So far, Rick Perry is the invisible candidate.  Just today there are reports that he is no longer able to pay his staff.  Some in the media think the end is near.  They could be right.  They could also be very wrong.  I am reminded that in the summer of 2007, the John McCain campaign was in meltdown.  He was invisible in the polls.  He stopped paying his staff and his top aides were deserting him.  I was convinced that John McCain was done as a candidate for President.  I was wrong.  McCain ultimately won the nomination because it came down to three candidates, Mike Huckabee, Mitt Romney and John McCain.  While Mike Huckabee and Mitt Romney rained on each other’s parade, McCain snuck in the back door.  He turned out to be a lousy nominee, but the point is that in the summer of 2007 no one, and I mean no one, even gave him a chance at the nomination.

Perry has to do something, sooner rather than later, but he is not dead yet.  This is the era of the Super Pac and while Perry’s campaign has run out of money, the Super Pac supporting him has a ton of cash.   I firmly believe that of the seventeen candidates, at least 12 of them are wasting their time because they have zero chance of winning the nomination.  I will start with Donald Trump.  While he is soaring in the polls, it is only because the vote is being split 17 ways.  At some point Donald will be up against only one or two opponents and then the negatives will take over.  I doubt seriously that Trump can win this.  I also doubt that any of the following can win the nomination, for a lot of reasons: Jeb Bush, Ben Carson, Chris Christie, Carly Fiorina, Jim Gilmore, Lindsey Graham, Mike Huckabee, Bobby Jindal, George Pataki, Rand Paul, and Rick Santorum.  That leaves only five candidates with a realistic chance at being the next President.

These are Ted Cruz, John Kasich, Rick Perry, Marco Rubio and Scott Walker.  Right now Perry is gasping for air, but that is because the room is filled by 12 candidates with no real chance at the nomination sucking the air out of the room.  No one seems to notice that Rick Perry has the most impressive resume in the room.  All anyone can remember is that he went brain dead on national TV.  That is a huge mistake.  Perry is a very capable man and has a very significant record of accomplished leadership.

I really like Marco Rubio, Ted Cruz and Scot Walker, but in my personal opinion all of them are too young.  Ted Cruz and Marco Rubio are only 44 years old and Scott Walker is only 47.  In eight years, the oldest of the group will only be 55.  What on earth does one done when he is done being President at age 55?  Think Teddy Roosevelt and the disaster of the Bull Moose Party that put Woodrow Wilson in the White House.  On the other hand, if they don’t make it this time, they will still be young enough to try again in eight years and again in sixteen years.  As for Ted Cruz, I want him on the Supreme Court, not in the White House.

I like John Kasich, but don’t trust his conservative values.  He looks too much like a RINO to me. He is just too willing to compromise. We cannot afford another Republican establishment candidate.   That leaves Rick Perry, who is 65.  Perry has the right amount of experience, he has the right values, he is mean enough to do the job, and after eight years he will be at the right age to move on into retirement.  I doubt that the voters will see it this way, but that is the way I see it.  Right now, I just hope he stays in long enough for people to at least give him a fair consideration.

TDM

Marco Rubio and Ted Cruz are extremely rare and valuable Republican candidates Republicans seem to wilt and appear defenseless when confronted by a wild-eyed liberal asking about gay marriage or abortion.  It is frustrating because there are very good answers to these questions.  We just need politicians capable of an intelligent response.

One of the reasons people like Donald Trump is that he is not defensive at all. He just attacks.  Sometimes that is good, sometimes it is very bad.  Marco Rubio and Ted Cruz have learned to handle these questions brilliantly with intellectually sound arguments. That is why both are soaring in the polls.

Marco Rubio was challenged about abortion by Chris Cuomo and he responded brilliantly.

http://www.cnn.com/videos/politics/2015/08/07/marco-rubio-abortion-faith-cuomo-newday.cnn

Don’t pay attention to the headline, which is a typical distortion by CNN.  Listen to Rubio pushes back against Chris Cuomo pointing out, correctly, that it is the liberal left who is ignoring science.  Scientists acknowledge that life begins at conception.  It was liberals who decided that life didn’t actually begin until some artificial date based on their concept of political correctness.  It was liberals who ignored science to pretend that a fetus isn’t human so that they could justify killing it.

