The Patriot Post Digest 5-9-2017

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The Patriot Post Digest 5-9-2017
From The Federalist Patriot
Free Email Subscription
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Mid-Day Digest

May 9, 2017

IN TODAY’S EDITION

Obama’s people are still trying to make something of the Trump-Russia angle.
Trump’s making moves at the EPA, but his signals on the Paris climate deal are mixed.
Nominating originalist judges is one of Trump’s most important promises, and he’s on it.
Daily Features: Top Headlines, Cartoons, Columnists and Short Cuts.

THE FOUNDATION

“In the mouths of some [Liberty] means anything, which enervate a necessary government; excite a jealousy of the rulers who are our own choice, and keep society in confusion for want of a power sufficiently concentered to promote good.” —Oliver Ellsworth (1787)

TOP RIGHT HOOKS

Yates Blows Smoke … Still No Fire1

On Monday, former acting Attorney General Sally Yates, who was fired by Donald Trump for refusing to defend his original travel ban executive order, gave her testimony before the Senate Judiciary Subcommittee. What was of most interest to the senators was information regarding Trump’s former national security advisor Gen. Michael Flynn2, and what Yates knew of Russian election interference.

Yates testified that she had been so concerned over Flynn being “compromised” and open to “blackmail” that she had two meetings with Trump’s White House lawyer, Don McGahn, to whom she expressed her fears. Yet when she was pressed as to whether there was evidence of the Trump campaign colluding with Russia, she refused to answer, citing classification protocol. When former Director of National Intelligence James Clapper, who was also testifying, was asked whether he had seen evidence of collusion, he said no. And, for the record, even Democrat Sen. Dianne Feinstein likewise said last week there is no evidence3 of that collusion.

Prior to the Senate committee’s hearing, questions were raised by Trump’s press secretary, Sean Spicer, as to Barack Obama’s handling of Flynn. Spicer asked, “If President Obama was truly concerned about General Flynn, why didn’t he suspend General Flynn’s security clearance, which they had just re-approved months earlier?” Recall that Gen. Flynn had formally worked for Obama as head of the Defense Intelligence Agency, a position from which he was fired in 2014 over his disagreements with Obama on foreign policy. However, even after Flynn was fired he was granted permission to give a paid speech in Moscow, and his security clearance was subsequently reauthorized by the Obama administration following that Russia visit in late 2015. If Flynn was such a threat to national security, then why was his clearance reauthorized by Team Obama?

So, what was learned? Well, Trump may have summed it up best when he tweeted after the hearing, “Sally Yates made the fake media extremely unhappy today — she said nothing but old news!” What is clear is that Democrats are still convinced of a Trump-Russia collusion scandal and are committed to continuing to fuel that narrative, regardless of the lack of any supporting evidence. What has yet to be uncovered is who was responsible for leaking the names of individuals associated with Trump after Obama adviser Susan Rice unmasked them4.

The Trump Administration’s Conflicting Climate Signals5

The changes the Trump administration is expected to make on environmental issues are ambiguous, to say the least. And that’s worrisome. In one sense, we’re seeing welcome results. According to The Washington Post, “EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt decided to replace half of the members on one of its key scientific review boards, while Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke is ‘reviewing the charter and charge’ of more than 200 advisory boards, committees and other entities both within and outside his department.”

Contrary to what’s being reported, these moves are neither nefarious nor unforeseen. At the EPA, specifically, “All of the people being dismissed were at the end of serving at least one three-year term, although these terms are often renewed instead of terminated,” the Post explains, later adding, “Members of EPA’s Board of Scientific Counselors had been informed twice — in January, before President Barack Obama left office, and then more recently by EPA career staff members — that they would be kept on for another term, adding to their confusion.” Talk about having unrealistic expectations!

Pruitt is shaking things up at the EPA — and that’s good. Moreover, the administration’s revisiting statist mandates like the Clean Power Plan is another promising sign that more needed relief is on the way. That being said, there are serious questions being raised about Barack Obama’s Paris climate accord.

For the record, last year Trump vowed6, “We’re going to cancel the Paris climate agreement.” He also stated: “President Obama entered the United States into the Paris climate accords [sic] unilaterally and without the permission of Congress. This agreement gives foreign bureaucrats control over how much our energy and how much we use right here in America. So foreign bureaucrats are going to be controlling what we’re using and what we’re doing on our land in our country. No way.”

He’s right. But whether a formal dismissal actually happens remains speculative. ABC News reports, “The White House has postponed a Tuesday meeting to discuss whether the United States should withdraw from the landmark international climate deal struck in Paris under the Obama administration. The White House said late Monday that the meeting would be rescheduled. This is the second time a meeting of top aides on the issue has been delayed.” Previous reports have indicated that a climate change rift exists between Trump officials, which helps explain the delays. Ivanka Trump, anyone?

