With Troubles Mounting for Hillary Look for Granddaughter to Appear Soon

Insecurities
Government investigators said Friday that they had discovered classified information on the private email account that Hillary Rodham Clinton used while secretary of state, stating unequivocally that those secrets never should have been stored outside of secure government computer systems. (New York Times, 7/25/2015)

No the lead story is not about a presidential candidate who broke the law. That presidential candidate is a Democrat and so the story appears buried underneath a headline in 6 point font. Lead stories about controversial things that Donald Trump says get the really big headlines.


Unclear
Campaigning in Iowa on Saturday, she was asked about the email issue. “I think there’s so much confusion around this that I understand why reporters and the public are asking questions, but the facts are pretty clear,” she told reporters, according to The Associated Press. “I did not send nor receive anything that was classified at the time.” But the two inspectors general said on Friday that the information they found was classified when it was sent and remains so. (New York Times, 7/26/2015)

So another lie.


Crier
President Obama has said repeatedly that each mass shooting cries out for stricter controls to keep mentally ill people and criminals from obtaining guns, but the issue has not resonated on the campaign trail. (New York Times, 7/25/2015)

Another idea...stop calling the mentally ill "differently-abled" and start locking them in insane asylums like we used to do. 

The Riven Heart

The Waiting
More than 57,000 patients have been waiting more than three months for medical appointments at hospitals and clinics run by the Department of Veterans Affairs, and nearly 64,000 others have been enrolled in the system for a decade but have still not been seen by doctors despite their requests, according to a nationwide audit released Monday....The audit also found that 13 percent of patient schedulers said that they had been instructed by “supervisors or others” to enter false information related to how long veterans had to wait for appointments. (New York Times, 6/10/2014)

What happens when you put Vermont's Colonel Bernie Sanders in charge of oversight.


Unfocused
Instead of focusing on making it harder for the mentally ill to get guns, maybe we should be making it harder to get guns, period. Something to consider before the next mass shooting. (Joe Nocera, New York Times, 6/2/2014)

And all those millions of guns already out there?

No, let's stick with the first option and keep the mentally ill from getting guns.


The Past
Hillary Clinton said on Tuesday there was “sexism” in Barack Obama’s 2008 presidential campaign that she and the president needed to get past. “Beginning the process of working with then-Senator Obama after I ended my campaign, we had an awkward but necessary meeting to clear the air on a couple of issues, and one of them was the sexism that - unfortunately - was present in that ‘08 campaign,” Clinton told Robin Roberts on ABC’s “Good Morning America.” (Politico.com, 6/10/2014)

Here we thought it was Republicans who were waging the "War on Women." Hillary "Inevitable" Clinton reveals for the first time that it was, in fact, Barack Obama who was the culprit. Shouldn't this be front page news?


Bemoaned
During her interview with ABC’s Diane Sawyer Monday evening, Clinton bemoaned the financial hardships she and Bill Clinton faced post-presidency. “We came out of the White House not only dead broke, but in debt. We had no money when we got there and we struggled to piece together the resources for mortgages for houses, for Chelsea’s education. You know, it was not easy,” she told Sawyer. (Freebeacon.com, 6/10/2014)

And now we finally learn the true story of why the Clintons tried to steal the White House china as they departed Washington after Bill's second term. 


Quote of the Day
When conservatives say we should rescue our POWs, they mean, “Leave a trail of dead enemies in your wake as you snatch our guy from the enemy’s clutches.” (Sonny Bunch, Freebeacon.com, 6/10/2014)

The Overhanging Sky

If it Quacks Like a Duck
The Phil Robertson controversy follows a similar pattern, indeed it is engraved in the playbook of the Gay Thought Police (GTP). Find a Christian target. It could be a politician, a celebrity, a businessman, an athlete or some other public figure. Ask them what they think about homosexuality. Then express outrage when they give you an honest answer. It has happened so many times that it is predictably boring. The difference this time is that the non-gay public, and frankly some thoughtful gay people as well, have had enough. 

We again implore everyone to adopt the RedStateVT philosophy which goes like this: 

Everyone is entitled to love who they love.
Everyone should stop talking about their sexuality. 


Conspicuous
After the Newtown killings a year ago, state legislatures across the country debated measures that would have more strictly limited the gun rights of those with mental illness. But most of the bills failed amid resistance from both the gun lobby and mental health advocates concerned about unfairly stigmatizing people. In Washington, discussion of new mental health restrictions was conspicuously absent from the federal gun control debate. (New York Times, 12/22/2013)

Because, God forbid, we do not want to stigmatize mentally ill people who may become violent.

