Fallout From Speaker McCarthy Departure

For John, BLUF:  It looks like the House GOP Majority stumbled badly in oustin Speaker Kevin McCarthy.  But, with some luck they could pull a rabbit out of the hat.  Nothing to see here; just move along.

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Opportunity Knocks:  GOP Can Opt to Turn House Fight Into a 2024 Crucible

From PJ Media, by Commenter Stephen Kruiser, 5 October 2023, 10:50 PM.

Here is the lede plus one:

After having a couple of nights to sleep on it, I have decided that the current GOP drama in the House of Representatives is more of an opportunity than a harbinger of doom for the 2024 presidential election. Actually, I came to that conclusion after one night of sleep, but I’m just getting around to writing about it after two.

If handled correctly, turmoil can lead to opportunity. I view what’s going on with House Republicans as turmoil, not chaos. Yes, I called it a dumpster fire in a recent Morning Briefing headline, but that’s just my process. I briefly lean into the existential dread, get it out of my system, then start looking for silver linings and diamonds in the pile of horse you-know-what.

I lean with Mr Kruiser.  I can see the downside, but soon start looking for the upside, like the little boy, who cries out There must be a pony in here somewhere.  I expect Democrats think they are in the catbird's seat, but I wouldn't be so sure.  Former Speaker McCarthy ran a bi-partisn House, which passed a number of budget bills and a Continuing Reolution for the rest..

The failure of cooperation following the passing of the Continuing Resolution could cause the various Republican Members to coalese around some hard sticking points, disrupting President Biden's plans for the coming year.  For example, there could be a hard line drawn on our Southern Border.  There could be a hard line drawn on the national debt.  The Republcians could grow some backbone.

Further, the Republicans are in a position to cast themselves as the defender of the working men andd women of the nation. in contrast to the college graduate elite.  This could be a Democratic Party blindspot.  Despite Bidenomics, it seems the economic numbers show the working class not rding the crest of a wave.  The jobs added in the latest report were, in good measure second jobs.  And they were in the Entertainment and Hospitality sectors.  However, as immigrants fill up hotels those workers will find their work diminishing, as people no longer travel and stay in hotels.  Why go away to support your football team if you can't get a hotel room.  No hotel room, no need for an airline ticket (nor the alternative of gas stations).  No hotel means fewer meals out. Then there is the impact of inflation, which can be a consequence of government spending exceeding government tax revenue.

I think that not only might there be a shutdown, but it could reboudnd negatively on Democrats.  November a year we will find out.

Hat tip to the InstaPundit.

Regards  —  Cliff

Nelson's Blind Eye

For John, BLUF:  Science, and with it, progress, is being emperiled by avoiding facts to support feelings.  Nothing to see here; just move along.

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NO SEX, PLEASE, WE’RE ANTHROPOLOGISTS

From InstaPundit, by Blogger John Tierney.

Here is the lede plus one:

Dis-empaneled. Bowing to political pressure, two leading anthropological associations cancel a conference discussion on the centrality of biological sex. The American Anthropological Association now wants to pretend that there are not two biological sexes, which is even more appalling than the group’s earlier decision to pretend that there is no such thing as race (never mind the genomic evidence revealing five distinguishable races). The Left’s War on Science continues.

The Title is a modificsation of the title of a British farce, No Sex Please, We're British.  It had a long run (6,761 performances).  Martha and I caught it in London back in 1974.

Perhaps from an anthropological point of viewa it makes no difference the sex of skeletons uncovered.  That said, I am somewhat dubioous.  For example, the way to identify an ancient house of ilrepute could be the disporportionate number of young males buried on site.

To ignore naturally found physical differences in remains, to see if there is some implication for the development of this or that culture, seems to shift from a culture that prizes ratioonoality to one that is immersed in myths.  This incident is disturbing.

Regards  —  Cliff

Nelson's Bllind Eye?  Here.

Sloppy Work on the 6 January Events

For John, BLUF:  The events and outcomes from 6 January 2021 are still not clear to a lot of us.  Nothing to see here; just move along.

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Whatever happened to “independent journalist” John Sullivan, who filmed the killing of Ashli Babbitt?

From Neo, by Neo, September 21, 2023.♠

Here is the lede plus three:

In connection with yesterdays’ thread about a man claiming to be an “independent journalist” who has been convicted for the Capitol breach on J6, commenter “gallchobhair” has this question:

Does anyone happen to remember what ultimately happened to “journalist” John Sullivan, who gleefully filmed the Ashli Babbitt murder? If I recall correctly, he got off pretty much scot free.

I hadn’t thought of him in a long while, but he certainly got a lot of attention at the time. Most of the articles about him were written in the initial weeks after the event. But I found an update from this past August:

John Earl Sullivan, arrested in Salt Lake City, no date listed. Indicted on 2/3/21 and pleaded not guilty to six counts. Remains free on personal recognizance.