Numerous groups7 are imploring Trump to take the U.S. out of participation. They understand that the Paris accord isn’t just an economic bludgeon; it’s also a gross infringement on the Constitution. If the U.S. were to properly enter such an accord, it’s the Senate’s, not the president’s, duty to make it happen8. If Trump backtracks on this issue, not only will the economy and Constitution suffer, but his voters won’t be very accepting of it, either.

Top Headlines9

Aetna CEO: ObamaCare will continue to deteriorate if nothing happens. (The Washington Free Beacon10)

ObamaCare is dying in Maryland too, and it isn’t Trump’s or Republicans' fault. (Washington Examiner11)

Comey: 15% of terror cases came as refugees. (National Review12)

Texas concealed carry holder thwarts potential mass shooting. (The Daily Signal13)

RIP Bob Owens, Second Amendment champion. (Townhall14)

Hispanic Phoenix serial killer suspect arrested. (Fox News15)

Trump military advisers want 3,000 more troops to fight Taliban. (Daily Beast16)

Constituent graft runs deep: Trump’s agriculture secretary, Sonny Perdue, declares that “ethanol is here to stay.” (Washington Examiner17)

Why DeVos should rescind Obama’s ban on disciplining black kids in school. (The Federalist18.)

Theology professor pressured out of Duke after protesting liberal racism “training” program. (The Washington Times19)

Policy: A guide to tax reform in the 115th Congress. (Heritage Foundation20)

Policy: The debt-bubble landmine Obama left for Trump. (New York Post21)

For more, visit Patriot Headline Report22.
Don’t Miss Patriot Humor

Check out Toy23.

If you’d like to receive Patriot Humor by email, update your subscription here24.

FEATURED RIGHT ANALYSIS
Trump’s Excellent Judicial Nominations Continue25

By Paul Albaugh

Many conservatives may not be happy with President Donald Trump signing the $1.1 trillion spending bill26 last week, and they may not be satisfied that we still have a long way to go27 toward repealing ObamaCare. Trump’s record for the first 100 days28 is mixed.

Conservatives can, however, be extremely pleased with at least one dimension of Trump’s presidency thus far, and that is his commitment to appoint originalist justices and judges at all levels. During his campaign, he promised that he would select conservative individuals to fill vacancies in the courts. That gave many voters leaning Trump the affirmation they needed. With his excellent selection of Neil Gorsuch29 to fill the seat vacated by Justice Antonin Scalia, that faith paid off.

By all indications, tapping a conservative justice like Neil Gorsuch was just the beginning of more to come.

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The Patriot Post Digest 5-9-2017
From The Federalist Patriot
Free Email Subscription
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To the dismay of some, Trump has not placed too much emphasis on rushing to fill executive branch openings, but he isn’t plodding along with judicial nominations. In fact, the White House announced Monday that there would be 10 nominations to fill openings in several of the appellate and district courts. This is great news, but even better is that Trump plans to make his nominations to the lower courts a “near monthly event.”

His slate of nominations to the appellate courts in this round is excellent30 and will no doubt have lefties cringing at the prospect of the appellate courts shifting dramatically toward the Constitution.

Fox News has the list31: “Two of the nominees originally were on the list of 21 candidates that the Trump transition team considered for the Supreme Court vacancy left by Antonin Scalia’s death, and ultimately filled by Gorsuch. They are Justice Joan Larsen of the Michigan Supreme Court, nominated to the 6th Circuit Court of Appeals in Cincinnati; and Justice David Stras of the Minnesota Supreme Court, nominated to the 8th Circuit Court of Appeals in St. Louis. The other nominees are Amy Coney Barrett, a Notre Dame law professor nominated to the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals in Chicago; John Bush, a Louisville lawyer nominated to the 6th Circuit; Kevin C. Newsom, a former Alabama Solicitor General nominated to the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals in Atlanta; Judge David C. Nye, nominated to the U.S. District Court for Idaho; Scott L. Palk, a former federal prosecutor nominated to the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Oklahoma; Damien Schiff, nominated to federal claims court; Dabney L. Friedrich, nominated to U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia; and Judge Terry Moorer, nominated to the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Alabama.”

These nominees are highly qualified and principled individuals who are similar to Gorsuch. They’re likely to influence the lower courts decisions in favor of Rule of Law.

