California Goes Groucho On Gasoline

  Issues & Insights  

Doing almost any sort of business in California has become an arduous task due to a crippling regulatory regime, high taxes and suffocating mandates. Doing business as a politically unfavored industry is even more difficult.  

"What did California officials think was going to happen when they decided it was a dazzlingly brilliant idea to hound the oil industry out of the state? That magic would take over and there would be no consequences for their rash decisions?

"Apparently, they weren’t thinking at all, because, according to reports, the California Energy Commission (CEC) is looking for a buyer who will take over one of the refineries that’s being abandoned by a company that’s had enough of being beaten up by Sacramento. Their confidence in their crusade to green out the state seems to have been replaced by panic.

"To paraphrase the great Groucho Marx, they have values, and when those wreck things, they have others.

"Based on the statements of three sources, Reuters reported last week that the CEC is actively shopping Valero Energy’s Benicia refinery near San Francisco. The facility, with a 145,000-barrel-per-day capacity, is scheduled to close in April, and is one of several refineries that will be shuttered across the state. Later this year, Phillip’s 66 is closing its refinery complex, which has sites in Wilmington and nearby Carson. It will be the fourth California refinery to close since 2020. The announcement was made mere days after Gov. Gavin Newsom signed Assembly Bill X2-1, granting the state the power “to require oil refiners to maintain a minimum inventory of fuel to avoid supply shortages.” The law also limits “higher profits for the industry,” and authorizes the bureaucracy to force “refiners to plan for resupply during refiner maintenance outages.”

"Valero is also considering closing its refinery in Wilmington, which can produce 85,000 barrels a day. The refining capacity of the two Valero sites is a little more than 14% of the state’s total.

"By this time next year, there might not be even a dozen refineries left in the state to produce the 38 million gallons of California’s boutique blend that’s consumed every day. This special mix is unique to the state. It’s not made anywhere else, and costs more than gasoline manufactured and sold outside the state lines. Should oil companies elect to use their refineries in other states to make it, they would have to invest billions to upgrade their systems." . . . 

How James Carville Would ‘Save Democracy’ ; Always listen when Democrats tell us what they want to do.

 The American Spectator | USA News and Politics  

"We need a couple of new states whose voters will vote reliably for Democrats, and we must assure that pesky Supreme Court justices don’t force our “leaders” to adhere to inconvenient clauses of the Constitution. Listen to James Carville. He says what all Democrats think."

"It’s hardly a secret that the Democrats are in the midst of an existential crisis. They are leaderless, fractious, broke, and more unpopular with the voters than they have been in decades. Yet, as their antics have demonstrated during the first seven months of the second Trump administration, they don’t connect these calamities to their bad policies and worse execution. Instead, they attribute their ills to malevolent forces threatening “our democracy” and see themselves as its saviors. How will they rescue the republic? Former Clinton advisor James Carville laid out a blueprint last Wednesday.

"He argued that, if the Democrats achieve a governing trifecta in 2028, they must take certain steps that will give them permanent control over the federal government: “If the Democrats win the presidency, the Senate and the House in 2028 … they are just going to have to unilaterally add Puerto Rico and the District of Columbia as states.” Carville continued, “And they may have to expand the Court to 13 members.” It’s tempting to write his comments off as the ravings of a washed-up blowhard, but the Democrats have introduced bills in recent sessions of Congress that would have created these states and bloated the Supreme Court." ...

. . . "All of this suggests that it is the Democrats themselves who constitute the real threat to “our democracy.” This view is certainly consistent with what we know about their history. It was Democrats who presided over Jim Crow, whose primary function was to disfranchise black voters who cast their ballots almost exclusively for Republicans from 1870 until the New Deal era. It was Democrats who imposed literacy tests, poll taxes, and grandfather clauses to assure that black voters didn’t threaten the solid — white Democrat — South. And, finally, it was Democrats — North and South — who vehemently opposed women’s suffrage." . . .

Yep, Mamdani Will Be NYC’s Next Mayor; The City Which Gave Us de Blasio

  PJ Media  

"Sliwa might not want to admit it, but two out of the three not-Mamdani candidates need to drop out to give the city a fighting chance against the nepo-red-diaper-baby candidate." 

Tom Stiglich

"Nice city you have here — it would be a shame if something were to happen to it."

"Something bad is about to happen to New York City. 

"Maybe I'm wrong. I hope I'm wrong. The greatest city in the world deserves something better than a commie-racist/nepo-red-diaper-baby like Zohran Mamdani as its mayor.

"But recent news has me convinced that the commie-racist/nepo-red-diaper-baby will be the city's next mayor.

"President Donald Trump called Mamdani a "communist lunatic" back in June, and he isn't wrong. Every time some old social media post of the Democrat mayoral nominee resurfaces, he's boasting that "the end goal is seizing the means of production," complaining that capitalism is theft, or defending al-Qaeda terrorist Anwar al-Awlaki.

