Primary Elections Expose the Candidates

For John, BLUF:   Pres Trumo benefits from the list of those who hate him

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Trump celebrates Florida loss of ‘treasonous creep’

From The Hill, by, MAX REGO - August 19 2926, 1:05 PM.

Here is the lede plus to:

President Trump on Wednesday celebrated the loss of Alex Vindman in the Senate Democratic primary in Florida. 

“The most gratifying loss last night was that of a real treasonous creep, Alexander Vindman, to a Radical Left Lunatic, who can’t speak or think properly,” Trump wrote on Truth Social, referring to Florida state Rep. Angie Nixon (D), who defeated Vindman by more than 12 points on Tuesday."

Ms Nixon, a member of the Democratic Socialists of America, defeated LTC Vindman despite a significant fundraising disadvantage. As of July 29, Ms Nixon’s campaign had less than $265,000 on hand, while LTC Vindman’s had more than $7.2 million, according to the Federal Election Commission..

>> Maybe the reason I like Pres Trump is the range of people who hate him.

Regards  —  Cliff

The Debt and Good Will

For John, BLUF:  The Debt Clock is incresing every minute.  It cant go on.  Nothing to see here; just move along.

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Mew, mew, mew!

Here is the sub-headline:

Evangelical Christians Bad!

From The Bugscuffle Gazette, by Ian, 3 November 2025.

Here is the lede plus one:

I know better than to check social media first thing in the morning.

The first thing that popped up on my feed was a long-winded whinge about field hospitals in Myanmar being closed due to cuts in US aid. The whinger then goes on to opine at length about how Evangelical Christians are responsible because they put Orange Man Bad into office, and they’re just big hypocritical meanies who are hypocritical. And mean.

Setting aside the fact that — boy, howdy — am I not an Evangelical Christian, I’d like to gently drive a single point home:

The United States of America is $38,111,295,151,230 in debt.

We can't sustain that kind of spending without consequences.

When that debt collapses — and it will — the consequences will be catastrophic and global. Closing field hospitals in Myanmar may be bad, but it doesn’t touch the hem of the garment of Bad that will land on the world when the U.S. has to default on its debt.

If we had bothered to vote into office politicans who were financially literate and fiscally responsible there’s a chance we could keep funding field hospitals in Myanmar — but, instead, we voted into office parasites who burned through pallets of cash at a rate that caused drunken sailors to exclaim, “Hold on, now.”

The current US debt is 38 trillion dollars. It will pass 40 trillion dollars in the next calendar year.

This. Is. Unsustainable.

I have been told that all we have to do it print more money and as lonng as people have faith in the doller it can continue for ever.  except the interest cost is at $960 Billion, and growing.  If we pay for the interest by printing moore money, then it will begin to speed up.  The thing is, all that printed money is backed by bonds issued by the US Government.  What happens when people and institutions stop buying those bonds?  Default and global pain.

Hat tip to the InstaPundit.

Regards  —  Cliff

v

City Life Show on Short Hiatus

For John, BLUF:  The Producer of City Life Show, and its leadin, The Dawn Patrol, is on a one week break, but the discussion goes on.  Nothing to see here; just move along.

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Last Time we Said it. This Time it's True.

Here is the sub-headline:

Je Suis Charlie Isn't Just a Slogan Anymore

From The Conservative Historian, by Blogger JIM MCCOY, 13 September 2025.

Here is the lede:

Once upon a time, I sat in a classroom at Wayne State University and, having listened to a faculty member scream offended and threaten to have me expelled because I wouldn’t kiss her ass, told her that the only way to silence me would be to kill me. I meant it then. I mean it now. If standing up for what I believe in costs me my life then know that I am content to have died in service to a good cause and that, given the chance, I’d do it again.

But, not everyone is sensitive to the events of last week.

1. First we had the horrid murder of Ukrainian Refugee Iryna Zarutska, on August 22, 2025, on the Lynx Blue Line in Charlotte, North Carolina, by a mentally unstable career criminal.
2. Then, the next day, we had the assassination of Turning Poit USA Head, Charlie Kirk, by , it ppears, Mr Tyler Robinson, who was arrested peacefully.
3. Then we had the outpouring of vile comments following the Assassination, from Office Depot, to social media, to classrooms and the media.

