The Patriot Post Digest 2-10-2017

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The Patriot Post Digest 2-10-2017
From The Federalist Patriot
Free Email Subscription
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Mid-Day Digest

Feb. 10, 2017

IN TODAY’S EDITION

What exactly is Trump’s strategy when it comes to this vetting order and the courts?
Tom Price’s confirmation sets the ball rolling for ObamaCare repeal.
A couple of Republicans take steps to reform immigration a little at a time.
And more news, policy and opinion.

THE FOUNDATION

“[The judicial Branch] may truly be said to have neither FORCE nor WILL, but merely judgment; and must ultimately depend upon the aid of the executive arm even for the efficacy of its judgments.” —Alexander Hamilton (1788.)

TOP RIGHT HOOKS

Can Trump Win by Losing?1

There’s no question the Ninth Circuit Court’s ruling Thursday night upholding the stay against Donald Trump’s lawful order2 on travel was entirely political and had nothing to do with Rule of Law. But Donald Trump didn’t help his own legal case — either by promising a Muslim ban on the campaign trail (which the three-judge panel almost surely took into consideration) or by taunting the judiciary over the issue. That’s not to say he was wrong on the merits of his criticism, but judges are human too and reacted accordingly.

Furthermore, as David French writes3, “Critically, the Trump administration issued a significant executive order (and then defended it in court) without laying any real factual foundation for its finding. Next, the administration enforced the order in a haphazard and unnecessarily cruel manner, initially including even green-card holders in its scope. By slamming the door (at least temporarily) in their faces, it created a crisis atmosphere that not only ramped up the political stakes, it told the court that the administration didn’t exactly know how to interpret its own order. This invites judicial meddling.”

The judicial meddling was absolutely egregious. The court essentially opposed Trump’s order because the judges don’t like it, and in the process they usurped presidential authority on matters of national security. They used possible harm to individuals to make a ruling about an entire class of people, which makes a hash out of the Supreme Court’s doctrine on legal standing.

Trump could have executed this better, and the courts absolutely got it wrong. But it’s important to realize that this was also strategically calculated to play out in one of two ways: Either Trump got his way with the order (he didn’t), or his base is (rightly) fired up about an activist judiciary just in time for Supreme Court confirmation hearings. Trump wins either way. And along the way, Trump successfully diverted media attention to a very temporary travel moratorium — i.e., not the most critical issue. (Unfortunately, he diverted his own attention from tax or health care reform to do that.) The charitable view is that this is an example of one of Trump’s deal-making trademarks, “managed chaos,” in which he keeps his opponents off balance, distracted and unaware of the right hook that is, ultimately, going to win the match. Let’s hope he takes a step back, crafts a better vetting order, and does just that.

The Price Is Right4

Early this morning at 2 am, the Senate voted 52-47 to confirm Rep. Tom Price (R-GA) as the new secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services. Yet again the vote was along party lines. One wonders if Democrats are getting tired dragging out these hearings into the wee hours only to repeatedly lose the vote.

Now that Price has been confirmed, the expectation is that ObamaCare5 will be significantly impacted. Price led the fight against ObamaCare when he chaired the House Budget Committee, submitting budget proposals that called for a repeal of the law. He also offered an alternative. In any case, Republicans are still struggling to come to a consensus on exactly what that repeal and replace will look like — it could be repeal or it could be a series of (significant) amendments to the current law. Having Secretary Price lead HHS is a great first step, as the law was written granting broad provision for the secretary to issue regulations as “the Secretary shall determine.” We expect what he determines won’t make Democrats too happy.

Top Headlines6

VIDEO: Top Democrats all agree with Trump’s immigration plan and building the wall. (YouTube7)

Protesters block Education Secretary DeVos from entering DC school. (The Hill8.)

