Of all the voices being raised against the specter of mob rule in this country, few carry more weight than that of Steve Scalise.
That’s because Scalise, a Republican congressman from Louisiana, knows first-hand what happens when violent words turn into violent action.
In June 2017, he was shot and seriously wounded by a man named James Hodgkinson, who turned up at a practice session for a charity baseball game in Washington, D.C.—and started shooting as players practiced in Alexandria, Virginia. Scalise wound up in intensive care, underwent multiple surgeries, and even had to relearn how to walk.
And all because Hodgkinson, a Bernie Sanders supporter described by his own lawyer as “a very irascible, angry little man,” was so furious over the election of President Donald Trump that he moved to the D.C. area to protest.
Well, I think we can all agree that there’s a huge gap between the all-American tradition of protesting and the criminal activity of trying to maim or murder those you disagree with.
At least I hope we can agree on that. After all, when you have Eric Holder, President Barack Obama’s attorney general, caught on tape telling his political teammates, “When they go low, we kick them,” you have to wonder.
Especially when Holder’s advice follows viral videos of Brett Kavanaugh protesters ambushing lawmakers in hallways and elevators and being verbally abusive, not to mention accosting others in restaurants and even at their homes.
You’d think that the Scalise shooting would have made everyone wary of ratcheting up the rhetoric too much. And sure, some did speak up against it—at least a little bit. Sanders said he was “sickened by this despicable act,” and Michelle Obama has famously said, “When they go low, we go high.”
Even Holder felt pressured to walk back his advice as something not meant to be taken literally.
But these calls for civility have been far too few in number. And as the fight over Kavanaugh proved, they obviously haven’t made much of an impression.
Indeed, many on the left have made a point in recent weeks of denouncing calls for civility. In angry posts on Facebook, Twitter, and elsewhere, they insist that this is nothing more than an attempt to muzzle them.
Faced with a president who is alleged to be a monster, they claim they have no choice—that they must resort to profane rhetoric and physical confrontation. That those who support the president will have “no peace.”
As Rep. Maxine Waters, California Democrat, put it: “If you see anybody from [the Trump administration] in a restaurant, in a department store, at a gasoline station, you get out and you create a crowd! Tell them they’re not welcome anymore, anywhere!”
Well, there’s another name for angry crowds: Mobs.
The left doesn’t like the “m word,” but that doesn’t change the fact that it’s accurate. And when you keep demonizing your opponents, no matter how justified you may think it is, don’t be surprised when—having let the genie out of the bottle—things get ugly.
Just ask Scalise. “I’m concerned that you are seeing an increase of this,” he said recently. “I’d like to see the mainstream media asking both Republican and Democratic leaders to stand up against this kind of rhetoric, this kind of violence.”
That, he adds, is why “we’ve got to keep shining a light on this, to make it clear that this isn’t what politics is about in America. It’s not what the founding of our country was about. It was about freedom of speech, freedom of expression. Not violence against anybody.”
Contrast that with Hillary Clinton, who recently said, “You cannot be civil with a political party that wants to destroy what you stand for, what you care about.” And what would she suggest instead? Oh, “civility can start again,” she says—once her party is back in power.
Such threats are unconscionable. Those who support such a belligerent agenda don’t deserve the reins of power. It’s un-American. And it’s wrong.
Edwin J. Feulner’s 36 years of leadership as president of The Heritage Foundation transformed the think tank from a small policy shop into America’s powerhouse of conservative ideas. Read his research. Twitter: @EdFeulner.
The Daily Signal depends on the support of readers like you. Donate now
EDITORS NOTE: This column with images is republished with permission. Photo: Yuri Gripas/Reuters/Newscom.
https://drrichswier.com/wp-content/uploads/EricHolderKickem-1250x650-e1540289460604.jpg394640The Daily Signalhttp://drrich.wpengine.com/wp-content/uploads/logo_264x69.pngThe Daily Signal2018-10-23 06:12:382018-10-23 06:13:17The Calls for Violence Must Be Denounced
Multiple news outlets are reporting on a Department of Health and Human Services definition of gender that has “a biological basis that is clear, grounded in science, objective and administrable.” This definition is logical, true, biologically correct and politically incorrect to some.
A series of decisions by the Obama administration loosened the legal concept of gender in federal programs, including in education and health care, recognizing gender largely as an individual’s choice and not determined by the sex assigned at birth. The policy prompted fights over bathrooms, dormitories, single-sex programs and other arenas where gender was once seen as a simple concept. Conservatives, especially evangelical Christians, were incensed.
Now the Department of Health and Human Services is spearheading an effort to establish a legal definition of sex under Title IX, the federal civil rights law that bans gender discrimination in education programs that receive government financial assistance, according to a memo obtained by The New York Times.
[ … ]
The new definition would essentially eradicate federal recognition of the estimated 1.4 million Americans who have opted to recognize themselves — surgically or otherwise — as a gender other than the one they were born into.
[ … ]
Several agencies have withdrawn Obama-era policies that recognized gender identity in schools, prisons and homeless shelters. The administration even tried to remove questions about gender identity from a 2020 census survey and a national survey of elderly citizens.
House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi desperately hopes Democrats will retake control of Congress next month, and dropped multiple hints this week to the delight of liberals and alarm of conservatives about what they’ll do if that happens.
“We owe the American people to be there for them, for their financial security, respecting the dignity and worth of every person in our country,” the former House Speaker said Sunday during an event hosted by 92nd Street Y. “And if there is some collateral damage for some others who do not share our view, well, so be it, but it shouldn’t be our original purpose.”
[ … ]
“It isn’t in our ‘For The People’ agenda because it doesn’t get that specific, but there’s one more because it’s personal for me that I really want to do, and it’s called the Equality Act,” the Democrat leader said, according to the Washington Blade. “The Equality Act expands ending discrimination against LGBTQ people and women and adding that to the Civil Rights Act.”
Pelosi spokesman Drew Hammill later confirmed that his boss considers the bill a “top priority,” which would be introduced “early in the year” if Democrats retake the House of Representatives.
https://drrichswier.com/wp-content/uploads/scott-broome-736022-unsplash-e1540203330436.jpg371640Dr. Rich Swierhttp://drrich.wpengine.com/wp-content/uploads/logo_264x69.pngDr. Rich Swier2018-10-22 06:29:432018-10-23 06:04:51HHS Definition of Gender: ‘A biological basis that is clear, grounded in science, objective and administrable.’
