Are There Still Trump Cards to Play?

Power Line Blog  "Liberals are gloating that the defeat of the American Health Care Act means that Trump’s presidency is over. “The stunning collapse of the Republican health-care bill now imperils the rest of President Trump’s ambitious congressional agenda,” the Washington Post says this morning. It was surely a blunder to unveil a hastily-prepared health care bill that the Republican leadership thought could be simply rammed through, and this raises questions about whether the House is well served by having a conservative policy wonk like Paul Ryan as speaker rather than a traditional pol like John Boehner, but I’ll save that question for another time.

"The present question, which has been on my mind since inauguration day, is whether Trump might flip the script for his presidency in just the same ways he did with his campaign. In other words, Trump’s rocky start and the setback of the health care bill might actually serve as ironic catalysts for a presidency that gets stronger and accomplishes more in the long run.

"I think Trump is the first president since Lincoln who has received no “honeymoon” period in Washington as is typical for new presidents—and for the same reason as in 1861: Democrats have essentially seceded from the American people, and won’t accept the results of a national election. (I’m also tempted to ask whatever made anyone think the thrice-married Trump would get a honeymoon? C’mon.) Democrats control so little territory that they can’t act literally on their secessionist impulses—though note deep blue California, where Democrats are actually talking about secession. But you can swap out “resistance” today for “rebellion” in 1861 and capture the Democratic Party mood accurately." . . .

Paul Ryan’s Catastrophic Lack of Political Skill and Judgment

John Ellis  "Everyone knows that a competent lawyer never asks a question in court to which he doesn’t already know the answer. And likewise, a competent political leader never puts a piece of legislation up for a vote without having a good idea of what the vote will be. But when Paul Ryan released his American Health Care Act he evidently had no idea what its reception would be. Whole sections of his own party were angered, and it was obvious that his bill had no chance of passage without truly major changes.

"Why didn’t Ryan know all of that before he published the bill? A skilled leader sounds out the major opinion centers in his party to get a sense of what it will take to get them all on board, so that by the time the bill is published he knows where everyone stands and how they will vote. By going public with his bill before ascertaining the lay of the land, Ryan has created an ugly rift within his party, delayed and endangered the forward movement of the Trump administration, and further alienated a GOP base which has long been exasperated by the ineffectiveness of its congressional leaders. But Paul Ryan’s political incompetence is by now a very old story." . . .

. . . "As the 2016 primary election season was about to begin, Ryan negotiated with the Obama administration an omnibus budget bill once more without bothering to find out what his party would and would not accept. And so he was surprised to find that his Republicans were more than disappointed: they were furious." . . .

 . . . "The same wonkish narrow vision and consequent political blindness was already apparent in 2012 when in the middle of an election season in which he was a Vice-Presidential candidate, again without first getting his colleagues on board, Ryan suddenly proposed a radical reform of Medicare." . . .

. . .  "Ryan’s political tin ear has at least temporarily torpedoed of the effort to repeal and replace Obamacare. It has already begun to endanger the prospects for corporate tax reform." . . .

The writer goes on from there. 

All eyes on Trump, Ryan relationship after health care defeat  "Not long after President Donald Trump told his Twitter followers to watch Fox News host Judge Jeanine Pirro's show Saturday night, the host and Trump ally took to the screen to deliver a harsh rebuke of House Speaker Paul Ryan.  

" 'Paul Ryan needs to step down as speaker of the House," Pirro said. "The reason? He failed to deliver the votes on his health care bill. The one trumpeted to repeal and replace Obamacare. The one that he had seven years to work on. The one he hid under lock and key in the basement of Congress. The one that had to be pulled to prevent the embarrassment of not having enough votes to pass.' " . . .

Israel, the country US liberal Jews love to criticize

Phyllis Chesler

  I"n their book, Israel only has the right to exist if it is perfect - and suicidal"

Chesler

"As someone who has long been on record as both a feminist and a Zionist, I know how hard it is to maintain both loyalties. Increasingly, what passes for both left-liberal “feminism” and “Zionism,” has been taken over by poisonous, pro-Palestinian propaganda and by a suicidal alliance with Jew-haters, Jew-killers, and barbaric misogynists.

