Tuesday, April 9, 2024

As We Barrel Headlong Into Trump's First Criminal Trial, Biased Judge Merchan Releases Jury Questions

 Bob Hoge – RedState

 But those were civil matters—this is the first criminal trial they’ve managed to bring to the courthouse. Merchan has proven to be heavily biased against the former president, and it will be interesting to see whether he can conduct a fair proceeding or if this will just be more banana republic justice. 

"The first criminal trial against former president Donald Trump is slated to begin April 15, and late Monday afternoon, Judge Juan Merchan released the questionnaire he plans to use to oversee jury selection for the trial.

"Do you have any strong opinions or firmly held beliefs about whether a former president may be criminally charged in a state court?" asks one question. "Do you have any feelings about how Mr. Trump is being treated in this case?"

"I almost want to say no; I’ve been living in a cave for the last decade, I have no feelings of any kind about the oncoming proceedings. 

"Trump and his lawyers had tried to delay the trial but have been repeatedly rejected by various judges: 

"Judge Merchan wants to know if potential jurors have any feelings whatsoever about the former president and current GOP presumptive nominee in the presidential race.

Prosecutive jurors will be asked if they have ever attended one of Trump’s rallies, if they belong to groups like the Proud Boys or Antifa, or if they volunteered with a political entity associated with the former president.

"Do you have any strong opinions or firmly held beliefs about whether a former president may be criminally charged in a state court?" one question asks. "Do you have any feelings about how Mr. Trump is being treated in this case?"

Other questions ask if prosecutive jurors have read any of Trump’s books, can set aside their past knowledge of the case, or have opinions on the legal limits related to political contributions.  . . .

 Trump co-defendant accuses Fani Willis of racism, threatens civil rights lawsuit (bizpacreview.com)   . . ."“While my skin is also black, DA Willis identifies me as white and views me as a defender of white supremacists due to my political beliefs,” Floyd said in the video. “Deep down, she wants to make me pay for what she feels is a betrayal to black culture. Her words and actions consistently demonstrate a hate for white people and need to make this case about race.” . . .

The Ministry of BS

 "Ooh, but don’t tell the geniuses at The New York Times or The Washington Post.  To them, Biden Land is a magical place where middle class parents get to work multiple jobs just to make ends meet!  How dreamy…in a dystopian BS kind of tragedy!" JBS


The Ministry of BS Will See You Now - J.B. Shurk    "I wonder if there is ever a moment while DHS Secretary Mayorkas is claiming that America’s borders are entirely secure and blaming “climate change” for the influx of tens of millions of illegal aliens into the United States when he thinks, “Wow, I am really full of BS.  I mean, it is simply amazing how much BS I shovel down the American people’s throats every single day.”

"The notion that powerful people lie to the public is certainly not new.  You can go back through the centuries and find essays, songs, drawings, and folktales that all attest to the timeless truth that every generation sees its “rulers” as an unworthy camarilla of cutthroats, liars, backstabbers, and thieves.  Still, the lies being told today are just so brazen.  Damaging tornado?  That’s what we get for driving cars.  Too many white mathematicians?  Obviously another bout of “systemic racism” rearing its ugly head.  Trump’s beating Biden in the polls?  Duh — that’s because America runs on “hate”!" . . .  

A Nation Without Honor - Steve McCann  . . ."Barack Obama maliciously exploited his skin color as he deviously divided Americans into groups which he coldly pitted against each other. Joe Biden betrayed the nation by selling foreign governments and agents access to his office while Vice-President and as President has calculatingly and repeatedly disregarded court orders, violated the Constitution, and shredded his oath to “take care that the Laws be faithfully executed.”

"The 2020 campaign of Joe Biden and the Democrats encapsulated the disreputable traits of both men as the strategy employed was to not only hoodwink the American voter but to illegally and with forethought manipulate the voting process." . . .

