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MAY 20,  2017

SHORT TAKES ON THE DRIFTING WRECKAGE – AT 11:56 P.M. ET: 

A TROUBLED CITY DECLINES FURTHER – FROM FOX BALTIMORE:   BALTIMORE (WBFF) -- A Project Baltimore investigation has found five Baltimore City high schools and one middle school do not have a single student proficient in the state tested subjects of math and English.  We sat down with a teen who attends one of those schools and has overcome incredible challenges to find success.  Navon Warren grew up in West Baltimore. He was three months old when his father was shot to death. Before his 18th birthday, he would lose two uncles and a classmate, all gunned down on the streets of Baltimore. “I’ve lost a lot of people, so I’m used to it. It hurts,” Warren said. “I just chose not to show it. I just keep it in. You just have to live on and keep going on every day. You have to do it somehow.”  Despite his tremendous loss, Warren is set to graduate this year from Frederick Douglass High School. It’s a school where only half the students graduate and just a few dozen will go to college. Last year, not one student scored proficient in any state testing.  Is anyone accountable?  Black kids murdered.  Black kids failing.  Do these black lives matter?

NOT EXACTLY ASTAIRE – FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER:  Upon arriving at an elaborate ceremony at Murabba Palace in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, President Trump and crew got into the dancing mood.
Video of the ceremony on Saturday showed Secretary of State Rex Tillerson and Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross, locking arms with some of the performers and holding sabers.  Trump arrived soon after and swayed along to the drumming, chanting and traditional sword dance for a few moments. He was joined by Saudi King Salman for the impending banquet in Riyadh.   Yeah, dancing with sabers.  You know, we're gettin' involved with some strange people.  You gotta see the video.

A SO-CALLED DEMOCRATIC LEADER – FROM THE HILL:   Democratic National Committee Chairman Tom Perez on Friday called President Trump the "most dangerous president" in U.S. history and said that the commander in chief "has to go."  “Here’s one big thing we agree on. Donald Trump is an anathema to our values. Donald Trump is the most dangerous president in American history,” Perez, the former Labor secretary in the Obama administration, said during the California Democratic Party convention, as reported by The Los Angeles Times.  This is the same "leader" who makes speeches, with children present, and uses obscene language.  Such class.  I'm filled with confidence.

May 20,  2017    Permalink

"MODERATE" RE-ELECTED IN IRAN – AT 12:53 P.M. ET:   The current president of Iran, considered a "moderate" in delusional circles, has been re-elected.  From Reuters:

Iranians yearning for more freedom at home and less isolation abroad have emphatically re-elected President Hassan Rouhani, throwing down a challenge to the conservative clergy that still holds ultimate sway.

Interior Minister Abdolreza Rahmanifazli announced Rouhani's victory on Saturday on state television. Rouhani secured 57 percent of the vote in Friday's election, compared to 38 percent for his main rival, hardline judge Ebrahim Raisi, according to figures cited by Rahmanifazli.

Although the powers of the elected president are limited by those of unelected Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei who outranks him, the scale of Rouhani's victory gives the pro-reform camp a strong mandate to seek the sort of change that hardliners have managed to thwart for decades.

Rouhani's opponent Raisi, a protege of Khamenei, had united the conservative faction and had been tipped in Iranian media as a potential successor for the 77-year-old supreme leader who has been in power since 1989. His defeat leaves the conservatives without an obvious flag bearer.

COMMENT:  I almost would have preferred the arch-conservative to the more capable and conniving Rouhani.  At least we would have had a clearer view of the nation opposing us.

May 20, 2017       Permalink

TRUMP TRUMPS IN SAUDI ARABIA – AT 12:18 P.M. ET:  The president has had a good day in Saudi Arabia.   That nation is not our idea of a democracy, but it's critical to our interests in the Mideast.  From Fox: 

President Trump in Saudi Arabia on Saturday signed a nearly $110 billion arms deal to help the Persian Gulf ally with its military-defense system.

"That was a tremendous day," Trump said after signing the deal with Saudi leader King Salman.

"Tremendous investments in the United States. Hundreds of billions of dollars of investments into the United States and jobs, jobs, jobs."

The White House says the package includes defense equipment and other support to help the Arab nation and the rest of the Gulf region fight again terrorism and the threat of a nuclear-armed Iran, according to the White House.

Trump during his winning presidential campaign and in the first several months of his presidency has argued the United States can no longer be the world’s police officer and that other nations must become more self-sufficient in efforts to combat terrorism and in protecting themselves against rogue nations like Iran and North Korea. 

COMMENT:  The real challenge on this trip will be to move toward a peace agreement between the Arabs and the Israelis.  Some say it's mission impossible.  We'll find out.

