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SECOND SUBSCRIPTION DRIVE – 2015 – HELP!

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SEPTEMBER 13,  2015

SHORT TAKES ON THE DRIFTING WRECKAGE – AT 11:52 P.M. ET:

MAJOR LAW-ENFORCEMENT NEWS – From the New York Daily News:   A popular trail in Colorado remains closed because people are too selfie-ish.  Waterton Canyon, a Denver park, was closed on Aug. 28 after more bears and their cubs began foraging the woods. After more than two weeks, the park still hasn't re-opened, because too many people are trying to take selfies with the wild beasts.  "We've actually seen people using selfie sticks to try and get as close to the bears as possible, sometimes within 10 feet of wild bears," said Brandon Ransom, Denver Water's manager of recreation. Before it was closed, a bear chased a biker in the canyon.  Selfies with bears.  Not a good idea.  Especially if the bear won't give you a model release.

CAUGHT AGAIN – It's the integrity thing again with Hillary Clinton.  From the Washington Free Beacon:   CNN’s State of the Union panel laughed Sunday after host Jake Tapper showed clips of Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton claiming to one campaign audience that she was a solid progressive and to another that she was a centrist.  “I take a backseat to no one when you look at my record in standing up and fighting for progressive values,” Clinton said July 3 in New Hampshire. Then, Wednesday in Columbus, Ohio, she said, “You know, I get accused of being kind of moderate and center. I plead guilty.”  It's all about what she can gain, how she can benefit from a public appearance.  The public doesn't count at all.  How pathetic.

NEW HAMPSHIRE SHOCKER – From Today.yougov.com:  Hillary Clinton’s deficit among likely Democratic primary voters in New Hampshire has grown to more than 20 points, while her lead over Bernie Sanders among likely caucus voters in Iowa has been reversed, according to the first wave of the YouGov/CBS News 2016 Battleground Tracker. Clinton remains ahead in South Carolina, where Joe Biden also makes a strong showing.  Clinton hopes to build a Southern firewall consisting mostly of African-American voters.  But there are already signs that she's in political trouble in Florida.  If she were much younger, she might be able to overcome her problems.  But there appears to be a growing perception among Democrats, especially young Democrats, that her time has passed.  We sense no "wanting" of Hillary.

September 13, 2015       Permalink

THE BIDEN FACTOR – AT 11:59 A.M. ET:  Democrats are surprisingly divided over whether Joe Biden, their sitting vice president, should enter the race for president.  Biden has run twice before, with very poor results.  He's had a family tragedy this year that clearly has, understandably, set him back.  From The Hill: 

House Democrats are torn on the question of whether Joe Biden should seek the White House in 2016.

The vice president lost his eldest son, Beau, to brain cancer this year, and the tragedy is clearly feeding concerns that the strains of a demanding campaign would be too heavy to bear.

But Biden is ruling nothing out, and his recent travels and media appearances –– combined with the struggles facing Democratic frontrunner Hillary Clinton –– have only fueled speculation that he's ready to enter the contest and grab the baton if Clinton falters.

Some Capitol Hill Democrats are pushing him to do just that.

"I've encouraged him to get in," Rep. John Carney (D-Del.) said Friday. "We love Joe in Delaware, and I think he would add a lot to the race. He's real; he relates to middle-class values; [and] he’s fought for [them] all his political career."

Carney was quick to acknowledge "the tremendous personal burden" facing Biden and his family in the wake of Beau's death, emphasizing that "whatever he decides to do, I'm with him 100 percent."

But he also said Biden has the drive to make the transition from deep trauma to mounting a winning campaign.

"He's said publicly that he's concerned whether he's got the emotional energy to do it. I think he does," Carney said.

"If he would just go out there and be himself, it'd be refreshing in the primary campaign."

COMMENT:  Lurking in the background, though, are real concerns about Biden's policy judgment.  His career is not filled with distinguished moments or great insights.  As we've noted here before, he even opposed the bin Laden raid. 

He'll be given credit for the dignified way in which he's handled tragedy, but I'm not sure the American people will be very enthusiastic about a third term for Obama's policies.

