Baghdadi Raid, Durham Probe Will Frustrate Impeachment

I & I  "Though not yet manifest, the unexpected, astounding killing of ISIS “commander of the faithful” Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi over the weekend by Delta Force, with Rangers and other Army support, supersedes the 2011 takeout of al-Qaida chief Osama bin Laden in its long-term magnitude.
"In essence, ISIS is a sensationalist, media-savvy metastasis of Bin Laden’s al-Qaida, which conducted the 2001 attacks, but ISIS’ anti-American terrorism is of a different brand. Brookings Institution Mideast analyst Daniel Byman testified to Congress that “the primary target of the Islamic State has [unlike al-Qaida] not been the United States, but rather ‘apostate’ regimes in the Arab world” – but try telling the families of beheaded Americans James Foley, Steven Sotloff, and Peter Kassig that America, and its values and position in the world, are not squarely in ISIS’ sights.
"As Radio France Internationale journalist David Thomson described it in 2017, “For ISIS supporters, Baghdadi is doing something concrete, controls territory, defies the entire world, unlike the old scholars of al-Qaida who appear behind the times.” As the trove of materials accompanying Baghdadi, retrieved by U.S. forces, are perused in the weeks ahead, the public will know in detail the importance of his leadership of the dislodged terrorist caliphate, and will learn of planned ISIS plots.
"The carrying out of President Donald Trump’s order to eliminate Baghdadi will be paired with another big net minus for Democrats: U.S. attorney for Connecticut John Durham’s Russian election influence probe shifting into a criminal investigation. While some speculate that the criminal dimension may be in regard to peripheral matters, the speed with which Durham has come to this point, having only begun his work less than six months ago, strongly suggests otherwise. As does Democrats immediately – and groundlessly – accusing Attorney General William Barr of meddling in Durham’s probe. Highly unlikely since Durham has a Boy Scout-like reputation of integrity and thoroughness." . . .

Note to Readers: Issues & Insights is a new site launched by the seasoned journalists behind the legendary IBD Editorials page. Our mission is to use our decades of experience to provide timely, fact-based reporting and deeply informed analysis on the news of the day.

'You lost': Democratic Left hits back at Hillary Clinton and donors fretting about quality of 2020 field

"A progressive candidate like Elizabeth Warren is our best chance to beat Donald Trump, full stop. It's the progressive lane candidates who are bringing in massive crowds, record small-dollar donations, and volunteer people power," said Joe Dinkin, the Working Families Party national campaigns director. "Those who care about defeating Trump should welcome that energy, not try to suppress it."

Donkey Hotey

Washington Examiner  "The nervousness among Democratic establishment figures about the quality of the 2020 primary field has prompted mockery from liberal activists who say that the wealthy are worried about losing their power.

There have been a slew of reports that Democrats like Hillary Clinton, John Kerry, and Michael Bloomberg are thinking of jumping into the race at the last minute because they believe the current crop of top candidates — Elizabeth Warren, Joe Biden, and Bernie Sanders — won't be able to defeat President Trump.

" 'It would be like it was 2019 and the top three contenders were Joe Biden, Pete Buttigieg, or Kamala Harris and we were sitting around saying, 'We gotta draft Dennis Kucinich, it’s the only way we can win,'" said Michael Brooks, Democratic analyst and host of a left-wing radio show.

" 'It’s not like Barack Obama is waiting in the wings where you have a different policy set but he’s a once-in-a-generation political talent," he said. "You got like Hillary Clinton getting spicy on Twitter, saying, 'Don’t tempt me to run again.' What are you talking about? You lost."

"Democratic activists who spoke with the Washington Examiner compared concern from party elders to the 2016 GOP primary, where the insurgent Trump beat a crowded field while facing concerted efforts from conservative media, donors, and other Republican politicians to derail his candidacy.

"In that race, former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush started the election season with a seasoned staff and tens of millions of dollars but failed to garner enthusiasm from GOP voters who eventually swung toward the populist insurgent. Many on the Left view Biden as 2020's Bush." . . .

Legal Insurrection: Democratic Senators Practically Beg Hillary Clinton Not to Run for President "Clinton herself could shut down the talk of a possible third presidential candidacy with just a few simple words. Why won’t she?"