And then Neo goers on to talk about the situation.

Two things strike me abnout this.  The first is that our justice system is so inefficient that we are still conducting prosecutions against all these clearly dangerous and dasterdly people who demonstrated at our nation's Capitol on 6 January 2021, two and a half years ago.  It is a good thing for our Republic that they weren't an orgnized revolutionary body or they would have finished the job long ago.

The second thing that strikes me is the uneven way in which justice is being administered by the Department of Justice with regard to the totality of participants on 6 January 2021.  The level of punishment seems uneven to me

Then, there is the sense some of us have that the House Commission on the events of 6 January was weak and uneven, leaving a lot of questions unanswered, with misinformation filling in the gaps.  For exsmple, a friend of mine is convinced that National Guard Troops were available thaz day, but never called upon.  I, on the other hand, believe thst National Guard Troops were offerred, but rejected by the authorities on Capitol Hill.  Both views can not be correct, can they?

I think this is a fail for Former Speaker Nancy Pelosi, but also a fail for Attorney General Merrick Garland.  We will just have to wait for the revisionist historians to get around to revealing the truth.

Hat tip to the InstaPundit.

Regards  —  Cliff

♠  Who is Neo?  Just another Conservative living near here and surrounded by Progresives.

For John, BLUF:  I wrote this up for my middle Brother, to help explain some of what is going on the the Grand Old Party.  Nothing to see here; just move along.

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The Uniparty circa 2023

Here is the sub-headline:

Does it exist?

From Past/Present/Future, by Mr Michael Slipko, 12 January 2023.

Here is the lede plus one:

If you spend enough time listening to House Republicans Chip Roy, Matt Gaetz, and Lauren Boebert you will soon hear about the Uniparty.  In right-wing dogma, the concept of the Uniparty has existed for about a decade, and has become de facto far-right Republican doctrine.

That is, a shadow party composed of both moderate Republicans and Democrats, is the backbone of Washington. And according to them, it is up to patriotic Americans to disable and destroy it in any way possible.  In doing so, the “swamp” will be drained, and Americans will experience true freedom and liberty.

Today in a speech on the House floor, Chip Roy (R-Texas) mentioned the Uniparty:

We used to have a lot of back-and-forth between Democrats and Republicans…we used to accuse them of being tax-and-spend Democrats…Then something changed along the way, and we stopped debating tax policy…and now everybody in this Congress, for the most part, are spend-and-spend members of Congress…spend-and-spend members of a Uniparty.

The concept is not as outlandish as it sounds. One academic theory put forth by historian Michael F. Holt, says the concept of a Uniparty was a primary cause of the 1850s political crisis that led to civil war.  Then, the two major political parties of the time - the Whigs and the Democrats - effectively became a Uniparty.

Lance has come up with the term “Awoke” to describe the mentality of Republicans and Conservatives (and Libertarians and some Liberals).  However, as this article suggests, “The Uni-Party” may be a better catch phrase to describe the mentality.  Not that they want to be the Uni-Party, but that they loath the Uni-Party.  They see it made up of squish Republicans and Democrats.

Those who loathe the Uni-Party are the bane of House Speaker Kevin McCarthy’s existence.  He wants compromises so as to pass the FY2024 Budget before 1 October 2023.  Those Republicans who hate the Uni-Party see it as just more compromising away the future of our Children and our Republic.  In fact Florida Congressman Matt Gaetz (Panhandle Republican) threatened Speaker McCarty with a motion to vacate his chair, which, if done, would muddle ongoing budget negotiations.

It is only a small rift in the House Republican Majority.  However, the majority is thin.  And President Biden has just vetoed the Defense Appropriation Act.

Regards  —  Cliff

Hunter's Indictment

For John, BLUF:  The indictment of Mr Hunter Biden didn't make sense at the time.  This helps clear it up a little.  Nothing to see here; just move along.

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The Hunter Biden Indictments Are a Ruse.  Here’s Why.

From PJ Media, by Reporter Matt Margolis, 15 September 2023, 11:04 AM.

Here is the lede plus three:

It’s a true reflection of the sad state of our justice system that we have to be suspicious of anything it does.  When we first learned that Hunter Biden would likely be indicted, I was skeptical and felt that even if Special Counsel David Weiss did indict him, it would be a ruse.  Still, when the indictments came down on Thursday, it was hard not to feel somewhat elated—but that suspicion still nags at me.

Seriously, does anyone believe that Hunter Biden will actually face any jail time?  Would Weiss, one of the architects of Hunter’s ridiculous plea deal, actually put Hunter Biden behind bars? I don’t.  But in the meantime, many think it is a possibility.

