THE PATRIOT POST 06/12/2015

Right Analysis | Right Hooks | Right Opinion Patriot Headlines | Grassroots Commentary Daily Digest June 12, 2015    THE FOUNDATION "If individuals be not influenced by moral principles; it is in vain to look for public virtue; it is, therefore, the duty of legislators to enforce, both by precept and example, the utility, as well as the necessity of a strict adherence to the rules of distributive justice." —James Madison, in response to Washington's first Inaugural address, 1789 TOP RIGHT HOOKS The Effect of China's Hack Could Be Staggering When the Office of Personnel Management announced that the data of four million past and present federal employees were taken by China, it could have been running damage control. The American Federation of Government Employees, the largest union for federal employees, accused OPM of being not forthright about the hack. The union believes China targeted the Central Personnel File and is now in possession of the information of every federal employee, including those who retired and left the government's employ. But it could be much, much worse. An unnamed government official told ABC News China could have targeted the database that stored government employees' SF-86 forms — the 127-page form public workers fill out when they apply for a security clearance. For a malicious government seeking to recruit spies, it's the Holy Grail, as the form asks the applicant to list the applicant's network — the people slept with, the foreign nationals in contact with, family members. We don't yet know what information is in China's hands. But one thing is clear: Big government stands directly opposed to privacy, and by extension, Liberty. This is why the big data that comes with ObamaCare is so insidious. When it comes to cybersecurity, Liberty is America's greatest strength. Comment | Share It's Up to Congress to Keep the Internet Tax Free The Internet Tax Freedom Act passed the House by voice vote this week, and now heads to the Senate. The best news is that it's a permanent extension. In place since 1998, Harry Reid's Senate only permitted a one-year extension last year because he wanted a hostage for other negotiations. But the law becomes increasingly important in the age of so-called net neutrality (which takes effect today), because it prevents taxation on Internet and email services in America's 9,600 tax jurisdictions. House Judiciary Chairman Bob Goodlatte warned that the FCC's decision to regulate the Internet like telecommunications "emboldens states to apply these telecom taxes to Internet access immediately, should ITFA lapse." Goodlatte also laid bare the problem with Internet taxes, saying that granting states such powers would allow "lawmakers to dodge accountability for the burdens associated with their policy choices by shifting them onto non-residents who cannot hold them accountable at the ballot box." Furthermore, he said, "[I]f Congress lets 'economic presence' rather than 'physical presence' become the standard, states will mostly exempt resident companies from tax obligations while imposing them on out-of-state companies." In other words, taxation without representation. For those with any sense of American history, that phrase should ring loud and clear. Comment | Share Lessons on Picking Your Identity The City of Spokane is investigating a critical matter, and the outcome should be black and white. The president of the city's NAACP chapter likely violated the city's code of ethics because she's actually white. Rachel Dolezal identifies as African-American and has even modified her appearance accordingly. She's also claimed to be the victim of several "hate" crimes. But public records indicate she and both of her parents are white. The obvious comparison is Bruce Jenner, the former male Olympic decathlon champion who now says he's a woman. Many leftists gladly accepted him as a her, even giving him awards for "courage." But while Jenner is affirmed, Dolezal has committed an unforgivable sin by doing pretty much the same thing. Perhaps a less obvious comparison is the example of a prominent man who has a white mother and black father (who abandoned him early on), and yet who identifies solely by the race of his father — well, unless his Irish ancestry happens to be politically beneficial. Any guesses who that might be? Identity sure is an interesting thing with liberal social mores. Comment | Share FEATURED RIGHT ANALYSIS What Exactly Are We Trading in the TPA/TPP? By Michael Swartz Port of Oakland It’s a deal that's been in the works since before Barack Obama took office, but as the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), a free trade pact, is being hammered into shape, some members of Congress — especially Democrats — are reluctant to give Obama the same "fast-track" authority other presidents have had over the last few decades. Specifically, that would happen through the Trade Promotion Authority (TPA), the full text of which is here. Some conservatives also have a problem with awarding any authority to this particular chief executive, given his track record of abusing his power on immigration and regulation. There’s an argument to be had, however, from conservatives who remind us that free trade is the bailiwick of the Republican Party. George Will leads the charge: “It is ... unnecessary to defeat fast-track authority (thereby defeating freer trade) in order to restrain this rogue president. The 22nd Amendment guarantees his departure in 19 months. His lawlessness has prompted congressional resistance on multiplying fronts. The judiciary, too, has repeatedly rebuked him for illegal executive overreaches. So, it is neither necessary nor statesmanlike to injure the nation’s future in order to protest Obama’s past.” There’s also the libertarian free-trade perspective of the Cato Institute: "Historically, trade agreements have expanded Americans’ economic liberties, even though that outcome has never been the principal objective. It happens residually. Trade negotiators prioritize the export-oriented goals of their business interests and, in the process of reaching those objectives, make Americans more economically free." In