Aren't White Ladies THE WORST???

 

Friends, last Halloween you might have seen some trick-or-treaters wearing this popular mask.  You guessed it: they were pretending to be a "Karen", an entitled, angry, racist white woman.  Of course, the stereotype of a "Karen" is itself racist, but it's anti-racist racism, so it's cool.  I'm glad we got that settled.

Who's the biggest and baddest Karen of them all?  It's looking like the answer might be: Senator Kyrsten Sinema (D - Arizona).  Now, you wouldn't think that an avowedly feminist and bisexual Democratic Senator would even make the list, but Sinema's insistence on bipartisanship and upholding the Senate's tradition of the filibuster is making progressives hopping mad.  Sinema and Joe Manchin are standing in the way of the enactment of many elements of the progressive agenda.  Ergo, Sinema's a baddy, and all baddies are racists, ipso facto.  Calling an old white guy like Joe Manchin a racist is a no-brainer, but it looks like now the LGBTQ+ heroine Krysten Sinema is in for the same treatment.  She's got "toxic white lady energy"!  You can't make this nonsense up, people.

https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2021/06/kyrsten-sinema-toxic-white-lady-energy.html?via=rss

 

In other news, and relatedly, we're getting poll numbers that prove that leftists are becoming disspirited about the slow pace of change under Bidenist rule.  Congress is supposed to be grinding conservatives underfoot and instituting universal Bolshevism, but, because of the filibuster and Sinema and Manchin, it's no dice.  This was inevitable, of course.  Biden and his cronies on Capitol Hill could never be woke enough to satisfy the true believers.  There's bound to be a reckoning.

 

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/bidens-approval-takes-a-hit-driven-by-sagging-hopes-among-democrats/ar-AAL7t9e?li=BBnb7Kz 

More good news: most Americans don't like Big Tech and want these massive companies broken up.  This is, in addition, a bipartisan movement.  Will it someday bear fruit?  I hope so.

https://www.newsmax.com/us/us-voters-big-tech-antitrust-poll/2021/06/18/id/1025556/

 

Also, most Americans are increasingly comfortable with resuming "normal activities" now that we have the coronavirus on the run.  I went to a car show last night and virtually no one was wearing a mask.  It was a refreshing change!

 

https://www.newsmax.com/newsfront/poll-virus-outbreak-reopening/2021/06/18/id/1025549/ 

Normalcy may be returning in the good ole USA, but Canada is clinging on to its pandemic anxieties for dear life.  

 

Eh.  Who needs Canada anyway?

https://www.newsmax.com/newsfront/canada-travel-ban/2021/06/18/id/1025585/

 

The U.S. military believes that China has no imminent plans to attack Taiwan, and it may even lack the military means to take the island by force.  Interesting.  It seems to me that there are a lot of unanswered questions about today's military balance.  For one thing, virtually all advanced countries are bristling with sophisticated anti-ship missiles.  Assuming that the missiles will "always get through", modern navies are in big trouble.  That's a potentially flawed assumption, however, as anti-missile tech has also greatly improved.  The future of places like Taiwan may very well come down to this: who has more and better missiles, and would China risk frightful losses among its amphibious expeditionary force...and possibly the destruction of that force and of its navy before any of it ever got near Taiwan?  Someday we may find out.

 

https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/policy/defense-national-security/top-us-general-says-china-currently-lacks-military-capability-to-take-taiwan-by-force 

Calls to abandon academic standards, and especially standardized testing, are growing louder and louder.  How are we ever to implement "anti-racism", for instance, if black people are asked to fill out bubble sheets and answer questions?  That's textbook white supremacy!!!

https://thepostmillennial.com/watch-boston-university-professor-suggests-new-policy-to-lower-standards-at-us-naval-academy-to-admit-more-people-of-color

 

