RUTHFULLY YOURS

https://thefederalist.com/2021/02/14/its-been-one-terrible-horrible-no-good-very-bad-week-for-the-democratic-party/

It has been one tough week for the left.

Impeachment for political theatre was squashed, the Never Trump Lincoln Project further imploded when it was reported its leaders knew about the sexual harassment allegations against co-founder John Weaver, and the petition to recall California Gov. Gavin Newsom D-Calif. reached 1.5 million signatures to likely trigger a special election.

The Donald Trump Charlottesville rhetoric lie was debunked again, and now, Gov. Andrew Cuomo, D-N.Y. is facing bipartisan flack from lawmakers after a Freedom of Information Request (FOIA) request showed as many as 9,000 COVID-19 infected patients were sent to nursing homes under his directive, resulting in one of the nation’s worst COVID scenarios.

Trump Gets Acquitted Again

On Saturday, former President Donald Trump was acquitted in impeachment proceedings for the second time in two years, 57-43 in the Senate. It was the outcome anyone practical knew was coming for weeks—and one that only adds fuel to the left’s endless and compulsive disdain for the 45th president.

https://www.theepochtimes.com/nikki-haley-breaks-from-trump-in-interview-about-a-potential-run-for-president_3695118.html

Former UN Ambassador Nikki Haley in a recent interview broke from Trump, criticizing his actions in relation to the Jan. 6 incident at the Capitol.

Haley, in a lengthy profile interview with Politico focused on her former boss and a possible run for the presidency in 2024, said that she does not believe Trump will run for federal office again in the wake of the Jan. 6 Capitol breach, telling Politico, “I don’t think he can. He’s fallen so far.”

Haley has all but confirmed a run for presidential office in 2024. In the profile by Politico’s Tim Alberta, she was repeatedly questioned about Trump’s role in what happened on Jan. 6 and if she agreed with what her former boss did after the November election.

Democrats, legacy media, and some Republicans have criticized the former president for not conceding on Nov. 4 after mainstream media outlets called the election for Biden, and instead opposing the numerous irregularities on election night and later filing legal actions against a handful of key states.

Trump’s legal team said these states changed elections laws without the approval of their state’s legislature or had other legal issues that were documented via the testimony of numerous people who signed sworn affidavits saying they had witnessed voter fraud.

All of the legal cases were dismissed by courts on procedural grounds without the evidence being heard and ruled on. In the interview, Haley reluctantly supported Trump’s challenging the election results and all the court filings.

“I understand the president. I understand that genuinely, to his core, he believes he was wronged,” Haley told Politico. “This is not him making it up.”

https://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2021/02/calling_out_the_unholy_six_republican_senators_who_voted_to_advance_trumps_impeachment_trial.html

The following is copied and pasted from the CBS News website, February 9:

Senators Bill Cassidy of Louisiana, Susan Collins of Maine, Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, Mitt Romney of Utah, Ben Sasse of Nebraska and Pat Toomey of Pennsylvania joined all 50 Democrats in voting to uphold the constitutionality of [Trump’s post-presidency impeachment] trial.

First, concerning a certain Senate Democrat: you too, Joe Manchin?

Clearly, the Republican senators listed above have, by their vote against the express language of the Constitution, made common cause with the rabid Senate Democrats and must be primaried next election.  Should the GOP regain their Senate majority in 2022, these senators should be either denied membership on any Senate committee or placed on the most non-consequential of Senate committees.

The Unholy Six have previously made clear their loathing for a now private citizen and have placed their personal disregard of former president Trump far above their duty to the Constitution and their responsibilities to their constituents.  It is worth speculating that these sad excuses for Republicans — call them CRINOs (Craven Republicans In Name Only) — were emboldened by the example of Liz Cheney, who has shown that she can vituperate against the former president with the worst of Democrat anti-Trump propagandists and get away with it.