The Trump Effect: The president’s wild start churns domestic politics around the world. (The Wall Street Journal9)

The Pentagon found $125 billion in waste. Now a GOP chairman is asking other agencies what they’ve found. (The Washington Post10)

House Oversight reviews Kellyanne Conway’s promotion of Ivanka Trump in response to PC product cancelations. (Hot Air11)

Like Conway, Michelle Obama boasted about “boosting” sale of designers. (Washington Examiner12)

News analysis on the Yemen raid: Trump carried out Obama’s plan. (National Review13)

Connecticut moves to restrict Second Amendment rights to only the rich. (National Review14)

Brian Williams, once suspended for lying, spends segment on Trump’s lying — kettle meet pot. (The Washington Free Beacon15)

Gallup: 3 times more people say media “too tough” on Trump than Obama. (CNS News16)

Policy: This Republican carbon tax proposal is anything but conservative. (The Heritage Foundation17)

Policy: Here are 10 priorities for Betsy DeVos. (The Daily Signal18.)

FEATURED RIGHT ANALYSIS
Fixing Immigration Law One Step at a Time19

By Brian Mark Weber

“Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to be free.” Little did poet Emma Lazarus know that in 1883 these words would be used as a political weapon by Democrats to open up the floodgates to virtually unlimited immigration in the 20th century. Yet Republicans now have a unique opportunity to fix our immigration system while honoring the words associated with one of our most venerated symbols of freedom.

For decades, immigration was tightly controlled and limited to select European countries. This all changed when President Lyndon Johnson signed20 the Hart-Cellar Immigration Bill in 1965. Largely thought to be a symbolic measure at the time, the bill resulted in millions of immigrants pouring into the country and set up today’s heated battle over immigration.

Ideas for improving our immigration system are often impeded by bureaucracy, the back-and-forth power struggle between Democrats and Republicans, and a firestorm of ideological name-calling (mostly by progressives).

But perhaps the main impediment to any real progress on this issue rests with Republicans' inability to craft a coherent, unified message that would appeal to Americans across the political spectrum while tackling the problems caused by our porous national borders.

While it’s true that Democrats ruled Congress with little opposition through 1994, Republicans since then have failed to take advantage of many opportunities to seize the issue as their own. Democrats, sensing that lack of political will, have removed all substance from the debate and have made immigration a purely emotional issue.

Essentially, anyone who opposes unlimited immigration is labeled xenophobic or racist. They are characterized as callous, unsympathetic and un-American. They are condemned for rejecting the powerful ideas of Lazarus' words and for demeaning the symbolism of the Statue of Liberty itself. Such demonization has prevented us from securing our nation’s borders. That is, until Donald Trump became president.

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The Patriot Post Digest 2-10-2017
From The Federalist Patriot
Free Email Subscription
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Now, it’s not that President Trump alone has broken the political log-jam. In fact, the suspension2 of his hastily implemented executive order seems to have jolted conservatives who were poised to wrestle back the immigration issue from Democrats in one swift move. Yet there does seem to be an undercurrent in the halls of Congress, the likes of which we haven’t seen before.

Perhaps Republicans are still getting accustomed to acting like the party in power. Or maybe conservatives in the halls of Congress have learned too well that Republicans who talk tough on the campaign trail typically end up wading in the very swamp that Trump seeks to drain.

In any case, there seems to be a sense of urgency in the Republican Party today on a host of issues. The challenge is whether to tackle these problems in one fell swoop, or take a piece-by-piece approach that achieves the same long-term objectives.

The RAISE (Reforming American Immigration for Strong Employment) Act, proposed21 by Republican senators Tom Cotton and David Perdue, takes a meaningful stance on immigration while framing the debate in sensible and acceptable terms.

Both Cotton and Perdue assert that a significant percentage of immigrants coming into our country work in low-skilled jobs that affect wages negatively across the board for blue-collar workers. The bill’s authors thus seek to cut immigration in half (from one million to 500,000 per year). Additional provisions include limiting who can be sponsored, ending the Diversity Visa Immigrant Program and reducing the number of refugees allowed into the country.

The RAISE Act seeks to strike a balance22 by recognizing and valuing the important role that immigrants play in our country, while also strengthening our sovereignty and restoring respect for our nation’s laws. This act addresses both our economic needs and our national security concerns while acknowledging the dignity and value of immigrants in our society.

Additionally, the act responds to the demands of impatient conservatives who want immediate solutions while appealing more broadly to millions of Americans who are still largely convinced that Republicans want to sand-blast Emma Lazarus' words from the base of the Statue of Liberty. The balanced nature of the act also negates many of the usual criticisms of Democrats; try as they might, it will be difficult to call this measure anti-immigrant.