Click on the image to read the FAIR Report “Sanctuary Jurisdictions Nearly Double Since President Trump Promised to Enforce Our Immigration Laws”
You may be surprised to know that Florida has doubled to 15 Sanctuary Jurisdictions. These 15 Sanctuary Jurisdictions are*:
Alachua County
Bradford County
Broward County
Flagler County
Gulf County
Highlands County
Key West
Leon County (home of Socialist Mayor Andrew Gillum of Tallahassee and Gubernatorial candidate)
Palm Beach County (county where Allen West lost his House race by close margin due to voter fraud)
Seminole County
St. Lucie County
St. Petersburg
Volusia County
Washington County
West Palm Beach
At the federal, state, and local levels, taxpayers shell out approximately $134.9 billion to cover the costs incurred by the presence of more than 12.5 million illegal aliens, and about 4.2 million citizen children of illegal aliens. That amounts to a tax burden of approximately $8,075 per illegal alien family member and a total of $115,894,597,664. The total cost of illegal immigration to U.S. taxpayers is both staggering and crippling. In 2013, FAIR estimated the total cost to be approximately $113 billion. So, in under four years, the cost has risen nearly $3 billion. This is a disturbing and unsustainable trend. The sections below will break down and further explain these numbers at the federal, state, and local levels.
A new map posted by HowMuch.net breaks down the economic toll of illegal immigrants state by state:
Here are the ten states most heavily weighed by the cost of illegal immigration:
1. California – $23,038,125,353
2. Texas – $10,994,614,550
3. New York – $7,489,141,357 4. Florida – $6,290,429,108
5. New Jersey – $4,466,838,574
6. Illinois – $3,220,767,517
7. Georgia – $2,487,719,503
8. North Carolina – $2,437,965,113
9. Maryland – $2,378,996,947
10. Arizona – $2,314,131,964
This is totally unacceptable and must be changed prior to the 2020 elections.
Ron DeSantis has pledged to end all sanctuary jurisdictions in FL when he becomes Governor – let’s get out the vote and make sure he does become Governor and then hold him accountable to deliver on this promise. Conversely, his opponent, Socialist Andrew Gillum is running on a promise to make all of Florida a Sanctuary State – we can’t have this folks.
https://drrichswier.com/wp-content/uploads/markus-spiske-1090172-unsplash-e1540151652297.jpg382640Royal A. Brown IIIhttp://drrich.wpengine.com/wp-content/uploads/logo_264x69.pngRoyal A. Brown III2018-10-21 15:54:372019-01-06 17:17:43DANGER: 15 Sanctuary Jurisdictions in Florida for Illegal Immigrants — Cost is $6,290,429,108 Annually
Why has the media and much of the political establishment made the presumed murder of an Islamist Saudi dissident on Turkish soil a defining issue in American foreign policy?
Jamal Khashoggi is not a U.S. citizen, despite his past residence in Virginia, nor is he a lover of liberty, despite his criticism of Saudi Arabia’s despotic regime. He previously served that regime as a mouthpiece for, and adviser to, the alleged al-Qaeda-tied Saudi intelligence leader Turki bin Faisal. Khashoggi mourned the death of Osama bin Laden, whom Khashoggi had been granted unusual levels of access for numerous interviews. Khashoggi was also an ardent proponent of political Islam and the Muslim Brotherhood.
Needless to say, one wonders why Khashoggi was permitted to enter the United States and handed a column at The Washington Post given this background, particularly at a time our media claims acute sensitivity to foreign influence. One also wonders why so many in the media are quick to fawn over such a figure given his regressive views.
In high school, Jamal Khashoggi had a good friend. His name was Osama bin Laden.
“We were hoping to establish an Islamic state anywhere,” Khashoggi reminisced about their time together in the Muslim Brotherhood. “We believed that the first one would lead to another, and that would have a domino effect which could reverse the history of mankind.”
The friendship endured with Jamal Khashoggi following Osama bin Laden to Afghanistan. Khashoggi credited Adel Batterjee, listed at one time as one of “the world’s foremost terrorist financiers” by the Treasury Department, with bringing him to Afghanistan to report on the fighting.
The media calls Khashoggi a journalist, but his writings from 80s Afghanistan read as Jihadist propaganda with titles like, “Arab Mujahadeen in Afghanistan II: Exemplifies the Unity of Islamic Ummah”.
And when Osama bin Laden set up Al Qaeda, he called Khashoggi with the details.
After Afghanistan, Jamal Khashoggi went to work as a media adviser for former Saudi intel boss, Prince Turki bin Faisal, alleged to have links to Al Qaeda. Those allegations came from, among others, Zacarias Moussaoui, the alleged twentieth hijacker.
When the other 19 hijackers perpetrated the attacks of September 11, Khashoggi wrote that the Saudis would not “give in” to American “demands” for “unconditional condemnation” and “total cooperation”.
Greenfield asks this compelling question: The media wants the Saudis to answer questions about Jamal Khashoggi. But maybe the media should be forced to answer why the Washington Post was working with a Muslim Brotherhood propagandist?
https://drrichswier.com/wp-content/uploads/washington-post-logo-2.jpg360640Dr. Rich Swierhttp://drrich.wpengine.com/wp-content/uploads/logo_264x69.pngDr. Rich Swier2018-10-21 07:28:012018-10-21 07:30:24Did the Washington Post Have a ‘Muslim Brotherhood Propagandist’ on its Payroll?
Campus Reform’s Cabot Phillips traveled to Texas A&M University to ask students there who they would vote for in the Texas Senate race if the election were held that day: Sen. Ted Cruz or Beto O’Rourke.
Most of the students with whom Phillips spoke said they would support O’Rourke, but those same students could not point to any of the Democrat’s specific accomplishments.
With midterm elections right around the corner, people around the country are turning their eyes to high stakes races in states like Florida, West Virginia, and Nevada.
