Tag: donald-trump

2024 ELECTION UPDATE – LATEST TRENDS AND STATUS OF SENATE RACES

Heretofore, my major focus has been on the presidential race and rightly so. As I write this, the various national polls report Harris with a slight one-to-two-point lead. These polls are mostly irrelevant since the winner is determined by electoral votes, but they do provide some incite as to trends and momentum. Furthermore, they reveal why multiple media outlets have been reporting that the Harris campaign is very concerned, if not panicked. More on that below.

For example:

  1. Harris has been leading Trump in the national polls, but lately her lead has been shrinking. For example, the most recent ABC/Ipsos poll disclosed Harris’ lead to be two points, down from six points last month; CBS News/You Gov reported Harris with a three-point lead versus four points last month; and RealClear reported 1.4% versus 2.2% just a few days ago. These may not seem like significant changes, but in such a close race one should be cognizant of the trend they indicate. Remember, in my last blog I described the significance of momentum in an election.
  2. Multiple polls have reported that Harris is losing support among Blacks and Hispanics, particularly males. This is not surprising since as I have written in previous blogs these groups favor Trump’s policies over Harris’, especially with respect to the economy, crime and illegal immigration. The latest NY Times/Siena and NY Post polls reported that Dem support among Blacks has declined from 90% in 2020 to 78%. Similarly, support among Hispanics has declined to 56%. Even though the Dems have been trying to scare Hispanics with Trump’s “get tough” policies regarding illegal immigrants, including deportation, they are not buying it. Polls show that 67% of Hispanics born in the US and 51% born in another country don’t believe those harsh policies will pertain to them. Both of these demographics have long been bellwether Dem supporters, but both groups have come to realize that the Dems are no longer delivering on campaign promises. Their primary complaints are regarding the economy/inflation, crime and illegal immigration.
  3. Prior to these surveys being published there were multiple media reports that Dems’ internal polls were indicating Harris was losing ground in the swing states and among Blacks and Hispanics. Political Journalist Mark Halperin denoted “there are a lot of really worried Democrats, and there are no really worried Republicans.”
  4. Across all demographics Harris is polling better among women and Trump is polling better among men.
  5. Multiple polls have reported that Trump is gaining in most of the swing states. The latest Redfield & Wilton survey of voters in GA and PA showed Trump to be up 1% in GA and 2% in PA. Again, although the margins are tiny and within the margin of error, they indicate a significant improvement compared to 2020 when Trump lost both GA and PA in tight races. These results are another indication of the shift in momentum towards Trump. If these leads hold up on ED and Trump also wins the other states in which he is currently leading, he will win the election.
  6. According to the NY Post more people who voted for Biden in 2020 have gravitated to Trump than to Harris. This is somewhat surprising since Harris, like Biden, is a Dem. Perhaps, it is an indication of the realization that Harris is a weaker candidate than Biden was in 2020. In the crucial states of PA and GA Trump is beating Harris in acquiring formerly Biden voters 12% to 6% and 13% to 11%, respectively. Again, this might not seem like much, but given the extremely tight races in those states, it is significant. Voters in both states identified the economy/inflation as their primary concern.
  7. Multiple media outlets have reported that Biden has been providing only tepid support for Harris. Apparently, he is resentful of the manner in which he was replaced by Harris. He feels he is still the better candidate, and his candidacy was sabotaged. For example, he has declined to attend some of her campaign events, and he was seen wearing a “Trump 2024” cap at a recent campaign event. Jason Meister, a strategist on the Trump campaign was blunter, saying “Biden is intentionally enacting revenge on Kamala for knifing him in the back.”
  8. Harris, whose campaign strategy had been to say as little as possible and only grant interviews with “friendly” journalists has recently agreed to appear on Fox News to be interviewed by Bret Baer. Baer will be fair, but it will not be a “softball” interview. She will likely have to explain her policies, in detail, including why they have changed since she became the nominee. This could be problematic for her, so I can only conclude that she is afraid, maybe even “panicked,” that she is losing. Prospectively, she may be forced to grant additional interviews outside of her comfort zone.
  9. The Senate could be a major issue. In my view, it is essential for the GOP to gain control of it in order to prevent the Dems from blocking legislation or even impeaching Trump like they did after the 2016 election. Presently, the Dems have slight control over the Senate – 51 (including two independents) to 49. Therefore, the GOP has to flip a net of two seats to obtain control (one if Trump were to win). According to multiple media reports West Virginia is virtually a “lock” due to Joe Manchin’s retirement. Montana is a good possibility as well. However, the Dems have a chance to flip Texas, where Ted Cruz is clinging to a narrow lead, and Nebraska. There are several other close races as well, so we’ll see what happens.