It's official: "Juneteenth" is now a federal holiday.  That happened mighty quick, didn't it?  The vast majority of Congressional Republicans voted for the bill, incidentally.  Now, on the face of it, there's nothing wrong with celebrating the end of slavery in the USA, but the fact is that a short time ago most of us had never heard of "Juneteenth", and we certainly didn't understand its significance.  Apparently "President" Biden was among those who found "Juneteenth" inscrutable.  Let's also admit that most politicians and more than a few non-politicians are now embracing Juneteenth for one reason and one reason only: virtue-signalling.  We can't possibly pass up an ideal opportunity to demonstrate how "anti-racist" we are, right?  Let's also remember that we already have a federal holiday that focuses on our country's struggle to achieve racial equality: MLK's birthday.  Now we have two holidays on the theme of race, plus Pride Month, plus Women's History Month, plus...you get the idea.  The progressives won't be happy until EVERY conversation we have, and every day of the year, is devoted to America-bashing and pillorying white racists, i.e. anyone who doesn't endorse neo-Marxism and reverse racism.  Republican politicians may think they can get a little political cover by voting for the Juneteenth bill.  They're wrong.  The harrowing cries of "Racism!" will never stop.  They're the heart and soul of the Democratic Party and the progressive movement, after all.  Get used to it.

 

https://thepostmillennial.com/flashback-biden-juneteenth-year-ago 

https://apnews.com/article/juneteenth-congress-federal-holiday-3cc3b7a56ec97b0bae3dbdff1da092ee

That Giant Sucking Sound

 

Friends, back in 1992 that great American patriot and escaped mental patient Ross Perot warned us about "that giant sucking sound" produced by the departure of American jobs for allegedly greener pastures in Mexico and elsewhere in the Third World.  Well, outsourcing is child's play compared to the economic devastation inflicted on our nation, and on our world, by the Chinese coronavirus.  China has a lot to answer for, assuming the rumors are true and COVID-19 was designed in a lab and released accidentally, followed by the mother-of-all-coverups.  For instance, the toll on American small businesses has been horrific.  Massive corporations, on the other hand, have in many cases benefitted.  And thus the concentration of wealth, and the rise in inequality, continue apace.  Lefties allegedly care about such problems.  Of course, they don't really care.  They want power, and now they have it.  The rest is mere trivia.

https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/news/nearly-40-percent-us-small-businesses-shutter-pandemic

 

Every conservative's favorite Governor, Ron DeSantis, has signed a bill mandating a moment of silence in Florida public schools.  I applaud the effort to reinvigorate the faltering morals of our youth, BUT the micromanagement of what goes on in classrooms is a little troubling.  Sadly, we conservatives are coming to assume that teachers are the natural enemy of decency and truth, and so the only way to ensure that students receive a non-Bolshevik education is to prescribe for educators exactly how they should do their jobs.  The sad part is that the underlying assumption is probably valid.

https://thehill.com/homenews/state-watch/558563-desantis-signs-law-mandating-daily-moment-of-silence-in-florida-schools

 

Real progress is being made on the development of a bipartisan infrastructure bill in the Senate.  Is this good news or bad?  That's hard to say.  Obviously, on one level, the last thing our country needs is to spend more money.  On the other hand, the only way Biden and the Dems will get a bipartisan bill is by compromising on A LOT of the items on their wish list.  Progressives, in addition, will fume, because moderate Democrats made a "deal with the devil", i.e. us.  Overall, I'm inclined to see the progress in these talks as a confirmation of Dem weakness...and that fills me with good cheer.

 

https://www.newsmax.com/politics/congress-infrastructure/2021/06/16/id/1025379/ 

Our buddy Rod informs us that we don't know squat about critical race theory.  Maybe we do, and maybe we don't, but according to this poll most Americans think they know what CRT is, and they don't care for it.  In fact, a majority of Americans have a "very unfavorable" view of critical race theory.  Maybe that's why the Rod Squad is so desperate to reframe the debate?

https://www.breitbart.com/politics/2021/06/16/poll-58-of-americans-hold-unfavorable-view-of-critical-race-theory-38-favorable/

 

America's moral values are circling the drain.  That's the view of the vast majority of Republicans, and it's the view of many Democrats and independents as well.  Now, you know me: I'm the eternal optimist, so I think a lot of our doomsaying is misplaced.  On the other hand, I do view our nation as morally debauched.  It's our material circumstances that I view as overwhelmingly favorable, much as we try to convince ourselves otherwise.

https://www.breitbart.com/politics/2021/06/16/report-under-biden-republicans-mostly-disgusted-with-u-s-moral-values-democrat-optimism-all-time-high/

Champion of Liberty Returns From the Cradle of Liberty

 

Il Professore enjoys some fine dining and sophisticated boozing at Maggiano's.