A few weeks ago Ted Cruz was asked repeatedly about gay marriage.  The response he gave was equally brilliant:

http://www.realclearpolitics.com/video/2015/05/20/cruz_throws_back_gay_question_to_reporter_do_you_have_a_personal_animosity_against_christians.html

If we can avoid nominating RINOs so willing to cave under the pressure of political correctness, the world will notice something important.  Conservatives have the winning arguments with regard to issues like gay marriage and abortion.  We just need someone with the skill and the courage to make those arguments.  We are fortunate that at least two of them are running for President of the United States.

TDM

Megan Kelly challenged Donald Trump last night.  He did a pretty good job of ducking the jab.  He made a good point about how we don’t have time for political correctness.  Unfortunately Trump did not end it there.  Today he was gloating about this on twitter.

http://dailycaller.com/2015/08/07/donald-trump-agrees-that-megyn-kelly-is-a-bimbo/

If he really made these tweets, he has made a huge mistake.  The following statement is not only rude and obnoxious, it is absurd:

“I really enjoyed the debate tonight even though the @FoxNews trio, especially @megynkelly, was not very good or professional!” he wrote on Twitter after the debate

At best this is incredibly stupid because every Fox News Anchor will stand up for Megan Kelly.  That is just the way things work.  He has just turned the people he needs the most into his worst enemy.  In addition no one likes to see a man pick on a woman.  Men don’t like this, women absolutely hate this.  This is so bad that I am not sure an apology would be enough.  I think Donald Trump may have inflicted his campaign with a terminal case of foot in mouth disease.  Wow!

If Trump drops in the polls, which seems likely, then it will be interesting to see who surfaces.  Odds are it won’t be Jeb Bush.  It could even be Carly Fiorina.  One thing is sure; this race has changed dramatically over-night.

TDM

At this point there are 17, that’s right, 17 Republican candidates for President.  It is the theatre of the absurd.  Today is the first major audition for these candidates and it is likely to be a hot mess.  The big event is the “debate” between the top ten candidates.  Theoretically they all get equal time, but of course that won’t happen.  This is the Donald Trump variety show and his personality will dominate the stage.  That is not necessarily a good thing for him, but it certainly creates challenges for everyone else. Trump is the master at making himself bigger than life.

The format is ridiculous.  Candidates will have one minute to respond to a question with a 30 second follow up.  It is a two hour debate and there are ten candidates.  That amounts to 12 minutes per candidate.  When you subtract the pauses and the questions by the moderators, who will be showing off too, each candidate will be lucky to get five minutes of air time.  Regardless of who is speaking, odds are that Donald Trump will be part of the picture.

Every participant, other than Donald Trump is focused on how to handle Trump.  Some will decide to attack him, some will pretend to ignore him, but he will always be the elephant in the room and everyone’s attention will be riveted on him.  I doubt this will do much to help us choose a President, but it could be fun to watch.

If all the other candidates attack Trump, that will just make him look even bigger.  If they don’t attack him, he will continue to soar in the polls, for a while. In the long run, Trump is a lot like Newt Gingrich.  People really like him because he is good at hammering people, but then they are reminded of all the reasons they don’t trust him and he will plummet in the polls.  Trump is destined for a huge fall when people learn about some of the positions he has held and the outrageous things he has said and done.  Conservatives do not like people who are inconsistent on core values and no one is more consistently inconsistent than Donald Trump. In the meantime, he is likely to leave bodies all over the political landscape.

Some people have a lot at risk tonight.  Jeb Bush is most vulnerable because if he does not look like he is capable of handling Donald Trump, everyone will question whether he is capable of handling anyone else.  Scott Walker needs to show that he can handle the big stage.  Ted Cruz, Rand Paul and Marco Rubio can just be themselves and watch the carnage.  Mike Huckabee will be Mike Huckabee and no one will care.  Ben Carson will be Ben Carson and people will care but that won’t make him look Presidential.    Chris Christie is beyond desperate and he has to hit a homerun.  He is a formidable street fighter and he may take on Trump directly.  Christie is very dangerous in these situations.

