Daily Digest for Wednesday
November 5, 2014
THE FOUNDATION"Honor, justice, and humanity, forbid us tamely to surrender that freedom which we received from our gallant ancestors, and which our innocent posterity have a right to receive from us. We cannot endure the infamy and guilt of resigning succeeding generations to that wretchedness which inevitably awaits them if we basely entail hereditary bondage on them." --Thomas Jefferson, Declaration of the Causes and Necessities of Taking up Arms, 1775TOP 5 RIGHT HOOKS'My Policies Are on the Ballot'
Comment | Share 'It Could Have Been Worse'In March, House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi predicted she'd take back the speaker's gavel this November -- because of ObamaCare. "I believe it's a winner," she said at the time. Oops. It didn't turn out that way as the GOP took even more seats in the House to put the gavel further out of reach for Pelosi. As of this morning, Republicans gained at least 12 seats. Several remain undecided, and they could gain as many as 18 -- expanding their majority to a high not seen since the Roaring Twenties. Pelosi acknowledged Tuesday, "It's a difficult night." That's putting it mildly. But hey, Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee Chairman Steve Israel (D-NY) tried to put a positive spin on it, saying, "[I]t could have been worse." Small consolation.Comment | Share Pollaganda and the Election ResultsPollaganda -- n. 1. mainstream media (MSM) polling used to manipulate public opinion and advance a particular bias. 2. Outcome-based polling; instruments designed to generate a preferential outcome, which can be used to manipulate public opinion by advancing the perception that a particular issue, individual or group has a majority of public favor or disfavor. 3. A dezinformatsia (disinformation) campaign of political polling used for propaganda -- polling masquerading as "objective journalism" designed to advance a liberal bias. Such is our definition of media polls. Yesterday was a case in point, as the polling was severely skewed in favor of Democrats. In fact, in several Senate races, polling had Democrats outperforming actual votes by an average of six points. Ed Gillespie wasn't supposed to have a prayer in Virginia, but that race still hasn't been called. David Perdue was supposed to face a runoff in Georgia, but he won handily. All in all, it's clear that the only poll that matters is the one on Election Day.
Comment | Share GOP Makes State-Level GainsThe crest of the Republican wave this election was the taking of the Senate, but to see the real impact of the red wave, look at state governments. Of the 98 bicameral legislatures in the nation (unicameral Nebraska has to sit out on this one), Republicans control 63 of them, and six are still undecided. It was a good day for governor races, too, with the GOP picking up two governors' positions, with 31 Republican governors to the Democrats' 19. Tim Storey at the National Conference of State Legislatures writes, "A Republican wave swept over the states, leaving Democrats at their lowest point in state legislatures in nearly a century." As most policy is worked out on the lower levels of government, this state-level wave may be of more importance than taking Congress. More...Comment | Share Minimum Wage Wins in Four StatesFour states voted to raise their minimum wages in Tuesday's election, showing that while the nation disapproves of most of the Democrats' progressive platform, voters are suckers for supposedly higher wages. Alaska, Arkansas, Nebraska and South Dakota all voted to raise their minimum wage above the federal level, which is still preferable to the federal government imposing a blanket raise. However, voters not fully informed on the matter guided the vote. A Reason-Rupe Poll released in April shows that two-thirds of those polled favored a federal minimum wage hike to $10.10. But when asked if they supported a minimum wage raise if prices went up as a consequence (which they do), 51% said they still agreed. That number shrunk to 39% if raising the minimum wage cost jobs (which it does). Republicans have their work cut out for them: As Sen. Rand Paul said, the GOP has a perception problem among low-wage earners. Republicans must communicate that Liberty and limited government lifts all boats. More...Comment | Share For more, visit Right Hooks.