"It's telling that Mamdani hasn't scrubbed his social media history. It's telling because he's telling New Yorkers exactly who he is — but in recent polling, he still wins a plurality of the vote in what amounts to a four-candidate race.

“ 'I’ve never seen someone so far to the left," an anonymous political pro told the New York Post earlier this year. "He’s anti-Israel, he’s all up in the protests and violence. This is not how a mayoral candidate behaves.”

"Nevertheless, New York Gov. Kathy Hochul has resigned herself to a Mamdani win in November." . . .  More...

Zohran Mamdani will make New York City a living nightmare   Zohran Mamdani promises to be President Donald Trump’s “worst nightmare” if he becomes mayor, but the actual victims of any such faceoff will be the people of New York City.

"For starters, no mere mayor, even of America’s greatest city, has the juice to pick a fight with the federal government and hope to come out on top.

"In fact, it’s a joke to think a Mayor Mamdani could even step in the ring. 

"Look: The city depends heavily on federal cash to help the people Mamdani claims to care the most about, namely the poor.

"Three out of five New York City residents are on Medicaid or related health plans, and the feds pay for most of that coverage, tens of billions of dollars a year. "  . . . 

‘They Broke The Law’: JD Vance Says ‘A Lot Of People’ Will Be Indicted For Russia Hoax

 The Daily Caller

Video: JD Vance Says 'Consequences' Necessary For 'Aggressive Violations' By Obama Admin During Russiagate

"Vice President JD Vance said in an interview airing Sunday that a lot of people would be indicted for “aggressive violations of the law” during the Russiagate scandal, arguing that those involved needed to face consequences for “defrauding” the American people.

"Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard released documents and a memo on July 18 detailing what she described as a “years-long coup” against President Donald Trump after he defeated former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in the 2016 presidential race. Vance told “Sunday Morning Futures” host Maria Bartiromo that Obama administration officials “defrauded” Americans with false claims Trump colluded with Russia. (RELATED: ‘Really Astonishing’: Jonathan Turley Stunned By Brennan, Clapper Russiagate Claims In NYT Op-Ed)

“ 'Do you want to see indictments?” Bartiromo asked Vance, who responded, “Absolutely, Maria. Look, of course you’ve got to have the law follow the facts here. You don’t just indict people to indict people, you indict people because they broke the law. But if you look at what Tulsi and [FBI Director] Kash Patel have revealed in the last couple of weeks, I don’t know how anyone can look at that and say there wasn’t aggressive violations of the law.”

The Russiagate Hoax Scandal Breaks | The American Spectator  . . . "The blunt, hard truth today is that what’s coming now to light in seriously “with documents” form is that the Obama–Biden era intelligence agencies were in fact engaged in what DNI Tulsi Gabbard has bluntly called a “yearslong coup.” A coup that was targeted at Donald Trump.

"Without doubt, the combined investigative force of the Trump–Bondi Department of Justice and House and Senate investigators will finally shed real light on the already starting-to-be-revealed scandal that was behind the Obama–Biden management of U.S. intelligence agencies and their manic obsession with getting Trump.

"The real question now will be: What to do when the investigation is complete?

"Not to mention that there will be calls to make major decisions about the operation of those government agencies involved in this — and investigation and potential prosecution of all of those involved.

"There will doubtless be some who call for abolishing some or all of these agencies. Which will accomplish nothing other than bringing to the fore the realization that the United States needs a serious intelligence capability, however it may be structured and staffed.

"As this is written, America faces adversaries in places like Russia, China, North Korea, and in various hostile places in the Middle East. These realities are not going to vanish. Wishing it will not make it so.

"Yet clearly something  — something! — has to be done. The notion that a collection of players in the world of American intelligence agencies are using their offices to scheme and plot against the elected president in an American democracy is not simply unacceptable. It is dangerous. A decided step toward dictatorship." . . .

And Biden, no less, addressed Trump with such vitriol that it had to be taken by many as a call to assassinate him. TD

Five Quick Things: The Long Overdue Russiagate Reckoning   . . . "You cannot run a representative republic if one political party sabotages the duly elected president of the other party in ways that poison parts of the government against the interests of the people. Russiagate was exactly that; the lies concocted by Hillary Clinton’s campaign team and furthered by the dead-enders of the late-stage Obama administration to weaponize intelligence and law enforcement agencies against the people’s elected president amount to treason.

"And treason must be addressed."

Trump, Netanyahu discuss plan to control Hamas strongholds in Gaza

  JNS.org

What future Democrat administration can we visualize ever supporting Israel against its current bloodthirsty enemies? Take note at the next State Of The Union of those Democrats sitting at the President's right; in whose hands do you visualize placing the safety of Israel's families and homes? Base your opinion on what you have seen over the past few years. TD

(Aug. 10, 2025 / JNS)

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and U.S. President Donald Trump talked about Israeli plans to take “control of the remaining Hamas strongholds in Gaza in order to bring about the end of the war, the release of the hostages and the defeat of Hamas,” per an Israeli readout of the Sunday call.