September 13, 2015       Permalink

ANOTHER WARNING – AT 11:46 A.M. ET:  I'm confused.  Didn't Field Marshal of the United States Barack Obama tell us that the war on terror was over?  I'm sure I heard it.  Maybe he was misinformed.  From Reuters:

Al-Qaida leader Ayman al-Zawahri called on young Muslim men in the United States and other Western countries to carry out attacks inside there and urged greater unity between militants.

"I call on all Muslims who can harm the countries of the crusader coalition not to hesitate. We must now focus on moving the war to the heart of the homes and cities of the crusader West and specifically America," he said in an audio recording posted online on Sunday, referring to nations making up the Western-led coalition in Iraq and Syria.

He suggested Muslim youth in the West take the Tsarnaev and Kouachi brothers, who carried out the Boston marathon bombings and Charlie Hebdo shootings in Paris respectively, and others as examples to follow.

It was not clear when the recording was made but references to former Taliban leader Mullah Mohamed Omar as being alive suggest it is at least two months old. Omar's death was announced by Afghanistan's government in late July.

Zawahri reiterated his position on Islamic State, repeating what he said in a recording posted on Wednesday - that he viewed the group's claim to be a caliphate as illegitimate but would join them in fighting Western and secular forces in Iraq and Syria.

COMMENT:  Terror is very much with us, and the threat may well have grown since 9-11.  Obama flashes weakness.  Bin Laden said that, in the Mideast, it's the strong horse that people follow.  We're now the weak horse.

September 13, 2015       Permalink

CALIFORNIA DREAMIN' – AT 11:07 A.M. ET:  This is the first Republican poll I've seen from California.  It's true there are only six Republicans left in California, but they're cooperative in polls. From The Hill:

Billionaire Donald Trump leads the crowded 2016 Republican presidential field in California, according to a poll released Sunday morning.

The USC Dornsife/LA Times Poll found that 24 percent of Republicans said they would support Trump.

Retired pediatric neurosurgeon Ben Carson is in second place with 18 percent.

Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush and Sen. Ted Cruz (Texas) each received 6 percent support.

Pollsters found that Carson would beat Trump in a head-to-head matchup, however, 43 percent to 32 percent.

"More than half of the Republican primary voters who have chosen a candidate are supporting someone who has never held elected office," Dan Schnur, director of the USC Dornsife/Los Angeles Times Poll and director of the Unruh Institute of Politics of USC, said.

"Sheer anger toward Washington is handily defeating ideology in the Republican primary," he added.

COMMENT:  Yes it is.  But please note that, although Trump is technically ahead, he almost loses to Dr. Carson in person-to-person matchups.  That's key because the Republican field will narrow as more and more candidates make no gains in polling and see their finances dry up.  I believe that, at the end of the campaign, there'll be real competition for the top spot, and that Trump will have a hard time winning.

September 13,  2015     Permalink

SEPTEMBER 12,  2015

SHORT TAKES ON THE DRIFTING WRECKAGE – AT 11:58 P.M. ET: 

WINTER READING – From WaPo:  The company that managed Hillary Rodham Clinton’s private e-mail server said it has “no knowledge of the server being wiped,” the strongest indication to date that tens of thousands of e-mails that Clinton has said were deleted could be recovered.  Clinton and her advisers have said for months that she deleted her personal correspondence from her time as secretary of state, creating the impression that 31,000 e-mails were gone forever.  This just won't go away.  It could consume Hillary in the same way that Watergate consumed Richard Nixon.  To get the nomination Hillary has to get the e-mail investigation off her back, and be vindicated.  The clock may not allow that. 

THIS IS PURE GARBAGE – From USA Today:   Poorer nations suffering from extreme weather disasters, so much so that their citizens are seeking refuge in safer terrains outside their borders, want rich nations like the United States to pay for reparations and to relocate populations.  Preparatory talks ahead of the United Nations Conference on Climate Change to be held in Paris in December has representatives from developing nations asking for more than an already agreed upon $100 billion per year for climate change mitigation measures. They want additional compensation for weather-related disasters as well as a "displacement coordination facility" for refugees. And they want all this to be legally binding as part of the larger anticipated Paris accord.  The U.S. and wealthier nations in the European Union are balking.  This is what the climate-change racket is really about.  Money.  And if the "poor nations" get their money?  Nothing will change, but the bank accounts of their leaders will grow.  Some day I'd like to see journalists ask the leaders of "poor nations" why their countries are poor.  You'll hear the greatest fiction since Shakespeare.

