All posts by Ross

2016 Election, Gun Control, Media, Politics

Assassination Attempt Outside DC

The reaction of the shooting of Republican congressmen, their aides, and the Capitol police has been about what one would expect. Some calling for more gun control, many condemning the shooting, some blaming Trump, and none addressing the cause. But the one I want to discuss here is one reaction calling it White Terrorism.

I don’t think race has anything to do with it. Like Islamic terrorism, it is ideologically based. In this case, it’s political.

It is a result of the media-fueled acceptance that Hillary Clinton unfairly lost the 2016 presidential election. A meme that has been supported by the Democratic Party since November 8, 2016. It’s what happens when election results are not accepted by millions of (low information) people. People who believe what they read in the NYT or WaPo. People who believe what they see on MSNBC, CNN, ABC, NBC, or CBS. And the malicious intent and malicious motivation cast upon the Trump administration and Republicans by the media and Democrats, has metastasized into what this Bernie Sanders supporter did today.

For years now, political opposition from Democrats in Washington has been less about policy differences of one being right or wrong, good or better, better or worse. And instead is focused on republicans being bad people, evil people. They are no longer in the shadows of American politics. They call themselves The Resistance. (Hello Venezuela)

We’ve heard Bernie Sanders, and others in the Democratic Party say repeatedly how everything Trump wants to do will kill people. The solution to end the mass psychosis is to stick to policy matters. I don’t see Democrats taking the high road and finally accepting defeat, but that would help immeasurably.

Statement by President Trump on the Shooting in Virginia

https://youtu.be/4GXdYh_Iwsw

Joint statement of today’s shooting by the leaders of The Resistance. Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton said this . . .

One could easily say about The Resistance (including the fake news media) as a result of this shooting, blood is on their hands.

Link: Rep. Scalise remains in critical condition, requires more surgery

China, Economy, Energy, Europe, Politics

Climate Schlimate, Paris Accord

Pulling out of the Paris Accord is best for America. The anti-capitalist anti-American community are pushing the narrative that man-made global warming is going to kill the planet, and that the United States is responsible, and should set the example by agreeing to it.

The [agreement] promises to damage the economy while surrendering American sovereignty over climate policy to yet another international, largely anti-American enterprise. Our climate policy — which incorporates health and economic policy — would be mandated by the terms of this agreement. It is a hard-and-fast agreement that targets the United States as the primary culprit and requires the United States to carry the primary burden in fixing what isn’t broken, in stopping what isn’t happening: Man-made climate change.

We are setting the example already, and don’t need to shift trillions of taxpayer dollars from our side of the planet to the other. Get back to me when the rest of the world, including China and India, can run their industrialized economies as efficiently and environmentally friendly as we do. Then tell me what the global temperature should be, and how to keep it from changing.

Economy, Media, Obamacare, Politics, Whiners

Democrats Squealing

The Democrats’ pushback to Trump’s budget proposal is nothing short of irresponsible and insane. They claim that the budget will actually kill people. They’ve been saying that since 1995. And since 1995, the budgets, and government itself, have done nothing but grow.

So you can see why the hysteria over a budget that comes to balance in 10 years. Something the Obama administration not only did not do, but stated that achieving a balanced budget was not even on their radar. Their plan was to grow government and expand government involvement in our lives way beyond the boundaries of the Constitution. The crown jewel to that end being Obamacare, eventually leading to single-payer.

When you compare where we were in 2007 to where we are in 2016, you can understand why Democrats are apoplectic and hysterical. Having done their best (with full cooperation from Republicans) to grow government, the notion of fiscal responsibility now comes as a shock1 they just can not accept.  After all, they’re not paying the bill. Our grandchildren and great-grandchildren will if something is not done now to stop it.

How have budgets grown since 2007?

Spending:  2007, $2.8 T 2016, $4 T +43%
Borrowing: 2007, $5.2 T 2016, $5.8 T +12%
National Debt: 2007, $8.95 T 2016, $19.54 T +118%

Not only has the spending and borrowing grown, but since Obama started spending in 2008, his administration managed to more than double the national debt.

This is how Obama said his budgets would grow the GDP.
2013, 6%
2014, 5.6%
2015, 5.8%

Today, Trump’s budget is projecting 3% growth in GDP, and the NYT characterizes this as “improbable economic growth.” How quickly they forget. 3%,  improbable. 6%, no problem. No, they didn’t forget. That’s just the bias of Fake News supporting their man.