Mr Robert Sterling on X wrote a long piece on this last ooint, which started:.

My liberal friends are completely oblivious about how radicalizing the last week has been for tens of millions of normal Americans. Zero clue. I’m not talking about people who are “online”; I mean regular, everyday Americans. “Normies.” People who scroll through Facebook posts and Instagram reels from the Dutch Bros drive thru line. Political moderates who have water cooler chats about Mahomes touchdowns and Bon Jovi concerts, not Twitter threads or Rachel Maddow monologues. Millions of them. Tens of millions. They’re logging on, they’re engaging, and they’re furious. And I’ll be candid: They blame you guys. They blame the left. Regardless of whether you believe it to be justified, they think you’re the bad guys here. And they are reacting accordingly.

Let us emulate Charlie Kirk and engage in respectful debate.  Let us not resort to comparing our fellow citizens to the worst of our opponents (or Allies) in WWII.

Hat tip to the InstaPundit.

Regards  —  Cliff

Naming the Problem

For John, BLUF:  In the process of writing about how we are mischaracterizing racism in these United States, Blogger Sarah Hoyt touches on how we have misnamed some serious problems, by grouping them under the name homelessness.  Nothing to see here; just move along.

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Telling The Truth

From ACCORDING TO HOYT, by Writer Sarah Hoyt, 9 September 2025.

Here are the key paragraphs:

We need to have the courage to teach the truth to the young.

You know other truths we need to teach to the young? The “homeless” or “unhoused” aren’t in fact normal human beings in need of a house. The names are a lie.

Naming them that, pretending that, just points at the wrong problem and calls for the wrong action.

Yes there are a lot of people in the US who can’t afford a place to live, or are in trouble house wise, because times are hard right now, particularly for the young.

BUT–

But that doesn’t mean that people who have any skills/ability to navigate the normal world are living on the streets. Oh, there will be some: orphans without friends exist. But they’re rarer than hen’s teeth.

Most people on the street are mental health tragedies, and/or criminal and/or willfull mooches, or some combinations of all three.

And I’m torn on this, because mental health is a slippery thing, but on the other hand there’s such a thing as an obvious danger to himself and others.

Different people see different aspects of what we call homelessness.  What we call Homelessness includes people who are mentally ill, who are drug addicts,♠ who suffer from other substance abuse, and who are legitimately without housing.  There is no "one size fits all" in a situation like this.  We need a new aaproach, and perhaps the best approach would be to drop homelessness and adopt "continuum of care" for all such effortts. .

For sure, what we are doing now is not working well.

Hat tip to the InstaPundit.

Regards  —  Cliff

♠  For example, Lowell Resident David Prestipino has been posting videos, appear before the City Council and appearing on City Life Show to talk about drug addiction and its pernicious imipacts..

The Undocumented

For John, BLUF:  We have an immigration system, given us by Congress but the Biden Administrationo decided to bypass Federal Rules, and it has been a disaster.  Nothing to see here; just move along.

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Boston whistleblower warns of migrant crime spillover as Trump’s crackdown looms

Here is the sub-headline:

“The Healey hotels were well known for having sex trafficking, domestic violence,' said Fetherston, 'Now, you've opened it up to all of the cities and towns'

From Fox News, by Reporter Peter Pinedo, 30 August 2025, 9:00 am EDT

Here is the lede plus two:

As Democratic leaders in Massachusetts triple down on resistance against federal intervention to clamp down on crime, a migrant shelter whistleblower is sounding the alarm about an increase in crime in neighborhoods across the state and especially in Boston.

Jon Fetherston, who ran one of the state-funded migrant shelters in Marlborough, Massachusetts, and blew the whistle about rampant crime and sex abuse taking place in the hotel shelter system. He now says that since Democratic Gov. Maura Healey closed down the shelter system, there has been an uptick in domestic violence, sex trafficking, shoplifting and even auto accidents.

