Backlash from centrist Democrats as democratic socialist candidates sweep primaries

  The Guardian

The American Spectator

"After a string of Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) primary victories, the loudest response from much of the Democratic establishment’s old guard was not reconciliation, but escalation.

"Over the last few days, prominent party figures have moved away from unifying under a “blue no matter who” banner to push for a more formal break with their left flank, and said the moment may have arrived for Democrats to confront their more socialist wing.

“'I actually do think it’s time for Democrats to talk the S-word: schism,” James Carville, the veteran Democratic strategist and former Bill Clinton adviser, said on his podcast. He added that some DSA-aligned candidates “have no place in the Democratic party” and, of the broader coalition: “I’m not in that f**king political party.”

Will the Mamdani effect make 2028 the year of the leftwing president?

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"Jaime Harrison, the former chair of the Democratic national committee, directed a pointed message at candidates running under the party’s banner while openly criticizing its direction.

“I say this with no ill will or animosity: if you hate the Democratic Party, then please don’t run for our nomination,” Harrison wrote on social media. “Don’t use our resources. Don’t rely on our volunteers. Don’t use our infrastructure. Focus on building the party you actually support.”

"The recent results in New York City were the latest in a run of DSA-aligned wins that have spanned the primary calendar. Earlier this cycle, progressives claimed victories in Maine, New Jersey, California and Philadelphia, where state representative Chris Rabb won a congressional primary in May, and more elections just around the corner.

"The DSA has endorsed about 150 candidates this cycle, according to an analysis by the Washington Examiner, with 35 either winning primaries or advancing without opposition, in races stretching across Oregon, California, Georgia, Pennsylvania and New York." . . . More...

Texas Highway 287 and the pro-life movement

 John Pisciotta - American Thinker

"Thousands of American towns have an impact multiplier from a major highway.  The pro-life movement should capitalize on this traffic flow with billboards and yard signs.  Though these signs are common in our movement, the opportunities in small-town America are largely untapped.".

"Can one resident of a town of 1,800 people reach thousands every day for a cause he loves?  I discovered that the answer is yes while driving through Clarendon, Texas on Highway 287 in June of 2026.  His name is Jimmie Griffin.  He turned an idea for Christian evangelization into a lasting public witness.

"In 2012, Jimmie Griffin wanted to share his Christian faith in a big way following a near-death experience.  Jimmie saw an opportunity with Highway 287 merging with Clarendon’s Main Street through the city.  I call this travel arrangement “Mainstreet-Highway Fusion.”  Ten to eleven thousand vehicles pass through Clarendon each day.

"Jimmie built ten-foot-high white crosses with PVC pipe.  He installed the crosses at no charge for Clarendon property owners, with priority on locations next to Highway 287.

"Jimmie’s campaign was the talk of Clarendon.  He eventually installed fifty crosses.  Clarendon locals and Highway 287 travelers still see Jimmie’s legacy.  His 2019 obituary described Jimmie as a man who “was never afraid to stand up for the Lord.” . . .

. . . "The post-Dobbs era has exposed strengths and weaknesses of the pro-life movement.  We have won significant victories, such as federal legislation defunding Planned Parenthood.  We have also suffered major setbacks, such as losing 14 of 17 statewide ballots on abortion.  Clear gains for the culture of life will require bold expansion of the pro-life playbook.  If one man’s initiative in a town of 1,800 can reach thousands every day, imagine what thousands of small hometowns could accomplish."

Phantom Nation Obliterates the ‘Free Palestine’ Hoax

Bruce W. Davidson   

 . . . "During the year of the 250th anniversary of American independence, the very different nature of the American rebellion deserves more notice. Among the terrorist leaders of the violent movements in Algeria and Palestine, we find no “Jefferson, Madison, Hamilton, Jay, Adams or Washington among them, all of whom had been men of learning and civilized ideals.'"