Perhaps no race, though, has garnered more outside media attention than that of the Texas Senate election between incumbent Republican Senator Ted Cruz and Democrat Rep. Beto O’Rourke.
“I honestly couldn’t point to anything. I’m not as educated as I would like to be.”
While Cruz leads in most polls, O’Rourke has a decided lead amongst Millennials and college students.
Supporters of Sen. Cruz have claimed that though O’Rourke possesses plenty of smooth rhetoric, he lacks in substance and qualifications.
Wanting to see if O’Rourke’s supporters could detail accomplishments of the Texas Congressman, Campus Reform‘s Cabot Phillips headed to Texas A&M to ask his supporters a simple question: Can you name an accomplishment of his?
The answer was a resounding no.
“Umm, I’m not aware of any specific accomplishments,” one student said, while another admitted, “I honestly couldn’t point to anything. I’m not as educated as I would like to be.”
When asked why O’Rourke is polling better with young people than Cruz, one student said, “I think he resonates with young people because we are more aware.”
What did other students have to say? Watch the full video:
EDITORS NOTE: This column with photos and videos is republished with permission.
https://drrichswier.com/wp-content/uploads/Screenshot_1562-e1540072407814.jpg374640Campus Reform Campus Wirehttp://drrich.wpengine.com/wp-content/uploads/logo_264x69.pngCampus Reform Campus Wire2018-10-20 17:56:512018-10-20 18:00:29VIDEO: Beto O’Rourke supporters can’t name any of his accomplishments
We reported in September that Google was suspected of working with the Chinese government to develop a search platform which fit China’s goals to stifle free speech.
Now Google has admitted that it is doing this. Via Hot Air earlier this week:
Last night, Google CEO Sundar Pichai confirmed months of rumors in a presentation hosted by Wired Magazine last night. Not only has Google worked on a new platform called “Dragonfly” to launch in China, they have perfected it for China’s censorship regime — which is tasked with stamping out dissent.
The good thing is that 2ndVote consumers in America still have the freedom to tell Google to take a hike. You can fight back against Google by changing search engines. DuckDuckGo prioritizes consumer privacy and is neutral on all of 2ndVote’s issue categories. And we have found Brave.com to be a similarly neutral web browser option, founded by former Mozilla executive Brendan Eich.
EDITORS NOTE: This column with images is republished with permission. The featured photo is from Shutterstock.
https://drrichswier.com/wp-content/uploads/shutterstock_86640124-1-990x556-e1540031942333.jpg3596402ndvote .comhttp://drrich.wpengine.com/wp-content/uploads/logo_264x69.png2ndvote .com2018-10-20 06:40:002018-10-21 07:08:07Google Confirms That It’s Working With Chinese Communists To Stifle Free Speech
Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., spoke to The Daily Signal this week about Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh and the left’s embrace of mob rule. He also addressed the disappearance of Saudi writer Jamal Khashoggi and Sen. Elizabeth Warren’s DNA test results. An edited transcript of the interview is below. Full audio of the interview is available on The Daily Signal Podcast.
Bluey: You are here at The Heritage Foundation’s President’s Club meeting to talk about Justice [Brett] Kavanaugh. During the Judiciary Committee hearings, you made some passionate remarks when he was defending himself. Many people felt he wasn’t afforded due process. He was presumed guilty. What prompted you to speak so passionately?
Lindsey Graham: He was being humiliated. I voted for [Sonia] Sotomayor and [Elena] Kagan because I thought they were qualified. It used to be that way. [Former Sen.] Strom Thurmond voted for [Ruth Bader] Ginsburg. [Former Sen.] Fritz Hollings voted for [Antonin] Scalia. That’s the way it used to be, so obviously things have changed now.
What got me going so much is that I’ve known Brett for 20 years. We’re not close friends, but we’re friendly. I worked with him in the Bush White House. He’s the cream of the crop judicially. You want to reward President Trump when he makes a good decision. He could not have chosen better, and what I saw was an effort to humiliate a guy who didn’t deserve it. I can’t imagine me doing that to Sotomayor and Kagan.
What got me the most was, “If you’re really innocent, turn to Don McGahn and ask to continue the FBI investigation of your life, and keep ruining your own family.” Dr. [Christine Blasey] Ford was listened to respectfully. I think something happened to her, but I don’t think Kavanaugh had anything to do with it. It was just an effort to destroy a good man for political purposes, and I hope it backfires on them.
Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., speaks at the President’s Club gathering hosted by The Heritage Foundation on Oct. 16. (Photo: Erin Granzow for The Daily Signal)
Bluey: It’s one of those situations where, as you’ve noted, you’ve supported President Obama’s nominees in the past. You even had Ruth Bader Ginsburg lamenting the state of the confirmation process for Supreme Court justices. Where do we go from here? Because obviously you have—
Graham: Good question.
Bluey: … I think 118 vacancies on federal courts.
Graham: Yeah, good question.
Bluey: Are you going to be able to confirm these nominees?
Graham: Well, Mitch McConnell has done a fantastic job. We’ve done a lot with 51 votes. We got one Democratic vote for Judge Kavanaugh, just a handful for Justice [Neil] Gorsuch. The bottom line is, if this is not the bottom, I’d hate to see it. I hope this blows up in their face politically. These red state Democrats had to choose between the mob and decency. I think they’re in trouble, so I hope we have far more than 51.
These red state Democrats had to choose between the mob and decency.
There may be more vacancies coming up sooner rather than later. Only God knows. Justice [Clarence] Thomas is a great guy. He’s in his 70s. I don’t know what his plans are, but I know this, President Trump has chosen two highly qualified nominees that are going to change the court over time, and we don’t want to run good people off from being judges.
Here’s the question for you and anybody else, after what you saw, would you want to be a judge?
Bluey: Well, you posed that question, I believe, during the committee hearing.
Graham: Yeah.
Bluey: You said if Republicans voted against Justice Kavanaugh—
Graham: You’re legitimizing a complete character assassination.
Bluey: And you wouldn’t have other people who wouldn’t want to serve in public or step up into that situation.