TALK ABOUT BEING DELUSIONAL – From Breitbart:  David Brock, top attack dog at progressive site Media Matters, is unleashing an attack on a surprising target.  In a forthcoming book titled, “Killing the Messenger: The Right-Wing Plot to Derail Hillary Clinton and Hijack Your Government,” Brock alleges the NY Times is out to get Hillary Clinton....according to Brock, the NY Times has become a “megaphone for conservative propaganda.”   Yup, that's what he said.  The Times is conservative.  And Queen Elizabeth is really Bruce Jenner.  Brock was, at one time, a right-wing attack dog.  Now he's barking for the left.  Why is he even taken seriously?

September 12, 2015       Permalink 

GOING, GOING... – AT 12:41 P.M. ET:   Is there any good news for Hillary Clinton?  From Reuters:

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders is gaining fast on front-runner Hillary Clinton in the Democratic presidential race and has moved within single digits of her for the first time, a Reuters/Ipsos opinion poll showed on Friday.

Clinton leads Sanders nationally among Democrats by eight percentage points, 39 percent to 31 percent, her smallest cushion since the nominating battle began for the November 2016 election. She led Sanders by 20 percentage points in the online poll a week ago. (Reuters/Ipsos poll: http://bit.ly/1L6Tpwu)

Clinton's support among Democrats has steadily eroded for weeks amid questions about her use of a private email server while she was secretary of state. Her support was at 45 percent one week ago.

Assuming the poll is accurate, Hillary has now dropped to under 40%.  That is dangerous territory.

Clinton apologized for the email practice earlier this week, but the controversy has helped knock her support among Democrats to its lowest level since Reuters/Ipsos began polling on the 2016 election almost three years ago.

Sanders has galvanized the party's left-leaning activists and primary voters and taken advantage of what other polls show are Clinton's declining ratings on honesty and trustworthiness to surge into contention. He was at 25 percent support in the rolling, five-day Reuters/Ipsos poll a week ago.

Other public opinion polls show Sanders moving into the lead or tied with Clinton in Iowa and New Hampshire, the states that kick off the nominating contest.

Clinton's troubles also have given rise to a possible late entry from Vice President Joe Biden, who says he is evaluating whether he and his family have the energy and commitment for a presidential race after the recent death of his son Beau.

Biden is in third place at 16 percent in the Reuters/Ipsos poll, about where he was a week ago.

COMMENT:  It's distinctly possible that Hillary won't be the Dem nominee, but I stress that we have almost a year to go before the nominating conventions.  She has plenty of time to try to right the ship.

Also, the alternatives won't necessarily ignite voters.  There is a great deal of sympathy for Joe Biden.  He's a decent man.  But very few people think of him as a president.  This is a man who's been wrong on almost everything in foreign policy, from opposing the Reagan defense buildup to opposing the bin Laden raid.  He is also given to gaffes and to irrational flashes of temper. 

Bernie?  People love Bernie, the way they love a cocker spaniel.  I mean, he's warm and cuddly, like your favorite uncle.  But Bernie's a socialist, and I don't think this nation is going there.  This morning, in South Carolina, Bernie was introduced by Cornel West, a certified African-American nutjob.  Bernie is promising to "reform" the criminal-justice system. 

Lizzy Warren?  Never tested nationally.  An old scold with, I think, very limited appeal outside Massachusetts.  Has credibility problems on her claim to represent "the little people."  As a lawyer she's made millions, and it wasn't by representing the guy down the block.

I've cautioned readers before not to gloat over Hillary's possible demise.  I'm no fan of hers, as you know.  But on the critical issue of national defense, she's the only candidate on the Dem side who comes close to what we can accept.  She's recently started to speak like a centrist, perhaps realizing that the true left will never be for her.  I want a Republican in the White House.  But if it has to be a Democrat, and I dread the thought, I'd much prefer Hillary the scandal maiden to Bernie the socialist or Joe the appeaser.  It was once a great party.

