The Front Page Cover
"I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened"
.
Featuring:
On Leadership and Courage
Chris Skates
.
"Know who you are standing with"
"Show me your friends and I'll show you your future"
~~~lll~~~
.
HILLY’S SCANDALS SINK IN WITH VOTERS
It was three months ago today that news broke about Hilly Clinton’s use of a secret email server. In that time we have been told that Clinton’s email practices wouldn’t hurt her chances and wouldn’t amount to more than “a bunch of people flapping they jaws about nothing.” Of the allegations that the former secretary of state did favors in office for donors and benefactors we have been told endlessly that without a “smoking gun” voters would not fault her. As for her effort to avoid the scandals by shunning the media in favor of canned events, it was “surprisingly effective.” But two new polls out today suggest that the toll is mounting for the presumptive Democratic nominee.
One from CNN and another from WaPo/ABC News show Clinton has sustained serious damage. The CNN poll shows Clinton at her lowest favorability rating since any time since 2001 and has her advantage over potential Republican rivals collapsing, most notably against Sens. Marco Rubio and Rand Paul and Gov. Scott Walker, with Walker closing the gap by 19 points since April to trail by only 3 points. And remember, this poll is of all adults not just registered voters, who tend to be less Democratic. In the same poll, Clinton was deemed honest by 42 percent of respondents, an 8-point slide since April.
The WaPo/ABC News poll has similar if less acrid findings for Clinton’s stature and this explains why: “Half of all Americans disapprove of the way she has handled questions about the Clinton Foundation, and 55 percent disapprove of how she has handled questions about her personal e-mails as secretary of state. Meanwhile, half also disapprove of the way she has dealt with questions about the attack on a U.S. diplomatic post in Benghazi, Libya, on Sept. 11, 2012…”
There’s no secret that the Clinton campaign is hoping that it can duck the questions long enough for the concerns to dissolve and stick to the scripted campaign events to prevent a gaffe that would reignite the issues. But the truth is that these attitudes will harden and deepen if they are not replaced with a new narrative. The problem for Clinton is that she can’t offer one. There are too many questions before and since her last real press conference 12 weeks ago. Rather than diminishing, the scandal grew horns with the revelations in the book “Clinton Cash.” And now we are getting ready for a congressional inquest and continued email dumps. The idea that Clinton can live in alternate universe and still be president in this one is wearing paper thin. -Fox News
It was three months ago today that news broke about Hilly Clinton’s use of a secret email server. In that time we have been told that Clinton’s email practices wouldn’t hurt her chances and wouldn’t amount to more than “a bunch of people flapping they jaws about nothing.” Of the allegations that the former secretary of state did favors in office for donors and benefactors we have been told endlessly that without a “smoking gun” voters would not fault her. As for her effort to avoid the scandals by shunning the media in favor of canned events, it was “surprisingly effective.” But two new polls out today suggest that the toll is mounting for the presumptive Democratic nominee.
One from CNN and another from WaPo/ABC News show Clinton has sustained serious damage. The CNN poll shows Clinton at her lowest favorability rating since any time since 2001 and has her advantage over potential Republican rivals collapsing, most notably against Sens. Marco Rubio and Rand Paul and Gov. Scott Walker, with Walker closing the gap by 19 points since April to trail by only 3 points. And remember, this poll is of all adults not just registered voters, who tend to be less Democratic. In the same poll, Clinton was deemed honest by 42 percent of respondents, an 8-point slide since April.
The WaPo/ABC News poll has similar if less acrid findings for Clinton’s stature and this explains why: “Half of all Americans disapprove of the way she has handled questions about the Clinton Foundation, and 55 percent disapprove of how she has handled questions about her personal e-mails as secretary of state. Meanwhile, half also disapprove of the way she has dealt with questions about the attack on a U.S. diplomatic post in Benghazi, Libya, on Sept. 11, 2012…”
There’s no secret that the Clinton campaign is hoping that it can duck the questions long enough for the concerns to dissolve and stick to the scripted campaign events to prevent a gaffe that would reignite the issues. But the truth is that these attitudes will harden and deepen if they are not replaced with a new narrative. The problem for Clinton is that she can’t offer one. There are too many questions before and since her last real press conference 12 weeks ago. Rather than diminishing, the scandal grew horns with the revelations in the book “Clinton Cash.” And now we are getting ready for a congressional inquest and continued email dumps. The idea that Clinton can live in alternate universe and still be president in this one is wearing paper thin. -Fox News
.