"The charge of “Palestinian genocide” actually encompasses two bold, baseless lies. One is the assertion that there exists a distinct Arab Palestinian people group with significant historical roots in Palestine. The other is the claim that these people are deliberately being targeted for extermination by Israeli Jews. Shai ben-Tekoa’s Phantom Nation: Inventing the “Palestinians” as the Obstacle to Peace thoroughly debunks the first lie and chronicles how it was constructed, developed, and subsequently spread around the world, especially by left-leaning mainstream journalists. It argues convincingly that real peace becomes a possibility only “when the world sees through the essentially antisemitic myth of this phantom nation.”

When I lived and studied in Israel in 1976, people usually referred to the fighting between Arabs and Jews in the Middle East as “the Arab-Israeli conflict,” recognizing it as a broader issue than just Israelis versus certain people living in refugee camps. The Yom Kippur War had happened only three years previously, and in 1976 much of the world marveled at the dramatic rescue by Israeli commandos of Jewish hostages held at Entebbe Airport in Uganda by Arab and German leftist hijackers. I remember well a lecture by a professor from Hebrew University that explained the essentially religious nature of the conflict. In the 1990s I taught a course about the conflict at a junior college in Osaka, but I downplayed its religious character to my students.

Since that time, the prominence of terrorist organizations like Hamas and Hezb’allah has made the Muslim character of hostility to Israel difficult to ignore. What I did not understand fully during the 90s is that it has always been that way, just as the Hebrew University professor told us. The historical facts are clear and plentiful, but many leftists, including even Jewish and Israeli leftists, have stubbornly refused to come to grips with them." . . .

Bruce W. Davidson is a professor emeritus of the school of humanities at Hokusei Gakuen University in Sapporo, Japan. From 1990 to 1995 he taught “The Arab-Israeli Conflict” at a junior college in Osaka. He studied in Jerusalem, Israel at the American Institute of Holy Land Studies in 1976

Surprise: Basing College Admissions On Merit Instead Of Skin Is Good For Everyone -

"New evidence shows that the Supreme Court’s ban on affirmative action is not a setback; instead, it facilitates improved outcomes for all."

 The Federalist- Conservative Review   

"It is clear that a meritocracy-based approach benefits every student. We must shift our focus from ideological conflicts to what truly matters: empowering every student to thrive through preparation, opportunity, and fair competition." 

 

"Following the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in Students for Fair Admissions v. Harvard (2023), which banned affirmative action in college admissions, many experts, university officials, civil rights advocates, and government leaders warned about sharp declines in black and Hispanic enrollment. Yet a new report suggests that these predictions were overly pessimistic and failed to reflect the full scope of the situation. 

"Unlike early analyses that concentrated solely on underrepresented minority (URM) enrollment at a handful of prestigious institutions like Harvard and MIT, James Murphy’s January 2026 report for Class Action — a nonprofit advocating equity in higher education — examined 2024 freshman enrollment at more than 3,000 colleges and universities using federal data, offering a more balanced view of the enrollment landscape after the Supreme Court decision.  

"Before anyone accuses the report of being influenced by right-wing bias, it is important to note that Murphy professes his leftist views at the beginning of the report. He believes that race-conscious admissions are necessary for URM students and that the Supreme Court’s affirmative action ban harms long-term well-being of URM students. Despite his ideological stance, Murphy deserves credit for not omitting results that contradict his views, even if he attempts to rationalize them. 

"The report highlights a significant trend: Highly selective colleges in the U.S. (which admit only 8 percent of the student population across all four-year institutions) have experienced a decline in enrollment of URM students — particularly black students. But many less-selective institutions (which account for more than 90 percent of four-year colleges and universities) are welcoming more URM students, leading to a remarkable increase in their enrollment. 

"Flagship state universities especially experienced standout gains: Enrollment of black freshmen climbed 30 percent at LSU and 50 percent at the University of Mississippi; Hispanic freshmen were up more than 33 percent at Tennessee and South Carolina. Less-selective private colleges like Syracuse University also experienced 17 percent growth in black first-year students, and Hispanic freshmen increased 45 percent at the University of Miami. The only exception to this growing trend is a puzzling small dip in black enrollment at Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs)." . . .