"For the last several weeks, the chatter about a possible 3rd presidential campaign for Hillary Clinton has increased to a near fever pitch. The noise is so loud that is has "Democratic Senators actually going on record to all but beg the failed 2016 Democratic nominee not to run.

"The talk began to heat up after a Rasmussen survey released the first week in October showed a potential Clinton/Trump rematch would be “neck and neck” in the polls if she was currently in the presidential race.

"That same week, Clinton said to PBS, “Maybe there does need to be a rematch. I mean, obviously I can beat him again.”

"A couple of days after the Rasmussen poll was published, Trump needled Clinton by way of Twitter by suggesting she jump into the race at this late stage in order to “try and steal it away” from Sen. Elizabeth Warren: . . ."

Trump Curse? Nasty Nats Lose Three in a Row at Home in World Series After Dissing POTUS

Catch this all on CNN; they should have this playing on a loop as we speak. What would Charles Krauthammer have said? Notice the signs were professionally printed and paid for by others, plus the arrangement was made to get them into the park.TD

The Gateway Pundit  Video After winning the first two games on the road, the Washington Nationals lost three games in a row in their World Series home stand against the Houston Astros this weekend following several snubs of President Trump by the team and protests by fans. After scoring a combined 17 runs in their two opening victories the Nationals have only scored one run per game while getting blown out at home by the Astros who have scored a combined 19 runs in their three road victories.
"When Trump announced he would be attending a possible Game 5 on Sunday, the Nationals announced Trump antagonist chef Jose Andres would throw out the ceremonial first pitch for that game. (Trump had already said he was not interested in throwing the first pitch.)" 
"At the game Sunday night, Trump was loudly booed by the wealthy D.C. swamp rats in attendance who also chanted, “lock him up”, even though just the day before a raid in Syria ordered by Trump had led to the death of ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi." . . .


UK Daily Mail: Trump and Melania are BOOED by crowd chanting 'lock him up' and waving 'veterans for impeachment' banner as President makes surprise appearance at World Series game in DC after celebrating death of ISIS leader in daring US raid

. . . "Trump then appeared to shake off the hostile reception, reclaiming his smile and waving enthusiastically to the crowd. 

"But the taunts continued throughout the game, with two fans behind the home plate unfurling signs that read 'VETERANS FOR IMPEACHMENT' at one stage.

"It isn't initially clear if Trump, who left the game around 10pm, saw the banner on the stadium's display board before making his exit." . . .

Washington Post Mourns Passing of “Austere Religious Scholar” Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi…

WaPo  "Reactions vary to the U.S. killing of ISIS terrorist chief Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi.  However, perhaps the most alarming headline was the sympathetic obituary from The Washington Post: . . ."

. . . "Unfortunately, this position by U.S. Media is not as shocking as it should be.

"As a contextual reminder for the teachings of the “austere religious scholar” represented by al-Baghdadi, his ISIS terrorists: beheaded international journalists (Right), buried journalists in the ground and ran them over with tanks, brutally raped captives, drowned and burned Syrian civilians in cages, burned a Jordanian pilot alive in a cage and murdered dozens of Coptic Christians on the beaches of Libya….

"The Washington Post was not alone in their sympathy over the killing of the brutal terrorist.  Bloomberg News also followed quickly with deep sympathies for the death of a leader who “transformed himself” into a “teacher of Koranic recitation”: . . .

Kayla Mueller: The American ISIS Chief Baghdadi Kept as His Personal Slave

Here they teach Christians to bow to Islam:

The smallness of Democrats; Listen who liberals credit for killing al-Baghdadi

Ian Macfarlane

Flashback: Trump Congratulated President Obama Personally on Osama bin Laden Raid  . . . I want to personally congratulate President Obama and the men [and] women of the Armed Forces for a job very well done. I am so proud to see Americans standing shoulder to shoulder, waving the American flag in celebration of this great victory.

We should spend the next several days not debating party politics, but in remembrance of those who lost their lives on 9/11 and those fighting for our freedom. God Bless America.

"Moreover, Trump congratulated Obama even though the president had infamously mocked him mercilessly just hours before the raid, at the 2011 White House Correspondents’ Dinner . . . 

Liberals speak out from their comfortable homes.
. . . "Both Biden and Castro used their statements to criticize President Trump’s recent decision to withdraw U.S. troops from the Turkey-Syria border, and from Syria more generally. Castro’s language was even more passive.