Graham: No. 1, you’re rewarding them. Just put the shoe on the other foot. Let’s say this is a male Democratic nominee, and someone like Dr. Ford came to South Carolina and gave me information about a 36-year-old allegation. I withheld it from the committee, never confronted the nominee with it. I recommended a conservative lawyer who never told the woman that the Democrats would be willing to come to South Carolina to avoid having to come to Washington, and somebody on my staff leaked her information and betrayed her request to be anonymous.
There’s two things I learned here: how in the tank the media really is for the liberal causes, and how far the left will go.
We’d be killed if somebody on our side said, “We’re only doing this to hold open the seat so that we can get back the Senate and maybe a Republican can fill this seat.” If the shoe were on the other foot, the media would be going nuts. There’s two things I learned here: how in the tank the media really is for the liberal causes, and how far the left will go. I hope it backfires.
President Donald Trump looks on as Anthony M. Kennedy, retired Supreme Court justice, swears in Judge Brett Kavanaugh to be the Supreme Court’s 114th justice on Oct. 8. Kavanaugh is joined by his wife Ashley, holding the Bible, and their daughters Liza and Margaret. (Photo: Joyce N. Boghosian/The White House)
Bluey: Now, we’ve also seen quite an enthusiasm among Republicans—
Graham: You’ve got that right.
Bluey: … now and conservatives because I think of exactly what you’re describing. What have you seen back in your home state of South Carolina?
Graham: Unbelievable. I can’t walk 5 feet at home. I mean, I get some criticism, but Republican women are very energized. Dr. Ford, I think something did happen, but you have to corroborate an accusation. The accusation can’t be the proof itself. Really, there was nothing there. Everything that Dr. Ford said nobody could corroborate.
Susan Collins did a fantastic job of explaining why a rational person would vote for Judge Kavanaugh. We’re all united because of what they did to Brett Kavanaugh.
The bottom line is that Judge Kavanaugh has led an exemplary life. Everything goes against these accusations. The Avenatti claim was just the dam breaking, but the bottom line is, the response back home has been incredible.
If you had made a bid that somebody would come up with a plan to get Sean Hannity to raise money for [Sen.] Susan Collins on the radio, nobody could have thought of this. Susan Collins did a fantastic job of explaining why a rational person would vote for Judge Kavanaugh. This has taken libertarians, vegetarians, Trump Republicans, Bush Republicans. We’re all united because of what they did to Brett Kavanaugh, and this is a good time for the Republican Party.
Bluey: At the same time you’re seeing a lot of enthusiasm and support, you also saw [Sen.] Jeff Flake confronted in an elevator, Susan Collins being called a rape apologist, and terrible things happening to your colleagues.
Graham: It’s just awful.
Bluey: How are they taking it personally and handling it?
Graham: Susan Collins is tough as nails. She methodically went through the Democratic reaction to the nomination. They were against Kavanaugh before they even knew who he was. She went through his history of being a judge, how mainstream he is, the allegations. I thought she handled herself beautifully.
What’s on the ballot in 2018 is an attitude. Who are we as a country? Do we really believe in the rule of law, or are we just so angry that mob rule will take over the rule of law?
Jeff Flake wanted to know more, and we worked as a team to have a supplemental, the seventh investigation that confirmed or that helped Kavanaugh.
I appreciate Jeff and I appreciate Susan for taking their jobs seriously. We gave them the space they needed to get to yes, and the bottom line is, I’ve been here for over 20 years and I’ve never seen anything like that.
The choice now is not about an issue. It’s about an attitude. What’s on the ballot in 2018 is an attitude. Who are we as a country? Do we really believe in the rule of law, or are we just so angry that mob rule will take over the rule of law? That’s what’s on the ballot.
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., has overseen the confirmation of 84 federal judges under President Donald Trump. (Photo: Erin Granzow for The Daily Signal)
Bluey: As a member of the Judiciary Committee, you know the Senate’s role of advice and consent very well. You have confirmed 84 of President Trump’s judicial nominees. 20-some circuit court nominees, including two Supreme Court justices.
Graham: Yeah. Historic.
Bluey: How significant is that for our federal courts?
Graham: Generational change. Senator [Chuck] Grassley has done a marvelous job. He’s not a lawyer, but he’s fair-minded. I think he’s tough but fair, and I think that came through. Mitch McConnell has been strategic in his thinking, and I am really proud of our 51-seat Republican majority. Many times, it was just 50. We’ve done a lot.
Harry Reid made this possible. He’s the one that changed the rules. I was in the Gang of 14 when they filibustered all the Bush nominees to stop filibustering judges unless there’s an extraordinary circumstance.
The Kavanaugh effect is real. There was this election before Kavanaugh, and there’s the election after Kavanaugh.
The Senate used to do this. Most Supreme Court nominees were voted on without a hearing. Things have changed. Bork started it, and it’s just gotten worse. The bottom line, I got a call from Senator [Chuck] Schumer the night before they changed the rules in 2013. I said, “You’ll regret this, because it’s Harry Reid’s desire to pack the circuit court that led to this.”
I just hope we don’t run good people away from serving. I hope we get north of 55 senators. The Kavanaugh effect is real. There was this election before Kavanaugh, and there’s the election after Kavanaugh.
Bluey: I want to ask you about two other issues. The first is Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi. You’ve been outspoken on this. Where do we stand right now, and what are you hoping to do in the Senate?
Graham: Well, I’m hoping to make them pay a price. I’ve been the leading advocate for this relationship. I was on the floor making sure we didn’t stop arms sales to fight Iran’s proxies in Yemen. I’ve been on the floor to make sure that the 9/11 lawsuits wouldn’t taint the relationship. I have supported the Saudi partnership. I’ve never felt so betrayed.
MBS [Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman] is 33 years old, and he’s a wrecking ball. They kidnapped the Lebanese prime minister for a while. They imposed an embargo on Qatar overnight without talking to us. He talks about a vision of 2030, then he throws everybody in jail he doesn’t like.
I am convinced that this happened at the direction of the Saudi government, that teams of assassins were sent to the consulate. Every norm that we believe in, which is freedom of expression, journalism, free speech, an independent press, extrajudicial killings, all that was ignored. It shows contempt for us as a partner. President Trump may not see it this way, but it shows a lot of disrespect to him. Name one president that’s been better to Saudi Arabia.