.
Meanwhile in the swing states… - NYT: “Hilly Rodham Clinton’s top campaign lawyer has filed a second voter-access lawsuit accusing a Republican-led state of trying to suppress the vote — this time in Wisconsin, home to Scott Walker, the governor and likely Republican 2016 presidential candidate.”
Never mind - The group Run Warren Run is throwing in the towel. The other group looking to draft Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., into the 2016 race, Ready for Warren, vows to press on despite the seeming accord reached between Warren and her party’s presumptive nominee. -Fox News
Never mind - The group Run Warren Run is throwing in the towel. The other group looking to draft Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., into the 2016 race, Ready for Warren, vows to press on despite the seeming accord reached between Warren and her party’s presumptive nominee. -Fox News
.
.
O’Malley fighting Hilly for Hispanics - WaPo:“Former Maryland governor Martin O’Malley is making a special effort to target Latino voters during the first week of his presidential campaign, appearing on the Spanish-language television channel Univision, offering interviews on immigration policy to major news outlets and speaking to the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce…Immigration is among the issues where O’Malley has sought to draw distinctions between himself and Hilly Rodham Clinton…In April, after Clinton announced her support for providing immigrants with limited driver's licenses, O’Malley said he was ‘glad she’s come around to that position now, too.’”
-Fox News
.
.
SENATE VOTES TO ADVANCE NSA BILL
The NSA effectively out of the business of bulk records collection, the Senate voted to cut off debate today on the House-passed Freedom Act, which puts phone records into the hands of telecom companies that the intelligence agency can obtain only through court order. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McCon- nell sought a voteMonday night but was thwarted by an objection by 2016 candidate Sen. Rand Paul. Paul, who has been taking heavy fire for blocking attempts to salvage the NSA program, could play a last card today by delaying a Senate final vote on the measure until Wednesday. Senate security hawks are also expected to consider amendments today to toughen up the Freedom Act. Any changes would send the bill back to the House and could ignite new opposition as well as delay restoration of now dark NSA capabilities under the Patriot Act.
[Poll: Security rules - A new CNN poll says 6 in 10 Americans back a renewal of the NSA bulk collection program, a bi-partisan sentiment according to the survey.] -Fox News
The NSA effectively out of the business of bulk records collection, the Senate voted to cut off debate today on the House-passed Freedom Act, which puts phone records into the hands of telecom companies that the intelligence agency can obtain only through court order. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McCon- nell sought a voteMonday night but was thwarted by an objection by 2016 candidate Sen. Rand Paul. Paul, who has been taking heavy fire for blocking attempts to salvage the NSA program, could play a last card today by delaying a Senate final vote on the measure until Wednesday. Senate security hawks are also expected to consider amendments today to toughen up the Freedom Act. Any changes would send the bill back to the House and could ignite new opposition as well as delay restoration of now dark NSA capabilities under the Patriot Act.
[Poll: Security rules - A new CNN poll says 6 in 10 Americans back a renewal of the NSA bulk collection program, a bi-partisan sentiment according to the survey.] -Fox News
.
.
IRS Employee Steals $326K Using Taxpayer's Identities
(foxnewsonline@foxnews.com) ~ An IRS employee who worked in the agency’s St. Louis, MO., office pled guilty this week to charges of tax fraud. Demetria Brown netted $326,000 in a fraud in which she stole taxpayer identities and created fake tax returns to steal refunds... Her plea was made the same week that IRS Commissioner John Koskinen told Congress Russian criminals were behind the hacking of the agency’s website that resulted in the identity theft of more than 100,000 individuals. Brown was able to create the fake tax returns using names, Social Security numbers and dates of births for victims without their consent. It’s not known whether the information came from IRS files. She requested refunds be direct deposited to one of six bank accounts in five different states. The scheme lasted four years from 2008 to 2001. Brown faces up to 42 years behind bars and $750,000 in fines. Sentencing is not expected for months. http://americanactionnews.com/articles/irs-employee-steals-326g-by-using-taxpayer-s-identities
.
nObama Just Got Smacked Down By George W. Bush
(Norvell Rose) ~ How many times have Barack nObama, his defenders, and apologists tried to blame George W. Bush for something that’s gone wrong?... How many times have we heard the finger-pointing excuse, “It’s George Bush’s fault?” Well, given the results of a new poll, that move in the administration’s blame game may be off the table. But from the headline CNN politics has attached to the story of the poll results — “Warming on W.: More Americans like George W. Bush than dislike” — you’d never know that President nObama has now clearly fallen behind his predecessor in terms of favorability. http://www.westernjournalism.com/what-the-american-people-just-said-about-bush-vs-obama-will-have-the-white-house-shrieking/?utm_source=MailChimp&utm_medium=email&utm_content=top-story&utm_campaign=DailyEmail06.03.15
.
