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Editor's note:  For some mysterious reason, "Short Takes" did not appear on our site last night, even though it was run, and run early.  I didn't discover the problem until this morning.  I apologize for the failure.  "Short Takes" appears now. 
 

NOVEMBER 7,  2017

SHORT TAKES ON THE DRIFTING WRECKAGE – AT 9:55 P.M. ET: 

GRIM IN VIRGINIA – Not a good night for our side.  With a larger-than-expected margin, Ralph Northam has defeated Republican Ed Gillespie for the Virginia governorship. With 99 percent of the vote in, Northam has 53.6 percent and Gillespie 45.2 percent, an 8.4-point spread.  The final polls showed Northam with about a 3-5-point lead.   Hillary Clinton carried Virginia a year ago by about 5 points.  Thus, Northam bested Hillary.  Most analysts attributed Northam's victory to the huge number of government workers living in northern Virginia, near Washington, and the African-American vote.  However, the usual suspects, led by The New York Times, are playing it as a YUGE defeat for President Trump.

AND THE GRIMLY EXPECTED – New York City's profoundly leftist Mayor Bill de Blasio, lover of Castro, support of the Sandinistas, was easily re-elected tonight, giving him four more years to do nothing of value.  After that he's term-limited.  As usual, the Republicans barely ran a mayoral campaign in the heavily Democratic city.  For a Republican to win, he literally must take over the party himself.  The last pure Republican to win the mayoralty was Rudy Giuliani, who became a truly great mayor and showed that crime could be confronted and defeated.   His successor, the very capable Mike Bloomberg, had no lasting party affiliation, and could best be described as a moderate.  De Blasio could have been beaten by a strong Republican with an imaginative platform, but the Republican Party in New York couldn't be bothered.

A NEEDED APOLOGY – FROM BREITBART:   Pulitzer Prize-winning Los Angeles Times columnist and cartoonist David Horsey apologized to White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders on Friday, after publishing an article in which he mocked her appearance, calling her a “slightly chunky soccer mom.”
Horsey’s “body-shaming” took up the first two full paragraphs of his column, which went on to accuse Sanders of lying on behalf of President Donald Trump.  Breitbart News highlighted the column on Friday morning, and Fox News made inquiries to the Times. On Friday afternoon, those paragraphs had been removed from the article, and replaced by an apology from Horsey:  "I want to apologize to Times readers — and to Sarah Huckabee Sanders — for a description that was insensitive and failed to meet the standards of our newspaper. It also failed to meet the expectations I have for myself. It surely won’t be my last mistake, but this particular error will be scrupulously avoided in my future commentaries. I’ve removed the offending description."  Even liberal journalists can occasionally do the right thing.  Savor the moment.

November 7, 2017       Permalink

I AM SHOCKED, SHOCKED, THAT THIS GOES ON – AT 2:47 P.M. ET:  You mean to tell me that there are evil doings at CNN?  Shame on you.  Shame on you!  Show respect!  From Daily Caller: 

Fox News’ Tucker Carlson reported Monday that according to sources, CNN had reporters discredit former DNC interim chair Donna Brazile over her revelations that made Hillary Clinton look bad.

Carlson said, “According to highly informed sources we spoke to–highly informed–top management at CNN directed its employees to undermine Brazile’s credibility. Anchors and producers were vocally offended by her attacks on their friends, the Clintons. If you’ve been watching that channel, you may have noticed CNN’s anchors suggesting that Donna Brazile cannot be trusted, precisely because she took part in efforts to break the primaries for Clinton.”

The Daily Caller co-founder then played a clip of CNN hosts trying to make Brazile look bad over her sharing a primary debate question with Clinton’s campaign, which he compared to political talking points.

Tucker also revealed that Brazile will join him on Wednesday to talk more about the DNC.
The former DNC interim chair revealed in Politico last week that the Clinton campaign had a fundraising agreement with the DNC long before it was clear she would be the nominee, a move that many saw as tipping the scales against Sen. Bernie Sanders.