And if the gun lobby truly did resist efforts at restricting access to gun by the mentally ill then shame on them. 


The Democrat Philosophy
Democrats Work to Raise Number of Female Governors (New York Times headline, 12/22/2013)

Here it is in eight words. 

Not let's find competent governors. Not let's find qualified governors. Not let's find experienced governors. 

No, let's find women governors. Because it is all about identity politics with Democrats. Hence, Hillary Clinton is already a front-runner. Another box to be checked. 


Repetition
Union cash helps elect politicians who then reward the unions with higher pay and benefits. The cycle repeats until taxes become destructive and spending is unaffordable. Exhibit A is Detroit. But some 38 local governments have filed for bankruptcy since 2010, "largely because of out-of-control pension costs," Mr. Bloomberg said. (Wall Street Journal, 12/20/2013)

Well stated.


Slammin' It!
MSNBC hosts David Gregory and Chris Matthews slammed the nomination of Sen. Max Baucus (D., Mont.) to Ambassador to China Friday afternoon.

Meet the Press host David Gregory characterized the choice as “curious” considering Baucus’s lack of foreign policy experience and the immense security challenges the United States faces with China. (Freebeacon.com, 12/20/2013)

And we know that Gregory and Matthews are sincere because they similarly criticized the choice of Hillary Clinton for Secretary of State. Clinton who - like Baucus - had no foreign policy experience. 

Or are we remembering that wrong?


Significance
Suzy K. Johnson, who is president of Employee Benefit Advisors, an insurance brokerage firm in North Carolina, said HealthCare.gov had been working smoothly for her clients. “The website is working, and many are getting significant subsidies,” she said. By midday, she said, her office had helped six people sign up for coverage. (New York Times, 12/24/2013)

How exciting! Many are getting "significant subsidies." 

Question: Where do these subsidies come from?
Is it from a) The Magic Government Money Machine, or b) Money collected from taxpayers?


Lesser
The president opted for a bronze plan, one of the less expensive options on the HealthCare.gov site. (New York Times, 12/24/2013)

Curious that Obama shopped price. Which frankly is what most people will be forced to do given the sky high premiums. Most people that are not having their health insurance paid for through subsidies, i.e. from taxpayers. 


Snow Job
During more than 14 hours of interviews in Russia, the former NSA contractor reflected on the roots and repercussions of his decision to go public with caches of top secret documents. By his own terms, Snowden succeeded beyond plausible ambition. The NSA now faces scrutiny it has not endured since the 1970s, or perhaps ever.

“For me, in terms of personal satisfaction, the mission’s already accomplished,” Snowden told The Post’s Barton Gellman. “I already won. As soon as the journalists were able to work, everything that I had been trying to do was validated. Because, remember, I didn’t want to change society. I wanted to give society a chance to determine if it should change itself. (Washington Post, 12/23/2013)

Hey, Snowden. You know what isn't finished? Your life sentence once you step back on American soil!

What We Know

Disarmament
Republicans armed themselves with disputed talking points from the gun lobby about how a bill to expand background checks and outlaw a national gun registry was instead tantamount to a national gun registry. Turning the dispute from gun safety to gun rights, they took to the Senate floor to denounce the compromise, even arguing with its sponsors, Senator Joe Manchin III, Democrat of West Virginia, and Patrick Toomey, Republican of Pennsylvania, two National Rifle Association-blessed lawmakers who could not contain their umbrage. Mr. Obama on Wednesday accused the gun lobby and opposition lawmakers of willfully lying about the measure. (NYT, 4/17/2013)

We'll make three points:

1) We wonder if Democrats armed themselves with "disputed talking points" from Liberal academics and the Obama administration about Obamacare.... Of course, there was no "willful lying" back then.

2) In his remarks, Obama expressed indignation that some on the other side objected to his constant parading of the Newtown parents. Here is how we see it. We are heartbroken for the loss these parents suffered. It is incalculable. Do the parents have a right to speak out? Of course they do. However, we should not reflexively pass legislation that the parents want simply because they have suffered a loss. For one thing, the parents do not speak with one voice. Some Newtown parents have come out against gun legislation. Similarly, anti-war mom Cindy Sheehan was said by some on the Left to speak with "absolute moral authority" against the war because her son had died in Iraq.  Until it was pointed out that some moms of deceased soldiers supported the war! Ann Coulter was excoriated by Liberals for her attacks on the "Jersey Girls." But Coulter's point was that the Jersey Girls had given up their status as apolitical victims of a horrible tragedy to take a political position in opposition to the Bush administration. Once they did, they were subject to the same public scrutiny as any public commentator on their motives and their political views. That's the way it works.