Ultimately, Christie has the same problem as Newt Gingrich and Donald Trump.  He has way too much baggage and conservatives will never fully trust him. His “bromance” with Barack Obama after Hurricane Sandy was beyond pathetic.

John Kasich is the guy who snuck in under the tent and people will question whether he is worthy.  He will be lucky to get a word in edgewise.  In addition he has a bad habit of talking about himself and, so far, he has difficulty inspiring people.

I predict chaos and people are going to get hurt.

The pre-debate forum scheduled for the other seven candidates may actually be far more important.  Rick Perry caught a huge break by missing the cut.  If he was on that stage, everyone would have treated him as an irrelevant piece of used furniture.  It would have been nearly impossible for Perry to impress anyone in that scenario. Donald Trump will make everyone else on the stage look small in comparison. That would have been devastating to Perry.

Now he will be front and center and he won’t be competing in a circus event.  He just may get that coveted chance to re-introduce himself to the American people.  Even the liberal media is likely to treat him well, if only to take a shot at Fox News for unfairly cutting him from the “big debate.”  Perry has been transformed into the underdog worthy of a chance. That is probably the best thing that could have happened to him.

Carly Fiorina is very sharp and she will hold her own.  She probably will spend her time taking on Hillary and is unlikly to challenge Rick Perry.  It doesn’t really matter what Bobby Jindal, Jim Gilmore, Rick Santorum or Lindsey Graham do because none of them are likely to challenge anyone for the nomination. They will just provide further justification for Fox New’s decision to exclude them in the first place.  I doubt that any of them will take a shot at Perry, they will attack Obama, Hillary or Trump.

Rick Perry is the only one, in either forum, likely to provide a vision for a better tomorrow.  People already know who to hate, they are looking for someone to inspire.

One final note:  Ted Cruz will be the smartest man on the stage and he is by far the most skilled debater.  So far he has avoided attacking Donald Trump.  That is likely to continue, but Cruz is a very dangerous man because when he does attack it is with great skill and determination.  He is the person least likely to make a mistake during this debate.

TDM

Liberals believe that Planned Parenthood is all about women’s health and freedom of choice. If only that were true.  Planned Parenthood was founded by Margaret Sanger and her motives were far more sinister.  The following article is particularly important because it quotes her directly:

http://www.lifenews.com/2013/03/11/10-eye-opening-quotes-from-planned-parenthood-founder-margaret-sanger/

The most merciful thing that the large family does to one of its infant members is to kill it

[We should] apply a stern and rigid policy of sterilization and segregation to that grade of population whose progeny is tainted, or whose inheritance is such that objectionable traits may be transmitted to offspring.

The purpose of the American Baby Code shall be to provide for a better distribution of babies… and to protect society against the propagation and increase of the unfit.

No woman shall have the legal right to bear a child, and no man shall have the right to become a father, without a permit…

No permit for parenthood shall be valid for more than one birth.

Give dysgenic groups [people with “bad genes”] in our population their choice of segregation or [compulsory] sterilization.

Birth control must lead ultimately to a cleaner race.

We should hire three or four colored ministers, preferably with social-service backgrounds, and with engaging personalities.  The most successful educational approach to the Negro is through a religious appeal. We don’t want the word to go out that we want to exterminate the Negro population, and the minister is the man who can straighten out that idea if it ever occurs to any of their more rebellious members.

There is nothing here about a woman’s right to choose anything. There is no mention of women’s health.  The goal was to get rid of people Margaret Sanger considered to be worthless.  It was a strategy developed by an arrogant soulless progressive calculated to purge society of undesirables.

Do liberals really want to require a permit in order to have a baby?  This is really disgusting stuff, but no one on the liberal left cares or even notices.  Instead she is honored as a woman who devoted her life to legalizing birth control and making it universally available. That is like saying Adolph Hitler brought free medical care to Jewish people in German, omitting the part about how that medical care was a form of execution.

Her strategy worked brilliantly. The results for the black community in this country have been devastating.  I recently read a liberal blog that expressed concern that as many as one in four black women were being forced to deliver a live baby. Apparently liberals don’t want minority women to have any live births at all.