"Where everybody knows your name..."

The obligatory visit to Harvard, where, once in a while, and purely by accident, some learning takes place.

History in the midst of modernity.

San Adams was a real troublemaker.  Those revolutionaries took extraordinary risks, and on a certain level they were getting bent out of shape about actions, like excise taxation, that wouldn't even raise an eyebrow these days.  "Liberty" means different things to different people, and we've become accustomed to a very high level of taxation, regulation, and surveillance.

I pose with John Harvard.  No doubt he's thrilled to see how woke his namesake institution has become.  You have to admire his stoic attitude.

***

Hi, friends!  Long time, no see.

I'm back from Boston, and I learned a bunch about the city's critical role in the lead-up to the Revolutionary War.  Those Bostonians were irascible!  They would riot at the drop of a hat.  Nancy Pelosi would have made short work of Sam Adams and Paul Revere, needless to say.  Or maybe it's the other way around.  I guess we'll never know.  Anyway, Boston is a charming city -- very walkable and full of history and great architecture.  I was hoping to see the JFK Presidential Library and Museum, but, like a lot of lefty meccas, it's been completely shuttered for reasons of pandemic virtue signalling.  Maybe next time...  I look forward to a return trip.

In the meantime, it's great to be back amongst my bosom buddies, and you can anticipate lots of insightful commentary in the days ahead -- mostly from you, but a little from me too.

To that end, check out this article on surging inflation.  Is it just a flash in the pan, or could it produce serious political headaches for Democrats (and serious pain for ordinary Americans)?  Some say the moment of truth is already here.  Personally, I enjoy paying more for things.  Makes me feel like a big shot!

https://www.foxbusiness.com/economy/producer-price-index-may-2021

 

https://www.newsmax.com/us/poll-inflation-trump-biden/2021/06/15/id/1025197/ 

 

In other news, Don, Jr. is weighing in on who the 2024 GOP presidential nominee ought to be, assuming his father doesn't run.  His answer is completely unsurprising, but says a lot about who's riding high these days among Republicans.  It may even give us some insight into how DJT himself is thinking.

 

https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/news/2024-vision-heres-who-donald-trump-jr-thinks-should-be-the-gop-nominee-if-his-father-doesnt-run 

Hasta La Vista, Baby!

 

Adios, friends!  I'm off to Beantown for a few days -- think of it as "opposition research".  I won't be active on the blog meanwhile, but I should have some great photos to share when I return on Monday.

Try to behave in my absence, okay?

Until we meet again...

Chinese Bats Sue Fauci For Defamation

 

Friends, as you know, Chinese culture has a long history of honoring the noble bat.  At least I assume it does.  Chinese culture has a long history of everything.  That's why it makes so much sense that Chinese bats are up in arms about Western attempts to smear their hard-won reputations by blaming them for causing the COVID-19 pandemic.  Best of luck to you, bat plantiffs!  I think you've got a strong case.

The degree of culpability that should attach itself to Dr. Fauci, and other "experts", in misleading the public about the coronavirus and its origin is a subject that's being debated far and wide these days.  Naturally, it's a topic of discussion on this week's Newsmaker Show as well.  In addition, Brian and I talk about: the prospects for a Donald Trump House Speakership in January 2023, the increasingly precarious political position of West Virginia Senator Joe Manchin, the Left's over-use of charges of "Racism!", the futility of Biden-Harris's efforts to undo the damage at the border, the possibility that the Chinese could become aggressive in retaliation for any punishment they receive for "concealing" COVID's true origin, and the lack of accountability for those who have smeared Donald Trump for the last six years.

When we get to "This Day in History", Brian and I tackle the historical legacy of the anti-communist, anti-Russian campaign of Senator Joe McCarthy in the early 1950s, and the Silver Jubilee of Queen Elizabeth II in 1977.