"Other candidates were slow to acknowledge the successful raid, in which no American soldiers were killed or injured, aside from a K-9 dog involved in the operation.

"Trump told reporters that he had excluded certain congressional leaders from being briefed in advance of the raid for fear that leaks in Washington might tip off the terrorists, endanger U.S. forces, and undermine the success of the operation."

Julian Castro Leaves Trump out of Congratulations for Raid on ISIS Leader Al-Baghdadi  . . . "Other candidates were slow to acknowledge the successful raid, in which no American soldiers were killed or injured, aside from a K-9 dog involved in the operation.
"Trump told reporters that he had excluded certain congressional leaders from being briefed in advance of the raid for fear that leaks in Washington might tip off the terrorists, endanger U.S. forces, and undermine the success of the operation." . . .
"Both Biden and Castro used their statements to criticize President Trump’s recent decision to withdraw U.S. troops from the Turkey-Syria border, and from Syria more generally. Castro’s language was even more passive." , , ,

One of Hollywood's great thinkers speaks something or other to power here:
Jamie Lee Curtis Rips Trump, Pities al-Baghdadi, Praises Dogs in Bizarre Rant  . . . "While most of the nation was celebrating, Lee-Curtis appeared less than impressed, pointing out the suffering endured by those in warfare that Trump has never experienced.

“ 'He may have died a coward @realDonaldTrump but ALL living things suffer when they are blown up. Anyone who has experienced warfare, unlike yourself, would know that,” she wrote on Twitter. “War is brutal. Dogs are brave, bold, loyal, loving and healing.' ”

After Obama sent SEALs to kill bin Laden Hollywood was ecstatic Happy Osama died like a dog

Bernie Sanders Acknowledges ‘Kurds and Other U.S. Allies’ After al-Baghdadi Raid, Not U.S. Forces or Trump  . . . "Sanders remarked on the massive development but failed to mention the president’s role – or that of U.S. forces, specifically – in his initial statement, acknowledging the “Kurds and other U.S. allies” instead." . . .

Funny, Poignant, Earnest: Hollywood Responds on Twitter to Osama Bin Laden Killing  Here are a few selected excerpts:

• Late-night host Bill Maher (@billmaher): "Somali pirates, Gaddafi's son, now bin Laden - do NOT f**k with Obama, he's Gangsta!!"
• Actress Anna Kendrick (@AnnaKendrick47): "Wow. Just when you thought Obama couldn't top correspondents' dinner speech. The man's on fire."
• Filmmaker Spike Lee (@SpikeLee): "President Obama 'May God Bless you and May God Bless The United States of America'"
• Maroon 5 frontman and The Voice celebrity coach Adam Levine (@adamlevine): "I don't know how I feel about "celebrating" death. But im just glad this happened during a good man's presidency." . . .

Pelosi finally makes statement on al-Baghdadi raid and it’s as petty as it gets
. . . "Social media users were only too happy to throw a little shade Pelosi’s way… here’s a sampling of responses from Twitter:" . . .

Leftists, Obama Officials Race To Downplay Al-Baghdadi Death  . . . "And then there’s Obama’s Joint Chiefs Vice Chair James Winnefeld, who pre-emptively blamed Trump for whatever spate of radical Islamic violence comes next: “If you look back at the bin Laden raid, we treated his body with respect that is due under Islam,” he told CBS’s “Face the Nation.”
"Regardless, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi remains dead."

Well, we didn't behead al-Baghdadi and leave his body to rot. I'm sure Obama treated Osama's body with respect because he feared Muslims; feared them enough to dedicate the US space program to them, bow before them, send Iran a pallet-full of cash and heap praise on Islam for some made-up contributions to American history. TD

What Would Pierre Delecto Do?

American Thinker is a gold mine today

Clarice Feldman  "This week Mitt Romney confessed that he was posting on Twitter under the absurd moniker Pierre Delecto and set up himself for some serious online satirizing.

"It’s way overdue. The #NeverTrumpers in the Republican party have exposed themselves as Democrat Me Tooers. They do themselves, their party, and the nation no favors. As the Russian collusion nonsense fades into the ether absent any fact basis and the Schiff-Pelosi impeachment funhouse proceedings head in the same direction, some congressional Republicans, like the brave band that shut down the Miami-Dade vote harvesting charade in the Bush-Gore election, stood up at last for fair play. Mollie Hemingway is dead right." . . .

