nChrist
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« Reply #1 on: November 10, 2017, 04:18:22 PM » |
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________________________________________ The Patriot Post Digest 11-9-2017 From The Federalist Patriot Free Email Subscription ________________________________________
“We are dangerously underinvesting in our military,” insisted Sen. Ben Sasse (R-NE) after reading the report. “Training, readiness and maintenance are hit the earliest — and tragic errors like this are the canary-in-the-mine warning bells.”
While true in some respects, Sasse’s assertion — essentially that basic competence requires increased funding levels — rings exceedingly hollow, especially when one remembers that Barack Obama’s Navy Secretary, Ray Mabus, made political correctness one of his primary objectives.
Marines in Congress from both parties criticized30 Mabus, also the former Democrat governor of Mississippi, for force-feeding co-ed training on the Marine Corps. They viewed the move as retaliation following the Corps request for an exemption31 from allowing women in combat. That request was based on studies32 showing sex integration would raise the risks of casualties. Mabus also attempted33 — and ultimately failed34 — to make all service job titles “gender neutral.”
And funding has nothing to do with a massive corruption scandal35 encompassing as many as 440 Navy personnel, current and retired — including at least 60 admirals — under investigation for their involvement with Malaysian contractor Leonard “Fat Leonard” Glenn Francis. Francis allegedly provided Navy personnel with cash kickbacks and “wild times” in return for receiving classified information and contracts.
Contracts with whom? The Navy’s 7th Fleet.
In 2015, Francis pleaded guilty36 to bribery and fraud that included scamming the Navy out of approximately $35 million. He remains in jail in San Diego awaiting sentencing on Dec. 1. In the meantime, he is cooperating with the DOJ, which has already filed criminal charges against 28 individuals, including two admirals.
The Navy is enacting some after-the-fact reforms following the acknowledgment37 in September that budget constraints, 100-hour workweeks, extended deployments, and training and maintenance delays have severely taxed the nation’s fleet and personnel. But top leaders speaking to the Senate Armed Services Committee refused to directly tie the quartet of accidents to those problems.
“These collisions, along with other similar incidents over the past year, indicated a need for the Navy to undertake a review of wider scope to better determine systemic causes,” the report states.
The past year? On Jan. 12, 2016, two Navy riverine command boats were captured38 by Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC). A Navy report on that incident also cited “failed leadership at multiple levels from the tactical to the operational” as the reasons for the debacle.
What kind of leadership? The unidentified commander in charge of the boats “opted to surrender rather than fight back, citing later fears that a confrontation could endanger the Obama administration’s efforts to lock in a deal with Tehran on its nuclear program,” The Washington Times reported39.
“Clearly, under President Obama’s plan to fundamentally change America, the degradation of our military forces was a key element,” asserts40 U.S. Navy Admiral and former commander in chief of the U.S. Pacific Fleet James A. Lyons. “The capitulation of our military leadership to accept these mandates was more than shocking, as it was a manifestation of the corrupt ‘political correctness’ mentality run amok.”
Thus the ongoing effort to embrace progressive dogma proceeds, even if military readiness and people lives are sacrificed as a result.
A sailor aboard the USS Shiloh, one of the Navy’s missile cruisers monitoring North Korea, told41 an anonymous Navy survey everything Americans need to know. “I just pray we never have to shoot down a missile from North Korea, because then our ineffectiveness will really show,” the sailor wrote.
As the aforementioned incidents indicate, it’s already showing. Thus it behooves the Trump administration to drain this particular swamp ASAP. National security cannot be held hostage to social engineering and political correctness.
And commanders in every branch of the military who disagree should be sent packing.
MORE ANALYSIS FROM THE PATRIOT POST
Jeff Flake Chases a Gun Law Already on the Books44 — The easiest way to exploit tragedy is to “do something” — even if that something is based entirely on a lie. Stephen Willeford Speaks About Stopping the Texas Murderer3 — “Those people are my friends. … I didn’t take time to put shoes on even.” Video: Want to Stop These Massacres?45 — Commentator Bill Whittle argues, “It’s not like we don’t know how.” Just stop the media frenzy. U.S. Only Nation Not in Paris Climate Accord46 — Trump’s leaving the agreement wasn’t a leadership failure. It was a return to American exceptionalism. Free Market Solutions to Environmental Issues47 — Giving the government more power is the wrong way to go when the market can steward resources. Leftist Group Retracts Flawed Analysis of GOP Tax Plan48 — The Tax Policy Center has an anti-GOP ax to grind, thus it was garbage in, garbage out.