What profit is there in turning to Republicans for succor against the self-aggrandizing, tyrannical Democrats if they lack the will to call to account the GOP turncoats in their own ranks?  It is to be expected that the power-mad Democrats will place themselves not only above the law, but above our Constitution.  It is unforgivable for elected Republicans to ignore people in their own ranks who are no more committed to the rule of law, to the Constitution, than the malevolent Democrats.

https://www.wsls.com/news/politics/2021/02/10/gops-josh-mandel-joins-race-for-open-senate-seat-in-ohio/

Mandel, a Marine veteran and former state treasurer, says he will make a third run for the U.S. Senate in Ohio, taking a pro-Trump message in a bid for the seat being vacated by the GOPs Rob Portman. Mandel planned to launch his campaign Wednesday, Feb. 10, 2021, against the backdrop of a second round of impeachment proceedings against the former Republican president. (AP Photo/Tony Dejak, File)

COLUMBUS, Ohio – Republican Josh Mandel, a Marine veteran and former state treasurer, says he will make a third run for the U.S. Senate in Ohio, taking a pro-Trump message in a bid for the seat being vacated by the GOP’s Rob Portman.

Mandel, 43, planned to launch his campaign Wednesday against the backdrop of a second round of impeachment proceedings against the former Republican president.

“This impeachment of President Trump is a complete sham and got my blood boiling to the point where I decided to run for the United States Senate,” Mandel said in an interview. He said he believes charges against Trump are unfounded and the proceeding is unconstitutional.

Mandel was the first statewide official in Ohio to back Trump in 2016 and he raised $500,000 for him in 2020, he said. His campaign will focus on common themes of economic freedom, individual liberty and the “America First” agenda.

https://redstate.com/jeffc/2021/02/04/unhinged-rep-maxine-waters-says-trump-should-be-charged-with-premeditated-murder-n322115

There are three things that are always certain in American politics: The media is dishonest, there is too much hyperpartisanship, and Rep. Maxine Waters (D-CA) belongs in a mental institution. The latest example of Mad Max’s apparent insanity came when she made some rather outlandish remarks about former President Donald Trump during a television interview.

On Tuesday, Waters repeated the far-left’s favorite claim that President Trump is responsible for the assault on the U.S. Capitol which took place on Jan. 6 during an appearance on MSNBC. But she made a charge that even her politically-motivated colleagues haven’t even entertained: She publicly accused Trump of ‘premeditated murder’ for allegedly causing the violence at the capitol.

In a conversation about Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez’s (D-NY) claim that she was in danger during the assault on the Capitol, Waters criticized the individuals involved in the riots.

She said, “What’s so interesting about all of this is they tried to make themselves the victim when indeed they are following the president of the United States of America who had advance planning about the invasion that took place in our Capitol. Even there’s information that some of the planning came out of individuals working in this campaign. As a matter of fact, he absolutely should be charged with premeditated murder because of the lives that were lost with this invasion, with this insurrection.”

https://thefederalist.com/2021/02/04/adam-schiff-reportedly-lobbying-gov-gavin-newsom-to-be-california-attorney-general/

Axios reports Rep. Adam Schiff, D-Calif., is in the process of lobbying Gov. Gavin Newsom and those around him to represent California as its attorney general. The current AG, Xavier Becerra, is President Joe Biden’s nominee to serve as U.S. secretary of Health and Human Services. With Becerra probable to be confirmed by a majority Democratic Senate, Schiff sees a clear opening to a step possibly towards even higher offices..

Schiff has been a lead instigator of numerous destabilizing hoaxes and information operations during the Trump years, most notably Spygate and numerous lies related to constructing and protecting it. Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., has reportedly given her approval for Schiff to seek out the AG position.

Schiff was notably a primary Democratic leader in the Trump-Russia investigation. This is an opportunity that would well-position him to run for 87-year-old Sen. Dianne Feinstein’s, D-Calif., seat in 2024. Having gained much-televised fame from these proceedings, many suspect that his abject willingness to lie has pushed his career into an upward trajectory among Democrats in California.

https://pjmedia.com/news-and-politics/stacey-lennox/2021/02/03/sinema-and-manchin-targeted-for-primary-challenges-in-2024-through-a-pac-run-by-former-aoc-staffers-n1422783

Democrat Senators Kyrsten Sinema (D-Ariz.) and Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) are being targeted in 2024 for primary challenges through a PAC set up by former AOC staffers. Saikat Chakrabarti and Corbin Trent run the No-Excuses PAC. Both were involved in the founding of Brand New Congress and the Justice Democrats, which seek to recruit and elect progressive radicals to Congress. Their poster child, Alexandra Ocasio-Cortez, is their model Congress member, and both men served on her staff in Washington, D.C.

