THE FOUNDATION
"It has been said that all Government is an evil. It would be more proper to say that the necessity of any Government is a misfortune." --James Madison, 1833TOP 5 RIGHT HOOKS
IRS Hides Emails
The IRS says it "lost" two years worth of emails from Lois Lerner, the IRS official held in contempt of Congress after refusing to testify about the Tea Party targeting scandal. Of course, the department plastered the investigators with 67,000 emails, mostly internal communication and cc'd emails by other IRS staff. The important documents are missing -- the emails between Lerner and the White House, the Federal Election Commission, Department of Justice and Democrat officials. The IRS blames a 2011 computer crash which they say destroyed two years worth of emails, but others are calling the IRS's bluff. By law, the IRS is supposed to back up its communications three different ways. This is the lamest and most transparent "dog at my homework" excuse since Richard Nixon lost several minutes of tape during the Watergate scandal. More...Comment | Share
Ukraine Conflict Escalates
Pro-Russian separatists re-escalated tensions with the Ukrainian government over the weekend, "killing 49 servicemen and dealing a blow to a military campaign to crush their uprising," according to Reuters. A military transporter was downed near Luhansk on Saturday, killing the more than four dozen on board. The incident marks insurgents' most fatal offensive yet. One separatists said, "The fascists can bring as many reinforcements as they want, but we will do this every time. We will talk to them on our own terms." The conflict continues to be aided and abetted by Russian president Vladimir Putin. "The State Department said Friday that Russia had sent tanks and other heavy weapons to separatists in Ukraine, supporting accusations Thursday by the Ukrainian government," reports The New York Times. Putin's "withdrawal" from the border, as predicted, is a divergence from his overarching goal -- the complete takeover of Ukraine. The question remains: What is the Obama administration's response? More sternly-worded warnings?Comment | Share
Russia Reset a 'Brilliant Stroke'
"You famously pressed the reset button," an interviewer reminded Hillary Clinton. "Are you embarrassed by that now, that gesture?" Her response is nothing short of delusional. "No, I thought it was a brilliant stroke," she said, "which in retrospect appears even more so, because look at what we accomplished." Hillary explained, "We wanted to get Russia on board with tough sanctions against Iran. We wanted to have a New START treaty to limit nuclear weapons. We wanted to get their help in transiting across their huge country to get things we needed into Afghanistan. We got all that done. [Vladimir] Putin comes back. Look where we are now. He invaded another country, so yes, but while we had that moment, we seized it, we used it, and succeeded." If the Obama administration succeeded, why did Putin invade Ukraine? Precisely because Putin doesn't take the infamous "reset" seriously. Obama's weakness leaves our foes smirking in the distance. A Hillary presidency would look no different. Some "brilliant stroke." More...Comment | Share
Fundamental Transformation Day
Saturday marked Flag Day, when American Patriots display and pay homage to our national flag. The Democrat Party, however, celebrated by paying homage to Hope 'n' Change. Amid the invasion of alien children, Democrats tweeted a photo of "a young Hispanic boy," reports The Daily Caller, who "appears to be holding some kind of flag or banner that has the colors of Old Glory, but clearly isn't Old Glory." This is hardly surprising -- the Left is fundamentally changing the United States, and they've made immigration reform (read: expanding a voter bloc) top priority heading into this year's midterm elections. Rather than honoring what the American flag stands for -- Liberty -- leftists are looking ahead, when the U.S. may become a genuine banana republic. More...Comment | Share
1Q GDP -1.7%
We were told this year's dismal first quarter GDP was all because of harsh winter weather, right? You can kiss that assertion goodbye. The contraction, originally pegged at around 1%, is more than likely closer to 2% thanks to bad health care data. According to Reuters, "The government reported that the economy contracted at a 1.0 percent annual rate in the January-March period. But with health care spending data now in hand, economists say growth probably declined at a rate of at least 1.7 percent." Say, wasn't Obama supposed to fix our health system with a government overhaul, too? This is the face of Obamanomics and Hope 'n Change. Another quarter like this and guess what? We're in recession again. More...Comment | Share
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RIGHT ANALYSIS
The Real 'Creeping National Security Crisis'
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| USS George H.W. Bush |
Yet Iraq is what's critical now, and global warming isn't the cause. The Obama State Department issued a statement recognizing this, saying the U.S. "strongly supports Iraq and its people as they face security challenges from violent extremists." Unfortunately, the note was left while evacuations from the embassy in Baghdad began over the weekend. Meanwhile, the latest city to fall to the jihadis of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) was the northern Iraqi town of Tal Afar early Monday. Sunni jihadis boast of having executed hundreds of Shiite Iraqi soldiers. However, the Iraqi military has begun to rally, retaking two towns north of Baghdad and stalling the jihadis' advance there.
