|
nChrist
|
 |
« on: April 28, 2016, 08:01:09 PM » |
|
________________________________________
The Patriot Post Digest 4-28-2016
From The Federalist Patriot
Free Email Subscription
________________________________________
Mid-Day Digest
Apr. 28, 2016
THE FOUNDATION
“It is only when the people become ignorant and corrupt … that they are incapable of exercising the sovereignty. Usurpation is then an easy attainment, and an usurper soon found. The people themselves become the willing instruments of their own debasement and ruin…” —James Monroe (1817)
TOP RIGHT HOOKS
Cruz’s Hail Carly1
Ted Cruz’s announcement Wednesday declaring former presidential candidate Carly Fiorina his running mate is an act of desperation, but it’s a calculated act of desperation. Cruz is running far behind Trump — in fact, he’s mathematically eliminated from winning the nomination outside of a contested convention2 — but Cruz isn’t going to go softly into the night, either. Not when Indiana and California still present the opportunity to stop Trump from reaching the magic delegate number of 1,237.
As Cruz’s new running mate said3 to Fox News’s Megyn Kelly: “This isn’t over until someone reaches 1,237. … I believe Ted Cruz will be our nominee. Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton are virtually indistinguishable in their positions. And he cannot be our nominee, and if he were to be our nominee, Hillary Clinton would be our president. And that is a future that I’m not prepared to lay by and allow to have happen.”
In naming a veep pick before the Republican National Convention, Cruz follows in the steps of Ronald Reagan. He accomplished two things: He disrupted the focus on Trump’s foreign policy speech and added a rhetorically sharp attack dog to his team. Fiorina blunted Trump’s attacks like no one else, and she has also eviscerated Hillary Clinton at every opportunity. With Trump’s comments about women4, Fiorina presents an alternative to the misogyny. And when the race turns to California, she carries some weight after her Senate run there, demon sheep ad5 and all. But there are questions6 about Fiorina as a running mate. Ideology and constituent-wise, how does she help? She has only one delegate, and she won’t particularly appeal to moderate voters in the general election.
But all that is for naught if Cruz doesn’t take the 57 Indiana delegates in next week’s winner-take-all primary. Losing means it’s effectively the end of the road for him, so it’s now or never.
Nobody Seems to Know How Much Money Iran Is Getting7
In Barack Obama’s first term, Congress had to pass deals in order to find out what was in them. These days, even after the deals are rammed through, Congress cannot get answers about what the deals entail. While the deal was being discussed, Secretary of State John Kerry said Iran would get $100 billion in unfrozen assets if the nuclear deal with the mullahs was reached. Now, Kerry has changed his story and Congress cannot get a straight answer8.
During a recent speech, Kerry told supporters that Iran had received only $3 billion (so far) from the deal — a fraction of what the Obama administration said. Meanwhile, Iran has declared it collected all $100 billion. And when lawmakers approach the State Department to understand just how much money is going to Iran, it never answered them specifically.
Rep. Mike Pompeo (R-KS) said8, “Secretary Kerry himself has acknowledged that some of this money will end up in the hands of terrorists. The State Department’s inability, or refusal, to accurately estimate the amount of money the Islamic Republic of Iran is receiving raises even more serious questions.” How much will the U.S. eventually give Iran? Furthermore, how much will go to fund terrorist groups and destabilize the Middle East?
In the meantime, Iran has set off ballistic rocket test after ballistic rocket test, with another scheduled for just after the inauguration of the next president. (Contrast that show of force to Iran freeing 444 American hostages upon Ronald Reagan’s inauguration.) And the Obama administration has been sluggish to respond9 to these deal violations, possibly even lying to Congress. Unfortunately, the effects of this deal will probably only be fully realized when Iranian-backed terrorists topple Middle Eastern states in violence and batteries of nuclear-tipped missiles point up toward Iranian skies.
Redefining Deviancy: ‘Justice-Involved Youth’10
In a recent press release11 describing the Justice Department’s efforts to provide housing for rehabilitated juvenile delinquents, the department described the demographic as “Justice-Involved Youth.” From the very fist line of its message, the Office of Public Affairs wrote, “In an effort to help young people involved in the justice system find jobs and housing…”
And this is how we’re introduced to the most recent example of the Left’s newspeak, a strain of our vernacular that George Orwell described12 as “largely the defence of the indefensible.” Obtuse phrases such as “justice-involved youth” hide the true meaning of what’s happening. Which side of the law are these individuals on? As Investor’s Business Daily facetiously asks13, “If these young people are ‘involved’ in the justice system, doesn’t that mean they already have jobs? Like, say, as a trainee in the dispatcher’s office, or a desk clerk in the attorney general’s office, or maybe a janitor at the local courthouse?”
Using the Left’s phrasing, it’s hard to have an honest discussion about the Justice Department’s program. While returning to society after paying a debt to it by spending time in jail is often a difficult task, citizens have the right to know how “involved” these youth were in this nation’s justice system. Are we simply giving out taxpayer funds to hooligans who will turn around and contribute to insecurity and instability of our society? As long as they vote Democrat14, yes.
Don’t Miss Alexander’s Column
Read NEWS ALERT: ‘Islamists Nuke U.S. Urban Centers’15, on the looming national security threat that eludes delusional Democrats — the consequences of which will be catastrophic.
If you’d like to receive Alexander’s Column by email, update your subscription here16.
BEST OF RIGHT OPINION
Larry Elder: ESPN Fires Curt Schilling — What About Liberal Offenders?17
Mark West: Target’s War on Women, Little Girls and You18
George Will: What Happens in Puerto Rico Won’t Stay There19
For more, visit Right Opinion20.
FEATURED RIGHT ANALYSIS
Better Than Blaming America First21
Donald Trump gave a much-ballyhooed speech on foreign policy Wednesday in which he sought to answer essentially one question: Can we trust this man with the nuclear launch codes? An affirmative answer wasn’t obvious.
It was only the second time Trump has spoken while using the teleprompter he’s so fond of mocking. Obviously, that mockery is heartfelt, because he was not at home reading his speech instead of the usual winging it. As Jonah Goldberg quipped, “He’s also clearly uncomfortable giving serious speeches with whole sentences put together to form whole paragraphs.”
But the reviews weren’t all bad. Ret. Gen. Barry McCaffrey offered a compliment, if a backhanded one: “Mr. Trump over the last year has said some of the most irresponsible, inane statements on foreign policy [and] defense policy that I’ve ever heard in public life. This speech — I thought he hit it out of the ballpark.”
Trump sycophant Ann Coulter tweeted that it was the “GREATEST FOREIGN POLICY SPEECH SINCE WASHINGTON’S FAREWELL ADDRESS” (caps lock malfunction in the original).
Hyperbole aside, there were a few things Trump said with which we agree. “America first” is a refreshing message after Barack Obama’s tenure of “Blame America first.” Trump’s calls for modernizing and upgrading our military are on target. As was his assessment of Barack Obama’s dealing with Iran and treacherous treatment of our allies, along with his generally disastrous Middle East policy15. |