"I chose not to write about the faux-feminist Women’s Marches of 2017, but I did give two interviews about the issues involved. I experienced some immediate blowback—all on the same day and within hours of each other.

"A feminist artist sent round a spirited defense of convicted Palestinian terrorist, Rasmea Odeh, who joined Linda Sarsour as a feminist leader (!) on International Women’s Day. Based on “false news” at Snopes, she and other left feminists are happily persuaded that the Israelis sexually tortured this woman and her father for 45 days before Odeh issued a false confession. To them, Odeh is a hero of the Resistance.

"The idea that feminists might believe that the Israelis did something like this was sickening, but even more so, due to their relative silence about the tortures perpetrated by ISIS, Boko Haram, and the Pakistani and Afghan Taliban on women." . . .

Stand Strong Against the Lunacy of the Left

Trevor Thomas  "Virtually every crazy policy, corrupt courtroom ruling, or depraved piece of legislation that plagues our political climate is a product of modern liberalism. Whether killing children in the womb, killing small businesses, legally redefiningthe oldest institution in the history of humanity, legalizing and promoting a wide variety of sexual immoralities, criminalizing (or attempting to criminalize) the life-blood of American industry, criminalizing Christianity, stealing money from one group of constituents to buy votes from another, and so on, liberals and their lackeys in the Democratic Party, the mainstream media, and academia have used their political, information, and entertainment powers in manners most perverse.

"To a great extent, this is why the GOP is in unprecedented territory when it comes to political power. Except for the Northeast, the West Coast, and most large cities, the GOP brand dominates, whether local, state, or federal offices, across the U.S.  I believe this has happened not because of any special degree of governing competence held by Republicans (as their recent health care failure demonstrates), but because of the special degree of incompetence and immorality possessed by today’s Democrats. As Marvin Olasky put it, “Republicans cannot be trusted to do the right thing. Democrats can be trusted almost always to do the wrong thing.' ” . . .

American democracy: Not so decadent after all

Krauthammer celebrates Trump's losses, but I fear the upshot will be the eventual loss of any conservative opposition to the likes of the Jerry Brown- Kamala Harris- Maxine Waters-Elizabeth Warren destiny of the Democrat Party. In my most pessimistic moments I see the entire nation becoming California under the influence of academia, media, and Hollywood.
The thought of voters who take ladies of "The View" seriously choosing our nation's fortunes is frightening. As is a President who would be a guest of that show. TD

Charles Krauthammer

"Under the big gray cloud, amid the general gloom, allow me to offer a ray of sunshine. The last two months have brought a pleasant surprise: Turns out the much feared, much predicted withering of our democratic institutions has been grossly exaggerated. The system lives.

"Let me explain. Donald Trump’s triumph last year was based on a frontal attack on the Washington “establishment,” that all-powerful, all-seeing, supremely cynical, bipartisan “cartel” (as Ted Cruz would have it) that allegedly runs everything. Yet the establishment proved to be Potemkin empty. In 2016, it folded pitifully, surrendering with barely a fight to a lightweight outsider.

"At which point, fear of the vaunted behemoth turned to contempt for its now-exposed lassitude and decadence. Compounding the confusion were Trump’s intimations of authoritarianism. He declared “I alone can fix it” and “I am your voice,” the classic tropes of the demagogue. He unabashedly expressed admiration for strongmen (most notably, Vladimir Putin)." . . .

What Next for Health-Care Reform? Possible Strategies for the GOP

"Republicans need to develop conservative policies that can win popular support."

Fred Bauer at NR  "The death of the American Health Care Act has been greatly exaggerated — not because it is likely to be revived (at least in its current form) but because it might never have really been alive in the first place. 