Joe Biden: Nowhere Man – HotAir  . . ."This particular story, the 17,000 miles and the Tibetan Plateau with Xi story is so egregious, Kessler had to revisit the lie and recalibrate his ranking. After the first fact-check, Biden continued to use the debunked tale as part of his own personal greatest hits compilation, deploying it in speeches and events almost two dozen times by the end of 2022. Kessler had seen more than enough, and upped the score to Endless Pinocchio's

"Did the Pinocchio upgrade slow down Joe Biden? No. Age and infirmity have slowed down Biden, but the stream of lies have continued unabated. Most recently, Joe Bidenopoulos, his annual statement that he's for all intents and purposes Greek, brought out the Tibetan Plateau lie again." . . .


Joe Biden Suffers a Total Eclipse of His Shame As He Bumbles and Fibs in Wisconsin

 Bonchie – RedState  "As the nation was captivated by a total eclipse of the sun on Monday, Joe Biden suffered a total eclipse of his shame in Wisconsin. After spending an unfathomable amount of taxpayer money to fly to the battleground state on Air Force One, the president proceeded to bumble and lie his way through a mercifully short speech. 

"In it, he bragged about defying the Supreme Court on student loan forgiveness and introduced a new falsehood about his childhood, the latter being so easily debunkable that I can only assume he's not even trying anymore. Let's kick things off with the following admission, though.

"That was probably the most honest thing he said at the event. Recently, Jill Biden demanded behind the scenes that her husband "stop it, stop it now" regarding Israel's war on Hamas. A day later, the president was on the phone with Benjamin Netanyahu telling him he must agree to a ceasefire. Biden getting "instructions from his wife" is probably the least surprising development of his presidency. 

"Come hell or high water, Biden is going to make sure you have to pay off someone's gender studies degree. He couldn't care less that only a small minority of Americans have student loans or that there's no constitutional mechanism to reappropriate funds to selectively forgive individual debt. 

"As my colleague Becky Noble opined in her broader piece on the topic, this is all about buying votes." . . . 

'They're tired of his lies': Internet divided as Donna Brazile laments ‘nobody listens' when Joe Biden speaks (msn.com)   

One person also wrote, "Is this the first time Donna Brazile has told the truth?" while another added, "They're tired of his lies...,"  A user added, "Well to be fair, nobody listens to her either."

Washington Post Fact-Checker Gives Up on Recording Biden’s Lies

Joe Biden Has One Big Problem: He Is a Total Liar (msn.com)   . . ."Throughout his political career, Joe Biden has told so many lies and made so many questionable claims that it is simply impossible to accept his direct answer to a reporter's question.

"In an op-ed, The Los Angeles Daily News even suggested "Joseph Biden has been a notorious fabulist, which is to say, a well-documented liar even by the standard of fellow politicians." . . .


Monday, April 8, 2024

Joe Biden: A synonym for shame; surrenders to Taliban, wants Israel to surrender to murderous Hamas

 Curt Smith: Joe Biden is a synonym for shame (mpnnow.com)

To writer Michael Goodwin, his “cowardice” exceeds even British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain’s, who appeased Hitler by signing a 1938 Munich agreement that sired World War II and of whom Winston Churchill said, “You were given the choice between war and dishonor. You chose dishonor and you will have war.”

Americans embarrassed by Biden's blunders

 
. . ."Biden says that he bears “zero responsibility” for the recent Taliban takeover, blaming other presidents for not leaving sooner; Afghans for not fighting; civilians for asking us to stay. He pathetically distorts Trump’s conditional deal as “boxing me in,” despite no troops having died there in the last 18 months. Biden is so self-absorbed that he removed them all, imposing a 9/11 deadline so that he could garishly celebrate what Bush, Obama, and Trump couldn’t — the end of 20 years of U.S. involvement. Some celebration: 9/11 now means humiliation — ours.

"A wise withdrawal would have retained air cover and minimum ground support — by contrast, 28,500 troops patrol South Korea — before extracting civilians, diplomats, and troops in that order. Instead, Biden’s deadline chaotically removed military and air support first and civilians last. Former Obama Defense Secretary Robert Gates wrote in 2014 that Biden “has been wrong on nearly every major foreign policy and national security issue over the past four decades.” The Taliban marks Joe’s fifth.