Don't miss it!  Tune in NOW!!!  Right now.  I mean, this instant.  Do it!  Do it!  DO IT!!!

 

https://wlea.net/newsmaker-june-9-2021-dr-nick-waddy/ 

 

In other news, here's a fascinating exploration of the decline and fall of meritocracy in America.  The consequences are only beginning to be felt.

https://www.realclearinvestigations.com/articles/2021/06/09/almost_overnight_standards_of_color-blind_merit_tumble_across_american_society_780262.html

 

Could the Supreme Court overturn Roe v. Wade in the near future?  Maybe.  If so, it looks like about half of America will be pleased, and half will be incensed.  That's par for the course.

 

https://www.newsmax.com/us/gallup-poll-abortion-morality/2021/06/09/id/1024457/ 

Is inflation on the horizon?  Sleepy Joe says, "Nah."  Deutsche Bank says, "Look out!  It's coming right for us!"

https://townhall.com/tipsheet/leahbarkoukis/2021/06/09/deutsche-bank-issues-dire-warning-about-rising-inflation-n2590718

 

Lastly, Democrats are jerks.  Arrogant jerks.  Arrogant, intolerant jerks.  What's more, they admit it freely!  Check it out:

 

https://www.breitbart.com/politics/2021/06/09/poll-democrats-twice-as-likely-as-republicans-to-end-friendship-over-political-disagreements/ 

Make Nigeria Great Again!

 

 

Friends, as you know, I've always been a fervent and devoted Nigerian patriot.  My heart practically bleeds green and white (but not black -- that would be racist)...

 

That's why it's so refreshing to hear that Nigeria has banned Twitter!  Why?  Apparently, Twitter censored a post by Nigerian President Buhari, and the Nigerian government took matters into its own hands and "suspended, indefinitely" Twitter from the internet.  

 

Bravo!  As Trump points out, there's no reason why more countries couldn't follow suit.  It would serve Twitter, and other social media companies, right...

 

https://www.newsmax.com/us/trump-facebook-ban-twitter/2021/06/08/id/1024399/ 

In other news, while the election audit proceeds in Maricopa County, questions persist about vote-counting in Georgia.  The Dems are dismissive, as per usual...but, of course, if everything was above board, they have nothing to worry about.  A 12,000 vote margin is awfully tight, though.  Even a little chicanery could prove significant, at least to the retrospective narrative of what happened in 2020.

https://www.realclearinvestigations.com/articles/2021/06/08/why_a_judge_has_georgia_vote_fraud_on_his_mind_pristine_biden_ballots_that_look_xeroxed_779795.html

 

It looks like Hunter Biden is a potty mouth...and possibly a RACIST to boot!  He's the gift that keeps on giving for conservatives -- not that the mainstream media will ever pay him any attention.

 

https://thepostmillennial.com/revealed-hunter-biden-texted-n-word-multiple-times-to-his-attorney 

Reverse discrimination is de rigueur in academia, but it's seldom as naked as this.  Eek!

https://thenationalpulse.com/breaking/whites-need-not-apply-ny-accounting-program-bans-white-people/

 

Finally, Donald Trump is taking a position on Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies: he doesn't care for them, mainly because he sees them as competition for the U.S. dollar.  He's not entirely wrong there, although the dollar has always had competition, and lots of it.  Securing the dollar in future isn't a question of proscribing or hamstringing other asset classes, in my view -- it's a question of not printing too many dollars, not borrowing too much money, and maintaining the "good faith and credit" of the U.S. government.  Bitcoin, in other words, is the least of our problems, in terms of our nation's fiscal health.

 

https://www.foxbusiness.com/markets/trump-bitcoin-a-scam-us-dollar-should-reign 

Texas: Redder, Despite Being Browner

 

Friends, we reflected before on the victory of the GOP mayoral candidate in Ft. Worth.  It turns out that Republican wins in the Lone Star state went much further, and there are encouraging signs that Hispanics are continuing their rightward drift.  Long may it last!

https://www.nationalreview.com/2021/06/gop-sweeps-in-texas-races-signal-growing-hispanic-support-for-the-party/

 

As you know, lefties say that the filibuster is...racist!  Of course, they say everything is racist, so that's not news.  Here's an interesting article that explores the long, complex history of the filibuster, which of course Democrats have been happy to use to their advantage in the past, and which they now find monstrously inconvenient.

