The Patriot Post Digest 5-18-2017

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The Patriot Post Digest 5-18-2017
From The Federalist Patriot
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Mid-Day Digest

May 18, 2017

IN TODAY’S EDITION

The consequences of appointing Robert Mueller to investigate the Russia story.
The stock market drop yesterday was due to Leftmedia hoopla, not Donald Trump.
Leftists will stop at nothing to derail Trump’s agenda. That’s the key to the whole story.
Daily Features: Top Headlines, Cartoons, Columnists and Short Cuts.

THE FOUNDATION

“In disquisitions of every kind there are certain primary truths, or first principles, upon which all subsequent reasoning must depend.” —Alexander Hamilton (1788.)

TOP RIGHT HOOKS

Trump Calling Dems' Bluff?1

On Wednesday, Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein finally gave Democrats and the mainstream media what they’ve been demanding for months now. Rosenstein named former FBI Director Robert Mueller as special counsel to investigate the allegations of a Russia-Trump collusion to interfere in the 2016 election. Rosenstein made his objective clear, stating, “My decision is not a finding that crimes have been committed or that any prosecution is warranted. I have made no such determination. What I have determined is that based upon the unique circumstances, the public interest requires me to place this investigation under the authority of a person who exercises a degree of independence from the normal chain of command.” In other words, he’s appeasing rabid leftists. And, surprise! They’re not appeased.

After Rosenstein’s announcement, Donald Trump released the following statement: “As I have stated many times, a thorough investigation will confirm what we already know — there was no collusion between my campaign and any foreign entity. I look forward to this matter concluding quickly. In the meantime, I will never stop fighting for the people and the issues that matter most to the future of our country.”

Several lawmakers on both sides of the aisle have praised the appointment of Mueller, who is viewed by many to be just the man for the job. And while this decision was brought about by increasing pressure from the hostile anti-Trump Democrats and their cohorts in the mainstream media, it may not prove to be the disaster some conservatives fear.

But let’s start with the potential negatives. Mueller will be pressured by both Democrats and the Leftmedia to find someone connected to Trump as guilty of a crime. (Remember Scooter Libby?) The leftist mob is on a witch hunt and with this latest announcement they’ve lit their torches. The investigation will likely turn up little to no evidence supporting the collusion conspiracy, but if Mueller doesn’t nail somebody for something, leftists will then demand his head. And certainly in the short term, the investigation is going to continue to be an impediment to Trump’s agenda.

Yet there is also a potential twist that Democrats aren’t going to like. It’s entirely possible that Mueller’s investigation could ensnare some Democrats. On the short list of those who will be losing a lot of sleep over the special prosecutor appointment: Barack Hussein Obama2, his criminal co-conspirator Eric Holder3, Holder’s successor Loretta Lynch4, and, of course, Bill Clinton5 and Hillary Clinton6. If Trump has nothing to hide, which seems most likely, then he has just called Democrats' bluff.

Leftmedia Fake News Just Cost You Money7

Not only have the Leftmedia succeeded in using distraction to derail Donald Trump’s appointments8 and legislative agenda, but they’re costing you, the American worker, money. How so? The Dow Jones saw its biggest drop yesterday since September — 373 points, or 1.8%. Given that more than half of Americans own stocks of one sort or another — whether its 401ks, IRAs, pension plans, or pure stock holdings — many of us took a hit.

We blame the media for making mountains out of molehills. They, of course, blame Trump. “Dow has worst day in 8 months as Trump drama rattles market,” CNN blared. “Trump storm strikes global stocks again,” Reuters fretted. And our old friends at the Washington Post, who got this latest melodrama9 off the ground, headlined, “Turmoil over recent Trump controversies triggers the Dow’s biggest loss since September.”

Trump didn’t start this. He hasn’t necessarily handled it well, but there’s no “there” there — it’s all Leftmedia smoke and mirrors meant to derail his agenda. So just remember when you check your investments today and see that you’ve lost money, you can thank The Washington Post, not Donald Trump.

Top Headlines10

Intel officials scoff at hype over Trump’s reported sharing of information with Russians. (The Washington Times11)

Circular firing squad? First Republicans talk possibility of impeachment for Trump. (The Hill12)

Senate Democrats endeavor to make it harder for congress to remove regulations. (The Daily Signal13)

Obama’s Justice Department refused to hire military veterans for jobs. (The Washington Times14)

Immigration arrests climb nearly 40% over last year. (ICE15)

Trump presses more countries take back U.S. deportees in immigration success. (The Washington Times16)

Gallup: “Democratic Party image dips, GOP ratings stable.” (CNS News17)

Trump administration keeps Iran deal alive, but with new sanctions. (ABC News18.)

Released Puerto Rican terrorist to be honored in New York parade. (National Review19)

U.S. households owe record amount, topping pre-recession peak. (Associated Press20)

Policy: How high-pressure parenting undermines character building. (Independent Women’s Forum21)

Policy: Donald Trump’s new deal for the Middle East. (American Enterprise Institute22)

For more, visit Patriot Headline Report23.