"Netanyahu also thanked the U.S. president for the latter’s “steadfast support of Israel since the start of the war,” the Israeli prime minister’s office said." . . .

" 'Earlier in the day, Netanyahu told foreign reporters at a press conference that ” the truth is, Hamas still has thousands of armed terrorists in Gaza.”

“It vows to repeat the Oct. 7 massacre and to do so again and again. It openly professes its goal to destroy the State of Israel,” Netanyahu said. “It subjugates Gazans. It steals their food. It shoots them when they try to move to safe zones, and I think it’s instructive that now, many Gazans are fighting back. They are begging us, and they’re begging the world, ‘free us. Free us, and free Gaza from Hamas.'”

"Netanyahu added that “no nation can accept a genocidal terrorist organization, an organization committed to its annihilation, a stone’s throw from its citizens.” . . .

Captive of Hamas for two years, this Israeli is being starved to death:

Bridging the Political Rift One Face-to-face Conversation at a Time

 Intelligent reasoning, but how does one stay calm, reasoned, and respectful when faced with those who plan to reward the killers of Hamas with their own nation, a nation they have demonstrated will be used to launch murderous attacks on peaceful towns and families? The Tunnel Dweller.

Intellectual Takeout 

. . ." When no one is physically standing there, acting as our mirror and sending body language signals that our opinions are coming off as harsh, arrogant, and off-putting, then we have less chance to rein ourselves in."

"It’s commonly observed that political vitriol is stronger than ever before in recent memory. The left thinks the right is a bunch of Nazis ready to Sieg Heil to Trump whenever possible, while the right thinks the left is a bunch of tone-deaf, cross-dressing terrorists, ready to riot on cue. The great rift is growing ever wider and never the twain shall meet, it seems.

"Have you ever considered just how much social media has contributed to this state of things? Yes, I know that social media is everyone’s favorite whipping boy, and as such, we all – myself included – zone out when it’s mentioned. But this time social media’s role in the great political divide struck me in a different way. To illustrate, imagine the following scenario with me:

"You’re friends on Facebook with several people you’ve known in person for years. You thought they shared your viewpoints and beliefs, but you’re now realizing they think differently than you do on a variety of topics, as they’ve frequently aired their opinions on their Facebook, X, Instagram, or TikTok spaces. You still appreciate their friendship, so you mentally resolve never to bring up the topics they just posted about on social media in a real life conversation.

"This works for a while, but as they keep posting their opinions, you keep adding items to the list of things which must not be named. Pretty soon, all you can do is talk about the weather, and you eventually drift apart from those longtime friends.

"Unless I miss my guess, you’ve probably experienced some form of the above story in recent years. I certainly have. Maybe we’ve even been the culprits, regularly sharing our opinions on various social platforms.

“ 'So what?” people may say. “It’s a free country, we have a right to air our opinions whenever and wherever we want.”

"And that’s absolutely true. But what we often fail to realize is that the very ease with which we can air our opinions to a nameless and faceless crowd may encourage us to word things far more strongly than we would in a face-to-face setting." . . .  More    

Case in point: Trump, Netanyahu discuss plan to control Hamas strongholds in Gaza

Netanyahu added that “no nation can accept a genocidal terrorist organization, an organization committed to its annihilation, a stone’s throw from its citizens.”

Australia to recognize Palestinian state, leaving US increasingly isolated among key allies - CNN

 When the next Democrat administration takes office, this nation will reward Hamas with its own state for their courageous war on families and children, burning infants alive. Why shouldn't we believe Hamas? Because they cannot be believed! TD

Avast/ CNN   "Australia announced its intention to recognize a Palestinian state at the UN General Assembly in September, joining several Western allies amid rising international criticism of Israel's actions in Gaza. New Zealand is also considering similar recognition. This move isolates the United States, which has not recognized Palestinian statehood.

• Detailed Summary:
  • Political Actions:
  • Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese stated Australia will recognize a Palestinian state at the UN in September.
  • New Zealand's Foreign Minister indicated the country is also considering recognition, with a decision expected at a September cabinet meeting.
  • The UK, France, and Canada have also announced plans for recognition, if Israel does not meet conditions.
  • Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu condemned the moves as "shameful."
  • International Relations:
  • The US is increasingly isolated among its allies on this issue.
  • Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong informed the US of Australia's plans.
  • Recognition is seen by Australia as a step toward a two-state solution.
  • Conditions and Assurances:
  • Australia has received assurances from the Palestinian Authority that Hamas will not be involved in a future Palestinian state.
  • Other conditions include demilitarization, elections, governance reforms, and international oversight."
  •