A Scandalous Double Standard

"Now, perhaps the president didn’t experience the fallout from a scandal, which is very different from never having been involved in one. For this confusion, Obama can thank the political media."
 ~ David Harsanyi

Just because the media didn't cover the Obama scandals does not mean they did not exist. In actuality, the Obama administration presided over numerous scandals, all of which were soft-pedaled by an adoring media that quickly swept them under the news rug and galloped on to the next story, hoping none of us would notice.

(Memo to Media: We did notice. That's why Trump is now president.)

The Obama scandals are quite extensive, and they impacted the country far more than President Trump's daily tweets. Trump's tweets, as ubiquitous, tasteless, and often inane as they are, still unfailingly manage to shock the waiting reporters, who spend hours analyzing each word while ignoring the positive nationwide effects of tax cuts, a robust economy, and low unemployment.

What are the Obama scandals? Below is a partial list:

1. Fast and Furious gun-walking
2. Solyndra subsidies
3. IRS targeting of conservative groups
4. Black Panthers intimidating voters at the Philadelphia polls on Election Day
5. The VA's phony waiting lists
6. Benghazi
7. Spying on reporter James Rosen, among others
8. Cartons of cash flown to a terrorist state to pay for a hostage
9. The Clinton email server (that Obama learned about "in the papers." Sure he did.)

I could go on, but you get the idea. I'm not including "Spygate" just yet, but if true, that could be the whopper of the bunch--if it's covered by the media.

In fairness, flip the situations around. Imagine the outcry if Donald Trump had run guns to Mexico and one of our Border Patrol agents was murdered by one of those guns? What would the media reaction be if Trump gave away hundreds of millions of dollars to "stimulate" a company that ended up bankrupt? What would the outrage be if he had instructed the IRS to target, harass, and block liberal 503c organizations?

Keep going. Work your way through the list and tell me President Trump wouldn't be a pile of fried hash if he had done even one of those things. Yet Barack Obama, with his usual pompous arrogance, is allowed by the complicit media to boast that he "didn't have scandals."

Obama had more scandals than do most presidents. The only missing element in Obama's scandals is the media coverage.

In Honor of Memorial Day

Remembering the sacrifices that ensured our lives of freedom.

Clearly "Animals"

"Clarity is more important than agreement."

~ Dennis Prager


If you've never read his books or listened to Dennis Prager on the radio or in a Prager U video, you're missing one of the most learned and logical thinkers of our time.

Prager is a very agile-minded conservative; this drives left-leaning people absolutely crazy. It's exceedingly difficult for his critics to win an argument with him, because his facts are so thoroughly researched and clearly expressed. That is his golden rule--clarity. Disagreement is all well and good with Prager, so long as both parties understand why their disagreement exists.

His magnanimity regarding differing viewpoints also drives lefties crazy. So crazy, in fact, that YouTube has restricted several dozen Prager U videos. That's a typical tactic of the "tolerant" left. Opposing opinions are not welcome; you must agree with them, or die.

Today, Prager takes apart E.J. Dionne's emotional rant in the Washington Post about President Trump's "animals" comment on the MS-13 gang members. As usual, Prager presents fact upon reason in his "Why the Left Won't Call Anyone 'Animals'" piece. It's clear that there isn't much left of Dionne's case by the end of Prager's rebuttal.

Clarity. It's a rare gift.

Stephen Piscotty hits an emotional home run in his first at-bat after hi...

                        

Moments like this are the reason I love baseball best of all sports.

Triple Thanks

I'm in that remarkably blessed demographic of women who today are able to celebrate yet another Mother's Day as a daughter, as a mother, and as a grandmother. Why this trifecta of good fortune has graced me I do not know; I only know that I'm grateful for this gift-times-three.

Happy Mother's Day to all moms, especially to my amazing mother, to my wonderful daughter, to my cherished daughter-in-law--and to me.

Apples vs. Oranges

As a rule, I don't like presidential comparisons. Each president is so individual, such a product of his own experience, current events, and the political winds of the day, that comparisons seem unfair. But on the topic of unfairness, let's consider for a moment how the media might react if President Donald Trump's accomplishments had been achieved by President Barack Obama.

Below are a few random samples:

1. Ambassador to Germany, Richard Grenell

If President Obama had appointed an openly gay man to such a high ranking government position, there would have been a rapid confirmation vote in the Senate followed by LGBT parades in the streets, all covered 24/7 by an adoring media. President Trump's gay nominee, however, was held up for months in the confirmation process, accused of being "misogynistic" in past tweets and "dismissive" of Russian meddling in our elections. Evidently gay is not so good if Trump makes the selection.