Court nominations have lasting impact on policy, too. Trump’s travel ban32 is one of the policies that should have been carried out, yet due to activist judges, it was halted. It’s a prime example of how important it is to select judges who uphold Rule of Law. President Trump understands this and he anticipates many more legal battles ahead from leftists who want nothing more than to derail his presidential agenda.

During Barack Obama’s eight years, he made 331 federal judgeship appointments. Russell Wheeler, a fellow at the Brookings Institution Governance Studies Program, notes that when Trump was sworn into office in January, Democrat appointees held 51% of the 673 District Court judgeships, while Republican appointees held only 34%. In addition, there were 96 vacant seats when Trump was sworn in. When Obama took office, there were just 39 vacancies on the lower courts and Republican-appointed judges held 60% of the court posts, or 371 seats.

Trump’s greatest obstacle to his nominees will be Senate Democrats, who appear poised to drag their feet and then vote “no” on every single one, just out of spite. So it’s almost certain that his judicial nominations won’t be confirmed nearly as expediently as Trump would like. But Republicans in the Senate need not compromise on conservative appointees just to appease their Democrat counterparts. That happens far too often with Republicans in Congress, but rarely ever the other way around.

Appointing judges to the courts who are principled and who interpret the law in accordance with the Constitution is of the utmost importance. If there is one area where can Trump can make a huge difference and put America back on track, it’s the courts. He’s well on his way.

MORE ANALYSIS FROM THE PATRIOT POST

Going Rogue: U.S. Airlines Behaving Badly33 — “Fly the friendly skies”? Not anymore. But whatever happened to the good old-fashioned practice of treating customers well?
ACLU Shrugs at Religious Liberty ‘Photo-Op’34 — The anti-Christian group views Trump’s latest executive order as bait not worth taking. Yet.
Fighting to Deny School Choice35 — A California school district seeks to prevent parents from starting a charter school. Is it “for the children”?

BEST OF RIGHT OPINION

Rich Lowry: The Pre-Existing Lie36
Stephen Moore: Entitlement Reform at Last37
Cal Thomas: Will We Ever Learn?38

For more, visit Right Opinion39.

OPINION IN BRIEF

Rich Lowry: “The [Republican health care] legislation is properly understood as doing more to preserve the Obamacare regulation on pre-existing conditions than to undermine it. The legislation maintains a federal baseline of protection in such cases, and says only that states can apply for a waiver from it, provided that they abide by certain conditions meant to ensure that no one is left out in the cold. Since these provisions only involve the individual insurance market, a small slice of the overall insurance picture (about 18 million are on the individual market), and merely make possible state waivers, they are inherently limited. … It takes all of five minutes to understand the basic architecture of the House bill on pre-existing conditions, yet it has been subject to wildly ill-informed and deceptive attacks. … There are certainly legitimate criticisms to be made of the House bill, and ample room for the Senate to improve it, especially by boosting its coverage numbers. But it is not an act of heedless cruelty against the sick. As for its critics, their reflex to demagogic dishonesty isn’t a pre-existing condition, just an ingrained habit.”

SHORT CUTS

Insight: “The best of all government is that which teaches us to govern ourselves.” —Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (1749-1832)

Alpha Jackass: “Our politics remains filled with division and discord, and everywhere we see the risk of falling into the refuge of tribe and clan and anger at those who don’t look like us or have the same surnames or pray the way we do. And at such moments, courage is necessary. At such moments, we need courage to stand up to hate not just in others but in ourselves.” —Barack Obama

Non Compos Mentis: “Maybe, just maybe, [Trump] didn’t get rid of a guy who lied to the vice president, who got paid by the Russians, who went on Russia Today, because there are other people in his administration who met secretly with the Russians and didn’t reveal it until later, until they were caught. That may be why it took him 18 days, until it became public, to get rid of Mike Flynn, who is a danger to this republic.” —Sen. Al Franken

Tolerance: “So the #homegrownAssads in the #FreedomCaucus want employers to not have to offer health care to employees. Like gassing their own people!” —health care expert entertainer Bette Midler

With “Republicans” like these… “I don’t think that low-income women should be denied their choice of health care providers, for family planning, cancer screenings, for well women care. It’s not the only issue in this huge bill. But I certainly think it’s not fair and it is a mistake to defund Planned Parenthood. It’s one of many issues.” —Sen. Susan Collins

And last… “Odd it’s been two days since the patriarchy won again and yet there still aren’t any women’s marches in France.” —Twitter satirist @hale_razor

Semper Vigilans Fortis Paratus et Fidelis
Managing Editor Nate Jackson

Join us in daily prayer for our Patriots in uniform — Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen, Marines and Coast Guardsmen — standing in harm’s way in defense of Liberty, and for their families.