How on earth can any Democrat fail to understand that a free abortion for minority women is the ultimate form of racism?  Now we have Planned Parenthood harvesting and selling organs from late term abortions.  Democratic politicians are so determined to protect Planned Parenthood they have asked the DOJ to investigate the people who took the videos.  Our new Attorney General confirmed that the Justice Department is investigating.  This is like someone taking great personal risk to obtain videos of the holocaust being charged with invading the privacy of the Nazis.

This is what happens when people convince themselves that there is no God so there are no God given values.  This is what happens when the unalienable rights endowed by the Creator are replaced with values determined by secular humanism.   This is exactly the kind of logic that resulted in the holocaust.  The difference is that the holocaust killed a lot fewer people.  No one said it better than Jesse Jackson himself:

https://saynsumthn.wordpress.com/2011/03/10/rev-jesse-jacksons-abortion-flip-flop-timeline/

I’m conceding that unless we put human life second only to God in our lives, we’re becoming Sodom and Gomorrah…We have an obligation to take sex and life as a far more sacred event than we do now. 

“Birth Control, as a National policy will simply marshal sophisticated methods to remove (and control when not remove) the weak, the poor – quite likely the black and other minorities whose relative increase in population threatens the white caste in this nation.  Contraceptives will become a form of drug warfare against the helpless in this nation.  Those we could not get rid of in the rice paddies of Viet-Nam we now propose to exterminate, if necessary, eliminate, if possible in the OB wards and gynecology clinics of our urban hospitals.  The direct extension of the old “man-in-the-house” rule against public aid recipients can be detected in the drive for birth control.

Jesse Jackson was spot on with his prediction of what was being planned and how it would affect the black community.  Sadly at some point he discovered that there was no room in the Democratic Party for pro-life candidates.  He became one of those “colored ministers” so coveted by Margaret Sanger.  I am not sure there is a corner of Hell hot enough.

Mark 8:36

“What good is it for someone to gain the whole world, yet forfeit their soul?”

TDM

President Obama was on the Daily Show with Jon Stewart.  It was remarkable in so many ways.  Obama said:

“Government works better now than it probably ever has, given what we ask it to do.” 

He also denied the documented fact that the IRS was targeting the Tea Party and then blamed the targeting that didn’t happen on congress failing to properly fund the IRS.  All problems are the direct result of the government not spending enough money.  .

 “The reason I can sleep at night is I say to myself, ‘You know what? It’s better’”

He may sleep better but he is making it harder for the rest of us.  It sure looks like Obama lives in a world created by his own delusions filtered through rose colored glasses.  I think he really believes that the economy has improved.  I think he really believes that he increased respect for the U.S. all around the world.  I think he really believes he has negotiated a great deal with Iran.  I think he really believes he has improved race relations in the United States.  I think he really believes that all of his problems come from Republicans who are blocking him from achieving even more.

I often ask myself if liberals are really that stupid or do they just hope we are that stupid.  After watching this performance by Obama, I am convinced that they really are that stupid. If you need more evidence, check out the following quotes from an Occupy Democrats post.  Incredibly, people are sharing this because they believe it is brilliant:

“No matter what his critics say, Pres. Obama will go down as one of the best presidents and greatest leaders in American History. 

He improved relations with Cuba, killed Bin Laden, signed the Violence Against Women Act, Best Job Numbers since the 90’s, Brought home over 100,000 American troops, Eliminated Ebola from America,

Ended Bush’s 2 wars, Pulled American out of the Bush recession & the Bush economic crisis, Gave affordable healthcare to millions of Americans, Convinced China to take it’s (sp) first steps against climate change.

I am reminded that it is impossible to engage in mental combat with unarmed opponents.  Like I said…that stupid.