COMMENT:  It is getting messy, but you may be sure that the most powerful elements of the mainstream media will do their job for the Clinton interests.

CNN clearly has a corporate party line, and enforces it.  It is the anti-Trump network, and the pro-Clinton network.  It's also boring.

November 7, 2017       Permalink

TREMORS IN SAUDI – AT 10:41 A.M. ET:   What is happening in Saudi Arabia is critically important.  The tremors are getting louder, as the Saudi government consolidates its power, moves toward real reform, and tries to suppress the opposition.  From Daily Mail: 

A Saudi prince is thought to have been killed in a firefight while resisting arrest as part of the kingdom's anti-corruption purge. 

It comes just 24 hours after another of Riyadh's royals died in a helicopter crash along with government ministers. 

Local media in the Gulf are reporting Prince Abdul Aziz bin Fahd, 44, was shot dead by authorities trying to arrest him as part of the anti-corruption sweep. 

Former FBI special agent Ali H Soufan announced on Twitter the son of the late King Fahd had died on Sunday.

It was also reported in The Duran, who said Prince Abdul Aziz was 'deeply involved' in Saudi Oger Ltd, a company that was once owned by the family of Saad Hariri who resigned as Lebanese Prime Minister on the weekend. 

The company ceased trading in the summer, fuelling speculation the Saudis forced Hariri to quit. 

If confirmed, Prince Abdul will be the second royal in the kingdom to die in 24 hours. 

A helicopter carrying a high-ranking Saudi prince and other government officials crashed Sunday in the kingdom's south, reportedly killing all eight people aboard.

The Saudi Interior Ministry said early Monday that the crash happened in Saudi Arabia's Asir province as the official took part in a tour of local projects near Abha, some 160 kilometers (100 miles) from the border with Yemen. 

The Saudi-owned satellite news channel Al-Arabiya, based in Dubai, reported that the crash killed Prince Mansour bin Muqrin and seven others. 

COMMENT:  Well, it's not exactly "Lawrence of Arabia," but it's something.  We haven't head this kind of upheaval in Saudi Arabia in my memory.  Saudi Arabia is also a bulwark against Iran.  And there are reports of cooperation, though discreet, between Saudi Arabia and Israel.

Watch the story carefully.  If Saudi Arabia can be at least somewhat Westernized, and effective against Iran, it can be a major development in preventing further Iranian influence in the Mideast.

November 7, 2017        Permalink

VIRGINIA TODAY – AT 10:16 A.M. ET:  Virginia elects a governor today.  It will be the most watched election this year.   The Dem candidate has a slight polling lead going into the vote, but there is a chance for an upset.  From RealClearPolitics:

Voters in Virginia and New Jersey head to the polls Tuesday to choose new governors in the first statewide elections since Donald Trump won the presidency. With Democrats expected to pick up the New Jersey seat, all eyes are on swing state Virginia for clues about the political climate ahead of next year’s midterms.

Polling shows a tight race between Democratic Lt. Gov. Ralph Northam and former Republican National Committee Chairman Ed Gillespie in the final hours of a contentious and divisive campaign. The RCP average shows Northam with a 3.3 percentage-point edge, narrow enough for Democrats to be concerned that complacency among their ranks could limit turnout and harm their chances.

Virginia was one of the few bright spots for the party last year, as it was the only Southern state Hillary Clinton carried. The Democratic nominee won the Old Dominion by five points, and President Trump remains unpopular there. Former President Obama won Virginia twice. Current Democratic Gov. Terry McAuliffe, who is term-limited, has been touting the state’s low unemployment rate and economic successes. And voters in the past few off-year elections there have tended to back the gubernatorial candidate from the opposite party of the president, with McAuliffe as a recent exception.

Yet even with these advantages, the race has become too close for comfort for Democrats, who are eager to secure a victory this year after a handful of special election House losses. Failure to capitalize on favorable conditions and hold on to the seat could portend trouble ahead for the party.