"Biden claims no ally has criticized his withdrawal. Please. Germany’s likely next chancellor, Armin Laschet, rips a “debacle.” Britain’s Daily Telegraph bays, “Parliament holds [Biden] in contempt.” The Labor Party head scolds Joe’s “catastrophic error of judgment.” As the Taliban seized the capital of Kabul, thousands of refugees were left at its sole (Karzai) airport, Biden having deserted the larger and more secure Bagram Air Force Base. For two days, he ignored foreign leaders, finally returning Boris Johnson’s call. Criticism? There is nothing but.

“ '[He] will never be trusted the same way again,” rued the Journal after Biden quoted Harry Truman’s “The buck stops here.” Joe’s buck stopped only after he changed his version of the Taliban conquest more times than a wayward teen who crashed the family car. First he said he had overruled advisers to remove all troops, then that a few disagreed, then that all supported him, claiming that none mentioned a potential bloodbath, as if their ignorance was an excuse." . . .

Israel Is Risking Losing This War by Caring What People Who Hate It Think  "Israel is risking losing this war because it is focusing more on avoiding criticism from its enemies than winning. I blame Benjamin Netanyahu in large part, but also our incompetent and loathsome alleged president. Now, I’m not one of those reflexive Bibi haters, and while I certainly don’t think the United States should have a say in who Israel chooses to lead it, I do believe in accountability. The disaster of October 7 happened on his watch, and he should’ve resigned the day after, but that’s not up to me or up to any American. What is up to me as an American is who our president will be next year, and it can’t be Biden again. But the desiccated old zombie aside, Bibi needs to go. He screwed up on October 7, and now he appears to be screwing up this war.

"The problem is not that Netanyahu has been too harsh, as our idiot president claims. It’s that Netanyahu has been too gentle (Yes, I understand a war cabinet is leading Israel, but he is still the face of it.). And too slow. Joe Biden has betrayed every ally America has had, from South Vietnam to Afghanistan and Bibi somehow imagined that creep would not sell-out Israel? Speed was of the essence. Why was Rafah not glass months ago? Netanyahu waited, and that gave Biden the time to sell out Israel.

"Restraining was a mistake. The fact is that Israel has, to a far too great extent, tried to fight this war on terms that would satisfy its leftist enemies in the United States . . ."

Kamala Harris reminds us a vote for Biden is a vote to hand her the White House keys

 Post Editorial Board (nypost.com)


"Choosing what it must think is the lesser of two evils, the Biden campaign has Vice President Kamala Harris hitting the campaign trail, rather than continuing to conspicuously keep her under wraps.

"Problem is, upping Harris’ visibility can only remind voters that she’s likely to rise to the top when President Biden is no longer even able to fake being up to the job — and, worse, remind them of her utter awfulness.

"For the record, her net favorability shows as -17.2 in the latest RealClearPolitics polling average (37.2% favorable, 54.4% unfavorable), vs. Biden’s -14.5 (+40.7%, -55.2).

"In the 538 site’s (slightly less up-to-date) averages, she’s -15.2, he’s -15.9.

"And while Biden’s low rating is plainly mainly due to the grim results of his policies, Harris’ unpopularity is all about her personally.

"Her inability to say anything unscripted without falling into hopeless word salads; her weird cackling and blatant lack of principles." . . .

Oct. 7 Massacre: Six Months Later; Viewer advisory, but should be shown wherever leftists gather

German civilians wept when shown through Nazi concentration camps. These people show only glee! 

 Catherine Salgado – PJ Media  

"Growing up, we all talked about the Nazis as if it were inconceivable that anyone could ever have condoned or ignored the Holocaust. Yet Westerners are doing just that now -- ignoring the very real attempted genocide against Israelis while preposterously accusing Israel of genocide in Gaza, based on Hamas talking points and Hamas-issued casualty numbers." 

 "Six months ago today, on October 7, Hamas terrorists invaded Israel to inflict horrific atrocities on civilians of all ages, committing the worst single day of massacre of Jews since the Holocaust. Yet six months later, much of the world is sympathizing with the guilty and attacking the victims in the Hamas-Israel conflict!

"Six months ago, babies were burned alive and/or beheaded, whole families were gunned down, women were raped to death, and civilians of all ages were kidnapped. Gazans celebrated the mass murder, and the Palestinian Authority rewarded the jihadis with cash. How much clearer does it need to be? Yet leftists have gone wild with anti-Semitic hatred and jihad-empathizing vitriol. Even a disturbing number of conservatives are repeating Hamas propaganda and falsely accusing Israel. It is a sad reflection on how divorced many Westerners, including Americans, are from reality — and how perilously close we are to another Holocaust.