CONCLUSION

The presidential race remains tight. There are many states, including the swing states, where the polls report the margins to be very tight, well within the margin for error. The GOP has the momentum, but a lot can happen in the next few weeks to change the outcome. The GOP cannot be overconfident. Get out and vote!

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2024 PRESIDENTIAL UPDATE. MO FAVORS TRUMP.

Historically, momentum has proven to be a powerful force in elections. Often it is unrecognized or undervalued in the polls – until Election Day when the underdog who has been behind in the polls pulls an unforeseen upset. That is one of the axioms behind the famous expression that “the only poll that counts is the one on Election Day.” In recent history two examples of this phenomenon were Harry Truman defeating Dewey in 1948 and Donald Trump defeating Clinton in 2016. On the rare occasions when this occurs the winners are jubilant; the losers are shocked; and the “experts” are confounded. Who can forget the post-election visage of a grinning Truman holding aloft an early edition of the next day’s Chicago Daily Tribune boldly proclaiming, “Dewey Defeats Truman.”

Presently, all the polls indicate that the election remains very close as it has been for several months. In the national poll, which is essentially meaningless, the latest Guardian poll reports Harris ahead by two points 48% – 46%. It’s worth noting that the Guardian’s previous poll had Harris up by 4%, so Trump would appear to have some momentum.

More importantly, let’s consider the seven swing states that will actually decide the election – AZ, GA, MI, NV, NC, PA, and WI. The latest Emerson and Real Clear Politics polls are consistently reporting that Trump has a slight one or two-point lead in AZ, GA, NV, NC, and PA, and the two are tied in MI and WI. This represents an improvement for Trump compared to the 2020 election and earlier 2024 polls, another hint that Trump is gaining momentum.

Pollster Matt Towery, Insider Advantage, noted that Trump is gaining with African Americans and Hispanics due to the economy and immigration issues. Hispanic citizens, in particular whose forebears emigrated legally, resent the illegal immigrants’ “jumping the line.” This is the opposite of what the Dems no doubt intended with their open-door policy. Ironically, the Dems are being “hoisted on their own petard.” Towery added that the Administration’s inadequate response to hurricanes Helene and Milton was another negative.

Pollster Robert Cahaly (Trafalgar Group) denoted that the polls may be undervaluing Trump. He speculated that there may be a “hidden vote” for him. Other polls may differ very slightly but taken as a whole the polls are indicating that Trump appears to have the momentum.

There is palpable pessimism among the Harris supporters. One senior Dem source apprised the NY Post that the Dems were “not in a Blue Wall panic… but they were concerned.” MI Dem Rep Elise Slotkin acknowledged “we have her underwater in our polling.”

Below please find what I consider to be the key recent developments based on multiple media reports:

  1. Trump is on the right side of the issues that voters have opined concerns them the most in this election – the economy, inflation, the border/illegal immigration, crime and security. The numbers with respect to these issues speak for themselves and cannot be explained away by the Dems with vague generalities, platitudes, and anti-Trump utterances.
  2. The electorate is gradually becoming cognizant that Harris’ reluctance to disclose her specific views on the issues is because she is hiding them in order to get elected. Her real views as expressed over her entire political career prior to becoming the nominee are so far to the left as to be downright scary. Even though she has given a few tv interviews recently with friendly journalists she has not acquitted herself well. She is still prone to giving rambling, non-responsive answers. In her recent interview with 60 Minutes a few of her answers were so embarrassing that the network had to edit them before showing them on tv.
  3. Based on polls in the swing states Trump is gaining among men, particularly Black and Hispanic men. Traditionally, Dem candidates have held decisive edges with these groups, but there are signs of much concern this year. For instance, recently the Harris campaign has launched ads aimed specifically aimed at Black and Hispanic men. Various observers, such as TX Rep Wesley Hunt, are predicting that Trump will have “the highest male Black vote of any Republican president[ial candidate] in modern history.” According to a recent NAACP survey 25% of Black men under 50 disclosed they would vote for Trump. This may not seem like much, but it represents a sizeable increase over previous election cycles.
  4. As a further indication of the extent of the Dems’ concerns regarding the above trends former President Obama in a recent speech actually lectured Blacks that it is “not acceptable for Black men to support Trump.” In addition, he asserted (incorrectly) that Black men are opposed to Harris based on her gender. I don’t believe that this insulting, demeaning and highhanded attitude will help the Dems with male Blacks.
  5. Moreover, local radio host Dan O’Donnell reported to the NY Post that the Harris campaign has taken the unusual tact of targeting Blacks in Philadelphia by advertising on hip-hop radio stations in the area.
  6. The NY Post reported that Black men such as Rafael Smith, a former Harris supporter from MI, has switched to Trump because he feels the Dems have taken his and other Blacks’ support for granted “just because [Harris] is a woman of color.” He said “I don’t really think they’re looking at what she has done within the last 3 1/2 years…”
  7. Another implication of concern among Dems is the appearance of former president Bill Clinton. The so-called “Big Dog” has commenced campaigning in NC and GA.
  8. Harris has committed to participate in a town hall interview on October 23 that will be hosted by CNN. As we all know, a town hall format is not exactly in her wheelhouse. In my view, this is a further illustration of her concern that her campaign is flailing.
  9. Trump has expressed his views and intentions on the issues very clearly. For example, he will not “pussyfoot” around with illegals, particularly those who have committed crimes against Americans. He states that his Administration “will either ‘put these vicious and bloodthirsty criminals in jail or get them the hell out of our country.’ ” He has even floated the idea of invoking the seldom-used Alien Enemies Act of 1798, which authorizes the president to “apprehend, restrain, secure and remove [those who] are deemed a threat to the US during wartime.” This language may be extreme or even illegal, but it resonates with those who are sick and tired of illegal aliens strutting into the US unrestrained and then preying upon US citizens.
  10. Trump has made other promises that show he is cognizant of voters’ major concerns. For example, he will “drill, baby drill;” he will deal more aggressively with Iran; and he will support Israel more strongly in its war against Iran and its terrorist proxies. He will not tax overtime pay or tips; he will eliminate the double taxation being levied against Americans living and working abroad; he will make interest on car loans tax deductible; and he will extend the Trump tax cuts that are scheduled to expire in 2025. These will primarily benefit middle class and working-class voters, which counters the Dem’s claim that his policies favor the wealthy.
  11. Despite multiple credible plots reported against him and two actual assassination attempts the government has still not acceded to all of the Trump campaign’s requests for enhanced security. Some Trump supporters have seriously questioned why, insinuating it may be part of a sinister assassination plot to leave Trump exposed.

CONCLUSION

As I said above, it appears that Trump has grabbed the momentum. He knows it; the Harris campaign knows it; you know it; and I know it. Just look at the substantial and enthusiastic crowds he draws wherever he goes. Just look at the signs of concern or even panic in the Harris campaign as delineated above.

Whether it’s due to a bias in the polling or the reluctance of some supporters to admit they will be voting for Trump, remember his appeal was undervalued in the polls in both 2016 and to a lesser extent in 2020. One caveat is that the election is far from over. A lot can happen between now and ED to swing the election, but at the present time it’s looking good.