To hatch this plot, and I am a lawyer, I believe in the rule of law, but all the corroboration is there if you want to see it, the way that MBS was behaving before, these people showing up right before the event, luring the guy in for a week. He walks in, and never comes out. They lie about what happened the first time around. Yeah, I’m really convinced that this was an extrajudicial killing of a dissident. We deal with bad people all the time, but when you put it in our face like this, I hope we respond.
Bluey: We’ll be following it closely. Finally, I want to ask you, your colleague from Massachusetts has come out with her DNA results. You have said yourself that you’re willing to take—
Graham: I’m not so sure I would have done that.
Bluey: Are you going to take a DNA test?
Graham: I am taking one. I’ve been told, and I don’t know if it’s true or not, that my grandmother was part Cherokee Indian. I’m going to find out. The bottom line here is that I’ve traveled with Elizabeth Warren. She can be very gracious. I don’t like her political philosophy domestically. She’s visited the troops during the holidays. I appreciate that.
But if the shoe were on the other foot, again, if a conservative had been doing this, saying that, “I’m a member of an Indian tribe,” and academia was selling this, we’d be getting killed. We’ll have a little fun with this. This is politics. I don’t mean to be mean-spirited, but I can tell you this, if you’re less than 1/10th of 1 percent of anything, you need to be careful about what you say.
Bluey: Senator Graham, thanks so much for speaking to The Daily Signal.
Rob Bluey is editor-in-chief of The Daily Signal, the multimedia news organization of The Heritage Foundation. Send an email to Rob. Twitter: @RobertBluey.
The Daily Signal depends on the support of readers like you. Donate now
EDITORS NOTE: This column with video and images is republished with permission. The featured image is of police standing by as demonstrators protest against Brett Kavanaugh outside of Sen. Susan Collins’ Capitol Hill office. (Photo: Kevin Dietsch/UPI/Newscom)
https://drrichswier.com/wp-content/uploads/181018_MobRule-1250x650-e1539959601383.jpg362640The Daily Signalhttp://drrich.wpengine.com/wp-content/uploads/logo_264x69.pngThe Daily Signal2018-10-19 10:34:032018-10-19 10:35:15Mob Rule or the Rule of Law? Lindsey Graham Says America’s Future Is at Stake
This week, Trevor Loudon presents Part One of a series exposing the radical ties of Florida Gubernatorial candidate Andrew Gillum. Gillum, the current mayor of Tallahassee, Florida, has a long history with hard-core socialist activists.
Andrew Gillum is a threat to national security.
WATCH THE VIDEO BELOW!!
In 2016, New Zealand author and film-maker Trevor Loudon released his full-length documentary The Enemies Within, which exposed a shocking number of United States Senators and members of Congress who pose a security risk to America. These elected officials were all tied to hostile foreign powers, anti-American Marxist groups or fronts for the pro-terrorist Muslim Brotherhood.
Please embed these videos on your blog, tweet them to your followers, post them to Facebook, or personally email them to friends, relatives and colleagues. Every American voter needs to see these videos. If more Americans understand how badly they are being betrayed by their own elected representatives, they can help “drain the swamp” themselves, directly through the ballot box.
EDITORS NOTE: This column with photos and video is republished with permission.
https://drrichswier.com/wp-content/uploads/desantis-gillum.jpg360640Center For Security Policyhttp://drrich.wpengine.com/wp-content/uploads/logo_264x69.pngCenter For Security Policy2018-10-18 09:52:302018-10-19 06:23:14#EnemiesWithin: Trevor Loudon Releases Mini-Documentary on Florida’s Andrew Gillum [Video]
Some politicians will say anything to get elected — and thanks to Project Veritas, Americans are finding out exactly who those politicians are. In deep red states, where Democrats have to play moderate to win, it’s been tough for people like Senator Claire McCaskill (D-Mo.) to keep their true feelings in check. It’s a tough act to maintain — too tough, new undercover videos show.
The Missouri senator, who pretends to be a friend of the Second Amendment, has quite different views behind closed doors. In the safety of her campaign offices, the woman in a neck-and-neck race with state Attorney General Josh Hawley (R) made it clear in a new undercover video that she’s just hiding her agenda for votes. In footage released this week, McCaskill and her staffers are almost giddy at the thought of tighter gun control laws, including outlawing “high capacity magazines. Turning to the senator, an undercover journalist asked her if she would support a ban, “Of course! Of course!” she insists.
But she’s not going to tell voters that, her office insists — “because that could hurt her ability to get elected.” Off the record, far-Left groups like Mom’s Demand Action know they have a friend in the senator. It’s just better to keep the relationship “hush-hush.” “She’s worked out stuff with Mom’s Demand Action to make sure that she can support their goals without supporting the organization openly,” said one of McCaskill’s staffers. And what about Barack Obama? Why isn’t he out campaigning for the senator?
“He’s a very liberal candidate. And like … Claire [is] distancing herself from the party [because it will] help her win more votes.” Nicolas Starost, who works on the McCaskill campaign, said they do everything they can to keep voters in the dark about her radical views. So she and Obama “essentially have the same views on everything?” the Project Veritas journalist asks. “Yeah,” Starost replied smiling. “People just can’t know that.”
Just like people can’t know McCaskill’s secret support for impeaching President Trump. Campaign worker Glen Winfrey says she could explain her flip-flop on the issue by telling Missourians, “Get over it. It was a national security question.” Or her private push to outlaw semi-automatic weapons. “… I think we could actually be in a position to get votes on this stuff on the floor and we’d get 60…” Of course, McCaskill’s race to the middle might convince a few people, but it’s hard to bury her actual record. She has an “F” rating from the NRA and supported President Obama’s agenda 98 percent of the time.
Now, in frantic damage control mode, she’s insisting that these Project Veritas videos are the work of challenger Josh Hawley. “It is startling that Josh Hawley would be part of fraudulently embedding somebody in my campaign. He’s the Attorney General of the state of Missouri. He’s supposed to be going after fraud, not participating in it.” Nice try, Hawley fired back. “@clairecmc & staff caught on tape deceiving Missouri voters and her response is to accuse me of fraud? For HER words? Her campaign is unraveling.” The latest numbers seem to agree. Most polls have Hawley pulling ahead of McCaskill by anywhere from two to five points.