Pro-Russian Separatists Launch Attack
(Nolan Peterson) ~ In the predawn hours Wednesday, pro-Russian separatist tanks and artillery bombarded Ukrainian troops in the eastern town of Marinka, spurring Ukrainian military officials and media to speculate whether a major separatist offensive, anticipated for months, had begun... “There were many casualties. Krasnohorivka and Marinka are on fire,” Ukrainian Member of Parliament and Kyiv-1 Battalion Commander Yevhen Deidei wrote on his Facebook page Wednesday. “Close combat is taking place along the front line,” he added. “The militants are going for a breakthrough.” According to the Ukrainian military, about 1,000 pro-Russian separatists launched the attack around 3 a.m. Wednesday in an attempt to encircle Ukrainian forces. http://dailysignal.com/2015/06/03/pro-russian-separatists-launch-attack-as-ukraine-braces-for-possible-offensive/?utm_source=heritagefoundation&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=dailydigest&mkt_tok=3RkMMJWWfF9wsRogu6TMZKXonjHpfsX56%2BQpWqS%2BlMI%2F0ER3fOvrPUfGjI4JS8NgI%2BSLDwEYGJlv6SgFQrLBMa1ozrgOWxU%3D
.
Pulosi rips Rubio for not being a 'good Catholic'
(Michael F. Haverluck) ~ Congresswoman Pulosi (D-Calif.) claimed to have the Bible and the Roman Catholic Church on her side last week while admonishing Senator Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) about what it means to be a good Catholic... The outspoken liberal lawmaker from America's most populous state rebuked the conservative senator from the Sunshine State for not conforming to society's Left-leaning take on a key biblical issue. "When Rubio expressed his (very Catholic) opposition to same-sex marriage, Pulosi responded by pulling out her purported superior Catholic credentials, crowing that she had grown up in a 'mainstream' Catholic family," Breitbart reported. "She expressed her belief that Rubio's opposition to same-sex marriage is 'polarizing,' which threatens 'mainstream Christian thinking.'" University of Notre Dame suggests Nancy Pulosi needs to become more familiar with orthodox Catholic beliefs on marriage before pontificating for the LGBT cause – or find herself a new church. http://www.onenewsnow.com/church/2015/06/03/pelosi-rips-rubio-for-not-being-a-good-catholic?utm_source=OneNewsNow&utm_medium=email&utm_term=16781218&utm_content=565493864984&utm_campaign=19398
.
(John Podhoret) ~ In an astonishing interview with Israel’s Channel 2, the president declared that “the best way to prevent Iran from having a nuclear weapon is a verifiable, tough agreement... “A military solution will not fix it, even if the United States participates. It would temporarily slow down an Iranian nuclear program, but it would not eliminate it.” Why is this astonishing? Because nObama is publicly eliminating any American possibility that we will bomb Iran’s nuclear sites even if the deal in which he has invested so much collapses. Despite his declaration at a Washington synagogue last week that “Iran must not, under any circumstances, be allowed to get a nuclear weapon,” the president is in fact making it very clear Iran will go nuclear, and with his implicit assent. http://nypost.com/2015/06/02/obama-just-tossed-away-his-last-card-on-irans-nukes/
.
Pentagon: Iran Continuing Work on Nuclear Systems
(Bill Gertz) ~ Iran is continuing to develop missiles capable of delivering nuclear weapons despite an interim agreement on its nuclear programs, according to a Pentagon report... “Although Iran has paused progress in some areas of its nuclear program and fulfilled its obligations under the Joint Plan of Action (JPOA), it continues to develop technological capabilities that also could be applicable to nuclear weapons, including ballistic missile development,” a one-page unclassified summary of the report says. The report was due to Congress in January but was not sent to the Armed Services Committee as required by law until this month. Analysts said the delay appeared designed to avoid upsetting Tehran and the nuclear talks. Don't upset them for cheating? What kind of deal is that? http://freebeacon.com/national-security/pentagon-iran-continuing-work-on-nuclear-systems/
.