And...

“Virginia is this unique warning system for what direction the country is headed as we approach the midterms, and it will do that again,” says Jesse Ferguson, a Democratic strategist with Virginia ties. “The state is such a petri dish of voters. It has a little bit everything.”

COMMENT:  We may get some reporting on turnout during the day.  The Dems must turn out their voters in northern Virginia, dominated by federal government employees who work in Washington, and in the African-American wards in cities like Norfolk and Richmond.  The GOP must drive its vote in the rest of the state.

November 7,  2017     Permalink

NOVEMBER 6,  2017

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

YOU CANNOT MAKE THIS UP – FROM COLLEGE FIX:   Controversy erupted recently after tweets from an Ivy League teaching assistant showed her admitting she only calls on white male students as a last resort.“I will always call on my black women students first. Other [people of color] get second tier priority. [White women] come next. And, if I have to, white men,” University of Pennsylvania teaching assistant Stephanie McKellop tweeted in October.  McKellop’s tweets spotlight a method known as the “progressive stack” in which speaking priority is given to minority voices while those deemed as having privilege must wait their turn.  McKellop’s comments ignited a firestorm over the controversial teaching method and prompted her university to look into the situation, but a College Fix review of online documentation shows McKellop is far from the first instructor to employ the “progressive stack” in the classroom.  Use of the progressive stack, which is lauded by advocates as amplifying oppressed voices and criticized by others as discriminatory, has been used in college classrooms for years, and has roots in liberal activism.   If my child was at a college that permitted this, I'd pull that child out in a second.

AND THE MADNESS CONTINUES – FROM COLLEGE FIX:  Put this one in your peace pipe and smoke it — a Native American faculty member at the University of New Mexico has been condemned for wearing a headdress on Halloween.  She reportedly wore it to a pumpkin carving contest at the school.  “Just because you’re Native American, does not give you a free pass to rock a headdress or a tomahawk,” Joaquina Castillo, co-president of the KIVA Club, a Native American group on campus, told KRQE news.  “She was actually being awarded for most authentic costume, which is just an even more big slap in the face,” Castillo said.  KIVA Club members told the news outlet they found the costume racist and an example of cultural appropriation, arguing that the faculty member who wore it is part of the Navajo Nation and headdresses are not part of that tribe.  Hmm.  She mentioned that being Native American doesn't give you a "free pass" to wear certain things.  Question:  Who gives out the free passes?  How does one get that privilege?  I'd love to hear the answers.

TRUMP GETS IT RIGHT – FROM DAILY MAIL:   President Donald Trump met with Japanese Emperor Akihito and Empress Michiko on Monday, sharing a brief handshake eight years after his predecessor became a global laughingstock by bowing deeply before the monarch.  Visiting with the emperor and empress is routine for heads of state visiting Tokyo, and Trump did his part a few hours before a joint press conference with Prime Minster Shinzo Abe, who wields more power than the aging figurehead.
Trump nodded his head slightly, but did not bend at the waist.  An administration official traveling with Trump on his Far East tour told DailyMail.com that bowing is 'not his style – never has been.'  Americans, by tradition, do not bow down before foreign leaders or foreign royalty.  Apparently, nobody told Obama about this. 

November 6, 2017       Permalink

AGAIN? – AT 12:52 P.M. ET:  Senator Rand Paul of Kentucky was assaulted over the weekend by a liberal neighbor.  The assault occurred at his own home, and Paul was seriously injured.  From the Bowling Green Daily News: 

U.S. Sen. Rand Paul has five rib fractures and lung contusions as a result of an apparent assault Friday by a neighbor at Paul's home in Bowling Green, a spokesman for Kentucky's junior senator said Sunday.

Senior adviser Doug Stafford said Paul's injuries cause pain that could persist for weeks, perhaps even months, but that the Republican plans to return to the U.S. Senate soon.