FEATURED RIGHT ANALYSIS
Attempted Sabotage — By Any Means Necessary24

By Arnold Ahlert

“As president, Trump has broad authority to declassify government secrets, making it unlikely that his disclosures broke the law.” —Washington Post25, May 16, 2017

The above sentence didn’t appear in the Washington Post’s lead story, “Trump revealed highly classified information to Russian diplomats,” until paragraph seven. That’s because the piece is solely about the idea that Trump is careless with classified information, since he “went off script and began describing details of an Islamic State terrorist threat related to the use of laptop computers on aircraft” in a meeting with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and Ambassador Sergey Kislyak.

The meeting9 was held last week. A Wall Street Journal story reveals26 that the Department of Homeland Security, citing “evaluated intelligence,” instituted a cabin ban on laptops and other electronic devices larger than a cellphone for flights originating from 10 airports in Middle East and African nations.

That story was published March 21.

National Security Advisor H.R. McMaster, who attended the meeting, references that inconvenient reality. “At no time were any intelligence sources or methods discussed, and no military operations were disclosed that were not already known publicly,” he stated.

As for the Post’s assertion it was “unlikely” Trump broke the law, a 5-3 Supreme Court ruling in a 1988 case, Department of the Navy v. Egan27, dealt with that. Justice Harry Blackmun, writing for the majority, held that the “authority to classify and control access to information bearing on national security … flows primarily from this constitutional investment of power in the President…”

Regardless, one of the anonymous sources for the Post’s story insists Trump “seems to be very reckless and doesn’t grasp the gravity of the things he’s dealing with, especially when it comes to intelligence and national security. And it’s all clouded because of this problem he has with Russia.”

Trump’s recklessness with regard to national security? It was Barack Obama who scheduled America’s troop withdrawal from Iraq, facilitating28 the rise of the Islamic State — when he wasn’t busy paving Iran’s path to a nuclear bomb, or telling then-Russian President Dmitry Medvedev he’d have “more flexibility” for dealing after he was re-elected.

As for Obama’s intelligence track record, a couple of Washington Post headlines say it all. “White House Mistakenly Identifies CIA Chief in Afghanistan,” it revealed29 on May 25, 2014. “U.S. Offers to Share Syrian intelligence on terrorist with Russia” the Post stated30 — June 30, 2016.

June 30, 2016? Perhaps the Post might investigate why the same Obama administration sharing intel with the Russians in June precipitated an FBI investigation into Trump officials' Russian ties — under the presumption the same Russians were a fundamental threat to the nation — less than one month later.

Ten months later the only thing we’ve learned about the “Russian connection” is that it represents the American Left’s congenital inability to accept the reality that Hillary Clinton isn’t president.

Those same leftists virtually ignored Clinton’s “problems with Russia” including the Clinton Foundation taking a million dollars from Uranium One, an entity sold to the Russian government in 2010, giving31 Russia control of 20% of America’s uranium deposits — a sale that required approval from Hillary Clinton’s State Department. And last March it was revealed Kislyak secretly met several times with members of Clinton’s campaign team. The number or nature of those meetings? Never disclosed — and never investigated.

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The Patriot Post Digest 5-18-2017
From The Federalist Patriot
Free Email Subscription
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Laughably, the Washington Post’s new, first-ever slogan32 is “Democracy Dies in Darkness.” Democrats Survive Calculated Darkness is more like it.

The most damning aspect of the Post’s “blockbuster” is the reality that its reporters never bothered to contact National Security Advisor McMaster, Secretary of State Rex Tillerson or Senior Advisor for policy Dina Powell for comment before publishing the current story — even though they were the only three U.S. officials at the meeting — as in people with first-hand information about it.

American Spectator columnist and CNN contributor Jeffery Lord reminds33 us at least one of the Post’s sources was a former official, and he asks how any former official could get access to any highly classified Oval Office conversation. He also reminds us the Post published two thoroughly debunked stories about Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein threatening to resign, and former FBI Director James Comey requesting more money for the Russian investigation.

Speaking of Comey, an unnamed “associate” told34 the New York Times that Comey’s “diaries” reveal Trump asked him to end the Flynn investigation in a meeting three months ago. Trump denies it.

Who’s telling the truth? Fox News anchor and defense attorney Gregg Jarrett explains35 the law requires Comey to immediately report to the DOJ any attempt to obstruct justice, or face possible criminal charges himself. Jarrett says there’s no evidence Comey reported anything.

Thus, Jarrett continues, “by writing a memo, Comey has put himself in a box. If he now accuses the President of obstruction, he places himself in legal jeopardy for failing to promptly and properly report it. If he says it was merely an uncomfortable conversation, he clears the president of wrongdoing and sullies his own image as a guy who attempted to smear the man who fired him.”

An avalanche of smearing aside and for better or worse, the electorate granted Donald Trump and his administration the power to run the government. It did not empower a shadow government accountable to no one but itself. Despite the hysterical, non-stop blathering by impeachment-crazed leftists and their media allies — all determined to anoint themselves as Trump’s judge, jury and executioner — it is this contemptible dynamic that represents a genuine constitutional crisis.