State Depart Struggles to Answer Questions About Iranian Cheating
(Adam Kredo) ~ For the second day in a row, State Department Spokeswoman Marie Harf faced pointed questions about Iran’s growing nuclear stockpile for around 15 minutes... The questions followed strong denials by the nObama administration on Tuesday regarding a New York Times report disclosing that Iran’s stockpiles of nuclear materials had grown 20 percent during the last 18 months. Such a growth in Iran’s nuclear stockpile—which was initially discovered by United Nations inspectors—is viewed by some as a violation of an interim nuclear deal struck with Western powers in 2013. The nObama administration has repeatedly touted that deal as completely freezing the most controversial aspects of the Islamic Republic’s nuclear program. Do we really believe the answers we are getting from this administration? http://freebeacon.com/national-security/state-department-struggles-to-answer-questions-about-iranian-nuke-cheating/
.
Bill Clinton’s Swedish Secret Exposed
(Andrew Stiles) ~ Former President Bill Clinton established a separate fundraising arm of the Clinton Foundation in Sweden that was never disclosed to the State Department during his wife’s tenure as Secretary of State, the Washington Times reports... The entity, incorporated in Sweden as the William J. Clinton Foundation Insamlingsstiftelse, raised $26 million in donations at the same time the Swedish government was lobbying the State Department against tighter sanctions on Iran, on the grounds that increased restrictions would harm Swedish businesses: As the money flowed to the foundation from Sweden, Mrs. Clinton’s team in Washington declined to blacklist any Swedish firms despite warnings from career officials at the U.S. Embassy in Stockholm that Sweden was growing its economic ties with Iran and potentially undercutting Western efforts to end Tehran’s rogue nuclear program, diplomatic cables show. http://freebeacon.com/blog/bill-clintons-swedish-secret-exposed/
.
nObama Now Admits China “May Be” A TPP Signatory
(rickwells.us) ~ China having veto or dictatorial authority over the United States just came on step closer with the release of comments made by Hussein nObama on Wednesday in a public radio interview... nObama indicated that, just as Senator Jeff Sessions has been arguing in the Senate, China is a probable participant in the TPP at a point in the not too distant future. That’s the problem with a living document and a less than majority threshold required to change the deal. Chinese membership would entitle them to participate in decisions regarding the internal affairs of the United States which are now subject to the Constitution. If this “trade” deal is all it is feared to be, or even fractionally as bad as is believed, a United States that is in a subservient position to China is a very real possibility. In comments made on public radio’s “Marketplace” program, nObama disclosed that China is already sending out overtures to Treasury Secretary Jack Lew indicating an interest in joining the pact. http://rickwells.us/obama-now-admits-china-may-be-a-tpp-signatory-deciding-u-s-domestic-affairs/
.
Hilly’s “Stayed Out Of Jail, Got Four Americans Killed...
(rickwells.us) ~ The Thursday speech at Texas Southern University in Houston is drawing widespread attention and criticism of the untouchable candidate for whom answering a straight question is the equivalent of being forced into confession... Her political Miranda rights have put her safely behind a perpetual concrete barricade and no questions are allowed, per her attorney and her campaign manager. But it is the theoretical purpose of Clinton being at Texas Southern that is truly odd. Clinton is supposedly headed to South Texas to talk about “voting rights,” which means “enabling illegal voting” in Democrat-speak as she picks up an award. How is that Hilly Clinton? Other than fund raising for her foundation and pulling legal and illegal maneuvers to cover her royal pant-suited derriere, what has she done in the last year to merit an award? A prison sentence, absolutely, but an award? If you extend the considerations to include multiple years, aside from her role in losing Libya and getting four Americans killed, what did she accomplish? Are they speaking of her Senate career, really pushing the envelope, what did she achieve as a New York Senator. Yes, she was supposedly a woman during all of those times, but there are lots of women in America. The bar must be a little higher, one would think. http://rickwells.us/hillary-clintons-stayed-out-of-jail-got-four-americans-killed-destroyed-govt-documents-award/
.
On Leadership and Courage
Chris Skates
.
.