"Growing up, we all talked about the Nazis as if it were inconceivable that anyone could ever have condoned or ignored the Holocaust. Yet Westerners are doing just that now -- ignoring the very real attempted genocide against Israelis while preposterously accusing Israel of genocide in Gaza, based on Hamas talking points and Hamas-issued casualty numbers. The Arabs now calling themselves Palestinians have never had a right to Israeli land, and they have spent decades rejecting offers of land concessions and their own nation from Israel. Even now, the majority of Palestinians still support terrorist Hamas and its horrific attacks on Israel on Oct. 7. Yet both Muslims and non-Muslims around the world refuse to admit the reality of the situation.

"Do you think it could not happen here in America? Students are marching on every major campus in support of jihad against Israel, and the hatred against Jewish people is so violent that some Jewish students fear for their physical safety. Anti-Semitic incidents tripled in America between October and January. The majority of Democrat politicians have been undermining Israel in favor of Gaza. Joe Biden is going Nazi and not only sending huge amounts of aid to Gaza, but also planning to label products from Judea and Samaria -- land the Palestinians falsely claim as theirs and call the “West Bank.” This will facilitate boycotting of the Israeli products." . . .

Dawn Staley RUNS AWAAAY When Called Out by Riley Gaines for Supporting Men Dominating Women's Sports

 Riley Gaines – Twitchy  "Riley Gaines made a really good point in this post. She congratulated Dawn Staley and the Women's South Carolina team for winning the NCAA Women's Championship while pointing out that it's too bad Staley would trade any of the young women on her team for a mediocre young man who wants to pretend he's a woman.

Take a look:

 Class act here:   "Elite Competitors don’t make excuses, they accept responsibility. @paigebueckers1 is the ultimate competitor. No complaining, no excuses, straight talk, high standard for herself and her team. While the rest of the country debates a call, she keeps it real. What an amazing example she is, in so many ways, of the mindset great competitors and winners possess.

Joe Biden keeps on delivering a dangerous two-faced approach with Israel; Taking Israel to the brink of failure.

 Michael Goodwin; (nypost.com) 

There is also fallout in Gaza, where Hamas keeps rejecting offers of a cease-fire in exchange for a release of all hostages.  The rejection is widely seen as evidence the surviving leaders of the Oct. 7 invasion believe time is on their side and that the offers will get better because of Biden’s pressure.

"During most of the six months of Israel’s war with Hamas, President Biden has given support to our ally with one hand and undercut it with the other.

"The approach features both Biden’s quiet supply of munitions to Israel and a near-daily dose of harsh public criticism of its military conduct. 

"It’s all part of a convoluted plan to formally back the beleaguered Jewish state while also appeasing angry members of the Democrats’ far-left wing, many of whom are antisemites who believe Israel has no right to exist. 

"The plan is so obviously a political calculation that a popular joke holds that Biden’s talk of a two-state solution isn’t really about Israel and a Palestinian state — it’s about appealing to Muslim-American voters in Michigan and Minnesota! 

"Jokes aside, that remains the basic policy, but nothing in war or politics is stagnant.

"And with each passing day, it becomes more and more obvious that, as Biden’s re-election campaign falters, his administration’s criticism of Israel grows more desperate and strident.

"Amid polls showing Donald Trump beating the president in most battleground states, including Michigan, the White House tone has shifted sharply against our ally. " . . .

Pollak: How Biden Brought Israel to the Brink of Failure (breitbart.com)  "Hamas declared victory Sunday after Israel withdrew its ground forces from southern Gaza, partly in deference to President Joe Biden’s call for an “immediate ceasefire.” Israel now stands on the precipice of failure in the war.

"Israelis are asking, naturally, how this came to pass.

"The accidental killing of seven aid workers from the World Central Kitchen (WCK) was the trigger, and some Israelis wonder if they should have emphasized aid for Gaza sooner.

"The problem, actually, was that Israel accepted responsibility for the welfare of the Palestinian civilian population in the first place, over and above its legal obligation not to target civilians (as Hamas does in both Gaza and Israel).

