Here are my observations on items in the news.
GIVE ME A BREAK – With all of the issues of concern to Americans today, three past heads of the Homeland Security – Michael Chertoff, Janet Napolitano and Jeh Johnson – wrote an open letter to Congress stating that immigration legislation to protect “dreamers” is urgently needed to avoid triggering large-scale deportation problems and disruptions in the economy.
DACA will surely be addressed by the Trump administration by the March 5, 2018 deadline as part of immigration legislation that will include a southern border wall and suspending visa lotteries and chain migration. The future of DACA will depend on the willingness of Democrats to cooperate and the full package.
MORE MANUFACTURING JOBS – Writing in RealClear Politics, Jay Timmons, CEO of the National Association of Manufacturers, said that manufacturers intend to deliver on the promise of tax reform by hiring more workers, creating more well-paying jobs, investing in their communities, and putting more money in the pockets of manufacturing workers.
SUPPORT comes from an Institute for Supply Management report showing that factory activity increased more than expected in December, a sign of strong economic momentum, adding that manufacturers were upbeat and anticipate a “ramp up” in orders during 2018.
DECLINE IN FOOD STAMP ROLLS – The number of people receiving food stamps fell by more than two million during the 2017 fiscal year, according to data released by the Agriculture Department, according to a report in the Washington Free Beacon. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue has implemented new policies intended to streamline access and efficiency in the program that ballooned under the Obama administration.
BLACK UNEMPLOYMENT, which soared to 16.8 percent under former President Obama, fell to 6.8 percent in December; the lowest rate ever recorded by the U. S. Labor Department, which has been tracking it since 1972.
YET GALLUP REPORTS that Blacks give President Trump an eight percent approval rating. What does that tell you?
THOSE WHO QUESTION PRESIDENT AS CONSERVATIVE were reminded by Victor Davis Hanson, writing in the National Review, that the Trump administration, unlike previous presidencies, has completely reversed course from his predecessor’s ideology of the left to that of a committed conservative. “Judge the ideologies by their results,” Hanson suggests.
FOR WHAT IT’S WORTH, the International Center for Journalists is taking out full-page ads in selected newspapers to tell us, “With facts competing with falsehoods as never before, ICFJ empowers reporters worldwide to product reliable coverage using new technologies and best practices.” And they ask readers, “Join us in supporting the truth tellers.”
Why does the ICFJ feel that they need to “empower reporters” to report factually? And, regarding the support of the “truth tellers” – they need to prove themselves through objective reporting, using named sources.