"Many of the provisions of the bill were unlikely to survive contact with the Senate, and there was a very strong chance that the bill that was released from a House–Senate conference would radically differ from the AHCA. Perhaps realizing the limits of the AHCA, some defenders of the AHCA supported the measure principally as a way of getting to conference. However, there is no reason to believe that the tensions that pulled down the AHCA on Friday would not similarly undo the resulting House–Senate conference bill. Some Republicans would still be upset that the conference bill was not a full repeal of the Affordable Care Act, and moderates (along with some populists) would be pulled into a tug-of-war with budget-cutters over the size of Medicaid cuts. 

"Matthew Continetti has observed that the American Health Care Act allowed procedure to dictate policy. . . " (Below)

How Washington Handed Trump His First Defeat  "President Trump and his advisers ought to study the collapse of the American Health Care Act. It's a case study in how Beltway institutions—the so-called Swamp Trump pledged to drain—can herd a president and his party toward unpopular legislation and political defeat." . . .

Sadly, Obama had skilled political advisers to keep him from making "rookie mistakes" on the domestic front.  On foreign policy, it was a far different story but what Democrat cared about that and what Obama voter had a clue?  TD

http://comicallyincorrect.com/

Bernie Sanders to Sponsor Single-Payer Healthcare Bill  . . . " 'Let us do, among other things, a public option. Let us give people in every state in this country a public option from which they can choose. Let's talk about lowering the age of Medicare eligibility from 65 to 55. Let's deal with the greed of the pharmaceutical industry," he said on CNN.

"The senator acknowledged that such a bill would face political difficulties—Democrats didn't endorse single-payer even when they had a Congressional majority—but said such a streamlined system would address healthcare problems felt on both sides of the political aisle." . . . 

Female athletes crushed by 'women who were once men'

WND

Transgender MMA fighter Fallon Fox

"You’ve heard the expression, “Boys will be boys.” But what happens when a brawny boy wants to be one of the girls – fiercely competing with females in weightlifting, brutally tackling girls on the football field or even dealing powerful knockout punches to ladies in a mixed martial-arts cage?

"It’s now happening across America and around the world.

A female athlete’s muscular structure (People image created by Kjpargeter – Freepik.com)

"Biological males are joining women’s teams, smashing records and dominating in sports such as weightlifting, softball, cycling, track, wrestling, football, volleyball, dodgeball, handball, cricket, golf, basketball and mixed martial arts.

"The movement for “equality” has apparently inspired transgender athletes to join teams of their preferred gender. And that often means biological males are competing against biological females on women’s teams. But in the world of sports, critics argue, equality between the sexes simply doesn’t exist. Physiologically speaking, there’s a gender gap between men and women that cannot be erased.

"For example, when it comes to running, men are generally faster than women. As the 2015 edition of Runner’s World explained, “At every distance up to the marathon, the gap between men’s and women’s world record times is nine to 10 percent – and it’s a similar or even higher percentage among recreational runners.”  Read more at Read more

Free Judge Napolitano!

New Zeal

. . . "This is shaping up as an example of how the Deep State operates, writes Sellin. In this case, intelligence arrangements are made “that open the possibility for government officials to skirt inconvenient national laws in order to surveil citizens and then use the products of that surveillance for political purposes.”

"For raising necessary questions about this arrangement, Napolitano was reportedly banned from Fox News. He is the modern-day John Peter Zenger. However, his March 16 column, “Did Obama Spy on Trump?” is still on his website and looks increasingly relevant every day that passes.

"This has been a major black mark for Fox News. Still, Fox News personalities like Sean Hannity are trying to cover the deepening scandal involving Obama administration surveillance of Trump and his associates.

"The role that has been played by Comcast and its properties in the anti-Trump campaign is a teachable moment that allows us to reflect on the meaning of the First Amendment and how modern media have left behind the legacy of John Peter Zenger." . . .

Can Republicans govern if they can’t keep a promise they’ve made for 7 years?