Time to come back to reality. Obama’s budgets were scored by the CBO for GDP growth from 3.6% to 3.1%. But never came close, coming in around 1.5% growth in GDP.

Speaking of reality, look what the CBO has to say about unfunded mandates that already consume 56% of all federal spending. That’s up from 43% in 2006.

There is no evidence to suggest that the growth of health care costs, which have risen faster than GDP over the past four decades, is likely to slow significantly in the future. As a result, spending for Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid will exert pressures on the budget that economic growth alone is unlikely to alleviate.

Just keep in mind that in 2007, people were not dying in the streets. What we are hearing now is the squealing that Jodi Ernst was talking about when describing her experience growing up on the farm.

1Just as much of a shock as Hillary losing.

Link: TRUMP’S BUDGET ASSUMES REASONABLE GDP GROWTH, LIBERALS GO BALLISTIC  |  Government Debt Chart  |  THE BUDGET AND ECONOMIC OUTLOOK: FISCAL YEARS 2007 TO 2016 

2016 Election, Media, Politics, Russia

Brennan Admits To Obama Spying

In President Obama’s world, all it takes to spy on Americans is to be “afraid” that something might happen. You don’t need any evidence that anything nefarious is going on. Just build a suspicion, then have at it. And what was that suspicion? Trump’s joke about the Russians might be able to find the 30,000 emails that Hillary deleted. And the suspicion that Russia would convert key people and others less key, associated with the Trump organization, into spies.

It’s enough to make any Communist dictator proud.

And no where in the media, except HERE, did anyone pick up on Brennan’s admission! Where are the “journalists” on this? This is the story to end all the other fake news stories about the Russians rigging the election and the so-called Russia-Trump collusion. All of it was a head-fake so Obama could spy on his political opponents, looking for something to take them out. Which, he never found. And, to proffer an excuse that the lemmings would believe for the reason Hillary lost. And, sadly for the Democrat party, 67% of democrats today still believe it.

https://youtu.be/gNa2B5zHfbQ

Link: The Big News Everyone Missed: Brennan Acknowledged They Were Spying on the Trump Campaign  |  Poll: Almost half of Americans believe Russia meddled in election

Florida, Pensacola

Memorial Day In Pensacola

Let’s not forget why there is a federal holiday called Memorial Day.

And count the number of times our fallen soldiers are thanked and remembered here in Pensacola this weekend, making all of this possible.

What happens in Pensacola on Memorial Day weekend, and days before that, has earned this part of the Gulf Coast the label, The Gay Riviera. That’s when a couple hundred thousand people come to enjoy themselves and trash the beach in the process. You won’t (or maybe you will) want to miss stuff like this:

“Sexacola Beach Memorial Day Weekend: Produced by Atlanta’s favorite lesbian hangout My Sister’s Room, the highly popular weekend-long women’s party Sexacola Beach takes place over four days and consists of several great parties”

Link: Memorial Weekend LGBT parties on track

Economy, Energy, Middle East, Politics, Saudi Arabia

OPEC’s World Changing

Ever since the long gas lines of the 70’s and the invention of the Department of Energy under Jimmy Carter (which proved to be an exercise in futility), Americans have been held hostage to OPEC in the prices they pay for fuel.

Two headlines tell a story . . .

Finally, having the will to use the energy potential we have,  the United States can shift from being an energy buyer to an energy producer-seller. And OPEC doesn’t like the new competition.

Thanks to the Trump administration’s opening up of our own energy resources with the goal of energy independence, the global energy market has changed.

Nothing against OPEC, but it is they who have to adjust to market pressures. As for the United States? It’s America first.

Media, Politics

Democrat Party Platform

You don’t have to look very hard to see what the Democrat Party’s platform is, beginning with the last presidential campaign. Hillary Clinton ran on how evil Donald Trump is.

Today, unwilling to accept the election results, and absent a leader, the media is driving the Democrat Party. The party is not driving the media. And Hollywood (late night entertainment) is telling the lemmings what to think and believe.

The nothing bubble conspiracy of the day is to hate Trump and Russia, and how together they stole the election. And to keep hating them, despite absence of any evidence, until Trump is impeached.

The Democrat Platform can be summed up in one graphic.

Now that Trump has fired James Comey, you would think Democrats would be happy. Quite the contrary. Sorry Hillary, Democrats just threw you under the bus.