Andrew Thomas blogs at darkangelpolitics.com

. . . "The coming weeks, I predict, will reveal that our ruling elite “are a bunch of idiots and perverts” who have spent the past three years setting the nation on fire with false tales of “collusion” and “impeachable” offenses because the competent voters refused to continue endorsing their numerous follies. Follies ranging from open borders, cancelled college debt, sanctuary cities, free medical care for all -- including illegal aliens, absurd rules on “gender” and “environmental protection,” to preposterous foreign-policy initiatives and naked corruption in which foreign aid has been redirected to their pockets and those of their families, friends, and donors." . . .

Saturday Night Live beclowns itself with skit claiming Trump coddles ISIS ... on night Trump blew al-Baghdadi to hell

"Talk about bad timing"

OOPS: 'SNL' Mocks Trump 'Bringing Jobs Back to ISIS'...As News Breaks of ISIS Leader Killed   "Now this is an Epic Satire Fail. Saturday Night Live went on the air at 11:30 pm Eastern time with an opening skit where Alec Baldwin's Very Fake Trump was thanked by Pete Davidson's Very Fake ISIS Member for "bringing jobs back...for ISIS." Six minutes before, Jennifer Griffin of Fox News was tweeting that ISIS leader Abu-Bakr al-Baghdadi may have been killed in a raid by U.S. forces in Syria. John Santucci of ABC reported it via Twitter at 11:53." . . .

Monica Showalter  . . . "Assuming the terrorists were still alive for the broadcast, and they are voracious watchers of left-wing dreck like this, it's quite possible they were enjoying themselves watching this skit, what with all the mockery about Trump's Syria pullout creating more jobs for terrorists. One can just hear them laughing to themselves.

"Until Trump's rocket paid them a visit.

"Kind of put a damper on the fun for them.

"And left Saturday night with so much egg on their faces they can go cry to Bill Ayers about it. Bill, remember, was the domestic U.S. terrorist active in the 1960s and 1970s who told the New York Times for its 9/11/01 edition that he didn't regret his bombing and thought he didn't do enough.

"Made himself famous that way, a reminder after a lifetime of pretending to be an upstanding citizen, that he was little different from the beasts of al-Qaida.

"Timing, as they say. Saturday Night Live really stepped in it."

Trump's new campaign ad is incredibly inspiring

Videos by Jeffers MacArthur Dodge at Hollywood Conservatives for Trump   

President Trump's accomplishments in an Animated Timeline

President Trump's accomplishments in an Animated Timeline. Credit for animation is imprinted by watermark on the video. Trump 2020 website: https://www.trump2020.com/

Hillary still the cartoonists top choice, but not many Democrats

Senate Democrats Warn Hillary Not to Jump Into 2020 Race  "In the wake of reports that Hillary Clinton is considering making a late entry into the 2020 presidential race, Senate Democrats are warning her against it, saying the party has moved on."

"She’s done a great service to our country and public service, and I supported her wholeheartedly, but I believe it’s time for another nominee,” Senate minority whip Dick Durbin said, according to a Politico report.

"Senator Martin Heinrich of New Mexico called the move a “mistake.”

"Senator Joe Manchin of West Virginia, generally the most conservative Senate Democrat, said, “Absolutely not,” when asked about a possible Clinton 2020 run.

"The senators’ expressions of doubt come after longtime Clinton adviser Philippe Reines said earlier this week that the former secretary of state has not ruled out running in 2020 and would consider doing so if she thought she had the best odds of beating President Trump." . . .

. . . “ 'It’s hard to know whether the world has passed on or not,” Senator Dianne Feinstein of California wondered. “I’m a friend of hers and I’m extraordinarily fond of her. But that’s a factor.”

“ 'It’s just my instinct that there’s no way she wants to go through this meat grinder again,” Senator Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut remarked." . . .

Even way back in 2017:  Hillary Clinton should absolutely not run for president in 2020. And Democrats should stop her if she tries.