TDM

Did you watch the press conference after the Chattanooga shooting?  The FBI was warning against a “rush to judgment.”  They didn’t want to assume anything regarding the motivation for this crime.  That would be fine, except that if a black man is shot by the police there is certainly a rush to judgment.  That is why Trayvon Martin and Michael Brown are household names.  If this guy had a Tea Party connection there would have been a mad rush to judgment. Liberals are convinced that a lot of people are motivated to commit hate crimes by Fox News, Evangelical Christians, Rush Limbaugh, Sarah Palin or some other right wing racist. There is no evidence of that, but that has zero impact on the liberal left.  In this case the shooter was named Muhammad Youssef Abdulazeez.  He had made several overseas trips to Muslim countries.  Is that a coincidence?  Yet, incredibly, the FBI is not sure what motivated him:

http://www.cbsnews.com/news/report-police-officer-shot-near-tennessee-army-recruiting-center/

“We’re going to do an intense look at him to see what his connections are,” FBI Special Agent in Charge Ed Reinhold said. “We’ll look at his friends, family, associates — anybody who is associated with him to determine the cause or the reason why he conducted this attack.”

U.S. Attorney Bill Killian said officials were treating the attacks as an “act of domestic terrorism,” though the FBI’s Reinhold said authorities were still investigating a motive.

Check out the article in the Daily Mail.  Look at how differently this is covered overseas.  The contrast with the American media is stunning:

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3165270/Purple-Heart-recipient-served-Iraq-identified-one-four-Marines-shot-dead-Chattanooga-shooting-gunman-Muhammad-Abdulazeez.html

I sincerely hope some leaders in the Muslim community step forward and deal with this.  Otherwise this could get ugly.  The case involving Robert Doggart is very disturbing.

http://www.cbsnews.com/news/ex-tennessee-congressional-hopeful-indicted-in-alleged-anti-muslim-plot-in-new-york/

His response to the legitimate threat of Muslim Extremism was to develop a plot to kill all Muslims. He was motivated by videos alleging that Islamberg was conducting terrorist training.

http://www.wnd.com/2015/01/local-police-speak-out-about-islamberg/

The videos are not confirmed and local police are skeptical, but he is not necessarily wrong about this facility.  There is no excuse for what Doggart did, but this is not totally unpredictable.  This is what happens when people lose faith in the federal government being ready, willing or even able to protect us.

It is hard to have much confidence when the FBI seems intent on ignoring the obvious.  As the blog says, sometimes what is obviously true is obviously true.

TDM

According to the Daily Mail, following is a text of the Iran leader’s letter to  President Obama regarding the nuclear arms deal:

ttp://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3163029/Iran-s-supreme-leader-mocks-America-letter-Obama-warning-countries-signed-nuke-deal-not-trustworthy.html

 “the prepared text, however, needs careful scrutiny and must be directed into the defined legal process, and in case of approval, be concerned about possible violation of commitments by the other parties and close pathes(sp) to it.”

So far, no one appears to dispute the legitimacy of this text.  It is certainly consistent with what one would expect.  If this is accurate, there is no deal.  Iran has agreed to exactly nothing, except to “say” that negotiations are over.

While Republicans are outraged that Obama negotiated a bad deal, it is far worse than that.  This is worse than nothing. This is paying the ransom without even a promise to get the hostage back.

Incredibly this letter was sent less than eight minutes after Obama finished his victory lap.  While the liberal left is rejoicing over a great diplomatic victory and Republicans are hyperventilating over a terrible deal, they both missed the whole point.  THERE IS NO DEAL!

The New York Times, as expected, is desperately trying to provide cover for Obama.  They are trying to explain why this is a good deal and Republicans are distorting the facts. But even the best linguistic efforts by the New York Times can’t change the simple reality that there is no deal to discuss.

Condoleezza Rice once said we cannot afford to wait for a smoking gun because it might turn out to be a mushroom cloud.  At this point I am not even sure a Mushroom cloud would be enough to enlighten liberal democrats, but we may soon find out.

Someone is really wrong here. This time, the consequences of getting this wrong are unimaginable.   I really hope and pray that Obama did achieve a great victory here and that his critics got it all wrong.  The problem is that there is zero evidence supporting that hope.