May 20, 2017       Permalink

PRESIDENT IN ACTION – AT 11:51 A.M. ET:   Serious president, serious goals.  No matter what people may think of President Trump – and he provides plenty of ammunition to opponents – he's a hard-working president who wants to see results.  From AFP: 

Washington (AFP) - President Donald Trump has instructed the Pentagon to "annihilate" the Islamic State group in Syria in a bid to prevent escaped foreign fighters from returning home, Defense Secretary Jim Mattis said Friday.

The move to encircle then kill as many jihadists in place as possible -- rather than letting them exit a city and targeting them as they flee -- reflects an increased urgency to stop battle-hardened jihadists bringing their military expertise and ideology back to European capitals and other areas.

The president has "directed a tactical shift from shoving ISIS out of safe locations in an attrition fight to surrounding the enemy in their strongholds so we can annihilate ISIS," Mattis said, using an acronym for IS.

"The intent is to prevent the return home of escaped foreign fighters."

Trump, who campaigned on a pledge to quickly defeat IS, signed an executive order soon after taking office giving his generals 30 days to come up with a revised plan to wipe the jihadists out.
The review resulted in the new "annihilation campaign" and saw commanders gain greater autonomy to make battlefield decisions.

Critics of Barack Obama's administration frequently complained of White House micromanagement and a lengthy approval process causing delays on the ground.

Mattis called foreign fighters a "strategic threat" should they return home and said the annihilation effort would prevent the problem from being transplanted from one location to another.

COMMENT:  It would be great if Trump could announce the end of ISIS as a battlefield threat.  Of course, the mainstream press would immediately claim that President Obama deserves the credit, but I'd imagine that Trump's message will get through. 

And it is good to have James Mattis as secretary of defense.  He knows his stuff thoroughly and has been given the mandate to carry out the mission.

May 20,  2017     Permalink

MAY 19,  2017

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

A TRULY GREAT MOMENT IN EDUCATION – FROM THE L.A. TIMES:   The Los Angeles Unified School District underwent a dramatic political shift Tuesday night, as the curtain dropped on what has been the most expensive school board election in the nation’s history.  The election has been a proxy war between wealthy charter school advocates and public employee unions. Charter supporters appeared to secure their first-ever majority on the seven-member Los Angeles Board of Education, a move that could accelerate the already-rapid expansion of charter schools across the city.  As a rule, charter schools are good.  They don't all work out, but most do, and improve the educations of inner-city kids.

AND A LESSER MOMENT IN EDUCATION – FROM AOL:  A professor at Orange Coast College in California barred members of a school club from attending Women's History Month events last March, advocating for a "safe space event."  OCC professor of sociology and gender studies Jessica Ayo Alabi reportedly emailed campus officials stating her intent to ban members of the school's Republican Club from attending an African American/Women's roundtable discussion this past March. According to the Washington Examiner, Alabi explained the event and defended her position to tell the Republican Club they "could not come" to the event in an email.  Apparently, the Republican Club is fighting back, and now making demands that the "professor" reverse her policy and that the school enforce free speech rights for all students.  Good for the Republican Club.  Fight the left-wing thugs!

SCARY INCIDENT – FROM BLOOMBERG:   Fighter jets escorted an American Airlines plane to Honolulu after a passenger attempted to breach the hardened cockpit door.  Based on initial reports, the man placed a laptop by the entrance and tried to get through the reinforced barrier required on airliners following the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks, said a person familiar with the matter. The Department of Homeland Security said it was prepared to help investigate the incident on Flight 31 from Los Angeles.  The incident added to fears about flight safety as the Trump administration has warned of a heightened risk that terrorists could use laptops to conceal explosives. Homeland Security is considering banning electronic devices larger than mobile phones from airline cabins on flights from Europe to the U.S. A prohibition was adopted in March for flights from 10 Middle Eastern and North African airports.  The unruly passenger was later described as Turkish.  We don't know yet whether this was a terrorist incident.

May 19, 2017       Permalink

UNDERCUTTING AMERICA – AT 12:16 P.M. ET:   Just as President Trump is flying off to build an alliance against Iran in the Mideast, disciples of the last president are working to undermine him.  From the Algemeiner (Israel):

As lawmakers prepare for an imminent debate over a new bill pressing further sanctions on Iran for its ballistic missile development, human rights violations and other abuses, former senior Obama administration officials have mobilized in an effort to oppose it.