"In a typical war, each side is responsible for its own civilians. The side that can no longer protect its people loses and surrenders. Certainly the aggressor — as Palestinians were in this case — has no right to demand special treatment.

"That rule is inverted in Gaza, where anti-Israel activists and left-wing “progressives” have pushed the false idea that Israel is an occupying power. (Israel pulled its soldiers and civilians out in 2005; Hamas took over in a 2007 coup)." . . .

At this stage, Israel has three choices.

One: it can press ahead into Rafah, hoping Biden will not follow through with his threats.

Two: it can change governments, hoping Biden is friendlier to someone who is not named Netanyahu.

Three: Israel can wait until the American elections are over, hoping that Trump replaces Biden — or else that Biden, no longer constrained by fear of pro-Hamas voters, will finally help Israel win, as he should have from the start.

Democrats cry foul as anti-free speech allies turn against them

Jonathan Turley; The Hill

So, after years of Raskin encouraging the censorship of others, the mob finally came for him. The yawning response of the university was not unlike his own past response to journalists, professors and dissents who have come before his committee.  

AF Branco - Townhall

  "You are “killing people,” President Biden told social media companies a couple of years ago. He sought to shame executives into censoring more Americans. Biden has lashed out at disinformation by anti-vaxxers, “election deniers” and others. This month, those words were thrown back at Biden himself as a “genocide denier” by protesters who have labeled him “Genocide Joe” over his support for Israel.

"After years of supporting censorship and blacklisting of people with opposing views, politicians and academics are finding themselves the subjects of the very anti-free speech tactics that they helped foster.

"Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-Md.), for example, has been a leading figure in Congress opposing efforts to curtail massive censorship programs coordinated by the Biden administration. While opposing the investigation into past federal censorship efforts, Raskin continues to push social media companies to increase the censorship and silencing of Americans. Last December, Raskin sent a letter on behalf of other Democrats on the powerful House Oversight Committee demanding even more censorship, not only on election fraud, COVID or climate change, but also on abortion.

" 'We are troubled by the rapid spread of abortion misinformation and disinformation on your company’s social media platform,” he wrote, “and the threat this development poses to safe abortion access in the United States.”

"When journalists and even other members testified in favor of free speech, Democrats attacked them as “Putin lovers” and fellow travelers supporting “insurrectionists.” 

"Last week, however, the left turned on Raskin. He was giving a lecture titled “Democracy, Autocracy and the Threat to Reason in the 21st Century.” According to the Maryland Reporterthe protesters accused Raskin of being “complicit in genocide.” After efforts to resume his remarks, University of Maryland President Darryll Pines finally ended the event early.

"Pines then pulled a Raskin. While mildly criticizing the students for their lack of “civility,” he defended their disruption of Raskin’s remarks as if a heckler’s veto were free speech." . . .

Hamas appears to get everything it wants

 Lynne Lechter - American Thinker  

But, we are now living in a world where evil is called good, and good is called evil. 

 "These are tough times to be Jewish.  In Israel, in America -- there are no safe havens.

"Please, don’t use the excuse it was Israel’s response to the Hamas massacres on Oct. 7, 2023, that shocked the senses of fair-minded peoples everywhere. That's because the anti-Semitic protests started on Oct. 8, 2023 -- before Israel had even caught its breath as to the atrocities perpetrated on its people, and before their response was even implemented.

"The wounds Hamas has inflicted on Israel and world Jewery are incalculable. Israel is now a country divided.  It is divided between half the Israelis who believe the war must end immediately in the hopes that the remaining hostages will immediately be released. And it is divided by the other half of the population that doesn’t know how many of the remaining hostages are even alive, and who believe that the country cannot be guided by their plight.

"The country is beset not only with ugly protests, but the situation has bitterly pitted Israeli against Israeli.

"Ironically, it doesn’t even appear to be in Israel’s control regarding the release of the hostages. Hamas’s leader, Yahya Sinwar, who is purportedly personally holed up with the remaining captives, has just stated that he has no interest in holding discussions regarding the release of the hostages, as he sees no benefit to Hamas." . . .