In Tennessee, the Volunteers got a front-row seat to the split personality of Rep. Marsha Blackburn’s (R) opponent for Senate, Phil Bredesen (D). Like McCaskill, his campaign office was also caught on video spilling the beans on the Democrat’s strategy on Brett Kavanaugh. Field organizer Maria Amalla said his statement about supporting the new Supreme Court justice was a complete lie — “a political move… to make up points.” The undercover journalist says that he was “so confused because I just can’t believe he would actually vote yes [to confirm Kavanaugh.]” Oh, Bredesen’s staffer says, “He wouldn’t. He’s just saying he would.” Don’t worry, a worker named Will Stewart says, “Between you and me, once Phil actually gets into the Senate, he’ll be a good Democrat.” Does that mean he’s not a fan of Trump, the mole asks? “…Oh yeah. Oh, he hates Trump, like yeah…” “Are the people of Tennessee that ignorant?” “Yeah,” Stewart replies.
Now, like McCaskill’s campaign, the Bredesen camp is scrambling to explain the footage away. That’ll be tough to do, insiders think. In the handful of days since singer Taylor Swift trashed Blackburn’s views and the tape was released, Marsha has managed to turn her single-digit lead into a double-digit advantage. “This is exactly the kind of ‘say whatever to get elected’ politics Tennesseans hate,” Blackburn’s campaign told reporters. “Marsha always says you ‘may not always agree with me, but you will always know where I stand.'”
Tony Perkins’ Washington Update is written with the aid of FRC Action senior writers.
EDITORS NOTE: This column with video and images is republished with permission.
https://drrichswier.com/wp-content/uploads/101718_mccaskill_770x400-e1539865487355.jpg369640Family Research Councilhttp://drrich.wpengine.com/wp-content/uploads/logo_264x69.pngFamily Research Council2018-10-18 08:25:292018-10-18 08:26:11Senate Dems Show Their Red State Lie-ability
Andrew Gillum is listed as a 2012 alum of the George Soros funded Rockwood Leadership Institute. On the Rockwood website he is listed as “Andrew Gillum, Director, Youth Leadership Programs, People for the American Way.”
The Rockwood Leadership institute under “Who We Are” states that it:
[H]as provided thousands of social change leaders across the globe with tools and skills to help change themselves, their communities, and the world.
Florida gubernatorial candidate Andrew Gillum graduated from an Oakland, California-based training school for progressive revolutionaries that has spawned a list of activists who have gone on to become the who’s who of the far-left leadership world, with many taking senior positions at organizations financed by billionaire George Soros.
In scores of cases, graduates of the Rockwood Leadership Institute founded or directed notorious Soros-financed activist groups, such as Black Lives Matter, Media Matters for America, MoveOn.org and the Tides Foundation, one of the nation’s largest funders of progressive groups.
Soros’s own Open Society Foundations sent top staff to Rockwood for training. Notorious radicals Van Jones and Linda Sarsour are among the many famous names listed as alums.
In early 2000, he helped organize a large “March on Tallahassee” to protest Governor Jeb Bush’s 1999 executive order abolishing affirmative action in state university admissions and state contracting. To reward Gillum’s activism vis-a-vis this and other matters, the Center for Policy Alternatives recognized him as the nation’s top student leader in 2001.
In 2002, Gillum became the Florida Field Organizer with the People For the American Way Foundation (PFAWF), spearheading its “Arrive With 5” initiative — a voter-mobilization campaign whereby young people pledged to bring five additional voters with them to the polls on Election Day.
In March 2003 the Florida Democratic Party recruited Gillum to serve as its interim Political Director, but just nine months later he returned to his previous position with PFAWF.
Opposes Patriot Act and other anti-terrorism measures
Opposes the allegedly growing influence of the “religious right”
During his 2018 gubernatorial campaign, Gillum released a video demanding that President Donald Trump be impeached because he had “obstructed justice” by firing former FBI Director James Comey.
https://drrichswier.com/wp-content/uploads/rockwood-leadership-institute.jpg360640Dr. Rich Swierhttp://drrich.wpengine.com/wp-content/uploads/logo_264x69.pngDr. Rich Swier2018-10-17 18:34:382018-10-17 18:38:05Andrew Gillum a graduate of Soros’ ‘School for Revolutionaries’ the Rockwood Leadership Institute
I’m happy to report that I’ve just published my second book, Hotel USSR. It’s a story of а young man coming of age in a totalitarian state. He wants to be an artist but he isn’t authorized to buy paints. He wants to see the world but the authorities brand him as politically unreliable. He wants to get married but the system separates him from his bride. He listens to Hotel California and wishes he had their problems: he himself is stuck in a real-life trap that he “can never leave,” and he calls it Hotel USSR. To check out, he must break every rule in the book.
This young man is me and this is my real life story. People have often asked me what growing up in the USSR felt like. This book is my answer. It’s illustrated with my own drawings and paintings, which I did in my twenties before I quit drawing. The reason for quitting is in there as well.
In addition to it being humorous and entertaining, I hope this story can be an eye-opener for younger people who may naively believe in the false promise of socialism. Rather than debating Marxism directly, I demonstrate how it fails in practice and what absurdities ensue when the entire state lives in denial of its failures, forcing people not to trust their own eyes. The book describes socialism as an attempt to regulate human existence in cumbersome ways that defy human nature, leaving no doubt that to build “real socialism that works” is no more possible than to build a house based on an optical illusion.
I hope you enjoy my story and help me to spread the word. Amazon allows a short preview – please rate it and leave a comment:
As a child, he was promised abundance and freedom in a communist paradise. In that bright future, he dreams of being an artist. But as he grows up, he discovers that his dream is based on a fraud and that his country is really a dictatorship governed by bullies, liars, and thieves. He and the girl he loves find themselves trapped in a labyrinth of a dysfunctional utopia they call “Hotel USSR,” where every aspect of life is regulated by improbable rules that override human nature. To live their dream, they decide to break the law. This takes him on a series of tragicomical adventures that feel like acts in the theater of the absurd: a worker in Siberian oil fields, an army conscript, an inmate at a forensic psychiatry facility, a visual propaganda artist, a Soviet dissident, and an immigrant to America. And everywhere he goes he draws pictures…
https://drrichswier.com/wp-content/uploads/hotel-ussr.jpg360640The Peoples Cubehttp://drrich.wpengine.com/wp-content/uploads/logo_264x69.pngThe Peoples Cube2018-10-16 10:32:072018-10-16 10:33:20Hotel USSR: a new book by Oleg Atbashian, former citizen of the former Soviet Union
Much of President Donald Trump’s “60 Minutes” interview Sunday consisted of responding to veteran CBS News reporter Lesley Stahl’s questions on what have been Democrats’ talking points for months.