RIGHT ANALYSISThe Real Story Might Be GOP Governor Wins
Gov. Scott Walker, a likely 2016 presidential contender, is arguably the most admired Republican governor among party members of all stripes for his exemplary governing of a blue state while simultaneously successfully fighting off multiple assaults by the entire Wisconsin Democrat party. After inheriting a massive deficit from his Democrat predecessor, Walker now has the state nearly $1 billion in black. He cut taxes by more than $2 billion, spurring an economic revival that reduced unemployment from 7.7% to 5.5% and raised per capita income by 9%. Confidence in the state’s economy among employers skyrocketed. Perhaps more than anything else though, he won the respect and admiration of decent Americans for his stalwart stand against the massive barrage of every dirty trick in the Democrat playbook, including false charges of campaign financing violations by Democrat district attorneys, all of which were summarily tossed out of court. Walker's third win in four years only solidifies his 2016 presidential résumé. Gov. Sam Brownback of Kansas likewise governed as a fiscal conservative, although his opponents were often those in his own party. He wants to reform Kansas’ economy and winnow down its unfunded liabilities. His most controversial act involved cutting the state’s personal income tax by nearly half, one of the largest tax cuts in the state’s history. He also rejected the feds’ money meant for setting up an exchange under ObamaCare. His efforts angered a number of “moderate” Republican lawmakers, and as payback, they stymied several of his other agenda items. In fact, a number of “moderate Republicans” were so angry with Brownback that they formed a group named “Republicans for Davis,” his far-left Democrat challenger in yesterday’s election. The group grew to 104 members, 53 of whom are former legislators, including 37 who’ve long been out of office, but all are still politically active in the party. That 104 “Republicans” would do their best to replace a Republican with a far-left governor might indicate that Brownback lacks some negotiating skills, but it speaks volumes more about those Republicans. Brownback's win undermines the Leftmedia narrative of a repudiation of his conservative fiscal policies. In fact, a large percentage of conservatives and their allies see his work as a giant step in the right direction, and Kansas voters gave him a second term. Finally, we consider the race for governor of Connecticut between progressive incumbent Dannel Malloy and challenger Tom Foley, which Foley appears to have lost. Interestingly, the leftist Daily Beast couldn't figure out why the race was so tight. "Dan Malloy is progressives’ dream governor. So why isn’t he winning?” the rag wondered. Malloy is indeed the Left’s ideal leftist. His many "accomplishments" include preventing state employee layoffs, raising the minimum wage, enacting mandatory paid sick leave, creating easy ballot access (i.e., no ID required), expanding "transgender" "rights" (including the right to use restrooms designated as the “gender” with which, uh, he/she/? identifies), spending gobs of money and taxing the rich. He even signed some of the worst gun control measures in the nation. What more could you want? Perhaps what made Tom Foley attractive is his impressive background in both the private and public sectors. He began working for a large finance company before striking out on his own. He started his own company and bought and sold others in manufacturing, textiles and aircraft. He worked briefly in Iraq as Director of Private Sector Development for the Provisional Coalition, and for his work was awarded the DoD’s Distinguished Public Service Award. He also served as ambassador to Ireland. This campaign against Malloy is Foley’s second. In 2010 they faced off in another very tight race, but when all the ballots were counted, Malloy won by a very slim margin -- always suspicious in a blue state. It's unfortunate that history seems to have repeated, despite the Republican wave nearly sweeping Malloy away. These three races don't count impressive GOP governorship wins in Illinois, Maryland and Massachusetts, or Rick Scott defending his seat in Florida. The wave was a big one, indeed. And since states are so critical for policy, Republican victories nationwide may prove of greater consequence than even winning the Senate. Comment | Share For more, visit Right Analysis.
TOP 5 RIGHT OPINION COLUMNS
 OPINION IN BRIEFJustice Robert H. Jackson (1892-1954): "The very purpose of a Bill of Rights was to withdraw certain subjects from the vicissitudes of political controversy, to place them beyond the reach of majorities and officials and to establish them as legal principles to be applied by the courts. One's right to life, liberty, and property, to free speech, a free press, freedom of worship and assembly, and other fundamental rights may not be submitted to vote; they depend on the outcome of no elections."Columnist Jonah Goldberg: "In Colorado, NARAL Pro-Choice America ran an ad insisting that a vote for the Republican candidate for the U.S. Senate would lead to a ban on women’s birth control and, as a result, a critical condom shortage. If you hadn’t been paying attention, you might not have known that the Republican candidate, Rep. Cory Gardner, actually favored making birth control available over the counter. That’s forgivable ignorance. But, if you think a single senator from a single state can ban birth control (never mind that he doesn’t want to), then you are so staggeringly clueless about how our political system works, you shouldn’t vote at all. Indeed, any self-esteem boost you might get from pulling a lever in a polling booth would be like a pebble in the ocean of shame you should feel for being so ignorant. ... 'Vote first, ask questions later' is not a mantra of good citizenship. It’s a marketing strategy designed to reward politicians for voters' ignorance." Comment | Share Economist Stephen Moore: "The Obama administration now runs TV and radio ads assuring welfare recipients they should feel no shame whatsoever in taking a handout and even tells them that the more they live off the expense of someone else (taxpayers), the better it is for the economy. Liberals are trying to bend the culture in a subversive direction. Given that last year we had 47 million on food stamps, the left is succeeding. We economists bury ourselves in the data and formulas to try to devise policy solutions to raise the living standards of workers and families. It’s humbling to realize how much of our nation’s economic success is based on a culture of virtue. Do the right thing, as Spike Lee would put it. To save our economy from a path of decline, we need to start with a personal and national commitment to sturdy families, strong parents and a re-emergence of the Protestant work ethic. That shouldn’t be so hard." Comment | Share
 Semper Vigilo, Fortis, Paratus et Fidelis! 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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