"There's a purposely provocative piece in Politico magazine this week that aims to make the case that Hillary Clinton is going to run for president for a third time in 2020. Citing the scaling back of the Clinton Global Initiative and her plans to write a seventh book as evidence, Matt Latimer concludes: “Yes, barring some calamity, Clinton is running. And this brave columnist will go one step further. Not only will Clinton run again, she has an excellent shot at getting the Democratic Party nomination again.”

"Wrong. And not just wrong on Clinton running again. But wrong on the fact that if she runs she could or would have the inside track on the Democratic nomination.

"Let's take it piece by piece." . . . Read the full article.

In 2018: Democrats and independents on 2020: Please, God, not Hillary

Obama, It was YOU!

From Benjamin Dunlap at Wake Up America, the Original

No, Valerie Jarrett never said she seeks to ‘change America to be a more Islamic country’  "Also, Jarrett has never identified as Muslim in all her years in the public and private sphere. While she was born in Iran, her parents are American, and she has lived in the U.S. since she was five years old."

You Don’t Know What Obama Said at the Mosque  . . . "Obama: “Jefferson and John Adams had their own copies of the Koran.”
"The primary, if not only, reason Jefferson had a copy of the Koran was to try to understand the Koran and Islam in light of what the Muslim ambassador from Tripoli had told him and John Adams. When asked why Tripoli pirates were attacking American ships and enslaving Americans, the Muslim ambassador explained that Muslims are commanded to do so by the Koran.
"Jefferson wrote that the Tripoli ambassador told him that “it was written in their Koran that all nations which had not acknowledged the Prophet were sinners, whom it was the right and duty of the faithful to plunder and enslave; and that every mussulman [Muslim] who was slain in this warfare was sure to go to Paradise.”
"That’s why Jefferson and Adams had Korans." . . .

New York then and now: Astonishing black and white photos from the early 20th Century show NYC neighborhoods with empty streets and vacant plots of land

UK Daily Mail   "A collection of 17,000 black and white photographs stored in the New York Public Library's digital archives offer an illuminating look at how the city appeared almost a century ago.  

"The images were captured by renowned photographer Percy Loomis Sperr, who was contracted by the Library to document the physical appearance of the five boroughs between the late 1920s and the early 1940s. 

"Many of the old photographs highlight how much New York streetscapes have been transformed in the intervening years, with entire areas completely altered by mass development.  

"Queens, in particular, looks strikingly different today than it does in Sperr's snaps, with the borough undergoing a population boom and a building blitz beginning in the 1930s. 

"However, other photos taken by Sperr show that the city still looks strikingly similar in certain areas - something that may come as a surprise to people who associate New York with unending construction and constant aesthetic transformations. 

"While Manhattan's SoHo, West Village and Hell's Kitchen neighborhoods may have been gentrified, many of the their buildings remain in place, proving that the bones of New York City were laid long before the beginning of the 20th Century. " . . .  

Screenshot:

Romney's admirer Pierre Delecto

Oleg Atbashian of The People's Cube and American Thinker

It is difficult to believe that Mitt beat Newt Gingrich in the 2012 primaries, and we got stuck with him and Paul Ryan.  . . . "The good news for non-quisling Republicans is that this should end the career of Pierre/Mitt to be the next John McCain as the go-to-guy whenever the Democrats and the media need a "Republican" to attack President Trump and conservatives.  Pierre/Mitt is now a joke, a buffoon.  The Dems and media may use Mitt, but nobody has any respect for him.  Who now cares what Mitt or Pierre says?" . . .

Babylon Bee sees great satire in Romney's secret I.D. :
Mitt Romney Reveals He's Been Running The Wendy's Twitter Account All Along

"WASHINGTON, D.C.—Mitt Romney has revealed that he's been running a second Twitter account for years: the official Wendy's account.

" 'Wendy's was looking for someone to own Burger King and IHOP on Twitter, and I figured I could use the extra work," he said. "It's just a nice way for me to check in on things, dunk on Taco Bell, maybe follow some people, you know." Romney would use his official account to promote his political views and then switch over to the Wendy's account in order to wind down a bit.

" 'It's been a lot of fun, but now the jig is up."

"Followers of the Wendy's account began to grow suspicious when the fast-food company started tweeting about Trump quite a bit more and retweeted several tweets by the official LDS church account.

"At publishing time, Trump had confirmed he is the mastermind behind the McDonald's Twitter account."