A draft of the legislation submitted by a bipartisan group of senators, entitled the “Countering Iran’s Destabilizing Activities Act of 2017 ,” instructs the US government to “impose sanctions with respect to Iran in relation to Iran’s ballistic missile program, support for acts of international terrorism, and violations of human rights, and for other purposes.” The legislation would further mandate the Treasury, Defense and State Departments, along with intelligence agencies, to report to Congress every two years on their strategy to counter destabilizing “Iranian activities and threats that directly threaten the United States and key allies in the Middle East, North Africa, and beyond.”

While the legislation would not change the status of the 2015 nuclear deal — to which the US remains formally committed — ex-Obama administration officials are insisting that its passage could lead to the burial of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action  (JCPOA) implemented in January 2016, which they argue has effectively blocked Iran’s weaponization of its nuclear program.

COMMENT:  What they argue is garbage.  The agreement only blocks the nuclear-weapons program for a finite number of years.  And that's assuming Iran doesn't cheat. 

It does not block the missile program, which is forging ahead.  When Iran finally does get a nuclear weapon, it will have the missiles to carry it.  What a wonderful success.

You'd think the previous administration would not try to interfere with the foreign policy of the new president.  But the Obamans don't play by the usual rules.

May 19, 2017       Permalink

YOU MEAN THE PRESS IS BIASED?  I AM SHOCKED – AT 10:53 A.M. ET:   It's so jolting to learn that my wonderful, pristine profession has flaws.  But a study at Harvard, no less, shows that my childlike illusions are gone with the wind.  From Heatstreet: 

A major new study out of Harvard University has revealed the true extent of the mainstream media’s bias against Donald Trump.

Academics at the Shorenstein Center on Media, Politics and Public Policy analyzed coverage from Trump’s first 100 days in office across 10 major TV and print outlets.

They found that the tone of some outlets was negative in as many as 98% of reports, significantly more hostile than the first 100 days of the three previous administrations:

In America they analyzed CNN, NBC, CBS, Fox News, the New York Times, the Washington Post and the Wall Street Journal.

They also took into account the BBC, the UK’s Financial Times and the German public broadcaster ARD.

Every outlet was negative more often than positive.

Only Fox News, which features some of Trump’s most enthusiastic supporters and is often given special access to the President, even came close to positivity.

Fox was ranked 52% negative and 48% positive.

The study also divided news items across topics. On immigration, healthcare, and Russia, more than 85% of reports were negative.

On the economy, the proportion was more balanced – 54% negative to 46% positive.

COMMENT:  It's pretty clear that the mainstreamers see their job as bringing down Trump, whom they regard as an illegitimate president.  The left, of course, also regarded George W. Bush as illegitimate.  But Obama?  His legitimacy came from Heaven.  And suddenly the mainstreamers became believers.

May 19, 2017       Permalink

PRESIDENTIAL TRIP – AT 10:18 A.M. ET:  The president leaves today on a historic and critical trip.  Let's hope the press behaves itself and reports fully on the trip, rather than emphasize the so-called "scandals" in Washington.  Don't hold your breath.  From Fox: 

President Donald Trump leaves the United States today for his first overseas trip as commander-in-chief, with a full itinerary of stops throughout the Middle East and Europe. 

His trip begins Friday with a stop in Saudi Arabia, followed by planned visits to Israel and the Vatican. Trump will later attend the 28th NATO summit in Brussels, Belgium, and the 43rd G7 summit in Taormina, Italy. 

The president's travel comes on the heels of a number of highly publicized controversies, including the recent firing of FBI Director James Comey. 

Below is a look at what the president has lined up so far.

Saudi Arabia

Trump will arrive in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, where there will be an arrival ceremony, National Security Advisor H.R. McMaster said at a news conference Tuesday.

He's slated to have coffee with King Salman, go to bilateral meetings with members of the royal family and attend a royal banquet, McMaster told reporters.

The president will also attend "a signing ceremony of several agreements that will further solidify U.S.-Saudi security and economic cooperation."

Trump and first lady Melania Trump will partake in an official dinner with the Saudi royal family that evening, according to McMaster. 

The next day, Trump will meet with leaders of the Gulf Cooperation Council, McMaster said. That afternoon, Trump is slated to have lunch with leaders from dozens of Muslim countries, "where he will deliver an inspiring, yet direct speech on the need to confront radical ideology," according to McMaster.

Trump is also expected to later participate in "the inauguration of a new center intended to fight radicalism and promote moderation" as well as in a Twitter forum. 

COMMENT:  Read the rest of the article, and save it.  It's a good picture of what the president will be doing in Israel, the Vatican, and beyond.  This is a serious president doing serious things, but I can't wait to hear the mocking tone on CNN.

There will be attempts by some in the media, and the Deep State leakers, to destroy this trip, and show that President Trump can't govern.  I hope the White House is ready with major pushback.

May 19,  2017     Permalink