both instances, we're reminded that the process doesn’t end with congressional passage of the TPA, which, in short, grants Obama negotiating power and provides for Congress to then hold an up-or-down vote on whatever agreement Obama makes — without being able to amend it. While nothing is certain in Congress, the House is slated to vote on the TPA legislation today, following the Senate’s passage of the measure last month. However, the “sausage-making,” as White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest termed it, has a number of other fillers that could be added to the mix. A previous version of the legislation cuts Medicare to pay for the Trade Adjustment Assistance that Democrats wanted in the bill. However, that particular cut was deleted in favor of measures intended to increase revenue through stricter enforcement of fraudulent claims and enhanced penalties against businesses failing to submit correct 1099 data. It’s also been speculated that the reauthorization of the Export-Import Bank — a favorite target of conservatives — may be included with TPA legislation to draw a few additional Democrat votes. Opponents also have some tricks up their sleeves. While the usual protectionist suspects of Big Labor (and some of the 2016 Democrat presidential hopefuls) continually grouse about being “isolated,” “marginalized,” and otherwise abandoned by their administration allies, immigration hawks are also crying foul about “secret immigration powers” they claim are in the TPP, based on leaked information from Wikileaks. This goes back to the lack of trust many have with this president, length of time left in office notwithstanding. The obvious question, then, is whether the votes are there. Trade negotiators for the U.S. argue that the other TPP parties won’t put their final offers on the table until Obama is allowed to have TPA, but some conservatives worry about what dangers to our sovereignty lurk in the proposal, which hasn’t been made public except for those provisions that have leaked. While it’s not a complete secret, access to draft copies of the TPP is controlled by the same laws that were placed in effect for NAFTA in the 1990s. Obama must publish the deal 60 days before entering into it, and Congress has final approval. Opponents are convinced that the TPA is the last best chance to kill the TPP, or at least push it off until the next (hopefully conservative) administration has a chance to negotiate a more favorable pact. But the TPA and the TPP are not the same thing, and support for the former doesn't necessarily mean support for the latter. Comment | Share Share TODAY AT PATRIOTPOST.US ANALYSIS: Obama Puts Immigration Enforcement in Limbo Free Trade Pollaganda Some Encouraging Social Trends Concerns Mount Over Islamic State Creating Dirty Bomb Miami Principal Fired for Thoughtcrime Supporting Police BEST OF RIGHT OPINION Mona Charen: Clinton Deploys 'They Hate You' Strategy Brent Bozell & Tim Graham: When the Media Ignore Domestic Violence in Sports Jonah Goldberg: Al-Qaida's Out, ISIS Is In! Charles Krauthammer: The Racing Form, Second Edition For more, visit Right Opinion. OPINION IN BRIEF Mona Charen: "Republicans can deny that voter ID laws are about voter suppression till they bore everyone into a coma. It won’t have an impact. But that doesn’t mean they should surrender. What they should be concerned about is not any particular issue but rather their image as the party of haters. I would love to see all of the Republican candidates staging multiple events in places like Detroit, Baltimore and Cleveland. They should be asking what Hillary Clinton proposes to do about improving the climate for small business. They should demand to know what Democrats have done to improve the schools — or rather, draw attention to the fact that Democrats stand in the way of improving education for poor kids. They should demand accountability for the millions of taxpayer dollars intended for poor families that wind up in the pockets of the well-connected and the well-heeled, while praising the work of churches and other private groups. The shame of the cities belongs squarely in the Democrats' laps. Even if it doesn’t yield a single new African American voter, it’s worth doing for two reasons: 1) because it will improve the image of the Republican Party, and 2) because it’s right." Comment | Share SHORT CUTS Upright: "Your petulance is unbecoming, Mr. President, and your criticism of anyone who disagrees with you is downright unmanly. You come off like a spoiled child who has been denied his way. And while you blame your shortcomings on opposing political parties, you have had both houses of Congress and the White House in the first two years of your term. Plus an electoral mandate to do just about anything you wanted to, so the least you can do is cowboy up and take the blame for the messes you’ve made." —Charlie Daniels Dezinformatsia: "[I]n a country where the vast majority of police officers patrol with batons and pepper spray, the elite cadre of British cops who are entrusted with guns almost never use them. Police in Britain have fatally shot two people in the past three years. ... [E]xperts say the way British bobbies are trained, commanded and vigorously scrutinized may offer U.S. police forces a useful blueprint for bringing down the rate of deadly violence and defusing some of the burning tension felt in cities from coast to coast." —The Washington Post, simply hoping for disarmament Demo-gogues: "Elections should be about choices, and my argument is you won’t have a choice if Secretary Clinton is the Democratic nominee because she’s so similar to the Republicans." —Democrat presidential candidate Lincoln Chafee Braying Jackass: “I’ve been joking with Lindsey [Graham] ... [about] a rotating first lady. He’s a bro with no ho.” —Sen. Mark Kirk Non Compos Mentis: “Has anybody proved that we did anything objectionable? No.” —Bill Clinton Late-night humor: "Hillary Clinton joined Instagram ... and somehow she's already deleted thousands of photos." —Seth Meyers Comment | Share Semper Vigilans Fortis Paratus et Fidelis! Managing Editor Nate Jackson 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.