 

https://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2021/06/07/lets_get_our_filibuster_history_right_145882.html 

Joe Biden is -- gulp! -- riding high right now, but for various reasons, as this article suggests, he's likely to have hit his high-water mark.  Even assuming the economy and market remain robust (a big assumption), it's going to get harder and harder for Sleepy Joe to enact his agenda.  This article suggests that, if he gets his precious "infrastructure" bills passed, he can consider himself a success.  I disagree.  No one cares about infrastructure.  The Dems had big plans when they sailed into Washington as its new lords and masters in January.  If all they get out of it is a few bridges and subsidizied child care, they will have come up practically empty.  ** Note: there's a bonus insight at the end of this article: the Speaker of the House need not be an elected member of the House.  Wow!  Ergo, Trump could emerge as Speaker after January 2023 even if he doesn't run at all. **

https://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2021/06/07/bidens_window_will_likely_shut_this_fall_145883.html

 

Good news: Jeff Bezos will soon be blasted into space!  The jokes practically tell themselves, right?  Here's hoping that the vast majority of Big Tech tyrants join him in the vaccuum of space very soon.

 

https://www.nbcnews.com/tech/tech-news/jeff-bezos-launch-himself-space-first-time-next-month-n1269799 

The "progressive" attacks on poor Joe Manchin are growing more strident by the day.  Of course, this comes as no surprise.  Failing to end the filibuster and shove wokery down America's throat is tantamount to "white supremacy", dontcha know?  If Joe is smart (and I wouldn't go that far), he'll join Team GOP, and quick!

https://www.foxnews.com/politics/jemele-hill-calls-manchin-a-cowardly-power-hungry-white-dude-over-election-bill

 

Finally, good ole Liz Cheney is at it again.  Anyone who meets with or humors Donald Trump in any way is "inexcusable", in her eyes, because he was guilty of "provoking an attack on the Capitol".  Note to Trump: maybe it's time to consider running for the House from the great state of Wyoming???  Just sayin'...

https://www.breitbart.com/clips/2021/06/07/liz-cheney-inexcusable-mccarthy-embracing-trump-after-january-6/

Battle to the (Political) Death?

 

Friends, behold my latest article!  It's about wild -- or is it so "wild", after all? -- speculation that Donald Trump could run for the House in 2022 and try to replace Nancy Pelosi as Speaker.  What are the odds, huh?  Read on and find out...

Trump v. Pelosi: A Marquee Matchup for the Speakership?

Last week, Donald Trump was asked on Wayne Allyn Root's radio show about the notion that he should run for the House of Representatives in 2022, with the goal of helping Republicans take the House majority and replacing Nancy Pelosi as Speaker. He responded enthusiastically: “very interesting”, he said. Compared to suggestions that he run for the Senate, Trump acknowledged that “...your idea may be better.”

None of that is a firm declaration of intent, mind you, but it's more than enough to get our speculative juices flowing.

For Trump, a run for the House would have several benefits.

One, he could almost certainly find a district in which he could win handily. Republicans, and especially rural Republicans, adore him. The vast majority of Republican primary voters want Trump to remain the dominant figure in the party. Moreover, Trump likes to win. Running for the House in 2022 would be the easiest, quickest way for him to get back into national politics and to resume his winning streak.

Two, Trump undoubtedly wants the midterm elections to be nationalized and to vindicate him personally. If he was a candidate for the House in 2022, presumably every House race would become, by default, a referendum on Trump. If Republicans took the House majority, therefore, as currently many forecasters predict, then Trump could claim that the nation had chosen Trumpism over Bidenism/socialism. He would thus be in an ideal position to run again for the presidency in 2024.