TDM

If the Confederate Flag should be banned as a symbol of racism, then perhaps we should remind people that this flag is and was a symbol of the Democratic Party. That was the whole point.  The first Democratic President, Andrew Jackson, was a wealthy slave holder.  It was Democratic politicians who fought to preserve slavery and even expand it.  It was Democrats who voted to form the Confederacy to preserve slavery.   It was the Democratic Party that was closely associated with the Klu Klux Klan, lynching’s, and Jim Crow laws in the south.  It was Democrats who produced the Southern Manifesto and fought bitterly against the 1956, 1960 and 1964 Civil Rights Acts.  It was Democrats who ordered police to use fire hoses and dogs on civil rights protestors.  It was a Democrat, Governor Faubus, who ordered the National Guard to stop black kids from attending schools.

It was the Dixiecrats, let by StromThurmond, a Democrat at the time, who brought back the Confederate battle flag as a symbol of the fight to continue segregation.  It was no accident that Bill Clinton and Al Gore used this flag in their campaign materials and referred to themselves as “Sons of the South.”  Bill Clinton’s political mentor was J. William Fulbright and Al Gore’s political mentor was his father, Al Gore, Sr.  Both men were leaders in the fight against the 1964 Civil Rights Act.

Democrats not only voted against the 1964 Civil Rights Acts, they put on a 57 day filibuster in a desperate attempt to block it.  Following are those senators who participated in the filibuster, led by Robert Byrd:

Hill and Sparkman, Alabama

Fulbright and McClellan, Arkansas

Holland and Smathers, Florida

Russell and Talmadge, Georgia

Ellender and Long, Louisiana

Eastland and Stennis, Mississippi

Ervin and Jordan, North Carolina

Johnton and Thurmond, South Carolina

Gore, Sr. and Walters, Tennessee

H Byrd and Robertson, Virginia

R Byrd, West Virginia

The liberal left believes that all the racist Democrats became Republicans.  That is patently false. Most of the Dixiecrats died as diehard Democrats.  Not only did these men remain Democrats, they are considered to be heroes of the Democratic Party.  These include Robert Byrd, J. William Fulbright, Sam Ervin, Richard Russell, John Stennis and of course Al Gore, Sr.  Many buildings in Washington D.C. are named after racist Southern Democrats.

The only one who became a Republican was Strom Thurmond, and that was after he renounced racism.    There is one period of time when several Democratic politicians left the Party to become Republicans.  That was prior to the civil war when Northern Democrats could no longer tolerate the pro-slavery Southern Democrats.

Republicans are blowing this big time.  Instead of being defensive, they should mock any attempt to link the confederate flag with Republicans.  A better response would be:  “Why are you asking me about the confederate flag.  That flag was brought back as a symbol of the Democratic Party and they are the ones who should be answering any questions.”

TDM

Republicans are hyperventilating about the Supreme Court decision allowing people to register to vote without proving citizenship. This is one time Republicans should actually try paying attention to the decision itself and then fix the problem.  The Supreme Court did not rule that the constitution forbids making people verify citizenship in order to register to vote.  What it said was that since Congress has passed a federal law specifying voter registration requirements states could not add additional requirements to that law.  In effect the Supreme Court told congress this was a problem they created and they have the power to fix.  What Republicans should do is require voter ID and proof of citizenship on a federal basis.  The Supreme Court would uphold that and the problem would be fixed permanently.

This problem is the National Voter Registration Act passed in 1993.   That law, also known as the Motor Voter Act was designed to make it easier for everyone to register to vote.  States are required to provide the opportunity to register to vote when someone applies for a driver’s license or renews a driver’s license.  This also requires any office that provides public assistance to give out voter registration forms and it allows citizens to register to vote by mail.  Obviously this was passed by a Democratic congress at the request of Bill Clinton.  It is pretty obvious that the plan was to make it easier to register voters who were likely to vote Democratic, which explains by any office offering public assistance had to participate.  In retrospect, the plan worked exactly as Democrats intended.

Instead of wasting time and money trying to get the Supreme Court to fix a problem congress created, they should just pass a new law.  Unfortunately, Republicans are far more likely to use this Supreme Court decision for political purposes while doing very little to actually fix the problem.   If Republicans in congress want to know who to blame for all those “questionable voters” they should start by purchasing mirrors.

TDM