How Iowa went wrong for Hillary Clinton

Her vaunted field organization performed as expected. But she didn't.  But her dancing sticker-boy, Peter Clinkscales was in his own state of Nirvana.

Politico

. . . “ 'Since 2008, Clinton’s people have been pretty smart about putting together a really first-rate organization,” says Jeff Link, a Des Moines-based consultant with close ties to Harkin, long the state’s dominant Democrat, told POLITICO last month. “In the last eight years she gained all this experience at the State Department, which is great. But experience is not something voters are dying for right now.”

"The importance of winning in Iowa was twofold - back in the spring, the Clinton campaign hoped to defeat its primary challengers as quickly as possible and avoid a 50-state primary that would ding up the candidate with attacks before she entered a general election battle. And psychologically for Clinton, a victory here would free her from her stinging third-place finish eight years ago."

Hilarious: CBS anchors chuckle when Tammy Faye...er...Hillary says she can’t be bought

Thomas Lifson   "Hillary Clinton is well on her way to being a joke – she just doesn’t realize it yet.  The groundswell for Bernie Sanders shows that many on the left now recognize her corruption, something that her dubious victory in Iowa will only enhance.
"Things are so bad for her that the anchors on CBS – CBS! – chuckled when she claimed during an interview that she couldn’t be bought.  (Newsalert had the story; hat tip: Instapundit.)"

"Hillary is becoming the Tammy Faye Bakker of the Democrats.  A joke to most, but believed by a hard core of supporters – until the hypocritical enterprise falls apart."


Hillary’s dubious ‘victory’ in Iowa alienating Sanders supporters
. . . Long story short: the ultra-left wing of the left-wing Democratic Party is waking up to the fact that Hillary Clinton is a vicious, crooked phony, who will do anything to win – fair or foul.  Welcome to the club, lefties.  That’s step one in waking up to the political corruption that is destroying our country.  Meanwhile, assuming Hillary continues to muscle her way into the nomination and escapes indictment, the odds are that embittered Sanders supporters will stay home in November." . . .

Oops. Fox News catches Hillary telling story she just heard “yesterday” three weeks earlier
. . . "She was making that story up to try to sell her email alibi and spinning it out of whole cloth. In some circles that’s still referred to as “lying.' ”. . . 

Bernie and the high cost of ‘free’ health care

 NY Post

“If you think health care is expensive today,” humorist P.J. O’Rourke once opined, “just wait until it’s free.”

. . . "Given that Medicare is running some $40 trillion in the red, that might not be the best model, but Bernie’s undeterred. In fact, Sanders’ plan would actually cover more services than Medicare.

"And, it would do away with all of Medicare’s modest cost-sharing components like co-payments, deductibles and premiums. When Sanders promises free health care, he means it.

"But, as O’Rourke warned us, BernieCare will really cost us a whole lot more. Sanders’ own estimates suggest that BernieCare would cost roughly $13.8 trillion over its first decade of operation, roughly a 30 percent increase in federal spending.

"To pay for it, Sanders would sock us all with a big tax hike. He would increase the top income-tax rate to 52 percent and add hefty hikes in capital gains taxes and estate taxes. Corporations would face a new 6.2 percent payroll tax, which would mean either fewer jobs or lower wages. He would also hit every American with a new 2.2 percent income tax." . . .  Emphasis mine, TD

Celebrating Cruz’s victory in Iowa — and remembering that conservative Trump supporters are still our friends

Bookworm Room

. . . "I worry that Trump does not value the Constitution any more than Obama does.  To me, an America without the Constitution as its political centerpiece is just another First World leftist country heading downhill fast.  After eight years of Obama’s deep and abiding disdain for the Constitution, I’m not sure we can handle any more of that and still be the unique, exceptional country we are.

"I won’t lie, therefore, and pretend that I’m anything but delighted about the outcome in Iowa.  To me, the strongest constitutionalist won, and that’s the correct outcome." . . .

. . . "As the campaign heats up, though, it’s very important for each of us to remind ourselves that the people who support a different Republican candidate than the one we support are still our friends.  All of them are people who love their country (something I don’t necessarily feel is true of those supporting Bernie or Hillary), and all are working hard to find the candidate they believe is the best person to keep America strong, safe, and true to her core values of individual liberty, free market capitalism, and a delightful optimism that’s been absent for a while." . . .