It is a crisis that must be addressed immediately. Toward that end Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein has appointed1 former FBI Director Robert Mueller to serve as special counsel with regard to the ongoing Russian investigation, one that should examine all evidence pointing to genuine malfeasance.

Not just evidence with regard to Trump and/or his administration, but evidence that might point to Barack Obama, Hillary Clinton, and a host of former Obama administration officials. Officials who seemingly embrace the colossal conceit that they are entitled to rule, regardless of election results.

Finding out who initially ordered the investigation of Trump officials would be a great place to start.

In the meantime, the Trump administration must exponentially ramp up its efforts to staff critical positions that remain unfilled, or worse, filled by Obama administration holdovers. And in a move likely to focus a lot of minds, maybe Attorney General Jeff Sessions should administer lie detector tests to every person in every department with direct or indirect access to classified information. Those who decline to be tested should be fired immediately. Any exposed leakers should be prosecuted — to the fullest extent of the law.

Time is of the essence: The Trump administration will either drain the swamp — or drown it in it.

MORE ANALYSIS FROM THE PATRIOT POST

How Sanctuary Cities Compromise the Rule of Law36 — This “compassionate” way to protect illegal immigrants from being arrested and deported has deadly consequences.
SJW Indoctrination via Middle School Math37 — Education group seeks to use math as a means of further instilling a social justice paradigm into education.

BEST OF RIGHT OPINION

Tony Perkins: A Legacy of Leaky Justice38
Larry Elder: Trump vs. Waters — Who Should Be Impeached?39
Victor Davis Hanson: Lessons From the Battle of Midway40

For more, visit Right Opinion41.

OPINION IN BRIEF

Andrew McCarthy: “On April 10, 2016, President Obama publicly stated that Hillary Clinton had shown ‘carelessness’ in using a private e-mail server to handle classified information, but he insisted that she had not intended to endanger national security (which is not an element of the relevant criminal statute). The president acknowledged that classified information had been transmitted via Secretary Clinton’s server, but he suggested that, in the greater scheme of things, its importance had been vastly overstated. On July 5, 2016, FBI director James Comey publicly stated that Clinton had been ‘extremely careless’ in using a private email server to handle classified information, but he insisted that she had not intended to endanger national security (which is not an element of the relevant criminal statute). The director acknowledged that classified information had been transmitted via Secretary Clinton’s server, but he suggested that, in the greater scheme of things, it was just a small percentage of the emails involved. Case dismissed. Could there be more striking parallels? A cynic might say that Obama had clearly signaled to the FBI and the Justice Department that he did not want Mrs. Clinton to be charged with a crime, and that, with this not-so-subtle pressure in the air, the president’s subordinates dropped the case — exactly what Obama wanted, relying precisely on Obama’s stated rationale. Yet the media yawned. Of course, they’re not yawning now.”

SHORT CUTS

Insight: “From my experience of hundreds of children, I know that they have perhaps a finer sense of honour than you or I have. The greatest lessons in life, if we would but stoop and humble ourselves, we would learn not from grown-up learned men, but from the so-called ignorant children.” —Mahatma Mohandas K. Gandhi (1869-1948.)

Political futures: “Even if Trump voters are, as polls continue to show, sticking with the man they voted for last November, come hell or high water, the burden of rationalizing and/or defending the president is still exacting a high price from the GOP. If they have to continue paying it on a daily basis, it will have a serious impact on the ability of Congress to push ahead on any major conservative projects, such as tax reform.” —Jonathan Tobin

Hypocrisy: “There are two men in the news today: one who is accused of sharing new intelligence with world leaders that might stop terrorists and another who risked countless lives by leaking America’s top secrets to terrorists. Can you guess which one’s being criticized? Donald Trump! Welcome to the backward thinking of the liberal media. The president is being torched for sharing information about terrorists with our allies in the fight against ISIS, while Chelsea Manning is celebrated for leaking classified information about our allies to terrorists!” —Tony Perkins

It’s never enough: “Director Mueller will still be in the chain of command under the Trump-appointed leadership of the Justice Department. He cannot take the place of a truly independent, outside commission that is completely free from the Trump administration’s meddling. A special prosecutor does not negate the need for vigorous congressional investigations either.” —Nancy Pelosi

Demo-gogues: “I think that there was a cooperation [between the Russians and Trump] in developing strategy about how they could ensure that Hillary Clinton was not elected. They need Trump. Trump will be there to support lifting those sanctions. That’s what they really want to happen. … I’ve said we’ve got to connect the dots, we’ve got to get the facts, we’ve got to do the investigation. That is what leads to impeachment and I also said that Trump will lead us right there.” —Maxine Waters

And last… “Both Trump and Hillary were treated horribly during the election. That’s not to say they were treated unfairly, though.” —Frank Fleming

Semper Vigilans Fortis Paratus et Fidelis
Managing Editor Nate Jackson

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