Politics

The Letter That Got Comey Fired

Read the letters, which are clear, for the firing of FBI Director James Comey from the man in charge of the matter, Deputy Attorney General Rod J. Rosenstein. His letter, below, lays it all out.

What is noteworthy is that all this happened under the previous administration, who didn’t so much as raise an eyebrow over Comey’s behavior. And very well should have.

It’s time for equal justice under the law. Comey broke all the rules. In addition to creating public and congressional distrust in the FBI and Justice Department, he destroyed morale in the FBI and Justice Department, and usurped the power of the Attorney General, Loretta Lynch, while overstepping his bounds by making the decision (which isn’t his to make) not to prosecute Hillary Clinton. And in the process, saved not only Hillary’s butt, but Loretta Lynch’s butt (who met with Bill Clinton) as well.

Time to hit the restart button on the Clinton email debacle.

President Donald Trump followed the recommendation of his deputy attorney general when he fired FBI boss James Comey. What did Rod Rosenstein say? This is his letter in full.

Memorandum for the Attorney General

FROM: Rod J Rosenstein

SUBJECT: Restoring public confidence in the FBI

The Federal Bureau of Investigation has long been regarded as our nation’s premier federal investigative agency. Over the past year, however, the FBI’s reputation and credibility have suffered substantial damage, and it has affected the entire Department of Justice. That is deeply troubling to many Department employees and veterans, legislators and citizens.

The current FBI Director is an articulate and persuasive speaker about leadership and the immutable principles of the Department of Justice. He deserves our appreciation for his public service. As you and I have discussed, however, I cannot defend the Director’s handling of the conclusion of the investigation of Secretary Clinton’s emails, and I do not understand his refusal to accept the nearly universal judgment that he was mistaken. Almost everyone agrees that the Director made serious mistakes; it is one of the few issues that unites people of diverse perspectives.

The director was wrong to usurp the Attorney General’s authority on July 5, 2016, and announce his conclusion that the case should be closed without prosecution. It is not the function of the Director to make such an announcement. At most, the Director should have said the FBI had completed its investigation and presented its findings to federal prosecutors. The Director now defends his decision by asserting that he believed attorney General Loretta Lynch had a conflict. But the FBI Director is never empowered to supplant federal prosecutors and assume command of the Justice Department. There is a well-established process for other officials to step in when a conflict requires the recusal of the Attorney General. On July 5, however, the Director announced his own conclusions about the nation’s most sensitive criminal investigation, without the authorization of duly appointed Justice Department leaders.

Compounding the error, the Director ignored another longstanding principle: we do not hold press conferences to release derogatory information about the subject of a declined criminal investigation. Derogatory information sometimes is disclosed in the course of criminal investigations and prosecutions, but we never release it gratuitously. The Director laid out his version of the facts for the news media as if it were a closing argument, but without a trial. It is a textbook example of what federal prosecutors and agents are taught not to do.

In response to skeptical question at a congressional hearing, the Director defended his remarks by saying that his “goal was to say what is true. What did we do, what did we find, what do we think about it.” But the goal of a federal criminal investigation is not to announce our thoughts at a press conference. The goal is to determine whether there is sufficient evidence to justify a federal criminal prosecution, then allow a federal prosecutor who exercises authority delegated by the Attorney General to make a prosecutorial decision, and then – if prosecution is warranted – let the judge and jury determine the facts. We sometimes release information about closed investigations in appropriate ways, but the FBI does not do it sua sponte.

Concerning his letter to the Congress on October 28, 2016, the Director cast his decision as a choice between whether he would “speak” about the FBI’s decision to investigate the newly-discovered email messages or “conceal” it. “Conceal” is a loaded term that misstates the issue. When federal agents and prosecutors quietly open a criminal investigation, we are not concealing anything; we are simply following the longstanding policy that we refrain from publicizing non-public information. In that context, silence is not concealment.

My perspective on these issues is shared by former Attorneys General and Deputy Attorneys General from different eras and both political parties. Judge Laurence Silberman, who served as Deputy Attorneys General under President Ford, wrote that “it is not the bureau’s responsibility to opine on whether a matter should be prosecuted.” Silberman believes that the Director’s “Performance was so inappropriate for an FBI director that [he] doubt[s] the bureau will ever completely recover.” Jamie Gorelick, Deputy Attorney General under President George W. Bush, to opine that the Director had “chosen personally to restrike the balance between transparency and fairness, department from the department’s traditions.” They concluded that the Director violated his obligation to “preserve, protect and defend” the traditions of the Department and the FBI.