"The Healey hotels were well known for having sex trafficking, domestic violence. We've reported cases of rape, unfortunately, in there," Fetherston said. "Now, you've opened it up to all of the cities and towns in Massachusetts."

Mr Fetherston further elaborates:

"Governor Healey wants you to think she just snaps her fingers and closes all of the hotels and then disperses people into the communities that the thousand incidents that were reported back in 2024, and the state has refused to release the data for 2025, she just thinks that those serious instances aren't going to happen in the communities that now she's forced people into."

Yes, in the past, we have had immigrants who have formed criminal gangs.  However, the vast majority have come to peacefully build lives based on freedom and family.  This recent wave of undocumented immigrnts, thank you President Biden, seem to be more on the criminal side than the peaceful side.  This makes it harder for them to be accepted by the rest of us.

In the mean time, Democrts seem to want us to just accept these undocumented immigrants as though they had put in the hard work legal immigrants have.  Thanks to the US Congress, legal immigrants have to follow an ardous path to become legal residents and then citizens.  What lesson do the undocumented draw, aside from the partisan disaster on Capitol Hill?

Hat tip to my Friend Randy Gweleman, who recommends i move down South, "while you still have a chance!!"

Regards  —  Cliff

v

Being Safe between Home and School

For John, BLUF:  Young men and women are reacting to confronting criminals on the streets.  Nothing to see here; just move along.

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Teen Girls Defend Themselves

From @Rightanglenews, by Right Angle News Network, 25 Aug 2025, 9:34 AM.

Here is the Text to accompny the video in the text:

BREAKING - Police have arrested and charged a 14-year-old girl after she was forced to brandish a knife to defend herself and her friend against a migrant who attempted to assault her near St Ann’s Lane in Dundee, Scotland.

It is a sign that the local Government is fialing the Citizens when young teen girls are going around armed to protect themselves from predators.

It is no surprise that Member of Parliament Nigel Fargage's UK Independence Partyparty is getting attention in Great Britian.  Labour and the Conservative Parties should pay attention

Hat tip to the InstaPundit.

Regards  —  Cliff

v

End of Bombing in Cambodia

For John, BLUF:  History may be boring, but it is important.  Nothing to see here; just move along.

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1973 – Vietnam War: The USAF bombing of Cambodia ends.

From Wikipedia.

Here is the extract:

August 15 – The U.S. bombing of Cambodia ends, officially halting 12 years of combat activity in Southeast Asia according to the Case–Church Amendment-an act that prohibits military operations in Laos, Cambodia, and North and South Vietnam as a follow-up of the Paris Peace Accords.

This is just a very small note on the last USAF mission into Cambocia.

In August of 1973 I was the Wing Commander's back seater in the F-4E, at Korat RTAFB (Royal Thai Air Force Base).  I had the position because I was an Instructor Pilot and Flight Examiner.  Five years laterr I again worked for Colonel Robert Crouch, although several layers down in the NATO Air Headquarters in Naples, Italy (AIRSOUTH).

It was public knowledge that our efforts in support of the Cambodian Military was coming to an end.  The US Congress had voted to quit.  I decided that there would be press present and I further decided that I would not wish to be interviewed.  I didn't expect I would have nice things to say.

So, I took leave and flew back to be with my family in Fort Walton Beach, Florida.  Sitting in our Florida Room I watch Colonel Crouch on TV News, nding the last official flight, taxing into his parking spot and deplaning, alonog with Major Paul Schwimm, who was his back seater for the day.  That was my war [termination] protest.

In researching this blog post I came across a New York Times article from 16 August 1973, "No Champagne or Cheers as Last Plane Comes In From Cambodia;" which said the last to land from Cambodia was Captain Lonnie 0. Ratley, an A-7 Pilot.  I knew Lon Rstley, from Ramstein Air Base, in Germany.  He was a Suadron Commander in the 86th Tactical Fighter Wing.

Retired in Lowell, MA, every week I run into Refugees from Cambodia, or their children.  My State Rep is a Cambodian Refugee.  I know a couple of City Councillors, including our Vice Mayor, who are Cambodian Refugees.  Sometimes I apologize for our failure in our support of the Cambodian Army, which led to the Cambodian Genocide.

