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« on: July 18, 2018, 06:37:51 PM » |
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The Patriot Post Digest 7-18-2018
From The Federalist Patriot
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The Patriot Post® · Mid-Day Digest
Jul. 18, 2018 · https://patriotpost.us/digests/57194-mid-day-digest
THE FOUNDATION
“The jealousy of a free people ought to be constantly awake; since history and experience prove that foreign influence is one of the most baneful foes of Republican Government.” —George Washington (1796)
IN TODAY’S EDITION
Trump hits his own “reset” button on his Russia remarks.
Comey explicitly outs himself as a Democrat partisan hack.
The GOP’s reversal on forcing Dems into a vote on ICE is a mistake.
Is there finally minimum-wage sanity in DC? Don’t bet on it.
Ocasio-Cortez displays her ignorance on Israel (among many things).
How to defund the abortion industry.
Daily Features: Top Headlines, Memes, Cartoons, Columnists and Short Cuts.
FEATURED ANALYSIS
Hitting the ‘Reset’ Button on Trump’s Russia Rhetoric1
Nate Jackson
President Donald Trump yesterday walked back Monday’s ill-advised comments2 regarding Russian interference in the 2016 election. Sort of.
With the likes of Paul Ryan, Newt Gingrich, Brit Hume, Laura Ingraham, our humble shop, and countless other allies criticizing his embarrassing misstep, Trump had little choice. But his explanation was less than satisfying.
After implying in Helsinki that he believed Vladimir Putin’s denials of election meddling more than U.S. intelligence assessments confirming that meddling, Trump said Tuesday3:
I have full faith and support for America’s great intelligence agencies. Always have. And I have felt very strongly that, while Russia’s actions had no impact at all on the outcome of the election, let me be totally clear in saying that — and I’ve said this many times — I accept our intelligence community’s conclusion that Russia’s meddling in the 2016 election took place.
But then he gave away that he might not really mean it, saying, “Could be other people also; there’s a lot of people out there.”
To drive home his favorite point, he continued, “There was no collusion at all.”
That last point is key. We believe the Helsinki press conference was a case of disparity between what the media said and what Trump heard. When journalists say “meddling,” he hears “collusion.” That’s largely because the Leftmedia, in obvious service to Democrats, deliberately conflates the two things. Talkingheads insist the meddling was collusion. Trump is left to either discuss the nuanced reality that meddling occurred without collusion, or to dismiss the whole thing as a “witch hunt” out of hand.
Trump doesn’t do nuance, so he usually chooses Door #2 — even if he frequently uses the word “collusion” along with “witch hunt.” Or, as political analyst Byron York puts it4, “The president clearly believes if he gives an inch on the what-Russia-did part [of the investigation] — if he concedes that Russia made an effort to disrupt the election — his adversaries, who want to discredit his election, undermine him and force him from office, will take a mile on the get-Trump part.”
Former federal prosecutor Andrew McCarthy argues5, “Trump seems constitutionally incapable of distinguishing what ought to be his undeniable legitimacy as president from the fact (it is a fact) of Russia’s influence operation during the campaign.”
Back to Trump’s explanation Tuesday, which soon veered into the unbelievable. In Helsinki on Monday, he said, “[Putin] just said it’s not Russia. I will say this: I don’t see any reason why it would be.” Tuesday, he clarified, “In a key sentence in my remarks, I said the word ‘would’ instead of ‘wouldn’t.’ … The sentence should have been: ‘I don’t see any reason why it wouldn’t be Russia.’ Sort of a double negative.”
And after having said, “Could be other people,” that’s especially unconvincing.
To be sure, Trump has good reason to distrust U.S. intelligence when its leaders have been so clearly on the side6 of Hillary Clinton and Democrats. But as president, he must move beyond his ego and grievances to advocate the whole truth — to be crystal clear about what the Russians did and why they did it. That would be to sow confusion and undermine the candidate they and everyone else thought would win: Hillary Clinton.
As far as policy toward Russia, the bottom line, as we’ve said all along7, is that his actions have been good. His rhetoric Monday unquestionably did damage, but as long as the correct policies remain in place, it will largely blow over.
https://patriotpost.us/articles/57191-hitting-the-reset-button-on-trumps-russia-rhetoric
IN BRIEF
Comey Outs Himself as a Democrat Partisan Hack6
Thomas Gallatin
“This Republican Congress has proven incapable of fulfilling the Founders’ design that ‘Ambition must … counteract ambition.’ All who believe in this country’s values must vote for Democrats this fall. Policy differences don’t matter right now. History has its eyes on us,” declared disgraced former FBI Director James Comey on Tuesday evening. This was his follow-up message to his Monday tweet in which Comey called on “patriots” to stand up against President Donald Trump, who he accused of treason for standing “next to a murderous lying thug and refusing to back his own country.” Trump did blunder in Helsinki2, but come on.
Apparently, Comey is in need of some reminders. It was Barack Obama, his former boss, who was infamously caught on a hot mic8 in March 2012 promising “more flexibility” after his reelection in working deals with Vladimir Putin’s yes-man Dmitri Medvedev. And let’s not forget it was Comey’s favored candidate Hillary Clinton whose illegal home-brew server, which contained classified information, was most certainly hacked by Russian agents, compromising U.S. security. Speaking of Clinton and Russia, what of Hillary’s shady Uranium One deal with Russia in 2010 while she was secretary of state? So shady was the deal that the Justice Department investigated it for four years, and yet inexplicably no fault was found with the Clinton Foundation even though the FBI uncovered evidence of Russian bribery9.
The fact is that Comey’s latest tweets serve to further expose just how much of a partisan hack he is. As Mark Alexander noted10, “Comey was, and remains, a ‘Trump hater,’ much as his fired FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe and senior investigators Peter Strzok and Lisa Page, all of whom colluded in an effort to ensure Clinton would win in 2016.”
Finally, Comey’s insinuation of Trump being treasonous for “refusing to back his own country” must be called out for the partisan cheap shot that it is. First, the refusal to fully back the U.S. intelligence community, whose leadership has repeatedly demonstrated animus toward Trump both before and after his election, is not the equivalent of refusing to back his own country. Trump has done more to back the country he clearly loves than have those intelligence officials. Second, Comey’s claim to know how “history” will judge Americans in his mind justifies his partisan commitment over and against upholding the Rule of Law. What hubris. Comey has now made more clear than ever that his politics trump all other considerations.
https://patriotpost.us/articles/57189-comey-outs-himself-as-a-democrat-partisan-hack
GOP’s Reversal on Forcing ICE Vote Is a Mistake11
Jordan Candler
With an astonishing swell of “Abolish ICE12” demands billowing from Democrats, Republican leaders last week were determined to hold them accountable. On Thursday, The Hill reported13, “House GOP leaders plan to bring a Democratic measure calling for the abolishment of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to the House floor, hoping to force Democrats into a difficult vote.” The sponsors of the measure, known as the Establishing a Humane Immigration Enforcement System Act, are Democrats Mark Pocan (WI), Pramila Jayapal (WA) and Adriano Espaillat (NY). |