Third, control of the House would give Republicans a platform from which to deliver a ceaseless series of attacks on Biden administration policies. Since it's increasingly obvious that the media won't be asking uncomfortable questions of our new progressive overlords, it behooves Republicans to wrest back control of at least one House of Congress, so that they will have the PR wherewithal and subpoena power to expose the contours of Democratic misrule.

Lastly, a Trump run for the House, and implicitly for the Speakership, in 2022 would provide Trump with one critical advantage: it would pit him against one of the few American politicians, Nancy Pelosi, who is as unpopular as he is.

According to RealClearPolitics, Trump and Pelosi are both “underwater”, and by almost exactly the same amount, in terms of favorability: -13 or -14 points. This is far more attractive political ground than Trump was fighting on in 2020, for instance, when he faced an adversary who was broadly popular and (somewhat incredibly) still is. Right now, Sleepy Joe is +12 in favorability.

He's +80 in irritability, but that's another story.

Why are Nancy Pelosi's numbers so poor? It's not hard to figure. She's an imperious, Bolshevist crone. She's exactly the kind of enemy one would pick, in fact, if one could pick one's enemies – and in 2022 Donald Trump does have that luxury.

If in many ways, therefore, it looks like a run for the House (Speakership) in 2022 is a slam dunk for Trump, it's worth reflecting on a few of the flaws in this audacious plan.

For one thing, nationalizing, and Trumpifying, the 2022 midterms risks bolstering Democratic/progressive turnout...big-time!!! Trump has shown an incredible ability to turn out legions of conservatives and Republicans, some of them first-time or infrequent voters, but he has shown an even greater talent for motivating Democrats and independents of almost every stripe to show up at the polls (or, more likely, cast a mail-in ballot) in order to vote against Trumpism and its partisan incarnation: the Republican Party.

I mean, let's face it: 81 million Americans didn't vote for “Sleepy Joe” in 2020. They voted, by and large, to reject and repudiate Donald J. Trump. Quite a few of them would be game for a repeat performance.

The danger would be, therefore, that a Trump run for the House would nationalize and energize the contest just enough to get tens of millions of Trump-haters to the polls, but not enough to get Trumpers to vote en masse, not for Trump himself, but for milquetoast moderate Republican House candidates who might or might not be enthusiatic Trump backers.

In other words, a Trump run for the House (Speakership) might well succeed in putting Trump in the House, but it might backfire on a grander scale and lead to massive Democratic victories in 2022, including an expanded House majority, an expanded Senate majority, and from there the elimination of the filibuster, the packing of the Supreme Court, the liquidation of the bourgeoisie, etc etc.

These concerns must be taken seriously. After all, to the extent that the GOP is identified, going forward, with Trump and Trumpism, Republicans must acknowledge that the association carries with it considerable risks and potential downsides.

Who would ultimately win a Trump v. Pelosi rumble for the Speakership? Since public attitudes to both figures are largely “baked in”, presumably it would come down to the state of the economy, the country, and public opinion in the Fall of 2022 – an imponderable, to say the least, in June 2021.

As for the real possibility of electoral Armageddon for Republicans, that might or might not faze Trump, but there is one last consideration that could prove decisive for him: a run for the House, after one has served as President of the United States, is almost unheard of (John Quincy Adams being the sole exception to the rule). It would involve a degree of lèse–majesté . Would Trump, the alpha male par excellence, submit to such a debasement? Would he do so, especially at the ripe old age of 76, when there are other Republicans, like Ron DeSantis, who would happily fight tooth and nail in the political trenches on Trumpism's behalf, while the elder statesman himself pontificates on the sidelines? That remains to be seen.

All in all, the idea that Trump should run for the House (Speakership) in 2022 is not as fanciful as it sounds. Donald Trump, and Republicans in general, would be foolish to dismiss it out of hand.

A House run would be an “outside the box” play, to be sure, but, if Donald Trump has proved anything in the last six years, it's this: the old rules no longer apply.

Dr. Nicholas L. Waddy is an Associate Professor of History at SUNY Alfred and blogs at: www.waddyisright.com. He appears on the Newsmaker Show on WLEA 1480.

