions against so-called "sanctuary cities" after he announced this week that federal funds would be cut off to locales that refuse to work with Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents after detaining illegal immigrants.

COMMENT:  Great on both counts, and Sessions is turning into a fine, active attorney general.  Sadly, most news organizations have given up on basic journalism, so stories like this don't get reported.  But the reduction in illegal border crossings is major news.

On sanctuary cities, they're an absolute affront to the rule of law.  The only reason they exist is that Democratic politicians must play to their base, which doesn't care much about the idea of a nation of laws.  The threat by the Trump administration to cut off federal funding to sanctuary cities is appropriate.  A federal grant is not a right, it is a gift given by Congress on behalf of the American people.  We have no obligation to continue those gifts to cities that defy federal law.

March 31, 2017       Permalink

MADNESS – AT 9:35 A.M. ET:  Strange things are happening in California.  If you believe in a free press, including a free internet, you should be concerned.  From Heatstreet: 

Next week, the California Assembly will be one of the first legislatures to try to ban so-called “fake news,” and it could have sweeping ramifications for social media users across the state.

The bill, filed Wednesday in the Assembly’s Committee on Privacy and Consumer Affairs, seeks, essentially, to make it a crime to be wrong on the Internet. The text of the bill implicates anyone who writes, publishes or even shares news stories they know could be false, if those news stories later have an impact on an election.

18320.5. It is unlawful for a person to knowingly and willingly make, publish or circulate on an Internet Web site, or cause to be made, published, or circulated in any writing posted on an Internet Web site, a false or deceptive statement designed to influence the vote on either of the following:

(a) Any issue submitted to voters at an election.

(b) Any candidate for election to public office.

Share fake news, in other words, and face a punishment levied by the state of California.

The bill does say that you have to “knowingly and willfully” make reference to a set of “alternative facts,” but it doesn’t give details on who would determine a story is “fake news” or, for that matter, what a “fake news” story even is.

Based on the approach taken in the wake of the 2016 campaign, “fake news” seems to mean a host of different things, from wrong-headed political opinions, to stories that look fishy and are later proven to be false or misleading. Based on this law, it also seems to include any story posted on social media that appears to be politically biased, or comes from any source with an editorial slant.

The bill also seems to infringe on Constitutional guarantees of free speech. Political advocacy is a form of protected speech under the First Amendment, and the Supreme Court has been adamant that political advertising—even when it involves smears, exaggerations and “poetic license”—is included under the umbrella of “political advocacy.”

COMMENT:  Fortunately, there's already pushback from grown-ups, and I doubt that the bill will make it through.  Even if it does, it seems blatantly unconstitutional.

But this kind of mentality is out there, and is being taught to students in our universities.  You see it in the form of speech codes on college campuses and the attempts to shout down speakers.  As Oscar
Hammerstein II wrote, "You've got to be taught to hate," and our kids are being taught to hate anyone who doesn't follow the approved party line.

March 31,  2017     Permalink

MARCH 30,  2017

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

AND WHO REALLY CARES? – FROM CBS:   BERKELEY (KPIX 5) – While the resistance to President Donald Trump has largely been private citizens across the Bay Area and country, municipalities are jumping into the fray.  On Tuesday night, the Berkeley City Council passed a five-page resolution calling for the president to be impeached.  “We were one of the first cities to standup against apartheid – that’s a movement that took off and spread and that’s very important,” Councilmember Sophie Hahn told KPIX 5.  Berkeley City Councilmember Kate Harrison co-sponsored the resolution.  “I think it’s going to send a powerful message. I think we have no choice but to do this,” Harrison said.  The home of the Free Speech Movement wasn’t the first city in the Bay Area to pass a resolution calling for the impeachment of Mr. Trump. The cities of Richmond and Alameda got there first.  I'm sure they all feel good about themselves, and will get raves from their psychiatrists.

MAJOR ART NEWS – FROM FOX:    Crayola is saying farewell to the dark-yellow Dandelion crayon from its iconic 24-count box.  The company made the announcement on Twitter Thursday, a day before National Crayon Day.  The arts and crafts company was originally expected to announce the retirement in Times Square on Friday morning during a Facebook live stream event but will reveal Dandelion's replacement instead.  This is the first time the company has retired a color from its classic 24-count box but has ditched others in the past including blizzard blue, magic mint, teal blue and mulberry.  The current 24-count Crayola box contains red, yellow, blue, brown, orange, green, violet, black, carnation pink, yellow orange, blue green, red violet, red orange, yellow green, blue violet, white, violet red, dandelion, cerulean, apricot, scarlet, green yellow, indigo and gray.  Nothing is really sacred these days, is it?  We'll remember Dandelion.  It served us well.

SHEER TRAUMA – FROM COLLEGE FIX:  Members of the University of Pennsylvania fossil fuel divestment group Fossil Free Penn apparently were “written up” by campus officials after they refused to vacate a school building at closing time.  FFP’s Abby McGuckin confirmed with The Daily Pennsylvania that 13 students were “cited for university infractions.”  Sit-in “co-coordinator” Zach Rissman said 8 or 9 students had stayed overnight at College Hall last evening, while 14 slept there the night before.  FFP member Gavi Reiter was miffed that the university — which voted down a fossil fuel divestment measure last year — doesn’t seem to appreciate what her group is doing:  “Our goal in staying overnight is to put pressure on the administration and the Board of Trustees to see that we are here and we’re giving our time and our sweat and our energy and our mental capacity to put into everything we’re bringing to the table.  I don't know how Penn can treat these little geniuses as harshly as it has.  Is there no humanity?  Is there no understanding of their feelings? 