The Democrat's day in Iowa

Hillary Clinton wins Iowa precinct by coin toss  . . . "Hillary Clinton has earned at least one delegate in Iowa entirely by chance. When Des Moines Precinct 70 was split 61-61 between Bernie Sanders and Clinton, the winner was decided by a random coin toss because that's how they get the job done in Iowa:" . . .
Sanders rally chant: 'She's a liar!'  "The room at Bernie Sanders' rally here turned ice cold when Hillary Clinton's speech took over the televisions here.

"The crowd booed loudly at first, then cheered when the sound cut out. The sound soon returned and Clinton was drowned out by further boos when she said "I'm a progressive who gets things done."

"It escalated from there: Chants of "She's a liar!" took over the room before the campaign just entirely shut off the stream, cutting away from MSNBC entirely." . . .

Meanwhile, At Hillary Clinton’s “Victory Speech” A Man Is Eating Stickers…

American silliness Feb 1, 2016

Not From The Onion: University Of Kentucky Offers Course On Taco Literacy…    "Field trips to Taco Bell are the highlight of the course."  "Via Eater: It counts towards a degree — really."

QUESTION: Will You Buy Your Little Daughter The New Hillary Kid’s Book?: 
Hillary hagiography for immature minds  "Nothing quite like  ["the birth of the late Kim Jong-Il,"] has (yet) appeared about Hillary Clinton, but an effort to canonize her in the minds of the next generation is well underway. Kyle Smith of the New York Post reviews the slightly-less-grotesque-than-North-Korea effort of children’s book author Michelle Markel, titled, Hillary Rodham Clinton: Some Girls Are Born to Lead." . . . 

. . . "It turns out that there is an entire genre of Hillary books for children:"

Marine Vet Suing MD School System For Islamic Proselytization  "The Washington Free Beacon reports:

"Their daughter and her fellow students were instructed to write out the Islamic creed “Shahada,” which says, “There is no god but Allah, and Muhammad is the messenger of Allah.” When recited by non-Muslims, the creed amounts to conversion to Islam.

Students were also required to memorize and recite the Five Pillars of Islam and were subjected to disparaging teachings about Christianity.

“Most Muslims’ faith is stronger than the average Christian,” one worksheet read." . . .   Related: Islamic ‘Instruction’ in our Public Schools

 Newest San Francisco Attraction: Open-Air Urinals

Fortunately, the crisis has led to some innovative solutions that are now available. For example,“pee-proof” paint.

VIDEO: Hillary Supporters Endorse Karl Marx For VP... Video

. . . "Unaware of the fact that Marx, a revolutionary socialist who sought to abolish capitalism, died in 1883, Hillary supporters were happy to oblige.  “Sure, I will support that,” remarked one woman as she signed the petition while Dice said that Hillary choosing Marx would “boost her candidacy credentials”. Another man signed the petition after Dice told him that Marx had also been Obama’s economic advisor for many years.

Leftist On Twitter: “Cruz Forcing His Daughter To Kiss Him Is A Prime Example Of Benign Rape Culture”

San Fran Schools Mull Mandatory Distribution Of Condoms To 11-Year-Olds…

Below:  Generation Snowflake Upset by Thing That Make Them Sad. 
In Britain, just as in America.

*Fatwas maybe, for those of you who can beat "Generation Snowflake" in describing those born after 1981.

"For those of you born after 1981, we're so sorry.

*Yeah we noticed pat insulted religion. So we're preemptively issuing the all new, Please Please Kill Pat First Fatwa. 

Oberlin College president rejects special snowflake, SJW list of demands  First off, you need to know what SJW means, right? Here:

Social Justice Warrior. A pejorative term for an individual who repeatedly and vehemently engages in arguments on social justice on the Internet, often in a shallow or not well-thought-out way, for the purpose of raising their own personal reputation." . . .

"Could we finally be seeing the first signs that the vast overreach of the SJW movement and the embarrassing antics of their activists on the nation’s campuses have finally gone too far? We previously covered some of the sadly typical protests taking place at Oberlin college, where students have demanded an end to “racism” in the form of safe spaces, the renaming of buildings and the firing of faculty who are not openly enthusiastic enough about Black Lives Matter marches. " . . . 

America’s Economic Freedom Has Rapidly Declined Under Obama

Heritage Foundation Daily Signal

. . . "The U.S. has fallen from the 6th freest economy in the world, when President Barack Obama took office, to 11th place in 2016. America’s declining score in the index is closely related to rapidly rising government spending, subsidies, and bailouts.

"Since early 2009:

• Government spending has exploded, amounting to $29,867 per household in 2015.
• The national debt has risen to $125,000 for every tax-filing household in America—a total over $18 trillion.
• The government takeover of health care is raising prices and disrupting markets.
• Bailouts and new government regulations have increased uncertainty, stifling investment and job creation.