UPDATED.

Regards  —  Cliff

Whom to Trust?

For John, BLUF:  Question everything.  Tear and compare.  Trust few, unless they have proven themselves worthy of trust.  Nothing to see here; just move along.

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Meet the Leakers!  Russiagate Was More Incestuous Than You Could Believe

From PJ Media, by Columnist Stephen Green, 13 August 2025, 11:20 AM.

Here is the lede plus four:

Many years ago, Bill Whittle gave me the sharpest definition you might ever read for the proper role of journalism in a healthy republic:  "They're the antibodies of the body politic." But we do not live in a healthy republic — and journalists too often are part of the cancer we're trying to eliminate.

Case in point:  So-called journalists who, instead of investigating Russiagate claims, performed as marionettes for the Obama-era intelligence community, determined to rig and then undo a presidential election.

And now we have at least two names.

I'll get to those in just a moment, but first, this important reminder.

At the center of the Obama White House’s fabricated Russia collusion narrative is Sen. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) — currently under investigation by the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Maryland for mortgage fraud.

The two are Reorter Ellen Nakashima, of The Washington Post, and Reporter Michael Schmidt, of The New York Times.

Then there is this:

John Solomon and Jerry Dunleavy reported late on Tuesday that "Columbia University law professor Daniel Richman admitted to [FBI] agents in interviews he routinely communicated on behalf of [then-FBI director James] Comey, his longtime friend, with Times reporter Michael Schmidt, whose work was among the newspaper's 2018 Pulitzer-winning stories on Russian election interference."

Pulitzer-winning fake news — good grief.

The sad part of this, for me, is that a Pulitzer Prize was awarded and likely won't be revoked.  Just as Reporter Walter Duranty's Pulizer for what turned out to be the Holodomor, was never revoked.

I am counting on the Press to aim for the target and to come close.  For them to be a partisan hack is not only very disappointing, but is bad for our Republic.

Hat tip to the InstaPundit.

Regards  —  Cliff

Let's Not Be Brazil

For John, BLUF:  Ms Tulsi Gabbard has uncovered corrupt action by a orevious Administratio.  We need ro takeaction, to send a signal, while avoiding actions where former presidents or recent Candidates are pursued in a way that appears political  Nothing to see here; just move along.

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Gabbard Refers Barack Obama for Criminal Investigation Over Russiagate Scandal

From PJ Media, by Columnist Matt Margolis, 23 JULY 2025, at 3:22 PM.

Here is the lede plus three:

Barack Obama has long pretended that he had no hand in the Russia collusion hoax, but that narrative is crumbling fast. Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard has just declassified a trove of explosive documents that reveal the Obama administration’s direct role in fabricating the January 2017 Intelligence Community Assessment (ICA) — the cornerstone of the bogus claim that Donald Trump was a Russian asset.

One key piece of evidence is a 2020 House Intelligence Committee report that flatly states that there was no Russian cyber interference connected ato Trump’s win. Despite that, Obama demanded a rushed intelligence assessment in the final weeks of 2016, deliberately designed to push the false claim that Vladimir Putin helped install Trump. The goal? To sabotage the incoming president before he was even sworn in.

According to the documents, Obama and his top advisers — working hand in glove with Hillary Clinton’s campaign and their loyal media allies — staged a coordinated, calculated effort to weaponize U.S. intelligence for political warfare. What began as a smear campaign has now turned into something much bigger.

On Wednesday, Gabbard confirmed during a White House press briefing that her office has officially referred Obama to the Department of Justice for criminal investigation over his leading role in the conspiracy.

I like and respect DNI Tulsi Gabbard.  Her actions to reveal criminal actions during the RussiaGate activities is fundamental to restoring order to our politics.  That saud, I think Attorney Geenerral Pam Bonfi should use some discretion in who is prosecuted.  In particular, we should avoid legal action against presidents andmajor contenders.♠ 

Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro< is an example of a high ranking politician being harrassed by the opposition in office.  We should avoid that king of thing strongly.  It could destroy our Republic.

Hat tip to the InstaPundit.