BEST OF RIGHT OPINION
Gary Bauer: What Happened?49 Ann Coulter: New Democratic Spin Cycle: Launders Money, Gets Out the Toughest Sleaze!50 Byron York: Mueller Does What Special Prosecutors Do51 Cal Thomas: Hillary and Bill Houdini52 Victor Davis Hanson: Remembering Stalingrad 75 Years Later53
For more of today’s columns, visit Right Opinion54.
OPINION IN BRIEF
Ann Coulter: “[Harvey] Weinstein deployed a raft of spies to befriend and deceive his accusers in order to collect information that could be used against them. A spy with the Israeli private investigations firm Black Cube used a fake name and fake foundation to meet actress Rose McGowan. Then, pretending to be a deeply sympathetic women’s rights advocate, the agent secretly tape-recorded the actress, hoping to get incriminating evidence against her. At a minimum, this is unspeakably repellent and possibly illegal. And who hired the spies? Not Weinstein! The law firm of David Boies, prominent Democratic attorney. … Two weeks ago, we found out that the law firm cut-out maneuver was the exact same technique used by Hillary’s campaign to obtain damaging information on Donald Trump from the Kremlin — the infamous Russian dossier. The Clinton campaign and the Democratic National Committee shelled out $12 million seeking incriminating information on Trump from Russian government officials. Just like Weinstein, the Democrats funneled money for a nefarious purpose through a law firm. To wit: The Democrats paid a law firm (Perkins Coie), which paid a private investigations firm (Fusion GPS), which in turn paid a spy (Christopher Steele), and Steele paid Russian government officials for dirt on Trump. … The attorney-client privilege is intended to ensure that people are completely truthful with their attorneys. It is not supposed to be a shelter for any sordid, and possibly illegal, behavior by liberals.”
SHORT CUTS
Insight: “The majority of us are for free speech when it deals with subjects concerning which we have no intense feelings.” —Edmund B. Chaffee (1887-1936)
For the record: “The Virginia electorate has been changing year after year, and moving further to the left. Approximately 40% of Northern Virginia residents are foreign-born. The current governor and the governor-elect restored voting rights to convicted felons. That added at least 156,000 potential new voters to the rolls who overwhelmingly vote Democrat.” —Gary Bauer
Non Compos Mentis: “I’d also like to … just say how insane it is that in the United States of America a civilian can go out and buy a semi-automatic assault rifle like an AR-15.” —Dr. Dean Winslow, Donald Trump’s nominee for the Department of Defense’s top health affairs job (Uh, the bad guy was stopped by a good guy with … an AR-15.)
Go ahead and keep patting yourself on the back: “[Tuesday] night, nearly every single candidate that I endorsed … was elected.” —Joe Biden
The America of Barack Obama is one huge reason Hillary lost: “We need to send Donald Trump a message. … You’re telling Donald Trump that’s not the America I want. We want the America of Barack Obama.” —Eric Holder
Understatement of the year: “We don’t have a good Democratic candidate yet. We don’t have anybody who lights up a room.” —George Clooney
Friendly fire: “[Team Clinton] was a cult. I felt like it was a cult. You could not penetrate them.” —Donna Brazile
Alpha Jackass: “There was so much overwhelming evidence that O.J. was guilty, and you believe in the American judicial system. You believe that, for the most part, if somebody did it, they’re going to prison for doing it. We’re in a similar situation: Everything Donald Trump is doing and undoing is bad, bad, bad, and it seems so obvious, and it’s happening anyway.” —Jimmy Kimmel
And last… “Syria signs climate pact46, vowing to never emit toxic pollutants anywhere except on its own people.” —Twitter satirist @hale_razor
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. We also humbly ask prayer for your Patriot team, that our mission would seed and encourage the spirit of Liberty in the hearts and minds of our countrymen.
Semper Vigilans Fortis Paratus et Fidelis
Nate Jackson, Managing Editor Mark Alexander, Publisher
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