Here are my observations and opinions on selected news of the day.
DON’T BE FOOLED – Despite the streets filled with protestors during President Trump’s visit to the UK, the British in general like President Trump. If you saw the interviews with some of the protestors you would know that they were predominately wackos.
“In reality, the vast majority of British conservatives are coming to admire Trump,” writes Henry Jacobson, a Brit, in The Federalist. “His unmistakable approach to politics – straight-talking, honest and completely fearless – is increasingly viewed with envy by British voters tired of backsliding career politicians. Brits look over the Atlantic and see a leader who actually puts his money where his mouth is – and gets results too. As for the protests themselves, they are best ignored.”
Writing from the UK, where he is working, Jacobson cautions, “To those of you back in America, ignore what you might hear elsewhere; Britain is growing ever keener on your president.”
THE ARROGANCE of Sen. Mark Warner (D-VA), who has allowed his title of ranking member of the Senate Intelligence Committee to go to his head, told CNN that he doesn’t want President Trump alone in the room with Vladimir Putin.
“Frankly, I think he will take advantage of the president,” Warner said, “We need other individuals from his administration in the room, so we know that at least someone will press the Russians on making sure they don’t interfere in future U.S. elections.”
As a friend inquired, where does this guy who barely won his 2014 election with just 49 percent of the Virginia electorate, get off insulting President Trump’s intelligence?
There were other Americans in the room when John Kerry negotiated the deal with Iran that Warner supported. We still got snookered.
UNLESS VLADIMIR PUTIN gives President Trump a full mea culpa on Russian meddling in our election and agrees to extradite the 12 Russians found guilty of hacking, don’t expect the media to give the president any credit for improving relations with him.
I FOUND IT AMUSING to see the October 2016 video clip of former President Obama, in his usual state of arrogance, ridiculing candidate Donald Trump for his remarks about the election being rigged against him; telling him to “Stop whining and go try to make his case” to win more votes than Hillary Clinton.
“I have never seen in my lifetime, or in modern political history, any presidential candidate trying to discredit the elections and the election process before votes have even taken place,” said Obama.
The video was surfaced by Fox News Channel with the announcement that 12 Russian agents were indicted for interference in the 2016 election.
In January 2017, it was announced that a number of intelligence agencies reportedly concluded that Vladimir Putin and the Russian government aspired to help Trump when possible and discrediting Clinton.
However, Friday’s indictment did not include any accusations that the Russian efforts influenced the election results, nor evidence that any of Trump’s advisors knowingly coordinated with the Russian effort.
In view of the detailed indictment that cites activities dating to 2016, it raises obvious questions regarding the Obama administration’s failure to warn targets Trump and Clinton or strongly rebuke the Russian attempt to interfere in our election process.
Of course, we now know of the attempt to rig the election by rogue FBI agents, who exhibited extreme bias against candidate Trump and President Trump while supporting the campaign of Hillary Clinton.
While admitting that he had a hatred of Trump, the now disgraced lead counter-intelligence agent of the FBI, Peter Strzok, expects us to believe that bias did not interfere with his decisions regarding the exoneration of Hillary Clinton.
LAUGH-OF-THE-DAY – While researching Obama’s advice to candidate Trump to “stop whining,” I came across a statement in The New York Times that caused me to laugh out loud.
“Many worry that if Mrs. Clinton wins and Mr. Trump refuses to accept the result, his stand will undermine her authority going into office and sow doubts about the legitimacy of the process.” Okay … it’s your turn. LOL
MY UNINFORMED NEIGHBORS – Turning to the opinion page of my morning paper, I read two letters to the editor that would normally cause me to ask ‘on what planet are they living?’ but when I see they are residents of Phoenix and Scottsdale, I can only come to the conclusion that they are simply uninformed.
Bill Hosking of Scottsdale thought it was important to write that he was 78 years old, a Vietnam veteran, that he has been married 45 years, has two daughters, two graduate degrees, he has voted in nearly every election over the past 60 years, and a 30-year career managing people before getting to the point of his letter. “I am scared of where I see my country headed.”
What, pray tell, could it be that is making Mr. Hosking so scared?
“I have never seen such divisive partisanship as I have seen in the last two years, and I am scared because I believe it is killing America that I have grown up in and defended. I am scared when I see our leader blowing asunder a mutual defense alliance that has lasted since the end of WW II,“ he exclaimed. Blowing NATO asunder? Really?
THEN THERE’S the letter from Mark Ashley of Scottsdale, who writes of his concern for the president’s lack of appreciation of NATO, and the threat of Russia’s Vladimir Putin. “I am truly sorry that you (Mr. President) do not understand that,” he wrote.
Addressing President Trump, Mr. Ashley wrote, “I am not sure that your remarks, your disdain for the alliance or your lack of understanding of its importance qualifies as a high crime or misdemeanor but it ought to rate inclusion in one of those categories.” That’s quite a stretch, Mr. Ashley.
SETTING THINGS STRAIGHT – President Trump has seen two past presidents kick the NATO “can” down the road for 16 years, listening to promises made, promises broken. All talk, no action.
President Trump certainly understands NATO’s role in securing its members from Russian intimidation at their borders.
“Trump is not trying to divide the West, unless one thinks that blunt talk among rational adults about real problems that everyone acknowledges is ‘divisive,’ explains Peter Bonicelli, who has broad foreign policy experience. “He is trying to reform thinking and strategy in a dangerous time by insisting on fixing NATO’s problems. He values NATO, but not our grandfather’s NATO.”
I wonder if Messer’s Hosking and Ashley are aware that NATO contributions have gone up since President Trump came into office with his “pay your fair share” advice. And, following his most recent meeting in Brussels, members have agreed to pay more and pay it more expeditiously.
Gone are the days of wrangling over the language of communique’s so that, above all, there would be no risk to the stability and comity of relations among the parties. Trump identifies problems and tackles them.
May God bless the United States of America.