Regards  —  Cliff

♠  In the election of 1920, Eugene V. Debs, the Socialist Party presidential candidate, polled nearly a million votes without ever hitting the campaign trail.&  Candidate Debs was in the federal penitentiary in Atlanta, Georgia, serving a 10-year sentence for sedition. It was a not a bum rap. Debs had defiantly disobeyed a law he deemed unjust, (Under President Wilson's Sedition Act of 1918.

Let the Little Children Come to Me

For John, BLUF:  Jesus reaches out to the little ones.

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By Evelyn Virginia Krieger.

Regards  —  Cliff

The Forth of July as seen by a 17 year old

For John, BLUF: I'm proud to be a Catholic American! (: .

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What Does The Church Say About Patriotism? (Morning Air)

From Relevant Radio, by Mr. Moralies, 3 July 2025.

Here is the lede plus one: Here is a quote from the Catholic Catechism:

"The love and service of one's country follow from the duty of gratitude and belong to the order of charity."

.

.

It is importent that as young people we understand that we are not given things becouse we desere them, but because somone before us loved us, even though they never knew us and died for a county they would no longer get to live in.  Graditude is severly lacking in our culture because people have forgotten what it means to need something. I'm not talking about needing the next new iphone or car or a better house, but really NEEDING somthing like the freedom to pray, to sell your goods at a price that you set, without the crushing weight of taxes sucking the life out of you. 

Freedom is not the government helping us when we need help, but stepping out of the way so that others might come to our aid. it is incredible what human beings will do when left to their own devises with the government there only was a light guideline for their our actions. 

So the 4th of July, I belive is not the only day to remember The United States of America, but simply one in which we remeber it in a special way.  We have to live out our graditude because it belongs to the order of charity, that is, love, and if we can't love our county how can we look into the eyes of the One who gave it to us and say we love Him. 

Regards  —  Cliff's granddaughter

v

Impeach President Trump!

For John, BLUF:  Calls for Impeachment make Democrats appear unhinged, or at least badly disoriented  But, bring it on.  Maybe it would give a boost to the Big Beautiful Bill.  Nothing to see here; just move along.

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Ocasio-Cortez says Iran bombing is grounds for Trump impeachment

From The Hill, by Reporter Mychael Schnell, 21 June 2025, 11:33 PM ET.

Here is the lede plus four:

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) on Saturday night said President Trump’s decision to strike three of Iran’s nuclear sites is grounds for impeachment, becoming one of the first elected Democrats to back the constitutional punishment after the attack in the Middle East.

Trump announced Sunday night that the U.S. executed a “spectacular military success” in Iran, striking three nuclear facilities — including Fordow, which is hidden deep in a mountain south of Tehran. He warned that the U.S. would order additional strikes if Iran does not come to the table to negotiate a peace agreement.

While several House Democrats slammed Trump’s strike as unconstitutional, Ocasio-Cortez was one of a select few to go a step further and categorize the move as impeachable.

“The President’s disastrous decision to bomb Iran without authorization is a grave violation of the Constitution and Congressional War Powers,” Ocasio-Cortez wrote in a post on the social platform X. “He has impulsively risked launching a war that may ensnare us for generations. It is absolutely and clearly grounds for impeachment.”

Article 1 of the Constitution gives Congress the authority to “declare war,” one of the largest powers held by the legislative branch. In the past, however, presidents of both parties have struck adversaries militarily without approval from Congress.

Aside from the fact that Democratic Presidents before President Trump have set precedent for this koind of act withuot prior conosultation with Congress, there is the question of if this Operation could have been pulled off if it had been briefed to a Congress that leaks like a seive.

The other side of this issue is a successful impeachment with a Senate Conviction would end up with a new President.  I would be very sad to see President Trump go, given his efforts to meet the desires of those who elected him back in November.  On the other hand, JD Vance would be a great President and Usha Vance a great First Lady.

Before we contemplate such an upheavel, we need to ask what are the odds Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer could gather the required two-thirds of Senators present to vote for Conviction (that would be 67 with a full Senate of 53 Republicans and 47 Democrats)?  Slim to none.