During one exchange, Trump described to Stahl how the media treated his predecessor, President Barack Obama, much differently.
“I disagree, but I don’t want to have that fight with you,” Stahl replied. “All right, I’ll get in another fight with you.”
Trump responded: “Lesley, it’s OK. In the meantime, I’m president—and you’re not.”
Here’s a look at six of the biggest topics discussed and Trump’s responses.
1. Separating Illegal Immigrant Families
Stahl pressed Trump on his administration’s suspended policy of separating children and parents who illegally cross the southern border.
“Well, that was the same as the Obama law. You know, Obama had the same thing,” Trump said.
Stahl shot back: “It was on the books, but he didn’t enforce it. You enforced it. You launched that, the zero tolerance policy, to deter families with children coming.”
Trump defended his position, saying: “When you allow the parents to stay together, OK, when you allow that, then what happens is people are going to pour into our country.”
Stahl asked: “So are you going to go back to that?”
After some back and forth, Trump said: “No, I want all the laws changed.”
2. A Lecture on Climate Change
Although it began as a question, Stahl seemed to be lecturing Trump on climate change by saying she wished he would travel to Greenland to see the melting ice.
“Do you still think that climate change is a hoax?” Stahl asked.
Trump answered in the negative, adding:
I think something’s happening. Something’s changing, and it’ll change back again. I don’t think it’s a hoax, I think there’s probably a difference. But I don’t know that it’s man-made. I will say this. I don’t want to give trillions and trillions of dollars [to counter climate change]. I don’t want to lose millions and millions of jobs. I don’t want to be put at a disadvantage.
Stahl then talked about some presidential travel to prove her point.
“I wish you could go to Greenland, watch these huge chunks of ice just falling into the ocean, raising the sea levels,” Stahl said, without a question.
She went on to tell Trump that scientists with the federal government contend climate change is man-made.
“We have scientists that disagree with that,” Trump said, later adding: “I’m not denying climate change. But it could very well go back.”
Stahl: “But that’s denying it.”
The exchange then devolved into Trump and Stahl challenging each other to name a scientist who backs up their point.
“They say that we had hurricanes that were far worse than what we just had with Michael,” Trump said.
Stahl: “Who says that?”
Trump: “People say.”
Stahl: “But what about the scientists who say it’s worse than ever?”
Trump challenged her to name some scientists.
“You’d have to show me the scientists,” he said, “because they have a very big political agenda, Lesley.”
Stahl conceded: “I can’t bring them in.”
3. Kavanaugh and Ford
Trump said Democrats acted “horribly” during the confirmation battle over new Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh, who was accused by a California woman at the 11th hour of sexually assaulting her when they were teens in the early 1980s.
Stahl, however, questioned whether Trump had created more divisions and asked him about a speech in Mississippi where he specified the gaps and contradictions in research psychologist Christine Blasey Ford’s testimony to the Senate Judiciary Committee about the incident she alleged occurred about 36 years ago.
“You go out and you go to Mississippi and you mimicked Professor Blasey Ford. You mimicked her,” Stahl said.
Trump said of his remarks: “Had I not made that speech, we would not have won [the confirmation fight]. I was just saying she didn’t seem to know anything, and you’re trying to destroy a life of a man who has been extraordinary.”
“Washington, D.C., is a vicious, vicious place,” @realDonaldTrump says.
Stahl asked in a shocked tone: “Why did you have to make fun of her?”
Trump: “I didn’t really make fun of her.”
Stahl: “Well, they were laughing.”
The CBS reporter recalled Ford being asked by a senator about “the worst moment” during the alleged incident.
“And she said, ‘When the two boys laughed at me, at my expense,’” Stahl said, paraphrasing, then telling the president: “And then I watched you mimic her and thousands of people were laughing at her.”
Trump pushed back, saying: “The way now Justice Kavanaugh was treated has become a big factor in the midterms. Have you seen what’s gone on with the polls?”
He told Stahl that he believed he treated Ford with respect.
“But you seem to be saying that she lied,” Stahl said.
“You know what?” Trump shot back. “I’m not going to get into it, because we won. It doesn’t matter. We won.”
4. Russia, China, and Election Meddling
When Stahl asked whether Russian President Vladimir Putin was involved in assassinations, Trump replied: “Probably he is, yeah.”
During the segment aired on “60 Minutes,” Stahl noted that 32 people have been charged, convicted, or pleaded guilty in special counsel Robert Mueller’s probe of Russian election interference
The network showed images of Trump’s short-term campaign manager, Paul Manafort, who was convicted for unrelated financial crimes, and of Trump’s first national security adviser, Michael Flynn, who pleaded guilty to lying on a government disclosure form, also unrelated to the Russia probe.
However, Stahl didn’t mention that her 32 number includes two dozen Russians indicted for meddling in the presidential campaign, largely through social media.
Trump told Stahl: “They [Russians] meddled, but I think China meddled too.”
Stahl looked shocked, asking: “Why do you say China? The Russians meddled.”
Trump replied: “Because I think China meddled also.”
Stahl seemed to break into an admonishing mood.
“This is amazing,” Stahl said. “You’re diverting the whole Russian thing.”
She later asked: “Will you pledge that you will not shut down the Mueller investigation?”
Trump was noncommittal.
“Well, I don’t pledge anything,” Trump said. “I don’t want to pledge. Why should I pledge to you? If I pledge, I’ll pledge. I don’t have to pledge to you.”
5. Trusting White House Staff
First lady Melania Trump said in a recent interview with ABC News that she doesn’t trust some people in the White House.