 

And here it is at American Greatness:

https://amgreatness.com/2021/06/06/trump-vs-pelosi-a-marquee-matchup-for-the-speakership/

 

In other news, Joe Manchin has confirmed that he won't vote for the Dems' atrocious election-takeover bill.  This means the midterms in 2022, and the presidential election in 2024, might just be decided by...the voters?  Hey, stranger things have happened.

 

https://news.yahoo.com/manchin-says-wont-vote-democrats-122241843.html 

 

And here's the article that got me speculating on a Trump run for the House in 2022:

https://www.newsmax.com/newsfront/donaldtrump-speakerofthehouse-2022-2024/2021/06/04/id/1023989/

 

Lastly, more good news out of Texas: the GOP won the mayoral race in Ft. Worth, America's 12th largest city!  Hooray!  GOP wins in America's big cities are rare enough.  This is one to celebrate!

 

https://www.fox4news.com/news/deborah-peoples-mattie-parker-face-off-in-runoff-election-for-fort-worth-mayor 

"The Old Man": Still in the Fight

 

Friends, great news: cancel culture hasn't yet obliterated the proud heritage of Washington and Lee University, my alma mater.  The University's board has voted overwhelmingly to keep W&L's name in place, after leftists pushed for a change in the wake of the George Floyd/BLM fiasco.  Of course, W&L will grovel at the feet of the 1619 project and anti-white, anti-Southern bigots in countless other ways, but we'll take what small victories we're given, nowadays.  Robert E. Lee really was a larger-than-life leader and a true Christian gentleman.  I'm glad that his memory will still be honored by at least one U.S. institution of higher education.

https://www.breitbart.com/politics/2021/06/04/washington-lee-university-keep-robert-e-lee-namesake-promises-make-symbolic-changes-campus/

 

In other news, California is shrinking!!!  Not geographically, of course, but demographically, and it's not hard to see why: sky-high taxes and cost of living, rising crime, runaway wokeness, etc.  What's saved states like California and New York, in the short term, is two things: federal largesse and soaring stock market values.  Because there are still a lot of high-earners with big equity portfolios in our coastal states, that means that capital gains tax revenues flow like wine in the midst of a bull market.  Imagine what would happen, though, if the Dems lost their trifecta in D.C. and the stock market were to take a tumble.  California would find itself in a demographic/fiscal death spiral!

 

https://www.thecentersquare.com/california/irs-california-shrank-by-165k-taxpayers-8-8-billion-in-gross-income/article_6df49882-c4b7-11eb-a6df-3321eeeab5b6.html 

Georgia Republicans are split over the future of the state's GOP Governor Brian Kemp.  Many like him, but Trumpers aren't sold on the man who refused to help Trump contest the electoral outcome in 2020.  Kemp's role was quieter than Brad Raffensperger's, mind you, but Kemp didn't exactly lay it all on the line for DJT.  Will he win the Republican gubernatorial nomination in 2022?  Maybe, but if he does one has to wonder whether Trumpers will show up to vote for him...

https://www.newsmax.com/newsfront/georgia-governor-republicans/2021/06/05/id/1024047/

 

The anniversary of the Tiananmen Massacre in China in 1989 has many Chinese asking, "What massacre?"  Apparently, Microsoft has an equally short memory.

 

https://www.newsbusters.org/blogs/free-speech/autumn-johnson/2021/06/04/microsoft-censors-tank-man-image-search-results 

Here's a wacky idea: Donald Trump could run for the U.S. Senate in 2022 or for the House of Representatives, hoping to replace Nancy Pelosi as Speaker.  Wow!  That would be wild, huh?  A Trump run for the House would indeed energize Trumpers, but one assumes it would also nationalize the mid-terms and boost turnout across the board.  It would be an interesting contest, no?  Trump v. Pelosi, mano a mano...