Regards  —  Cliff

Senator Chuck Schumer Confirms SCOTUS Ruling by His Dissent

For John, BLUF:  Senator Schumer and his clique, blow hot and cold on the Federal Judiciary, including the US Supreme Court.  Nothing to see here; just move along.

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Schumer:  ‘Disgraceful’ Trump immunity decision will ‘weaken’ democracy

From The Hill, by Reporter Alexander Bolton, 1 Jult 2024, 12:43 PM ET.

Here is the lede plus three:

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) slammed the Supreme Court’s “disgraceful” decision Monday to shield former President Trump’s official acts from prosecution, which will delay his trial on Jan. 6-related charges.

Schumer warned the 6-3 decision “enables the former President to weaken our democracy by breaking the law.”

“This is a sad day for America and a sad day for our democracy. The very basis of our judicial system is that no one is above the law. Treason or incitement of insurrection should not be considered a core constitutional power afforded to a president,” he said.

Schumer also warned that the Supreme Court has undermined its credibility, echoing the criticisms of other Senate Democrats who have accused conservative justices on the court of becoming partisan players.

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumr (D-NY) has a history of opposing rulings of the US Supreme Court, even threatennig Justices..

I use Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer as a sort of bellweather.  If he is against it, it must be good.

I wonder if Senator Schumer has even read the US Supreme Court decision, TRUMP v. UNITED STATES, which is 111 pages, with dissents.  The decision itself, written by Chief Justice John Robers, is 43 pages.

Probably not.  Too much work.

Regards  —  Cliff

Great Performance

For John, BLUF:  Peacetime practice leads to great operational execution.  Nothing to see here; just move along.

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Lloyd Austin gave us Kabul.

@PeteHegseth gave us Fordow, Natanz, and Isfahan.

From 𝕏, by Captain Ed.

Here is the Tweet:

Ed Morrissey
@EdMorrissey

Consider the opsec in place, along with the rapid marshaling of assets to the region and the expert logistics demonstrated in this mission ... and tell me if anyone will be arguing that @SecDef is some kind of amateur in over his head after today.
x.com/MaryMargOlohan…

Past performance is not indicative of future results.  But, it gives hope.

I think this performance may be due to what I call Middle Leadership Syndrome.$nbsp; This is where middle level leadership thinks they could have done a better job than the "political" military leadership under which they have served in the past.  Thus, there is strong motivation to provide an excellent military performance, rather than some politically correct outcome.

Hat tip to the InstaPundit.

Regards  —  Cliff

History Flag Day

For John, BLUF:  History is the good and the bad and how it merges.

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Building Inspector Shoots Up Republicans

From The Redheaded libertarian, 14 Jun 2025, 12:10 AM

Here is the Tweet:

June 14, 2017, BernieBro James Hodgkinson opened fire on Congressmen, Senators, staff & police at their baseball practice. Steve Scalise was shot. This was a textbook act of domestic terrorism, but the feds would deem it “suicide by cop” before sweeping it under the rug.

I had forgotten, just like they wanted me to.

Today is the 250th Anniversary of the founding of the US Army, Flag Day,♠  President Trump's Birthday, and the Anniversary of the shooting of the Republican Congressional Vbaseball Team.

Hat tip to the InstaPundit, who notes:

AND TODAY BERNIE IS CALLING FOR INSURRECTION:

Regards  —  Cliff

♠  Remember when Nike was going to recognize Betsy Ross ?  Then they pulled the shoes because someoone sho doesn't believe in political evolution objected.

Happy Birthday, US Army

For John, BLUF:  Presidents come and go, but th US Army continues to serve.  Nothing to see here; just move along.

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Soldiers in uniforms from different time periods have taken over the streets of Washington, DC ahead of tomorrow’s parade—it’s like history coming to life!

From I Meme Therefore I Am, 13 June 2025.

I know some are asserting that this is about President Trumpo's birthday, on the same day as the birthday of the US Army.  It may be the same day, but this is about the Army.  It is about Duty, Honor, Country.

Some are participating in demonstrations, some under the name No Kings Day.  This is sad.  Can't we all come together for a clebratory birthday party, and leave "No Kings Day" for the Foueth of July.

