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September 2016

Posted by Mark Finkelstein on September 27, 2016 30 Comments
The screencap says it all . . . on today's Morning Joe, reacting to last night's presidential debate, Mika Brzezinski was nothing short of despondent. Brzezinski repeatedly argued that although Hillary was "amazing," did "great," etc., it is Donald Trump who walked away the winner politically because he was able to "connect" with the concerns of broad swaths of the electorate. Readers are encouraged to view the video to understand the depths of Mika's despair.

Posted by Mike LaChance on September 27, 2016 32 Comments
Concepts like safe spaces and microaggressions are so ridiculous that it's easy to forget that there are people who take them seriously. Really seriously. Case in point: Young Americans for Freedom recently held a meeting at the University of Kansas and some social justice warriors showed up. You can probably imagine how things went. Heat Street reports:
Wow: Students Scream, Swear at U of Kansas Classmates for Questioning Safe Spaces Students from the University of Kansas’ Young America’s Foundation just learned the hard way that those who advocate for “safe spaces” and “trigger warnings” for themselves aren’t as courteous about other people’s feelings.

Posted by William A. Jacobson on September 26, 2016 79 Comments
I think any fair assessment of the details would say Hillary won the debate points. She was better prepared on issues and had her punch lines lined up. Just like when she debated Obama in 2008. And she did score some good punch lines, because NBC brought up issues that are tough on Trump, like the tax returns and the Obama "birther" issue. Hillary's email problem was barely an issue, and received none of the pushback from Lester Holt that Trump received on other issues like the Iraq War.

Posted by Kemberlee Kaye on September 26, 2016 10 Comments
Thirteen years in the making and the National Museum of African American History and Culture is now open to visitors. The bill, created by Rep. John Lewis (D-GA) and then Senator Sam Brownback (R-KS), now Kansas Governor, was authorized by President George W. Bush. Saturday, the museum held its Grand Opening Ceremony attended by President Bush and President Obama. "I was honored to sign the bill authorizing construction of this national treasure and I'm pleased it now stands where it's always belonged -- on the National Mall," said former President Bush at the opening ceremony. "A great nation does not hide its history. It faces its flaw and corrects them. This museum tells the truth that a country founded on the promise of liberty held millions in chains. That the price of our union was America's original sin."

Posted by Mary Chastain on September 26, 2016 7 Comments
A new poll from purple state Virginia has shown that Libertarian Party presidential candidate Gary Johnson has snagged millennial voters from Democrat candidate Hillary Clinton and GOP candidate Donald Trump. Hillary leads the state in a contest with Trump 52-30, but when you add Johnson her favorability with millennials falls to 34% while Johnson takes 27% and Trump plummets to 23%. What does this mean for the Libertarian Party? Does this show that Hillary needs to concentrate more on millennials?

Posted by Mary Chastain on September 26, 2016 7 Comments
Green Party candidate Jill Stein attempted to hold a rally on the Hofstra University campus on Monday, but the police removed her after she completed an interview with MSNBC. Stein had not obtained proper credentials. A 15% polling threshold must be met to qualify for the presidential debate stage. Stein planned to virtually attend the debates just outside of Hofstra and livestream her responses on Facebook and through Twitter.

Posted by William A. Jacobson on September 26, 2016 10 Comments
Rasmea Odeh is the terrorist member of the military wing of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine who was convicted in Israel in 1970 of the 1969 bombing the SuperSol supermarket in Jerusalem that killed two students, along with the attempted bombing of the British Consulate. Rasmea was released in 1979 in a prisoner exchange for an Israeli soldier captured in Lebanon. Rasmea made her way to the U.S. in the mid-1990s, where she lied on her visa application by denying any prior convictions or imprisonment, and again in her 2003 naturalization application when she repeated the same false answer. For more background, and how Rasmea's supporters have distorted history, see Rasmea Odeh rightly convicted of Israeli supermarket bombing and U.S. immigration fraud and Rasmea Odeh’s victims – then and now. [caption id="attachment_130186" align="alignnone" width="600"][Graves of Edward Joffe and Leon Kanner Jerusalem, photo by William Jacobson] [Graves of Edward Joffe and Leon Kanner Jerusalem, photo by William Jacobson][/caption]Rasmea was convicted of immigration fraud in federal court in Detroit in 2014. The case is back before the trial court for a hearing on whether Rasmea should have been allowed to call a PTSD expert at trial to support the defense that Rasmea's alleged torture in Israeli prison caused her to falsely answer the U.S. immigration questions. If the court allows the testimony, Rasmea will get a new trial. If the court rejects the PTSD expert testimony, the prior conviction remains in place. The court will hold the expert hearing on November 29, 2016, but in advance of that, granted the government's motion for a mental exam of Rasmea by a government expert.

Posted by Mary Chastain on September 26, 2016 12 Comments
It's that time of year when Congress will fight over a short-term funding bill to avoid a government shutdown. We all know what will happen. They'll talk tough and then pass something at the last minute and go their merry ways. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) has faced criticism from Democrats and members of his own party for the Senate's version of the bill. Some of his fellow GOP members believe the version "doesn't include conservative policy proposals." House conservatives want to do what they can to extend this stopgap bill into January so Congress isn't rushed to pass a full spending bill before Christmas.

Posted by Leslie Eastman on September 26, 2016 16 Comments
I recently noted that President Obama's climate change edict for our national security strategists shows that he does not take warfare against American opponents seriously. However, the President takes citizen opposition very seriously. For example, he is unleashing one of his most potent tools against Americans opting out of purchasing Obamacare. Over 20 million Americans opted to pay a penalty rather that purchase health insurance. So, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) has just sent them a formal letter suggesting they make a different choice.
...Getting a letter from the IRS can be a threatening and nerve-racking experience; it seldom is seen as a suggestion and more of a threat. But at President Obama’s direction, the IRS is “reaching out” to people who paid the tax penalty for not buying mandatory health insurance or who claimed an exemption in hopes of “attracting” more people to sign up for ObamaCare insurance. The government is particularly interested in compliance from healthy young people.

Posted by William A. Jacobson on September 26, 2016 28 Comments
If I see one more story about what Trump/Hillary needs to do tonight, I'm going to .... So really, what do Trump and Hillary need to do tonight?

Trump:

Don't take the bait. Mark Cuban and other attempts at trolling are meant to bait you. Just by being on stage with Hillary helps normalize you. Do something along the lines of Reagan's "there she goes again" when Hillary barrages you. Who cares what the name is of the President of NoOnesEverHeardof-stan. You need to present yourself as a leader, someone who sees the big picture of Making America Great Again but leaving the implementation to people you hire (appoint/nominate), because that is how business leaders who live in the real world are successful. The media has convinced almost half the population you are Hitler. You need to prove you are not Hitler. It's a low bar, try not to trip on it.

Hillary:

Posted by Mark Finkelstein on September 26, 2016 23 Comments
Donna Brazile has been a fixture for years on talking-head shows. This Insurrectionist has always thought of her as an affable but relatively reserved soul. Reserved? There's another side to Donna that I was obviously missing! Right from the beginning of her Morning Joe appearance today, in which she swayed gracefully in her seat while greeting "brother Ben" Ginsburg, Brazile was a one-woman show of expressive gestures and phrases. Just sit back, roll the video, and appreciate Donna's very animated performance, which ends with her telling Joe Scarborough "I love you—thank you boo."
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