That's good news in part because Obama essentially told Iraq on Friday they're on their own, phony messages of strong support notwithstanding. "Any action that we may take to provide assistance to Iraqi security forces has to be joined by a serious and sincere effort by Iraq's leaders to set aside sectarian differences to promote stability and account for the legitimate interests of all of Iraq's communities," he said before heading out for a weekend of golf and fundraising. "We can't do it for them, so this should be a wake-up call. Iraq's leaders have to demonstrate a willingness to make hard decisions and compromises. The United States will do our part, but understand that ultimately it's up to the Iraqis as a sovereign nation to solve their problems."
That prompted Rush Limbaugh to ask, "Why doesn't he treat us this way? He presumes to solve every problem in this country. He presumes to create more problems so he can create then more government solutions for problems in this country."
It seems the administration's primary plan for dealing with Iraq is to talk to Iran. The U.S. will begin open direct talks with Iran this week to determine what the enemy of our enemy can do to salvage something in Iraq. But the Navy also deployed an aircraft carrier to the Persian Gulf -- the USS George H.W. Bush, of all ships. When Obama fails, send in a Bush?
Kidding aside, George W. Bush has remained admirably silent when it comes to the unfolding crisis. But Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-CA), for one, thinks criticizing Obama is the same as being anti-American. "Some of the biggest GOP cheerleaders for the disastrous war in Iraq are now joining the blame-America-first crowd rather than working with our Commander-in-Chief to confront this crisis," Boxer said in a statement. She then proceeded to ... blame America first. The current crisis "has its roots in an ill-conceived war," she said. In reality, the complete meltdown happening in Iraq right now has its roots in Obama's foreign policy malfeasance.
Many analysts warn ISIL presents a serious threat to the U.S. "You've got motivation mixed with opportunity, ideology and foreign fighters and all of that looks like a very extreme version of Afghanistan in the '90s," said CBS News National Security Analyst Juan Zarate. "This is a cauldron of future terrorist threats to the West."
Indeed, this threat is real. Army Col. Kenneth King, who was the commanding officer of a U.S. detention camp in Iraq, said current ISIL head Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi told them upon his 2009 release from U.S. custody, "I'll see you guys in New York." If Iraq is allowed to become a state run by al-Qaida and its affiliates as Afghanistan was before 9/11, another attack on U.S. soil becomes more likely.
The stunning reversal in Iraq is particularly appalling to U.S. veterans. "You'd be lying if you weren't sitting at home saying, 'What the hell was that all for?'" fumed one vet. "It's devastating. Sure, the blood, sweat and tears, but even being away from your family for that long. All the little things that people don't think about. And you're saying, 'For what?' now."
From Obama's perspective, however, there may be a silver lining. Violence in Iraq is causing the price of oil to rise, which, in turn, could mean people drive less. That would be good for combatting global warming, all while supposedly further discrediting his predecessor in Iraq. Perhaps Obama really is achieving his goals after all.
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An Evolution Too Slow?
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Read the rest here.
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TOP 5 RIGHT OPINION COLUMNS
- Arnold Ahlert: The IRS 'Loses' Lerner's Emails
- Peggy Noonan: Cantor Bows Out With Grace
- Star Parker: In Today's America, 'Mainstream' Means Left
- Tony Perkins & Ken Blackwell: Help Wanted: A GOP Leader for a Majority
- Burt Prelutsky: Cruel & Unusual Punishment
OPINION IN BRIEF
The Gipper: "It is not my intention to do away with government. It is rather to make it work -- work with us, not over us; stand by our side, not ride on our back. Government can and must provide opportunity, not smother it; foster productivity, not stifle it."Columnist Arnold Ahlert: "In yet another oh-so-familiar Friday news dump, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) revealed to Congress that they have 'lost' more than two years worth of emails to and from former tax official Lois Lerner. ... The scope of potential corruption here is so vast, that even Americans dedicated to the news can't possibly keep track. Simplification of this scandal isn't easy, but there are over-arching realities that cannot be denied. The two most important are these: one, it has been admitted by the IRS that conservative groups were singled out for unwarranted scrutiny by one of the most powerful government entities in the nation; and two, despite every press release to the contrary, federal officials supposedly working for the American people are doing whatever they can to withhold critical information."
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Columnist Star Parker: "Most of America's Declaration of Independence consists of listing of the violations of the personal liberties of the American colonists by the King of England. The founding of the country was not born of ideology but of the practical realities of individuals wanting to live free finding it harder and harder to do so. This is what is happening today and it will only stop when either Americans at the grass roots re-achieve freedom and perceive that the opportunity that comes with it is back, or they stop caring about it. America has no center today. You either accept a left-wing status quo or you are fighting against it."
Comedian Conan O'Brien: "Former President George H. W. Bush turned 90 and celebrated by going skydiving. So if you include Obama, there were two presidents in free-fall."
Semper Vigilo, Fortis, Paratus et Fidelis!
Nate Jackson for The Patriot Post Editorial Team
Join us in daily prayer for our Patriots in uniform -- Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen, Marines and Coast Guardsmen -- standing in harm's way in defense of Liberty, and for their families.
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