March 30,  2017     Permalink

NUTS IN BRUSSELS – AT 11:32 A.M. ET:   The head of the European Union, Jean-Claude Juncker, is now threatening to break up the United States.  Lunatics on parade.  From London's Express: 

In an extraordinary speech the EU Commission president said he would push for Ohio and Texas to split from the rest of America if the Republican president does not change his tune and become more supportive of the EU.

The remarks are diplomatic dynamite at a time when relations between Washington and Brussels are already strained over Europe’s meagre contributions to NATO and the US leader’s open preference for dealing with national governments.

They are by far the most outspoken intervention any senior EU figure has made about Mr Trump and are likely to dismay some European leaders who were hoping to seek a policy of rapprochement with their most important ally.

Speaking at the centre-right European People Party’s (EPP) annual conference in Malta this afternoon, the EU Commission boss did not hold back in his disdain for the White House chief’s eurosceptic views.

He said: “Brexit isn’t the end. A lot of people would like it that way, even people on another continent where the newly elected US President was happy that the Brexit was taking place and has asked other countries to do the same.

“If he goes on like that I am going to promote the independence of Ohio and Austin, Texas in the US.”

COMMENT:  Note that he limits the promotion of Texas independence to Austin, the state's most liberal city.  I don't think he'll get much support down Alamo way. 

We get the feeling that there's panic at the EU.  If another major country opts out, the EU could easily start to crumble.  All those bureaucratic jobs lost.  No more control over people's lives.  Worse than climate change!

March 30, 2017       Permalink

WE HAVE A GREAT SECOND LADY – AT 10:55 A.M. ET:   We've heard little about her, as the press has been spending all available time tearing down the president and his family.  But Karen Pence is first class.  From Fox: 

Karen Pence, the wife of Vice President Mike Pence, is celebrating Women's History Month by honoring military spouses.

Pence is scheduled to attend a reception honoring military spouses at Naval Air Station Meridian in Mississippi today.

Spouses of active-duty sailors stationed at the base are scheduled to attend, as are spouses of Mississippi National Guard members.

The Second Lady joined the "Fox & Friends" co-hosts this morning to discuss the event and the humbling sacrifice made by our service members and their families.

Pence, whose son is a Marine currently flight training at the base, said that people often come up to her and thank her for her family's sacrifice.

"My sacrifice is nothing compared to what our military spouses do," Pence said. "And it's a humbling thing to see their willingness to move every year, to change jobs, change communities, change schools for their children and support their loved one who's deployed."

She said one of the topics she will be discussing at Meridian today is the importance of military spouses using the available resources and support groups.

"It's not easy for them," Pence said. "I just honor all of them. I'm so grateful that these women are willing to support our men and women in uniform."

COMMENT:  Wonderful woman, and an inspiration to military women and military wives.  Let's see how much respect Karen Pence gets from "feminist" groups.

March 30, 2017       Permalink

IS THIS A GOOD IDEA? – AT 10:20 A.M. ET:  President Trump, using Twitter (ugh!) just ripped into the GOP's Freedom Caucus.  From Fox: 

President Donald Trump just took to Twitter to go after the conservative House Freedom Caucus.

"The Freedom Caucus will hurt the entire Republican agenda if they don't get on the team, & fast. We must fight them, & Dems, in 2018!" he wrote.

The caucus, chaired by Rep. Mark Meadows (R-NC), opposed the American Health Care Act, which was championed by Trump and House Speaker Paul Ryan.

The bill died on Friday without a vote due to opposition from the caucus members and some moderate Republicans.

Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) reacted on "America's Newsroom," telling Shannon Bream that he believes the president must put partisanship aside to address health care.

He advised the president to allow ObamaCare to collapse, then reach out to both sides of the aisle to replace the law with something better.

Graham said one-fifth of the nation's economy cannot be reformed using only Republican votes.

"Challenge Democrats to help you fix their mess. ... Put America first and we'll all be OK. Don't let partisanship take over health care."

Later in the show, caucus member Jim Jordan (R-OH) reacted, saying that the health care bill was contrary to the Freedom Caucus' mission to "change Washington."

"We appreciate the president, we're trying to help the president. But look at the legislation. It doesn't do what we told the voters we were gonna do," said Jordan, noting the bill was polling at just 17 percent.

COMMENT:  Was it really necessary for the president to slam the Freedom Caucus that way?  Washington is not the New York real estate industry, which is known for its coarseness.  Trump should be trying to bring the Freedom Caucus on board by showing sensitivity to its concerns.  Slamming them will only raise their anger.

I wish Twitter had never been invented. 

The president said earlier in the week that he'll soon have a new health plan, and will get it passed.  Maybe it's time for some honey.  There's plenty of time for vinegar if the honey doesn't work. 

Trying to peel off some Dems is a good idea, although the Democratic Party is today wracked with fear and intimidation.  It's so-called "base" is mean-spirited, rigid, fierce, and totalitarian.  Other than that, it's lovely.

March 30,  2017     Permalink