Former Attorney General Michael Mukasey, who served under President George W Bush, observed the Director “stepped way outside his job in disclosing the recommendation in that fashion” because the FBI director “doesn’t make that decision”. Alberto Gonzales, who also served as Attorneys General under President George W Bush, called the decision “an error in judgement.” Eric Holder, who served as Deputy Attorneys General under President Clinton and Attorneys General under President Obama, said that the Director’s decision “was incorrect. It violated long-standing Justice Department policies and traditions. And it ran counter to guidance that I put in place four years ago laying out the proper way to conduct investigations during an election season.” Holder concluded that the Director “broke with these fundamental principles” and “negatively affected public trust in both the Justice Department and the FBI”.

Former Deputy Attorneys General Gorelick and Thompson described the unusual event as “read-time, raw-take transparency taken to its illogical limit, a kind of reality TV of federal criminal investigation,” that is “antithetical to the interests of justice”.

Donald Ayer, who served as Deputy Attorneys General under President HW Bush, along with former Justice Department officials, was “astonished and perplexed” by the decision to “break[] with longstanding practices followed by officials of both parties during past elections.” Ayer’s letter noted, “Perhaps most troubling… is the precedent set by this departure from the Department’s widely-respected, non-partisan traditions.”

We should reject the departure and return to the traditions.

Although the President has the power to remove an FBI director, the decision should not be taken lightly. I agree with the nearly unanimous opinions of former Department officials. The way the Director handled the conclusion of the email investigation was wrong. As a result, the FBI is unlikely to regain public and congressional trust until it has a Director who understands the gravity of the mistakes and pledges never to repeat them. Having refused to admit his errors, the Director cannot be expected to implement the necessary corrective actions.

President Trump began that corrective action. It’s what leaders do.

Link: Rod Rosenstein’s letter recommending Comey is fired  |  The letters that got Comey fired

Economy, Florida, Pensacola, Politics

Panhandle Pensacola

The City of Pensacola has been grappling with the problem of what to do about panhandlers, aka beggars, in the downtown area. The County has the same issues at intersections and on/off ramps all over the place.

The “problem” is the image portrayed in a City trying to attract residents and business when beggars are sitting and laying on the sidewalk, some with dogs. Not to mention the human problem of the situation they portray themselves to be in.

You might get the impression that there is no help for them, when there is. They just don’t choose to take advantage of it. And no one is making the case that making it easier for someone to stay on the streets is not humane, like Houston Mayor Annise Parker did in 2014. The panhandlers have made begging their livelihood, their “business.”

Always tuned in to how to get into your pockets, I don’t know how this idea has escaped the politicians?  Do what they are prone do, regulate. Regulate the Begging Industry right out of business. Like Bill Clinton and Barack Obama tried to do to the Coal Industry.

If begging is your business, you must have a Begging License, that’ll cost you. I don’t know, say $150 a year. And since the real estate for your business is the public sidewalk or right-of-way, you’ll have to pay rent to the city or county for that. How about $100 a week or $400 a month for “rent?”

See how getting off the street and seeking help is starting to look more attractive, not to mention financially rewarding?

But wait, there’s more. Small businesses have to pay 6% sales taxes to the State and 1.5% to  Escambia County every month. This requires verifiable record keeping. Failure to pay your taxes will result in shutting down the business, and possibly jail time.

All the city has to do is to think of them as small business operators and do, for government, what comes naturally. I bet the “problem” will go away. But, that will never happen. It’s easier to give in to threats of lawsuits from the Beggar’s Lobby than to take proactive steps to help get them off the sidewalk.

Link: City Council to take up panhandling, dog-friendly dining

Media, Obamacare, Politics

The Democrat Plan

The whole idea can be summed up in five words. “Lie, then lie some more.”

Let’s lie about what the ACA is all about and what it will really do, Jonathan Gruber. Family premiums will go down by an average of $2400/year, you can keep your doctor and your plan, Barack Obama.

While we’re at it, let’s give stuff to people that they can not use or afford. Then if/when Republicans want to fix it, to actually meet the promises made by the Democrat administration, we (and our media) will squeal about those Republicans wanting to kill people, especially poor people and old people (who have medicare anyway) and take away their health care.

See how that works?