 

https://www.newsmax.com/newsfront/donaldtrump-speakerofthehouse-2022-2024/2021/06/04/id/1023989/ 

 

Finally, the diabolical subtlety of Facebook's efforts to "protect" the 2020 election and fund get-out-the-vote efforts, overwhelmingly in blue areas, may well have decided the outcome.  It ought to have been an outrage at the time, but it's only now that we're learning on what a vast scale Facebook endeavored to tip the scales in Sleepy Joe's favor.

https://www.foxnews.com/politics/zuckerbergs-45m-boosted-dem-turnout

Trump: Still in the Facebook Doghouse

 

Friends, today we learned that Facebook's "suspension" of Donald Trump will last at least until January 2023.  Coincidentally, therefore, the President will be silenced until AFTER the all-important 2022 mid-term elections.  Imagine that.  Basically, Facebook has clarified that, if your posts endanger "public safety" (in their infinite wisdom), then they reserve the right to suspend you for however long they please.  Thank heavens they put that all down in black and white, right?  All ambiguity has been removed, and 100% fairness and impartiality will prevail going forward.  Uh huh.

https://www.newsmax.com/politics/facebook-trump-suspend/2021/06/04/id/1023939/

 

Michael Barone is among those who find Facebook's "editorial" policy laughable...and extremely dangerous to American democracy.  Note that leftists are always pushing for more social media censorship, too.  They know which side their bread is buttered on, clearly.

 

It's easy to propose ending Facebook's Section 230 protections, but as Barone discusses that would probably mean that Facebook would become more selective and circumspect about the content it allows on its platforms, and in essence lawyers and judges would get to decide the parameters of acceptable speech.  Would we be better off?  I'm not sure we would.  The only cure for what ails Facebook might be...new ownership/management!

 

https://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2021/06/04/facebooks_speech_suppression_argues_for_repeal_of_section_230_and_a_facebook_stock_price_of_zero_145871.html 

As this article discusses, there are growing cleavages on the Left re: whether or not to negotiate with Republicans over infrastructure spending.  Progressives want to ignore the GOP and pass a massive spending bill using reconcilation, while Biden and Democratic moderates want to keep trying to find a compromise that at least 10 Republican Senators can live with.  And this is just the beginning of tactical disagreements between Dem radicals and centrists.  Expect a lot more disappointments, frustrations, and acrimony to build up over the next few years.  That's what happens when you "win" elections, after all.  You have to govern, and governing is hard.

https://www.politico.com/news/2021/06/03/infrastructure-liberals-progressives-gop-biden-491845

 

As Pat Buchanan points out, Biden and the Democrats need to humor the GOP for one reason only: without Senators Manchin and Sinema on board for ending the filibuster, legislatively the Dems can't accomplish anything of importance without Republican support.  That raises the question: when will progressive anger at Manchin and Sinema boil over?  When will an Antifa mob show up on their respective front porches?  You know it's coming...  Also, as Pat points out, Kamala Harris has been given a key role in pushing the Dems' "voting rights" bill in Congress.  Assuming Manchin and Sinema stand fast, Harris will fail utterly.  Will she too become a target for progressive rage?

https://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2021/06/04/democratic_showdown_kamala_vs_manchin_145869.html

 

There is some good news for the lefties: for one thing, their favorite punching bag, Donald J. Trump, is about to resume his roadshow, which means he'll be getting a lot more attention in the media.  That should improve CNN and MSNBC's dismal ratings, and it may also serve to unite and excite the liberal base, which is already experiencing some fluctuations in the fervency of its Bidenism.  As always, the less the Dems even think about Biden, the better it is for the party and the movement.  Despising Trump, on the other hand, is one thing that progressives have no problem agreeing on.

 

https://www.nbcnews.com/think/opinion/upcoming-trump-rallies-will-help-democrats-remind-voters-why-they-ncna1269240 

Here's an interesting wrinkle to the "American Rescue Plan".  Remember how it threw $350 billion at (mismanaged) cities and states?  Well, it turns out that the funding formula was crafted to work to the advantage of the bluest jurisdictions.  It's a good thing, too, from their narrow perspective, because a lot of blue states and super-progressive cities were nearing bankruptcy, due to fanatical lockdowns and collapsing revenues.  Biden and a Schumer-led Senate bought these blue areas some time...but how much???  One assumes the federal spending spree won't last forever, although it's already lasted since the 1960s, so who knows.

https://fee.org/articles/biden-s-stimulus-bill-favored-blue-states-in-one-huge-way-new-study-finds/