“Senator Paul has five rib fractures including 3 displaced fractures," Stafford said in a statement emailed to the Daily News by Paul's staff. "This type of injury is caused by high velocity severe force. It is not clear exactly how soon he will return to work, as the pain is considerable as is the difficulty in getting around, including flying."

Rene Boucher, 59, a Bowling Green doctor, was arrested Friday and charged with fourth-degree assault after an incident at Paul's home in the gated Rivergreen community just east of Bowling Green.

Boucher, 582 Rivergreen Lane, was released Saturday night from the Warren County Regional Jail on a $7,500 bond, according to online jail records.

COMMENT:  This is the second major assault against a GOP legislator in recent months.  The first involved a shooting of Republican lawmakers practicing for a softball game in Virginia.  Congressman Steve Scalise almost lost his life in that one.

Some sobriety is needed.

We're still getting details.

November 6, 2017       Permalink

MONUMENTAL CHANGES IN SAUDI – AT 10:31 A.M. ET:  We generally think of Saudi Arabia as one of the most backward nations of the Mideast, the home of radical Islam, the banker for terror groups.  Fifteen of the 19 hijackers on 9-11 came from Saudi Arabia.

But change is in the air.  A new guy is in charge and he wants to move his country past terrorism and nuttiness and into the 21st century.  It won't be easy, and he isn't a softie.  From Reuters: 

RIYADH (Reuters) - Saudi Arabia’s future king has tightened his grip on power through an anti-corruption purge by arresting royals, ministers and investors including billionaire Alwaleed bin Talal who is one of the kingdom’s most prominent businessmen.

Prince Alwaleed, a nephew of the king and owner of investment firm Kingdom Holding, invests in firms such as Citigroup and Twitter. He was among 11 princes, four ministers and tens of former ministers detained, three senior officials told Reuters on Sunday.

The purge against the kingdom’s political and business elite also targeted the head of the National Guard, Prince Miteb bin Abdullah, who was detained and replaced as minister of the powerful National Guard by Prince Khaled bin Ayyaf.

The allegations against Prince Alwaleed include money laundering, bribery and extorting officials, one official told Reuters, while Prince Miteb is accused of embezzlement, hiring ghost employees and awarding contracts to his own companies including a $10 billion deal for walkie talkies and bulletproof military gear worth billions of Saudi riyals.

The allegations could not be independently verified and members of the families of those detained could not be reached.

COMMENT:  Big stuff, especially the part about Alwaleed.  He's well known here.  His name is on a lot of buildings and institutions within American universities.   I recall that one year he spent more money in one week buying influence in the United States than the entire annual budget of the "powerful" Israel lobby.  He has real power in American banks and companies.

As the lefties like to say, you've got to break some eggs to make an omelet.  A lot of eggs are being broken in Saudi Arabia. 

November 6, 2017       Permalink

VIRGINIA LATEST – AT 9:51 A.M. ET:  The most important race in tomorrow's elections will be the Virginia gubernatorial contest.  It is important mostly for the Dems.  They have the governorship now, and if they lose it, it will be a very big deal.  If they hang on, not much of a story.  If the Republicans win, and take Virginia away from the Dems, again it's a big deal.  The Democrats are looking for an important victory somewhere, anywhere.

As of this morning, Democrat Ralph Northam leads in virtually all polls, but one poll has GOP candidate Ed Gillespie ahead, and another poll shows a tie. 

Conventional wisdom tells us that Gillespie has made progress, but the final polls show that Northam has actually gained in the last few days. 

However, polling has become a bit uncertain in the age of Trump.  My guess, and it's only a guess, is that Northam will pull it out, but I hope I'm wrong.  Turnout will be the key.  It's our ace, as Republicans are seen to be more enthusiastic than Democrats.

Gillespie has to get out the vote.  That's the bottom line here.  The RealClearPolitics average of polls has Northam ahead by 3%.  An upset is clearly possible.

November 6,  2017     Permalink