Here is ATF head Randi Weingarten:

“On Saturday, folks across the country will join in peaceful, nonviolent action to affirm that in America, power belongs to the people,” Weingarten posted on X, sharing a link to information about the protests. “We’re coming together to lift up what matters most: strong public schools, thriving communities & opportunity for all.”

Frankly, she should spend the weekend working on strong public schools, not on spending taxpayer dollars to demonstrate against those who voted for President Donald Trump back in November.

And Senator Bernie Sanders:

I want to applaud all the patriots who will be participating, as I will, in No King rallies across the country.

Really?

Is this just more of Democrats throwing a temper tantrum over Donald Trump winning in November and then trying to execute the platform he ran on?

Thank you, US Army.

Regards  —  Cliff

Is John Wilkes Booth an example for Democrats?

For John, BLUF:  As we look back over the Biden Administration we see treason justified as patriotism.

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Biden's Prostate Cancer and the Tyranny of the Experts

Here is the sub-headline:

Ezekiel Emanuel is an opponent of long life. So why did he back someone so old for president?

From The Wall Strret Journal, by Reporter Allysia Finley, 25 May 2025 3:53 pm ET

And, The InstaPundit, 27 May 2025, 10:43 pm.

Margot Cleveland
@ProfMJCleveland

Same reason judges are entering orders against Trump even though they lack jurisdiction.

Rep. James Comer

@RepJamesComer
🚨 Longtime aide to former President Joe Biden admitted that White House staff felt justified doing “undemocratic things” during his term in office because they believed President Donald Trump posed an existential threat to American democracy.
https://dailycaller.com/2025/05/25/biden-aide-admits-staff-undemocratic-trump-threat-democracy/

i am combing the InstaPundit Blog Post and the Wall Street Journal article reference.  It all comes down to hating Donald Trump.

This is about Trump. No lie is too big when it comes to beating DJT.  In the minds of some Democrats, keeping JRB available was critical to saving the United States from Trump.  We are talking real TDS.  Rather than seeing that the first four years showing that Trump could function like a President, these folks doubled down on the Second Coming of Hitler.

These are people who would commit treason in the name of patriotism.  They are like John Wilkes Booth, who shouted Sic semper tyrannis (Thus Always to Tyrants), as he shot President Lincoln.  In the end Mr Booth helped slow the needed healing of this nation by almost a hundred years.

These days we have former FBI Director James Comey posting a photo of shells arranged to say 8647.  Some say it doesn't really mean that, but what was the man thinking?   They are out there.

Hat tip to the InstaPundit.

Regards  —  Cliff

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Memorial Day

For John, BLUF:  Another Memorial Day, but our duty continues.

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Memorial Day

Which Used to be known as Decoration Day

Because this was the day we used to decorate the graves of Civil War Veterans.

On this day, especially, I mourn those I have know who were lost, including two roommates who were subsequently killed. One was Alan Trent, from Conneticut, my Freshman Year Roommate at the Air Force Academy. Subsequently he died flying a Close Air Support mission in South Viet-nam.  The other was my Pilot Training roommate, Aado Kommandant, from Estonia originally, who dies on his first mission out of Cam Rahn Bay, in 1966.

For almost 59 years I have been married to an Air Force widow, and have raised her two original children as my own.  He dies on a training sortie while on day 179 of a 90 day deployment to Okinawa to provide air defense while the original F-102s were deployed to Southeast Asia, for the same purpose.  His plan was never found and he was designated as missing and presumed dead.

I never met Robert Harlan, but I subsequently served with some of his friends, includin Greg Smith, Waynr Bechler and John Brennan.  I believe adopting his children gave me a special responsibility to a fellow comrade, who I never met.  But, all of us alive owe some debit to those who gave their last full measure of devotion to our Nation.

Regards  —  Cliff

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Robbing Peter to Pay Paul

For John, BLUF:  There is no free lunch, even when the Feds are paying.