In the 2018 cycle, these two organizations teamed up to primary sitting Congress members with more progressive candidates. They also picked up a few existing members who had been elected previously. They were successful in surprising incumbents in deep blue districts who did not take them seriously. As Speaker Nancy Pelosi noted at the time, in the districts where these candidates ran, a glass of water with a “D” on it could win. They are not the candidates who earned Democrats the House majority. In fact, credit is given to their radical rhetoric for Democrat losses in the House in the 2020 cycle.

In 2020, two candidates, Cori Bush (D-Mo.) and Marie Newman (D-Ill.), achieved the same Democrat-for-Democrat exchange in deep blue districts during the 2018 cycle. There were no net gains for the party, and outside of these areas, both their primary and general election candidates were defeated. Some were shellacked. Neither group has ever placed a senator nor won an election against a Republican in a red or purple district.

https://www.americanthinker.com/articles/2021/02/what_to_do_about_marjorie_taylor_greene.html

Along with Democrats, many Republicans are calling for newly elected Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene’s expulsion from Congress because of her controversial comments about school shootings and Jews starting forest fires with space lasers.  Daniel Greenfield writes at frontpagemag.com that kooks like her sabotage our efforts against the Democrats.

Greenfield makes a legitimate point: GOP crackpots can indeed inflict tremendous damage on the party.  Who could forget Todd Akin’s comment about “legitimate rape”?  Not only did Republicans drop him like a hot potato, but his Senate run against Claire McCaskill imploded. A similar fate befell Indiana’s Richard Mourdock for an equally bizarre rape comment and, thus, Democrats rode the Republican “War on Women” all the way to Obama’s re-election. 

But, unless MTG did something criminal or morally repugnant, just because we think we know better – and maybe we do – should House Republicans be able to nullify her election by giving her the boot? (Liz Cheney’s situation differs in that Republicans seek to remove her as Conference Chair, not from holding office.)  Isn’t Greene entitled to her opinions—no matter how wrong, repugnant, or absurd they may be—in the same way that Adam Schiff’s belief that Trump urinated on Obama’s hotel bed, is still indulged? 

Such folly isn’t just for conservatives.  Every time Pelosi opens her mouth something ridiculous falls out, like passing a bill in order to read it.  The Squad speaks almost exclusively in anti-Semitic and racist tongues.  Hank Johnson feared Guam would tip over from the weight of soldiers.  Whites are racists because of their skin color.  Trump murdered all Covid victims and Cruz tried to murder AOC.    

https://pjmedia.com/columns/matt-margolis/2021/02/02/4-democrat-conspiracy-theorists-who-should-be-denounced-n1422485

At least 50 House Democrats have called for Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene’s expulsion from Congress for her alleged embracing of QAnon conspiracy theories. PJM’s Tyler O’Neil recently called on conservatives and Republicans “to condemn Greene’s previous statements on social media and demand an explanation for them.”

I’m not here to condone anything she has said in the past. The problem is that unless those calling for her to be removed from office apply the same standard amongst Democrats, you won’t get me to endorse any punitive action against her. Some of her allegedly violent rhetoric isn’t all that dissimilar to the rhetoric we’ve heard from Democrats about Trump. Congressman Bill Pascrell (D-N.J.)  accused Trump of committing “innumerable crimes against the United States,” including “treason.” Rep. Seth Moulton (D-Mass.) accused Trump of treason over the debunked Russian bounties story. Many other Democrats, including pundits, activists, and the media, have accused Trump of treason for various things. Death is, by federal law, an accepted punishment for treason.