2. CIA Director, Gina Haspel

Again, if Obama had chosen the first woman to run the CIA, there would be a similarly fast confirmation accompanied by praise and adulation bordering on hysteria in the media and #MeToo land. Not only does President Trump get no credit for nominating a highly qualified woman, her confirmation is by no means certain. She is being portrayed as a sadistic proponent of waterboarding during the Iraq war, almost as though she had toted some buckets herself.

3. The Economy

Between deregulation in business, the booming stock market, and the popular tax cuts, President Trump's economy is apparently a great deal more dynamic and positive than President Obama's economy was. If you wait to hear the liberal media admit that fact, you have a lifetime hobby.

4. North Korea

President Trump has used some startling tactics in dealing with the Hermit Kingdom. Calling its leader "Rocket Man" seemed somewhat reckless at the time, but look where we find ourselves today. The leaders of North and South Korea have met, hugged, and crossed each other's borders for the first time in over seven decades; negotiations on removing nuclear weapons from the peninsula are scheduled to begin soon; and today, three US prisoners were released from North Korea and are on their way home.

If President Obama had accomplished even one of those things, the media would be actively promoting a second Nobel Peace Prize for him. But since President Trump is the architect of these successes (regardless of his methods), barely a mention is made in mainstream media without dire warnings and doleful faces. In tones of solemnity and doubtfulness, we are admonished that it's all likely to backfire.

We get it, network news anchors. Obama, apples--good; Trump, oranges--bad. The constant pounding against all things Trump gets more than a bit wearying. I wonder what the liberal media will do if President Trump not only completes his first term, but wins a second one? While I consider that very real possibility, please pass me the fruit bowl. I'd like an orange.

Hate Kills Comedy

There was so much flap and furor over the White House Correspondents' Association dinner that, having missed the whole spectacle, I decided to watch the entire "keynote" speaker on YouTube.

What a sad experience. I'm not going to mention her name or post any links or photos, because she was terrible. I watched, and in almost twenty minutes of her "address," I didn't even smile. Her remarks were crude, unintelligent, and completely unfunny. There was no thoughtfulness or structure to her jokes--if they even qualify as jokes. A joke has some surprise in the punchline. There were no surprises here, just an unrelenting drumbeat of hatred, vulgarity, and contempt.

True comedy has a light spirit to it. It amuses, entertains, startles one into laughter by illuminating a new, unexplored aspect of the subject in a smart, imaginative way. There's plenty of comedic material in the Trump presidency. Why not put a few minutes of thought and work into creating some clever and relevant jokes? Look at what's occurring in our current events--North Korea, Iran, the French president's visit to the White House, the Central American caravan, the tax cut, the stock market--not enough to work with?

Apparently, it's just so much easier (and sloppier, and lazier) to tell an abortion "joke" that has "get that baby out of there" as the "punchline." Wow. Hilarious.

It wasn't a total waste of my twenty minutes, watching this depressing exhibition of how far down into the dirt hatred will drive a person. It proved once again that you can't be mean-spirited and funny at the same time. You can't be hateful and comical. One trait is lightness, and one is darkness. This keynote speaker was definitely from the dark side.

Steyn's take: Left flips out over Kanye's pro-Trump tweets

An Unexpected Outcome?

Michael Barone's article "Collusion, Anyone?" explores the provocative possibility of former President Obama's administration, not President Trump's, emerging the worse for wear from the ongoing FBI investigation of the 2016 election.

The FBI leaks pertaining to the Hillary Clinton campaign and its bitter aftermath are scheduled to be released quite soon. Let the games--and the surprises--begin.

Stealing from the Best

And if Moses having a temper never led him to leave some gal at the bottom of the Red Sea, well, let's face it, he doesn't have Ted's tremendous legislative legacy, does he?
 ~ Mark Steyn, August 28, 2009

"Moses didn't leave a girl at the bottom of the Red Sea."
 ~ from the movie Chappaquiddick, April 2018

If you're going to lift a line from another writer to energize your movie script, you can't find a better source than Mark Steyn.

I've been planning to see the movie Chappaquiddick, but now I look forward to the experience with renewed interest. Critical reviews are largely positive, and at last the protective patina has largely worn off the Kennedy saga. It's about time.

When Chappaquiddick happened, I was a teenager. I remember watching Ted Kennedy give his televised version of what happened, several days after the accident. (By then, everyone in the Kennedy ranks had the party line memorized, and all were on the same page.) Ted Kennedy was wearing a spanking new neck brace and reading a script. As young as I was, I recognized a coward when I saw one and a lie when I heard one. Finally, a movie is presenting an unvarnished account of the horrendous event.

And if the writers felt the need to retrofit a quote from Mark Steyn in order to craft a more effective story, so much the better.

 Senator Edward M. Kennedy leaves the Dukes County Courthouse in Edgartown, Massachusetts on July 25, 1969, after pleading guilty to leaving the scene of a fatal auto accident. Ted Dully / Boston Globe via Getty Images