“I feel the same way. I don’t trust everybody in the White House, I’ll be honest with you,” Donald Trump told Stahl.
Stah asked whether Trump ever wonders about White House staffers, “Is he wearing a wire?”
“Not so much a wire. I’m usually guarded,” Trump said. “I think I’m guarded anyway. But I’m not saying I trust everybody in the White House. I’m not a baby. It’s a tough business.”
“This is a vicious place,” Trump said. “Washington, D.C., is a vicious, vicious place. The attacks, the bad mouthing, the speaking behind your back. You know, and in my way, I feel very comfortable here.”
6. Relations With NATO
Trump has warmed up to NATO, made up of the United States and Western allies that assure one another of mutual defense, largely because more NATO members have agreed at his insistence to spend 2 percent of their annual GDP on defense.
But Stahl pressed the president as if he were still hostile to NATO.
“Are you willing to get rid of that Western alliance?” Stahl asked.
Trump said he likes NATO.
“But you know what? We shouldn’t be paying almost the entire cost of NATO to protect Europe and then on top of that, they take advantage of us on trade,” the president added. “They’re not going to do it anymore. They understand that.”
Stahl: “Are you willing to disrupt the Western alliance? It’s been going for 70 years. It’s kept the peace for 70 years.”
Trump: “You don’t know that.”
Stahl asked whether Defense Secretary James Mattis had warned Trump to stick with NATO.
“Is it true Gen. Mattis said to you, ‘The reason for NATO and the reason for all these alliances is to prevent World War III?’”
Trump denied this.
“Frankly, I like Gen. Mattis,” Trump said. “I think I know more about it than he does, and I know more about it from the standpoint of fairness, that I can tell you.”
After more back and forth, Trump asserted: “I will always be there with NATO, but they have to pay their way. I’m fully in favor of NATO, but I don’t want to be taken advantage of.”
The Daily Signal depends on the support of readers like you. Donate now
EDITORS NOTE: This column with photos and videos is republished with permission. The featured image is of President Donald Trump talking to reporters as he departs Monday with first lady Melania Trump to tour hurricane damage in Florida. (Photo: Jonathan Ernst/Reuters/Newscom)
https://drrichswier.com/wp-content/uploads/Umbrella-Trump-1250x650-e1539686705337.jpg375640The Daily Signalhttp://drrich.wpengine.com/wp-content/uploads/logo_264x69.pngThe Daily Signal2018-10-16 06:53:122018-10-16 06:54:286 Big Moments in Trump-Stahl Rumble on ‘60 Minutes’
Andrew Gillum, Socialist candidate for Governor in Florida, is in a massive battle with TV station over airing a Republican commercial about Gillum’s corruption investigation in Tallahassee FL. Check out Tom Trento’s brief comments on how unhinged Comrade Gillum is becoming as the FBI investigation deepens.
https://drrichswier.com/wp-content/uploads/steve-halama-201107-unsplash.jpg375636Defend The Borderhttp://drrich.wpengine.com/wp-content/uploads/logo_264x69.pngDefend The Border2018-10-15 10:58:042018-10-17 17:51:55VIDEO: “Corrupt” Andrew Gillum vs. FBI Investigation
Of course, vigorous but peaceful Tea Party and pro-life rallies are regularly decried as major threats to Americans’ safety back in the day. ‘Cause nothing scares the Left more than balanced budgets and unborn children surviving the womb.
But things are getting worse. Last year’s congressional shooting by a deranged leftist, Senator Rand Paul’s broken ribs, doxxing of Senators’ homes and their families, harassing right-of-center Senators at restaurants and at their homes…Paul is right. Somebody is going to get killed.
So what can 2ndVote shoppers do? First and foremost, tell corporations to stop backing those groups which are leading America to a violent political future. Planned Parenthood, Human Rights Campaign, The Women’s March — these are just a few of the leftist organizations which led mob efforts last week. 2ndVote shoppers should avoid those organizations’ sponsors.
Conservatives should also demand that mainstream reporters learn how to be journalists, not activists. Boycotting media outlets which spew violent rhetoric would send a strong message.
Liberals will always defend their violence, of course. Hillary Clinton did that just yesterday on CNN, and abortion is always justifiable in liberal minds. Here’s hoping the power of 2ndVotes can show corporations the right way to go — toward peace, not violence.
EDITORS NOTE: This column with images is republished with permission. The featured image is from Shutterstock.
https://drrichswier.com/wp-content/uploads/shutterstock_534840265-990x556-e1539517184222.jpg3596402ndvote .comhttp://drrich.wpengine.com/wp-content/uploads/logo_264x69.png2ndvote .com2018-10-14 07:39:522018-10-14 07:40:29Corporate Leaders Need To Decide: Stand With The Violent Left Or Renounce It
After Hillary Clinton called for her party to act without civility, Eric Holder declared, “when they go low, we kick them… that’s the new Democratic party.” Bongino exposes another reason why we all need to start owning the libs. Plus, the Senate race heats up in Texas. Bongino on why Beto cannot win. And, CNN calls Kanye West a “token negro.” Because tolerance.
Dan Bongino on NRATV
Country, service, the Second Amendment, the Truth and every Big R God-given Right. This is what WE STAND for and these are the American foundations Former Secret Service Agent and NYPD Officer Dan Bongino will defend every weekday at 4:30 p.m. CT/5:30 p.m. ET on NRATV.
Dan Bongino joins NRATV’s lineup, rounding out the most experienced and patriotic team of journalists and conservatives on the air today. Together, they are on a mission to Take Back The Truth.
Smart. Tough. Extraordinary background in law enforcement. In other words, enemy number one in the eyes of progressives. And what’s worse for those elitists? Dan welcomes Grant Stinchfield for each episode. So radical socialists—bring your best. We dare you to join that cage fight.
https://drrichswier.com/wp-content/uploads/hasan-almasi-657415-unsplash-e1539456118609.jpg385640NRA Institute for Legislative Actionhttp://drrich.wpengine.com/wp-content/uploads/logo_264x69.pngNRA Institute for Legislative Action2018-10-13 14:42:582018-10-14 07:35:17VIDEO: Hillary Is Back To Lead the Democrat Mob
According to the Federation for Immigration Reform (FAIR) there are now 