3) If we are beaming today, it's because we were listening to Rush Limbaugh today and heard him repeat a point from yesterday's post. Namely that the failed gun legislation would have done absolutely nothing to prevent the Newtown massacre. Does El Rushbo read RedStateVT?


Relatively
According to a Unicef report issued last week — “Child Well-Being in Rich Countries” — the United States once again ranked among the worst wealthy countries for children, coming in 26th place of 29 countries included.
...
According to the report, the United States has the second highest share of children living under the relative poverty line, defined as 50 percent of each country’s median income, and the second largest “child poverty gap” (the distance between the poverty line and the median incomes of those below the line).

The United States ranked 25th out of 29 in the percentage of people 15 to 19 years old who were enrolled in schools and colleges and 23rd in the percentage of people in that cohort not participating in either education, employment or training. (Charles M. Blow, NYT, 4/17/2013)

And yet somehow, despite the abject poverty and abysmal conditions in the U.S., people from other countries will risk everything to come to America. Amazing!

Humor columnist Blow apparently never got....er, never read the memo that notes that other countries report fraudulent data. No country wants to be at the bottom so they game the study. Liberals like Blow just love these studies because they confirm their beliefs that the U.S. is a corrupt country that can only be cured by more spending on entitlements. 

Public Struggle

Lynch Pin
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D., Nev.) scheduled a showdown vote for Wednesday, putting the linchpin of Democrats' gun-control efforts on the line even while Democrats appeared short of the votes needed to pass it. The bipartisan proposal, from Sens. Joe Manchin (D., W.Va.) and Pat Toomey (R., Pa.), would broaden background checks to all online and gun-show sales. Currently, only federally licensed dealers are required to conduct checks, which aim to screen for people with criminal and mental-health histories that make them ineligible to buy guns. (WSJ, 4/16/2013)

With respect to proposed gun legislation, the question that must be asked is this: Would this legislation have prevented the Newtown massacre? Given that the answer is no, what is the point? It is just politicians chasing their tails while pretending to be useful.

Here are some questions which might get to the heart of Newtown:

• Why did a mother use guns in an attempt to bond with her mentally ill son?
• Why were the guns not locked up?
• Why was the killer not institutionalized?
• What was the role of the violent video games found in the killer's basement on his mental health?
• Would an armed guard at the school have prevented or lessened the tragedy?

Now we are talking. 


Spiraling
Problem is, the Wal-Mart model of employment and service not only reflects but also reinforces the declining economic prospects of the majority of Americans. The nation’s largest private-sector employer has used its market power to impose its low-wage model all along its supply chain, leaving millions of Americans with no shopping option other than the kind of discount, and frustrating, experience that Wal-Mart provides. The U.S. economy that Wal-Mart has built — with plenty of help from Wall Street and the government — is in the shape of a downward spiral, and it will take all our ingenuity, and a mass movement for worker power, to free ourselves from that path. (Harold Meyerson, Washington Post, 4/16/2013)

Read an article - any article - about the ouster of J.C. Penney's CEO and the story is the same: Ron Johnson's ill-fated attempt to move the company away from the cycle of high nominal prices offset by discounts and couponing. Now along comes Liberal Op-ed writer Meyerson to set us straight. The real problem with J.C. Penney, Wal-Mart and other retailers? Not enough workers and low wages to boot! With analytical skills like this, the Washington Post had better make sure that the credit desk at Goldman Sachs doesn't recruit Meyerson away. 

We might have suggested that whatever problems retailers might be having could be tied to the sluggish economy and continuing concerns about the costs to companies of Obamacare. Who knew the answer was simply to hire more workers and pay them more? 


Bury Thee
At Ludgate Circus, close to St. Paul’s, a small group of protesters gathered, some with banners reading: “Now bury Thatcherism.” Some jeered and shouted, “good riddance.” (NYT, 4/17/2013)

Some day former President Jimmy Carter will pass. Whatever our differences with the former president, we will NOT dance on his grave. 