September 12, 2015       Permalink

UNBELIEVABLE – AT 11:16 A.M. ET:  After the Labour Party took a drubbing in last year's British elections, it was advised that it had gone too far to the left, and had to moderate.  So what has Labour now done?  It has gone even farther to the left by electing an anti-American, anti-Western alliance, anti-Israel, anti-free enterprise extremist, the most extreme leader Labour has had in decades.  From The New York Times: 

LONDON - Britain’s opposition Labour Party on Saturday took a remarkable leftward turn, electing as its leader Jeremy Corbyn, a longtime socialist committed to nationalizing key industries, scrapping Britain’s nuclear missile system and reversing the centrist policies of previous leaders such as Tony Blair.

The result of the contest, announced on Saturday morning in London, gave stewardship of the Labour party to the hard left for the first time in more than three decades, a development seen here as one of the most surprising upsets in modern British politics.

As Europe continues to feel the aftershocks of the financial crisis of 2008, voters have been increasingly attracted to the political extremes, with support growing both for socialist parties on the left and nationalist ones on the right. The Labour leadership result could now shift the main opposition party in Britain closer to the types of positions taken by other leftist parties that have become prominent across Europe, including Syriza in Greece and Podemos in Spain.

Mr. Corbyn, 66, has been a lawmaker for more than three decades but never served in government, preferring to campaign, often for unfashionable causes, and frequently rebelling against the party line.

He only made it into the contest at the last minute, gaining the 35 nominations he needed from fellow lawmakers, thanks to the support of some colleagues who did not support him but thought he should take part.

Yet his program, which includes nationalizing energy and rail companies, printing money to boost the economy and scrapping Britain’s Trident nuclear missile system, has struck a chord with many activists and new, often young supporters.

They must have taken seriously the left-wing education they get in Britain's universities.

... in Washington there may be unease over the main British opposition party’s being led by a fierce critic of American foreign policy — one who, without endorsing their actions, has described Hamas and Hezbollah as “friends.”

COMMENT:  He has also hung out with Holocaust deniers, although he himself has never taken that position.  But we tend to judge people by the company they keep.

It's unlikely this flake will ever be prime minister, but his election to the leadership of Labour is an ominous sign of what is being taught in British schools and preached in Britain's left-wing journalistic establishment.  We hope Corbyn's election leads to another devastating loss for Labour.  We also hope that many decent members will leave the party and perhaps form a new one.

September 12, 2015       Permalink

OH, I'M SURE THIS IS JUST AN INNOCENT THING – AT 10:50 A.M. ET:  Isn't it amazing how this showed up just after Obama got his nuclear deal with Iran through Congress.  From Reuters:

DUBAI (Reuters) - Iran has discovered an unexpectedly high reserve of uranium and will soon begin extracting the radioactive element at a new mine, the head of Iran's Atomic Energy Organisation said on Saturday.

The comments cast doubt on previous assessments from some Western analysts who said the country had a low supply and would sooner or later would need to import uranium, the raw material needed for its nuclear program.

Gee.  Aren't these "assessments" made by the same people who will be watching over Iran's nuclear program?  And, you know, those Japanese guys wear thick glasses and could never attack Pearl Harbor.

Any indication Iran could become more self-sufficient will be closely watched by world powers, which reached a landmark deal with Tehran in July over its program. They had feared the nuclear activities were aimed at acquiring the capability to produce atomic weapons - something denied by Tehran.

"I cannot announce (the level of) Iran's uranium mine reserves. The important thing is that before aerial prospecting for uranium ores we were not too optimistic, but the new discoveries have made us confident about our reserves," Iranian nuclear chief Ali Akbar Salehi was quoted as saying by state news agency IRNA.

Oh, I'm sure.  Just a coincidental discovery.

Salehi said uranium exploration had covered almost two-thirds of Iran and would be complete in the next four years.

Uranium can be used for civilian power production and scientific purposes, but is also a key ingredient in nuclear weapons.

The July deal between Iran and world powers will lift international sanctions on Iran in exchange for at least a decade of curbs on the country's nuclear activity.

After decades of efforts, Iran - which has consistently said its program is for peaceful purposes - has achieved a full nuclear fuel cycle, ranging from the extraction of uranium ore to enrichment and production of fuel rods for nuclear reactors.

COMMENT:  And now we've been getting reports, as readers know, about the rigging of intelligence reports in Washington to make things look better for the administration.

Nothing to see, nothing to see.

September 12,  2015     Permalink