Sunday, March 1, 2020

Tuesday Will Reveal A Lot. Meanwhile, Trump Remains The Democrat's Pin Cushion.
















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On Tuesday we will find out more regarding who will lead the fractured Democrat Party into possible oblivion.


Will it be Bernie who has decided he can win by losing Florida as he embraced the ghost of Castro?

Will it be Biden who has never been right about anything important since birth and who relishes telling us Trump has accomplished nothing which proves Trump is right when he says, Joe has been asleep for the past three years?

Will it be Pocahontas who trashed Bloomberg after he shot himself in his foot in his first debate appearance?

It could have been that other billionaire, who wised up after blowing 100 million, and dropped out today followed by the mayor from that small town in Indiana.

Will it be Bloomberg who still has many billions he can lose in the hope he can burnish his personality and learn to tell a joke? He still cannot grow, however.

Stay tuned.

As for Trump:  based on the economy since he became president             - big plus
                         trade negotiations                                                               - big plus
                         will what he has accomplished be reversed by a
                          subsequent president - not hardly, except for Bernie        - big plus
                          no wars have begun since he became president                - big plus

Now comes the Corona virus which Trump did not know about because the Chinese withheld the information. They actually knew when they closed the first phase of the trade deal and that could have motivated them to act. When he learned,he immediately closed certain immigration routes and was largely criticized, even called a racist again.  Turned out he was right to do so but the drum beats of hate continued.
The WSJ had an article recently contrasting Trump and Bloomberg.  Bloomberg considers himself brainier than Trump and that he would make a better president. In fact, Bloomberg believes Trump is sitting in the seat he deserves.  I suspect Bloomberg might well be brainier and even a more systematic and organized manager but he lacks charisma and ran a pitiful campaign. Meanwhile, Trump has proven common sense is, perhaps, more an attribute when it comes to being president and having a sixth sense than being so brainy.  Wilson was brainy and he was a lousy president and a liar and racist to boot.
The Democrats believe/hope the virus will be Trump's undoing and they are trying to set him up so that if it expands they can blame him because of failed leadership etc. Their hatred of the man knows no bounds even if it means dire consequences for the nation they supposedly care so much about.
In truth,Trump has proven, once again, his warning about China being  a threat to world peace/commerce has proven accurate. The fact that most of the world is dependent upon and impacted by China  in various ways has now become frightfully evident.  
America is discovering our dependence upon Chinese drug components is serious and, no doubt, we will come to discover other dependencies are critical enough to threaten our very security.  This is what we should be concerned about but the Democrats have no intent in lifting a finger that will benefit Trump even if it means helping the nation avoid a potential disaster.
China has been playing us for the fool we are and Trump was right when he did not blame them because we allowed ourselves to be snookered and it all happened on the watch of previous presidents.
As for the economy, one of Trump's strongest accomplishments, disruption of the various supply chains, restriction of world travel will have dire consequences when it comes to corporate earnings and thus one of the reasons the market is tanking. This has nothing to do with Trump.  He could not predict a virus in China  would spread throughout the world and impact/disrupt trade. He will be blamed , of course, and time will tell whether it will stick or be seen for what it is - political weaponization.
These are a few articles that demonstrate what I have been saying about orchestrated resistance:

a)

Democrats Block FISA Reform

Schiff and Nadler seem to care more about their narrative than national security. 