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Trump’s budget threatens Mass. English learner, college transition programs

From The Boston Globe, by Reporters Christopher Huffaker and Marcela Rodrigues, 14 May 2025, 11:11 a.m

Here is the lede plus six:

NEW BEDFORD — Students at Alfred J. Gomes Elementary School didn’t hesitate when teacher Natalia Gioni asked them to sing along.

“Somos como las flores, necesitamos la lluvia y el sol,” the first-graders sang as they learned what plants need to grow and survive. Water, sunlight, and air, they told Gioni in Spanish.

As bilingualism is celebrated at the New Bedford school, superintendent Andrew O‘Leary is concerned President Trump’s proposed budget for 2026 would eliminate federal funding that supports English language acquisition programs.

The $890 million cut nationwide would translate to the loss of three or four staff members in New Bedford, where the district receives about half a million dollars for these programs.

“It would be the federal government turning its back on the community,” O‘Leary said.

Similar scenes are playing out across the state as school districts, higher education institutions, and education advocates grapple with the potential impact of billions in cuts proposed for federal funding streams ranging from schooling for migrant farmworkers and their children to programs that help high school students from disadvantaged backgrounds transition to college.

The president’s proposed budget is a wish list of sorts and is unlikely to be implemented as written. However, it emphasizes the priorities of the administration and reflects other federal actions already underway, such as the cutting in half of the Education Department workforce. Congress ultimately sets the budget, often via stopgap spending bills in recent years, but Republicans control the legislature and tend to be closely aligned with the president’s priorities.

My first question is why, with a 14 May dateline, this is the lead story in today's (Monday, 26 May) EMail of Boston Globe Hearlines?

My next question is why Massachusetts, and New Bedford, are looking for the taxpayers in Fort Yukon, Alaska, to pay for this effort.  If it is important, why not raises taxes locally (SALT) and fund it locally?

Are Citizens not aware that we have a National Debt of $36.898 Trillion.  That has come about because the People, and the elected folks in Congress, think we can spend into debt without consequences.  We can't.

We should also acknowledge that if our Commonwealth Labor Force Participation Rate was higher than 62.3, we could do more.  If we had more people working we would have more tax coming in to the towns aand the Commonwealth.  Is our Labor Force Participation Rate where it is because we lack jobs, or because we have created structural disincentives to work.  I suspect the second.

Regards  —  Cliff

The Parties, Viewed From Midtown Manhattan

For John, BLUF:  It doesn't appear that Democrats have settled on why Trump won and it it is just him.

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How Donald Trump Has Remade America’s Political Landscape

From The Old Gray Lady, by Political Correspondent Shane Goldmacher, 24 May 2025

Here is the lede plus two:

Donald J. Trump’s victory in 2024 was not an outlier.

It was the culmination of continuous gains by Republicans in much of the country each time he has run for president, a sea of red that amounts to a flashing warning sign for a Democratic Party out of power and hoping for a comeback.

The steady march to the right at the county level reveals not just the extent of the nation’s transformation in the Trump era but also the degree to which the United States now resembles two countries charging in opposite directions.

Then follows a series of charts showing the demographics and voting patterns of the various counties in these United States.  And analysis.

The article says:

Democrats are gaining ground in a small sliver of the best-educated enclaves.

Doesn't that tell you more about the elite universities than it does about America?

Chris Kofinis, a Democratic strategist who served as chief of staff to former Senator Joe Manchin of West Virginia, who left the party last year, is quoted, warning that such optimism was misplaced.

“Trump is the symptom, not the disease,”

And President Trump really echoes this when he says, "They aren't after me. They are after you. I am just in the way."

Some Democrats have taken comfort from how narrowly Mr. Trump won the popular vote in 2024

But, he did win the Popular Vote as well as the Electoral College.

I can remember when Democrats thought Republicans would never win the popular vote again, and tried to undermine the Constitution with some sort of workaround pact (National Popular VoteI nterstate Compact), which some in Maine are now trying to back out of.

Could it be Dems are just to old?  That is David Hogg's view.  Bernie, Pelosi, Biden, Coburn, etc.  Maybe Chuck Schumer? (Only 74).

Hat tip to my Brother, Lance.

Regards  —  Cliff