According to Mike Davis, a former law clerk for Supreme Court Justice Neil Gorsuch, we shouldn’t be fooled by these indictments, and he explains why.

“Don’t be fooled,” he began in a lengthy post on X/Twitter. “Today’s indictment of Hunter Biden for gun felonies is just more coverup by Delaware U.S. Attorney David Weiss, who has protected the Bidens for years.”

And then Mr Davis explains in some detail.

It appears to me the Democratic Party Establishment does not want President Biden to run in 2024. To avoid a messy fight at their Convention, 19-22 August 2024, Mr Biden needs to step down before the Primaries get serious.  For that to happen, Mr Hunter Biden needs to be in a safe harbor.  That task falls to DoJ and Special Counsel David Weiss.

The other loose end is Ms Kamala Harris.  If she isn't going to slide in as the Democratic Party nominee someone will have to talk to her, or force her out as Vice President.♠

Hat tip to the InstaPundit.

Regards  —  Cliff

♠  à la Spiro T Agnew.

White House War Room

For John, BLUF:  I think the Biden Administration is taking his Impeachment Inquiry very seriously.  Nothing to see here; just move along.

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CNN Breaks Story About Secret White House Media Directive to Bash Impeachment — to Bash Impeachment

From PJ Media, by Writer Athena Thorne, 13 September 2023, 12:55 PM.

Here is the lede plus one:

A Tuesday report from CNN Business is a real piece of work. It’s probably the most egregious example of media bias I’ve seen this year.

The report is blatant following of ze orders by a Left-wing news outlet even as it openly reveals that it is following ze orders. This goes way beyond your basic self-awareness fail to land somewhere between dereliction of journalistic duty and utter immorality in the pursuit of partisan service.

A CNN headline that read, “White House to send letter to news execs urging outlets to ‘ramp up’ scrutiny of GOP’s Biden impeachment inquiry ‘based on lies’” surprised me this morning. I was ready to grudgingly give the left-wing rag some credit for speaking truth to power for once. But a quick read through the article shattered my dreams of CNN actually committing an act of journalism.

The gist of the story is that, on Tuesday, CNN obtained an advance draft of a media directive from the White House that it would have received on Wednesday anyway. The newsworthy part is that the directive is absolutely shocking for a White House to send to the allegedly free media. And the first two paragraphs of the CNN piece almost read like a real news item (emphasis is added throughout all quotes).

I was disappointed in my Senior Senator's response to the House embarking on an Impeachment inquiry.  On the surface there are indications of issues.  It should not be this way.  Granted, without a smoking howitzer there would be no conviction by the US Senate, but still, that is not a reason to dismiss the indications out of hand.

That said, this is a distraction for Congress, which should be focused onte Authorization and Appropriation Bills, and the Hyde Amendment (DoDshould not be unilaterally ignoring US Law.

Hat tip to the InstaPundit.

Regards  —  Cliff

Banning Hard Drugs

For John, BLUF:  Portland, Oregon, has a major drug problem, big enough they are taking action to correct it.  Nothing to see here; just move along.

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Portland’s Cry for Safety:  The Impending Ban on Hard Drug Use

From Conservative Fix, by Ms Alexandra Russel, 10 September 2023

Here is the lede plus five:

In an era where most political issues point fingers at the current Democratic administration’s weaknesses and alleged corruption, the beautiful city of Portland shines a spotlight on a more immediate, localized concern.  Portland, once a beacon of creativity and innovation, now desperately seeks the state’s permission for a monumental move: banning hard drug use to protect public property and its citizens.

This potential decision comes after years of observing the devastating impact of unchecked drug use on public spaces, local businesses, and most importantly, its residents.  It’s an outcry for a safer environment, for a city that deserves to reclaim its lost vibrancy.

• Rising Crime Rates:  Cities that have reported higher drug use often face a subsequent rise in crime.  In fact, according to the National Institute on Drug Abuse, drug abuse and addiction cost American society over $740 billion annually in lost workplace productivity, healthcare expenses, and crime-related costs.
• Public Health Crisis:  The rampant spread of drug abuse leads to a significant strain on public health systems.  It’s reported that every day, 128 people in the United States die after overdosing on opioids – a dire reflection of the nation’s opioid crisis.
• Loss of Community Spirit:  The once-thriving community spaces in Portland are now overshadowed by drug-related activities, causing residents to avoid these areas, leading to a loss of community interaction and spirit.

As the 2024 presidential race heats up, it’s essential not to lose sight of local issues like these that affect everyday Americans.  Cities like Portland are at the heart of our nation, and their well-being directly reflects our national health.

It is a little amazing that Portland has reversed course on hard drugs, but there it is.  Conditions in the City are causing leaders to cast about for potential solutions.  I wish them well in this effort.

Hat tip to the InstaPundit.

Regards  —  Cliff