"This is not something to take lightly. Economic freedom is the foundation of U.S. economic strength, and economic strength is the foundation of America’s high living standards, military power, and status as a world leader. The perils of losing economic freedom are not fictional." . . .

[VIDEOS] The Left’s unchanging tactics leave the world a dark and ugly place

Bookworm Room  "The horrible thing about Leftism . . . okay, let me rephrase that: One of the many horrible things about Leftism is that it trains its adherents to look at the world through dirt-colored glasses. Everything that is good and beautiful and charming is perceived as dark, depressing, and awful. " . . .
 . . .
"A large dance troupe performs the national dance of Ukraine — the Hopak. It is a tour de force:" . . .

What is HOPAK DANCE? /// Hopak nedir?

"When I watched the video, I was impressed and amazed. It’s beautiful and exciting and strong. But that’s not how Lefties see it. Here’s a line from the comments section that, to me, is destined to be a Leftist classic: “What they’re doing is impressive, but isn’t that focus on the men’s dancing really just a reminder of the patriarchy?' ” . . .
Much, much more here.

The Iowa caucuses, explained

Stephen Collinson CNN

Caucus meetings for Iowa Democrats, Republicans begin at 7 PM CT  

Better video at the link, but I haven't figured out how to embed it.

. . . "So how do the GOP caucuses work?

"The GOP process is the simpler one.

"Caucus meetings begin with the Pledge of Allegiance and then activists get straight to the main event -- selecting their presidential candidates in a binding vote.

"Each campaign gets the chance to have a representative make a final pitch to any wavering voters before a secret ballot. Some caucus sites might use a printed ballot paper. Others just go with a candidate's name on a scrap of paper.

"Raw totals of votes are tallied by local party officials and sent to Iowa GOP headquarters, where a running count is kept.

"And the Democratic ones?

"The Democratic caucus system is a little more intricate.

"As soon as the meetings open, attendees must declare a preference for a candidate." . . .

The Iowa caucuses could go entirely as predicted

Byron York

"Here's a radical thought: What if the latest Iowa caucus polls are basically correct? As we head into voting, there is no evidence that any candidate is collapsing, no evidence that any candidate is zooming upward, and there doesn't appear to be a lot of movement in the top three of Donald Trump, Ted Cruz, and Marco Rubio.

"But the ground game — what about that?" . . .

Victor Davis Hanson: California of the Dark Ages

Victor Davis Hanson

. . . ""Illegal Immigration also Changed the Nature of California

"The old measured migrations from Mexico did not tax the system. The American host was confident in helping the immigrant learn a new culture (or why else had he left his own in Mexico?), and so was not shy about assimilating and integrating newcomers. Not now.

"Huge numbers, illegality, and the far greater presence of ingenious peoples meant there were more immigrants, more who were poorer and more who did not speak English or even Spanish as their native language—at a time when the salad bowl and hyphenation replaced the melting pot. The result is that there are large areas of Central California that resemble life in rural Mexico. Within a radius of five miles I can go to stores and restaurants where English is rarely spoken and there is no racial or cultural diversity—a far cry from Jeb Bush’s notion of an “act of love” landscape.

"With unemployment at 10% or more in the interior of the state, with the public schools near the bottom in the nation, and with generous entitlements, it is no accident that one in six in the nation who receive public assistance now live in California, where about a fifth of the population lives below the poverty line." . . .

California of the Dark Ages

Victor Davis Hanson

. . . ""Illegal Immigration also Changed the Nature of California

"The old measured migrations from Mexico did not tax the system. The American host was confident in helping the immigrant learn a new culture (or why else had he left his own in Mexico?), and so was not shy about assimilating and integrating newcomers. Not now.

"Huge numbers, illegality, and the far greater presence of ingenious peoples meant there were more immigrants, more who were poorer and more who did not speak English or even Spanish as their native language—at a time when the salad bowl and hyphenation replaced the melting pot. The result is that there are large areas of Central California that resemble life in rural Mexico. Within a radius of five miles I can go to stores and restaurants where English is rarely spoken and there is no racial or cultural diversity—a far cry from Jeb Bush’s notion of an “act of love” landscape.

"With unemployment at 10% or more in the interior of the state, with the public schools near the bottom in the nation, and with generous entitlements, it is no accident that one in six in the nation who receive public assistance now live in California, where about a fifth of the population lives below the poverty line." . . .