But forget that, I could pick a Democrat in Congress at random and find something repulsive about him or her that has equal if not more justification for their removal. Rep. Ilhan Omar’s views on 9/11 and her blatant anti-Semitism, in particular, come to mind. And how many times was Ted Kennedy reelected to the U.S. Senate after killing a woman?

But I digress. Violent rhetoric from the left is a topic for another time. As for Marjorie Taylor Greene’s embrace of conspiracy theories, Democrat “outrage” aimed at her is the epitome of hypocrisy. Democrats have plenty of conspiracy theorists amongst their ranks that somehow never get called out by their own party or the media.

https://spectator.org/bush-officials-republican-trump/

NOTHING NEW HERE…..EXCERPTS

And the GOP Establishment’s reaction to the idea of Reagan as a GOP presidential nominee? Not to mention the liberal media’s reaction? I described it here in The American Spectator in 2015, saying this:

New York Times: “Reagan’s candidacy is ‘patently ridiculous.’ ”
New York Times: “The astonishing thing is that this amusing but frivolous Reagan fantasy is taken so seriously by the news media and particularly by the President [Gerald Ford]. It makes a lot of news, but it doesn’t make much sense.”
New Republic: “Ronald Reagan to me is still the posturing, essentially mindless and totally unconvincing candy man that he’s been in my opinion ever since I watched his first try for the Republican nomination evaporate in Miami in 1968.”
New Republic: “Reagan is Goldwater revisited…. He is a divisive factor in the party.”
Harper’s magazine: “That he should be regarded as a serious candidate for President is a shame and an embarrassment for the country at large to swallow.”
Chicago Daily News: “The trouble with Reagan, of course, is that his positions on the major issues are cunningly phrased nonsense — irrationality conceived and hair-raising in their potential mischief…. Here comes Barry Goldwater again, only more so, and at this stage another such debacle could sink the GOP so deep it might never recover.”
Time: “Republicans now must decide whether he represents a conservative wave of the future or is just another Barry Goldwater calling on the party to mount a hopeless crusade against the twentieth century.”
Newsweek: Ronald Reagan is “a man whose mind and nerve and mediagenic style have never been tested in Presidential politics and may not be adequate to the trial.”
National Review (a conservative magazine): “Reagan’s image remains inchoate.… At the outset of his campaign, his image is largely that of the role-playing actor — pleasant on stage, but ill-equipped for the real world beyond the footlights. Reagan does not yet project the presidential image. He is not seen as a serious man.”
Manchester Union-Leader (a conservative New Hampshire paper): Reagan “lacks the charisma and conviction needed to win.”
Pravda, the official newspaper of the Soviet Union: Reagan is a “dinosaur from the ‘cold war.’… It is strange that there are still fish in the sea that are tempered by this putrid bait.”

That was just the Establishment media. Next up were the icons of the Establishment Republican Party of the day.

The Ripon Society: “The nomination of Ronald Reagan would McGovernize the Republican Party.”
Vice President Nelson Rockefeller: Reagan is “a minority of a minority” who “has been taking some extreme positions.”
New York’s Republican Sen. Jacob Javits: Reagan’s positions are “so extreme that they would alter our country’s very economic and social structure and our place in the world to such a degree as to make our country’s place at home and abroad, as we know it, a thing of the past.”
Illinois Republican Sen. Charles Percy said Reagan’s candidacy was “foolhardy” and would lead to a “crushing defeat” for the Republican Party. “It could signal the beginning of the end of our party as an effective force in American political life.”
Former President Gerald Ford: “I hear more and more often that we don’t want, can’t afford to have a replay of 1964.” If the Republican Party nominates Ronald Reagan “it would be an impossible situation” because Reagan “is perceived as a most conservative Republican. A very conservative Republican can’t win in a national election.” Asked if that meant Ford thought Reagan can’t win, Ford replied to the New York Times: “That’s right.” The Times story went on to observe that Ford thought “Mr. Reagan would be a sure-loser in November” and that Reagan held “extreme and too-simple views.”

Sound familiar? Of course it does.