Certainly, the act will be met with criticism from both sides. Progressives will scowl at the idea of reducing immigration by half, and some conservatives may claim the act still allows too many immigrants into the country. Nonetheless, this is a good starting point for additional measures, such as increased border security and President Trump’s wall.

Immigration is one of the most contentious issues of our time, but it doesn’t mean that we have to resolve it overnight or with one piece of legislation. Conservatives have every right to be anxious, given the historical lack of Republican resolve. For years, we’ve been told to wait for a time when the GOP controlled both branches of Congress and the White House. Well, the time is now for Republicans to make good on their promises.

MORE ANALYSIS FROM THE PATRIOT POST

DeVos Brings a Fresh Approach to Education23 — She also threatens the Left’s stranglehold on “educating” our children.
Using Refugees, and Veterans, as Marketing Props24 — Starbucks' ploy with illegals and veterans is the same.
Hiding and Revising History25 — Charlottesville votes to remove a statue of Robert E. Lee from a public park.
Media Is Great, Says Media26 — The Leftmedia is giving itself a pat on the back.

BEST OF RIGHT OPINION

Michael Reagan: Relax, Mr. President27
Rich Lowry: Our Overly Sanctified Judiciary28
Charles Krauthammer: The Travel Moratorium: A Hopeless Disaster29

For more, visit Right Opinion30.

OPINION IN BRIEF

Michael Reagan: “Let’s all relax. Let’s all take a deep breath. Let’s all get a grip. Rome wasn’t made in a day and America is not going to be saved or destroyed by President Trump in a month. The most important relaxing needs to start at the top with President Trump. … First, you need to stop trying to do so many things so quickly. You need to give the public and everyone else time to absorb and understand what you are doing, so you’ll have more people on your side. … Second, you need to know that Washington is like a $4 trillion aircraft carrier. It can’t be stopped, turned around or sunk quickly or easily — and maybe not at all. Third, you knew from the start that the mainstream media were not going to be on your team. Now, one of your most important jobs is to not give the media any free ammo to fire back at you or your administration. … The danger in the long run is that you’re spending all your political capital in the first month. Your base is secure — and happy with whatever you say or do. But you’re trying to do stuff so fast you’re missing the most important thing — communicating with the rest of the country about what you’re doing and why. So choose your words and tweets wisely, Mr. President.”

SHORT CUTS

For the record: “A carbon tax will not accomplish the environmental benefits that are the entire purpose of this exercise — regardless of what one believes about global warming. The same climate sensitivity modeling used by the EPA shows that totally eliminating all carbon dioxide emissions in the U.S. would reduce warming by only 0.137 degree Celsius by the end of the century, and only 0.278 degree Celsius if the entire industrialized world totally eliminated all carbon dioxide emissions.” —Katie Tubb

Wise impartiality: “They have paid their hard-earned money to come in there and fill a seat. … I am there to entertain them, to take their worries away from them, so when they walk out, they can kind of have a little lift in their step and go, ‘Aw, that was such a great break from all the problems I have to deal with during daily life.’ So I’m not going to give them my political views.” —Reba McEntire

Alpha Jackass: “We think we have done a real service to America [by demonizing and obstructing]. We have shown who these Cabinet nominees are. Every time Betsy DeVos does something now that might hurt public education, there’s going to be millions of Americans looking over her shoulder. Every time Jeff Sessions hurts immigrants or voting rights, there are going to be millions of Americans looking over his shoulder.” —Chuck Schumer

Easy to do in the liberal Ninth Circuit: “Mr. President, we just saw you in court, and we beat you.” —Washington Gov. Jay Inslee

Upright: “The ruling is outrageous. It’s an abomination. It’s an intrusion on the president’s authority in the area of foreign policy and national security.” —former U.S. attorney Joseph diGenova

And last… “The fundamental point is that it is not just the executive or Congress that can abuse its power and overstep its bounds. The courts can, too, and no one is obligated to meekly accept their decisions. If the courts throw out Trump’s travel ban, despite the black-and-white letter of the law giving him the authority to block aliens in the interest of national security, it will be a usurpatory act. In that scenario, the courts will have done more violence to our constitutional system than a foolish Trump tweet ever could.” —Rich Lowry

Semper Vigilans Fortis Paratus et Fidelis
Managing Editor Nate Jackson

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