"WE WERE A 10-YEAR OPPOSITION PARTY, WHERE BEING AGAINST THINGS WAS EASY TO DO. AND NOW IN THREE MONTHS’ TIME WE TRIED TO GO TO A GOVERNING PARTY. WE WILL GET THERE, BUT WE WEREN’T THERE TODAY."

Read more here: http://www.mcclatchydc.com/news/politics-government/congress/article140674448.html#storylink=cpy

McClatchy via Drudge
"Republicans exulted in November when they won the White House and both congressional chambers, promising aggressive moves on health care, taxes and immigration.

"But a spectacular stumble on the first agenda item amid intra-party squabbles begs the question of whether the party will be able to get anything done if it can’t deliver on a promise it has made for nearly a decade.

“ 'We were a 10-year opposition party, where being against things was easy to do,” said House Speaker Paul Ryan, faced with the biggest loss of his career. “And now in three months’ time we tried to go to a governing party. We will get there, but we weren’t there today.”

"Ryan got his job after House Speaker John Boehner stepped down, often pressed by a raucous conservative wing to take a harder line. But though conservative members groused about Ryan’s handling of the legislation – saying he had boxed out various factions, many expressed confidence Friday that he’d retain his seat – for practical reasons, as well as political." . . .

The Washington Times claims, Ryan unmasks himself as biggest threat to GOP, Trump presidency  . . . "By telling conservatives in the House and across America to go have intimate relations with themselves and not meddle in the medical-care matters of him and the rest of what passes as House GOP leadership, he has done American politics a favor.

"Specifically, he has convinced many conservatives that his time as maximum leader of House Republicans might best end before even more damage is done to the other lawmakers in his party, to President Trump and to the brand of the party and the president." . . . 

So, repealing Obamacare was a “Ted Cruz” issue now?   "Oh politicians, political advisors, and spin doctors. They will say anything, take any position, regardless of the truth. I have less than zero respect for them, this clip from The Right Scoop illustrates exactly why

"Then there is this guy, Rep. Kinzinger of Illinois who is going to “expose” the Freedom Caucus, whose members he blames for the shoddy Ryan care bill dying. . . "

Read it all here

Ryan unmasks himself as biggest threat to GOP, Trump presidency

Liberal Mom Aghast as Huge Guy Wearing Lakers Jersey Walks Into Ladies’ Room

Bruce Springsteen, are you catching all this?

whatdidyousay.org

Conservative Tribune  "A liberal mom got a rude awakening that changed her views about the “bathroom debate” and decided to share her story regardless of what the backlash would be. This is a reality check like no other.

"Kristen Quintrall Lavin runs a blog called, “The Get Real Mom,” in which she exposes the harsh realities of what she calls, “momming.” However, on a recent trip to Disneyland with her young son, "Lavin, she was exposed to another harsh reality — the reality of bathroom stalking, which made her question her progressive liberal views on the bathroom debate. 

"Lavin commented on her blog that she has seen and supported “transgender” women — men identifying as women — using women’s public restrooms prior to the incident happening at Disneyland. “Transgenders who certainly felt comfortable in the women’s room and probably frightened to go into the men’s. At these times, I smiled … I peed … and life went on.”

"Then, all of that changed when she was at Disneyland with her friend, her son, and her friend’s son.

“ 'I went to the bathroom while she watched our boys in their strollers, and then I did the same.” Lavin wrote. 

"That is when a “very large, burly man in a Lakers Jersey” walked into the bathroom and leaned against the wall. Lavin spoke about seeing about 12 other women and children just staring at the man, wondering what he was doing in the women’s room and that their collective silence is what caused her to tell her story. 

"Lavin described how the man knew the women wouldn’t say anything about his presence, because they had been “culturally bullied” into silence. The fear of being non­politically correct was more overwhelming than the very real danger of a man casually eyeing them in an intimate environment, when women literally have their pants down. 

"She wrote that the man eventually started walking past each stall. “You know, the stalls that have 1 inch gaps by all the door hinges so you can most definitely see everyone with their pants around their ankles.” His perversion had been given a license, and every single woman in that restroom felt powerless to challenge him. 