No Show
The official American delegation named by the White House is led by two more former secretaries of state, George P. Shultz and James A. Baker 3d. But some British Conservatives have complained that President Obama did not send a senior serving member of his administration. (NYT, 4/17/2013)

First, he returned the Churchill bust and then he snubs Thatcher. This is how Obama treats our stalwart ally.


Rank and File
Anthony D. Weiner has not yet said whether he will run for mayor of New York. But he already ranks among the leading Democratic candidates in the race, trailing only one other contender, Christine C. Quinn, in a poll of voters released on Tuesday. (NYT, 4/17/2013)

Run Weiner, Run!

Another Unpublished Op-Ed!

Amendment by Amendment

On January 16 President Obama, acting on recommendations made by a task force overseen by Vice President Biden, implemented a number of measures aimed at curbing gun violence in the aftermath of the Newtown shootings.  As the New York Times reported:

Mr. Obama’s plan included 4 major legislative proposals and 23 executive actions that he initiated on his own authority to bolster enforcement of existing laws, improve the nation’s database used for background checks and otherwise make it harder for criminals and people with mental illness to get guns.

Which should lead Americans to ask: who is heading the task force to examine the role of violence in movies on society and when will those recommendations be ready?

While politicians debate the ideal capacity of a gun magazine or the relative merits of a flash suppressor, let’s consider for just a moment what impressionable young adults might be exposed to; a group which likely also includes mentally unstable individuals such as Jared Loughner, age 24; James Holmes, age 24; and Adam Lanza, age 20.

One does not have to look very long or hard to find descriptions likely to unsettle the average parent or community mental health professional.  First up, a movie called “The ABCs of Death” (yes, the title is not encouraging):

A sickened moviegoer is just one reaction the director Jason Eisner (“Hobo With a Shotgun”) witnessed in response to “L Is for Libido,” a segment of “The ABCs of Death” a new anthology of 26 horror shorts, each centered around a different letter of the alphabet and depicting death in grotesque, comic, erotic and head-scratching ways. Among other things, the unsettled patron never got to see Mr. Eisner’s “Y Is for Youngbuck,” about a boy who assumes the spirit of a deer and goes on a revenge spree against a pedophile. (New York Times, January 25, 2013)

Head-scratching yes, but something else also. Revolting, perhaps? Vile, maybe? How about gratuitous or unnecessary?

Next we learn about new films being showcased at the Sundance Film Festival where we are told Hollywood’s finest go to be seen and to look for the next edgy auteur:

Movies about a New Jersey pornography addict, an abused adult film star, a lesbian housewife-turned-prostitute and a British smut kingpin all generated strong offers from distributors at this year's Sundance Film Festival, proving once again—if it needed to be proven—that sex sells. (Wall Street Journal, January 25, 2013)

Question if you will the conflation of sex with violence here, but understand two things. First, our teenagers are watching these films. One shudders to consider what the episodic equivalent of Newtown might be in society when it comes to the effects on our young of the portrayals of sexual depravity in movies. Second, there are more than enough examples that speak to the issue of violence alone.  If one side of the argument seeks limits on the gun manufacturers and their customers, does it not seem fair to at least question the film distributors and their “strong offers” and other enablers of entertainment violence? 

Quentin Tarantino, widely admired in Hollywood, reacted recently with outraged indignation at an interviewer’s question about violence in his new film “Django Unchained” described by the Wall Street Journal as “ferociously violent, ludicrously lurid…”  Which begs the question of how direct a line needs to be drawn between mental illness, movie violence and school massacres? What discussion would we be having if Adam Lanza had a movie stub for “Django Unchained” (or “The ABCs of Death”) in his pocket and perpetrated his horrific deed with a knife or a bomb and not a gun?

So notwithstanding a Second Amendment that speaks to the right to bear arms we have a spirited debate in this country about very specific details of gun ownership. Fine, let’s have that discussion. The country will be better for it. We also have a First Amendment that speaks to the right of free speech. Should we have a discussion about that as well?

Lest anyone think for a moment that the films discussed above are in any way not representative of the product that Hollywood produces, the following description is of Tom Cruise’s latest movie “Jack Reacher” which opened on December 21st:

…“Jack Reacher” brings its hero to Pittsburgh, where a sniper has just shot down five innocent people, including a nanny accompanying a small child, in broad daylight. (New York Times, December 20, 2013)

Another Hollywood stalwart, Sylvester Stallone has a new movie opening on February 1st. 

It is called “Bullet to the Head.” 

The massacre at Newtown occurred December 14th, less than 50 days ago.