"In his quest to punish Israel for attempting to defeat Hamas, his administration has cooked up this vile act redolent of the Third Reich, according to The Financial Times:

. . ."We know the Bidenites want to "punish" Israel, but this is utterly vile, redolent of the Nazi order to force Jews to wear yellow stars in countries such as Denmark during World War II. 

"Sure, they can claim it's optics, but optics are all they care about and this sends a very bad message.

"Republicans and all people of goodwill need to shut this creeping Naziism down now."  

'Bring back common sense': Online criticism mounts as Secretary Anthony Blinken appoints Zakiya Carr Johnson as new diversity chief

 Kunal Dey (msn.com)

Obama would refer to her as "MY DEI officer".

. . ."Despite Blinken's efforts, the appointment has sparked controversy, particularly on social media platforms. Critics have argued against what they perceive as preferential treatment based on race, gender, or sexual orientation.

"A 'DEI Officer'? A blatantly racist and sexist position in our government that we're paying for? This is ridiculous. Definitely one of the first positions to be removed when Trump is sworn in," one user posted on X.

"We should go back to hiring people based off of their skills, qualifications, and experience instead of their race, gender, and sexual preferences," another insisted. [sic]

"Can't wait for this department to be abolished," someone else commented.

"Bring back common sense," another chimed in." . . .

The Battle Against DIE Has Just Begun - American Thinker   . . ."Most troubling is that DIE activists have the passion and energy of religious fanatics. They are undeterred by terrible educational outcomes and aim to transform American into some fantasy racial Utopia. For these zealots, the harm caused by their anti-Whiteness nostrums is tolerable collateral damage. Argument about the opportunity costs of the all the mindless babbling just fall on deaf ears. The battle against DIE has begun with some notable successes, but current victories are only the first step against a determined enemy." 

The old phony throwing-of-the -script trick MSNBC likes

I cannot call what Wallace did a "tantrum" since it was an obviously rehearsed stunt, with the cameraman changing to a new location to catch the script throw. 

AF Branco - Townhall

MSNBC Throws a Tantrum: Judge Luttig Rages at Trump - The American Spectator | USA News and Politics . . ."In other words, it’s A-OK to attack a Supreme Court justice and his family because of conservative political activism — Justice Thomas’ wife in this instance. But if former President Trump takes a page from the Left’s playbook and calls out the far-left activism of a judge’s daughter — a judge sitting on his case — than woe betide the world.

"The utter hypocrisy involved in all this from MSNBC’s Wallace and Judge Luttig is enough to swallow the Grand Canyon.

"Each has done more in their respective fields to thoroughly discredit the media — in Wallace’s case — and the federal judiciary — in Luttig’s case — then most of their peers combined.

"They have become vivid symbols of the problems in their professions.

"Shameful.

"But don’t expect a single thing to be done about it. Like, say, being fired from MSNBC à la Ronna McDaniel or expelled from the Supreme Court Bar and losing the license to practice law, as done to Trump attorney John Eastman.

"The Establishment lives by different rules. And because they don’t live by the old-fashioned rules of integrity and fairness? That means nothing. Not a fireable offense.

"Got it." . . .

Internet dubs Nicole Wallace 'drama queen' as MSNBC host throws script on air, condemns Donald Trump's attack on judge's daughter    

“We all have to understand that from the first time that the former president began his attacks — vicious attacks — on the federal courts and the state courts and their judges, his objective was to delegitimize those courts so that when and if they ruled against him in the various matters that he’s been charged with, then at least his followers, if not a good part of the nation, would dismiss those rulings against him as having been politically inspired and motivated,” he said….

Manhattan prosecutors asked a judge to clarify a gag order on Friday imposed on Trump following social media posts by the former commander-in-chief that criticized the judge’s daughter.

Got that?

"Wallace and Luttig are infuriated because Donald Trump attacked the daughter of a federal judge ruling on one of his cases. The cause: the daughter’s decidedly far-left, anti-Trump political activism. (READ MORE: The Corporate Media Mocks ‘Double Haters’)

"Might we talk selective outrage?

"Who, exactly, set the precedent for calling out the family members of judges because of their political activism?

"Can anyone say “Ginni Thomas”?

" from the New York Times  Here is a headline from back there in 2022:" . . .