Commentary
Like me, you’ve probably been left to wonder the outcome of a story after reading an article or watching a newscast. You search for it the next day without success. Frustrating. In that vein, Bret Baier at Fox occasionally includes a feature – What ever happened to – on his evening newscast.
I plan to include a few follow up reports in this blog.
But first, I find it necessary to again criticize the Arizona Republic, a daily publication that has the audacity of referring to itself as a newspaper.
Opening my copy of the Republic in the driveway this morning, I was hit with the image shown at left. Mind you, this was about nine hours after the DBacks had lost Game 5 of the World Series. Opening the paper, a banner headline across the top of page 2 read, “DBack fans not ready to give up hope.” The Republic is hopeless.
In an effort to be relevant, they continue to be an embarrassment. If they can’t delay their press time to properly cover later news they should at least avoid the full-page coverage with a provocative headline.
Subscribers to the Republic have become accustomed to reading the words – late game – followed by the suggestion readers go to AZ Central online for results. It isn’t unusual for the coverage of an Arizona State University Saturday night game coverage to appear Monday morning. Late national, state and local news is also affected. By the time a story gets in print, it’s no longer news.
I often provide dated coverage in my blog, especially if it comes from my stack of stuff, but it’s necessary to provide you with my commentary. I don’t claim to be a “news” source, but considering my reading list, I may occasionally provide you with news of which you may not be aware.
Now to the follow ups …
Regular readers will recall my frequent accusation that executives of our auto manufacturers are weak-kneed. For years they caved to the café standard emission standards established by unelected bureaucrats in government, forcing them to design their vehicles to meet their goal.
Enter Joe Biden in 2020 with his decision to fulfill the wish of Democrat Party progressives to transition Americans to all-electric battery-operated vehicles, while torpedoing the oil and gas industry and our energy independence.
Again, weak management at Ford, GM and Stellantis abandoned free enterprise and succumbed to producing EVs, with subsidies from Uncle Sam (we taxpayers) and a promise to build an infrastructure of charging stations across the country.
Seems as though I’m not alone. Commenting on the deal with the UAW in a letter to the editor of the Wall Street Journal, Earl Miller of White Plains, New York wrote: “The auto makers are guaranteeing higher pay and benefits while being mandated to produce unprofitable products that depend on taxpayer-funded credits.
“The United Auto Workers would have represented the interests of their members better had they directed their energy and influence toward fighting the government EV mandates.
“American auto executives also have been weak, failing to resist government mandates.”
Miller went on to accuse the auto makers and the UAW of “forcing the customer and the market to take a back seat in product portfolio decisions, while the taxpayer is forced to pay for the gravy train of state-driven misallocation of capital.”
Also, sharing my view …
In another letter to the Journal, John Carlson of Boulder Colorado predicts that if bailouts come, auto company management will be on the receiving end of shaming for being “greedy” or “nearsighted,” but is quick to add “The culprit will be government policy once again trying to micromanage our economy and one of its long-standing industries,”
Follow Up and Speaker Johnson
After affirming my admiration of the new Speaker of the House Mike Johnson, I wrote on October 31, 2023 that Democrats saw him as a 2024 boogeyman. Now add loser Liz Cheney to the list of RINOs critical of Johnson, calling him “dangerous.”
I found it humorous that she cited Johnson’s support of former President Trump’s efforts to undermine the 2020 election despite knowing they were false, choosing to ignore the fact that she believed Trump was guilty of insurrection on January 6, knowing that wasn’t true.
I’ve heard that Johnson and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell are at odds over the funding process for Israel and Ukraine. He was able to get a stand-alone bill for Israel passed, but stay tuned.
A Follow Up on Wind Turbines
Having written a number of pieces about the troubles encountered with wind turbine projects, I noted that three companies – Orsted, BP and Equinor – have collectively written off $4.8 billion against U.S. offshore wind projects, according to a Wall Street Journal piece, “Wind Power Write-Downs Cast Shadows.”
A Follow the Money Follow Up
In my October 30, 2030 blog on October surprises, I included a scan of the $220,000 check to Joe Biden from the account of Sara and James Biden. A copy of another check, this one in the amount of $40,000, was included in a newly released bank records memorandum uncovered by Rep. James Comer, chairman of the House Oversight and Accountability Committee.
Here’s how the “Big Guy” got his cut. On August 8, 2017, Hunter Biden received wire in the amount of $400,000. On August 14, 2017, he wired $150,000 to James and Sara Biden. Then, on August 28, 2017, Sara Biden withdrew $50,000 from an account and deposited it in her shared personal account with James. On September 3, 2017, Sara wrote the check to Joe noting it as a “loan repayment.”
May God continue to bless the United States of America.