By Kimberley A. Strassel


Are House Democrats willing to jeopardize national security to keep alive their Trump-Russia collusion narrative? On Wednesday they abruptly canceled a markup on a bill to reauthorize three critical surveillance tools that are due to expire March 15.
To listen to the liberal media, the bill has stalled over concerns about “civil liberties.” In truth it’s the latest casualty of Democrats’ refusal to acknowledge that the Federal Bureau of Investigation abused the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court in its 2016 counterintelligence investigation of the Trump campaign.
Justice Department Inspector General Michael Horowitz laid out that appalling abuse in a 434-page December report. He documented the many ways the FBI had manipulated and duped the court in its drive to obtain surveillance warrants against former Trump campaign adviser Carter Page. Mr. Horowitz’s findings cried out for reforms, and they guaranteed that Congress’s reauthorization would become a flashpoint.
The three powers at stake in the legislation are different from the FISA listening authority the FBI used against Mr. Page. They involve the tracking of “lone wolf” terrorists, the use of “roving” wiretaps on targets who frequently change their phone numbers, and the power to obtain business records. The bill is nonetheless the first obvious vehicle by which Congress can broadly address problems the Horowitz report highlighted with the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act.
But Democrats would rather ignore the report that exposed their collusion narrative as a political dirty trick aided by a rogue FBI. Intelligence Chairman Adam Schiff in particular wants to deep-six the report, since to acknowledge it would be to admit that his infamous 2018 “memo” clearing the FBI of FISA abuse was hogwash. Mr. Schiff is so determined to ignore his fiction and the FBI’s abuse, the Intelligence Committee hasn’t held a single hearing on the biggest intelligence scandal in decades.
Mr. Schiff and Judiciary Chairman Jerrold Nadler were in fact too busy with impeachment even to hit the initial reauthorization deadline of mid-December. Instead, they extended the law’s sunset by three months and have only recently jammed together a reauthorization bill that ignores even the most basic aspects of FISA reform.
Among those, Republicans would like a requirement that an outsider—or even a panel of outsiders—be appointed to critique government applications to the FISA court in politically sensitive cases. (The Democrats’ bill would leave it to the court to decide whether to appoint an outsider, a power the court already has and routinely fails to exercise.) Republicans have also floated limiting the government’s ability to present unverified information to the court, as well as imposing penalties on government actors who willfully or recklessly mislead the court. Democrats have rejected even these obvious and modest changes.
The Schiff-Nadler plan was to ram through the bill largely on Democratic votes. But then the party’s progressive wing, led by California’s Zoe Lofgren, on Wednesday revolted against even basic reauthorization. The American Civil Liberties Union and others who sat silent through the Page outrage now complain that the three separate powers at stake violate too many civil liberties. Democratic leadership may cave to some of their demands. Leave it to Democrats to potentially produce a bill that does nothing to rein in political abuses of surveillance, even as it strips honest intelligence officers of their ability to fight terrorists.
Attorney General William Barr is trying to rescue national security from this Democratic posturing and ineptitude. In a lunch this week, he assured Senate Republicans that he will soon release a set of administrative reforms to FISA, which will address some concerns. He pointed out that the three expiring provisions were enacted in the wake of 9/11 and remain crucial to preventing further attacks on the homeland. His plea is for Republicans to grit their teeth, sign on for a “clean” reauthorization of the three powers, and kick the broader FISA-reform debate to the future. (That assumes Democrats can get their act together enough to pass even a basic bill.)
That may be the wisest course, but Republicans need to tell the story of this week far and wide. The American public expects Congress to authorize tools to guard against terrorism and to ensure that corrupt actors don’t abuse those tools for political purposes. Democrats are proving this week that they can’t do either of those basic jobs, because they are so in thrall to their debunked collusion history.

b) Opinion: Democrats Are Weaponizing the Coronavirus Against Trump
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Another insight by Salena Zito:
The fracturing of a Party By Salena Zito

PITTSBURGH — There is a battle going on here within the Allegheny County Democratic Committee, a formidable force of centrist, conservative, and liberal Democrats whose backgrounds range from union halls in the city to the businessmen and women who have spread out into the leafy suburbs that hug the city limits. 
A key figure in the battle is committeewoman Heather Kass, who is running for the state House. Several years ago, Kass's social media posts criticized Obamacare and the distribution of free Narcan for addicts — and insinuated support for President Trump. 
Fortunately for Kass, she received 49 votes from the committee to secure its endorsement. Her opponent, liberal activist Jess Benham, received just 19. 
That’s when things got interesting. Darrin Kelly, an influential local labor leader, issued a statement blasting Kass’s previous statements. The party hierarchy followed that up by saying her social media history was disqualifying. 
The fight soon unraveled in many different directions and tested a party that has comfortably come together and built a force that helped keep a Democrat as the chief executive officer for five consecutive terms and the majority of the county council seats. 
Now, accusations of disloyalty and closet Trumpism are being tossed around by the liberal wing of the party. The factions that once worked together well enough to enjoy a healthy coalition are splintering. 
Party Chairwoman Eileen Kelly held a press conference defending the endorsement process and encouraging forgiveness of Kass’s past social media posts. But in response, local elected Democrats demanded her resignation, including two of the county’s congressmen, Rep. Mike Doyle and Rep. Conor Lamb.
Click here for the full story.
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Two different campuses, same curricula. Third oldest college in America.

Dear Alumni, Friends, and Family,

For decades, Johnnies have been transferring between our St. John’s campuses in Annapolis and Santa Fe. Each place is distinctive and special, while remaining united by our common DNA: the Great Books Program. For those who haven’t had the good fortune to visit both campuses, and for prospective students considering St. John’s College, we’ve created new campus videos that strive to capture the beauty of each while honoring and elevating the power of the Program. If you like them, please consider sharing with others who may appreciate the powerful work that we do here at St. John’s.
The St. John's Journey Annapolis Video

Annapolis Campus Video

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The St. John's Journey Santa Fe Video

Santa Fe Campus Video

In Gratitude,
The Communications Team
St. John's College
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