"Alvin wrote about the need for clarity when it comes to the gender debate, and that clarity is needed now. “

" 'This notion that we’re shamed into silence b/c we might offend someone, has gone too far. There was a man in the bathroom. Not transgender. There was a man who felt entitled to be in the woman restroom, because he knew no one would say anything,” she wrote. 

“ 'There were 20­25 people by the time I left, who were scared and uncomfortable by his ominous presence. And the only thing stopping us, was our fear of political correctness and that the media has told us we don’t know what gender is anymore,” Lavin astutely stated.

" Then she hit it hard with the truth that she had just been privy to…

“ 'I need to know it’s ok to tell a man, who looks like a man, to get the f*&% out. Gender just can’t be a feeling,” she wrote. “There has to be science to it.”

"Boom.

"This is what many people miss when it comes to the gender bathroom debate. Predators will use this as a license to hunt their prey in public restrooms. They will use the knowledge that no one wants to be accused of not being tolerant to aid in their perverted quest. This is not a game."

Hat tip to Weasel Zippers

High School Rapists Entered U.S. as Unaccompanied Alien Children, Lived in Sanctuary County

"Meanwhile HHS is trying to blame ICE though they were left powerless under the Obama administration."

Judicial Watch

"The teenage illegal immigrants charged with raping a 14-year-old girl in the bathroom of a Maryland public high school last week entered the United States under an Obama program that’s accommodated tens of thousands of Central American youths who crossed the Mexican border. The administration coined them Unaccompanied Alien Children (UAC) and portrayed them as innocent, desperate kids fleeing violence and famine in their homeland. Most are from Honduras, El Salvador and Guatemala and the influx has overwhelmed border agents, government health agencies and military bases that serve as shelters not to mention public schools nationwide.

"This week two of the UACs protected by Obama’s outlaw amnesty measures were charged with the rape of a ninth-grader at Rockville High School in Montgomery County, a Maryland jurisdiction that offers illegal aliens sanctuary. The illegal immigrants, 17-year-old Jose Montano and 18-year-old Henry Sanchez, were both charged with first-degree rape and two counts of first-degree sexual offense. Both illegal aliens were in the ninth grade like their victim, according local news reports. Montano came to the U.S. from El Salvador and Sanchez, who reportedly had been ordered deported, from Guatemala. Both are being held without bail. Several local media outlets printed a letter sent to parents by the school district describing the rape as a “serious incident” that “is being addressed.”

"Back in the summer of 2014, when the first batch of UACs began arriving, Judicial Watch reported that many were not harmless children fleeing violence as the media was largely reporting. Border Patrol sources on the ground divulged that a lot of the Central Americans were in their late teens and had ties to violent gang members and other criminal elements. Federal authorities handling the crisis offered a vastly different depiction than the government’s official version in the media. From the start, the barrage of illegal alien minors created an out-of-control disaster with jam-packed holding centers, rampant diseases and sexually active teenagers at a Nogales facility that housed the first arrivals, Homeland Security sources told Judicial Watch." . . .

Cop’s Daughter Told Blue Lives Matter Flag Must Come Down Because It’s Racist

Independent Sentinel

"A Blue Lives Matter flag has been ordered to come down in Florida after a neighbor complained, calling it racist. The neighbor is a supporter of the radical hate group Black Lives Matter. 

"A woman’s been flying the flag at her home for years to honor her father, Jeff Gaddie, who is a police officer in Florida’s St. Johns County.

"The homeowner’s association told her they had received a complaint that it was considered racist, offensive and anti-Black Lives Matter,” he said

"The upset neighbor called the flag racist, offensive and anti-Black Lives Matter.

"Blue lives are not a race.

"The homeowners association says only American and military-themed flags are allowed to fly in the neighborhood.

"The daughter will appeal to the homeowner’s association.

"Snowflakes and other crazies are now in charge of the United States.