“The timid civilized world has found nothing with which to oppose the onslaught of a sudden revival of barefaced barbarity, other than concessions and smiles.”--Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn
.
(chrisskates.com) ~ A woman and boy were shot in the head yesterday in Baltimore, making this the deadliest month in Baltimore history with 38 murders; we have a President who actually espouses the potential for rational negotiations with Iranian anti-semitic zealots; and China, meanwhile, is building artificial islands in the South China Sea (a region that the US has kept open to shipping since WWII) and orders our military aircraft to leave international airspace..
When debating issues such as these with liberals, one is confronted with the same general defense: “You (the conservative) don’t understand the complexity of the issue. The issue has no clear cut right or wrong answer. It is much more nuanced than any conservative can grasp.” Poppycock.
When debating issues such as these with liberals, one is confronted with the same general defense: “You (the conservative) don’t understand the complexity of the issue. The issue has no clear cut right or wrong answer. It is much more nuanced than any conservative can grasp.” Poppycock.
.
In the final analysis, the arguments from liberals on this and many other issues require something that they themselves are not capable of…moral clarity. The positions they take are not about nuance, they are about cowardice. They are a reflection of the continued refusal by the left to see even the problem of Islamic extremism in anything resembling a realistic way. Better to pretend the problem doesn’t exist, or that appeasement isn’t appeasement, than to be forced to make courageous decisions to confront it.
In the final analysis, the arguments from liberals on this and many other issues require something that they themselves are not capable of…moral clarity. The positions they take are not about nuance, they are about cowardice. They are a reflection of the continued refusal by the left to see even the problem of Islamic extremism in anything resembling a realistic way. Better to pretend the problem doesn’t exist, or that appeasement isn’t appeasement, than to be forced to make courageous decisions to confront it.
.
The man quoted above, Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn, was a brilliant Christian writer who lived under the thumb of a different evil, Soviet Communism. He spent years in a gulag because he spoke out against that evil. In a 1978 speech to Harvard University, he warned this nation about this pattern of cowardice that he had already noticed developing in our leadership. In that same speech he also said this:
The man quoted above, Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn, was a brilliant Christian writer who lived under the thumb of a different evil, Soviet Communism. He spent years in a gulag because he spoke out against that evil. In a 1978 speech to Harvard University, he warned this nation about this pattern of cowardice that he had already noticed developing in our leadership. In that same speech he also said this:
.
“A decline in courage may be the most striking feature which an outside observer notices in the West. The Western world has lost its civil courage…Such a decline in courage is particularly noticeable among the ruling groups and the intellectual elite, causing an impression of loss of courage by the entire society.Of course there are many courageous individuals (our military and a handful in Congress) but they have no determining influence on public life...”
“A decline in courage may be the most striking feature which an outside observer notices in the West. The Western world has lost its civil courage…Such a decline in courage is particularly noticeable among the ruling groups and the intellectual elite, causing an impression of loss of courage by the entire society.Of course there are many courageous individuals (our military and a handful in Congress) but they have no determining influence on public life...”
.
How prophetic Solzhenitsyn was. At a time such as this, when the world can be said to be dangerous in more different places than at any time since WWII, we are living in a culture rife with political correctness (another term for cowardice). As a citizen I long for political leaders who demonstrate valor over expediency and who do not seek nuance within issues that are quite black and white. ISIS should have been destroyed weeks ago and Iran should have been properly dealt with thirty-five years ago. Rather than shrink our navy in the face of a grave Chinese threat to shipping, we should be building it up and modernizing it. Many of the problems facing this nation could be corrected if only they were approached with solutions that were as straightforward as the threats. We need to elect leaders who will do so…and soon.
How prophetic Solzhenitsyn was. At a time such as this, when the world can be said to be dangerous in more different places than at any time since WWII, we are living in a culture rife with political correctness (another term for cowardice). As a citizen I long for political leaders who demonstrate valor over expediency and who do not seek nuance within issues that are quite black and white. ISIS should have been destroyed weeks ago and Iran should have been properly dealt with thirty-five years ago. Rather than shrink our navy in the face of a grave Chinese threat to shipping, we should be building it up and modernizing it. Many of the problems facing this nation could be corrected if only they were approached with solutions that were as straightforward as the threats. We need to elect leaders who will do so…and soon.
.
.
('' YOUR OPINION IS IMPORTANT TO ME WHAT DO YOU THINK ? '')
Comments