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THE RECENT ESCALATION OF ANTISEMITISM

In the past couple of years I have posted several blogs detailing the state of antisemitism both in the US and the world at large. I believe that the one-year anniversary of the brutal and heinous surprise attack by Hamas against Israeli civilians on October 7, 2023 is an appropriate time to review and update the issue. We are all familiar with the repulsive details of those heinous terrorist attacks and the resultant war. There is no need to repeat it all here. One might say the attack was Israel’s 9/11.

Rather than generating sympathy for the victims the attack seems to have unleashed a level of antisemitism not seen since the 1930s and 1940s. Below please find my analysis of the root causes of this, citations of some of the numerous examples, and a warning to American Jews.

  1. Without repeating what I have posted in some detail in previous blogs suffice to say that the root causes of antisemitism go back some 5,000 years. Jews have always been perceived as being “different,” different religion, different God, different day of worship, different appearance, and different customs. People tend to mistrust and even hate those who are different.
  2. Throughout history Jews have been persecuted (e. g. the Spanish Inquisition, the pogroms of Russia and Poland, and of course the Holocaust.
  3. Until the advent of the State of Israel in 1948 Jews did not have a land of their own, a land where they would be safe and secure. Wherever they lived they were subject to the whims of that country’s rulers.
  4. Many, if not most, rulers were not welcoming. Some were even downright hostile. Others would tolerate Jews for a time. One reason was that in times of strife, for example, a plague or a famine or other misfortune Jews would provide a handy scapegoat. By blaming the Jews rulers would be able to distract the masses from their own culpability and their own miserable existence. For instance, Jews co-existed in harmony and prosperity in Germany for some 500 years before the rise of the Nazis who found them to be a convenient scapegoat for Germany’s post-WWI misery.
  5. More recently, Jews have lived in the US in peace and prosperity since its founding. They have grown secure and complacent, and they are not aware that it can all be taken away. Many of them are oblivious to the depth of antisemitism extant in the US and the world in general. History has demonstrated that it can all be taken away either violently or gradually so that one would not notice until it was too late.
  6. With respect to the war in the ME both the Jews and the Muslims consider Jerusalem and the surrounding area to be their “Holy Land,” and they have fought numerous wars for the control of it over thousands of years.
  7. The Muslim terrorists dispute the validity of the State of Israel and want to obliterate both it and the Jews who inhabit it. They have made no secret about it. Hamas has included that goal in its charter. Furthermore, that is the meaning of the chant “from the river to the sea, the Holy Land will be free.”
  8. On the other hand, the Jews are determined to destroy Hamas, Hezbollah and the other terrorist groups as a fighting force decisively once and for all.
  9. The Israelis don’t want a ceasefire at this time. They are winning, and they want to finish the job. They know that if they don’t, they will just have to fight another war in the future, and another, and another, and another. Eventually, they may lose one, and then it would Sayonara.
  10. Neither side is in favor of the much-ballyhooed two-state solution. Hamas would not honor any ceasefire anyway. They would just use it as a chance to regroup and rearm for the next war.
  11. The smart strategy for BH would be to support Israel 100%, get out of its way, and let it finish the job, but as one can see it is not doing that. I believe it is either out of ignorance, a desire to placate the antisemitic left wing of the Dem Party, or a combination of the two. In addition, they lifted the Trump sanctions against Iran, which very effective. Iran was practically broke. Instead BH’s policy has provided it with untold billions of dollars of oil money that it is using to fund the terrorists. That is an ill-advised policy, geopolitically, economically and militarily. Israel is our only dependable ally in the volatile and strategically critical ME. BH’s policy has actually lengthened the war and endangered the lives of the hostages.
  12. BH have urged Israel to show “restraint” in its response. They have provided Israel with only tepid support to avoid offending the radical left wing of the Dem party.
  13. Incredibly, the bulk of world opinion is against Israel. It was the one that was brutally attacked, yet most of the world’s sympathy has been directed toward the Palestinians. Obviously, that is because of antisemitism. In the history of the world Israel is the only country that was attacked that was then urged to show restraint or even standdown.

That brings us to the main subject of the blog, the alarming expansion of antisemitism in the US and the world. There are a plethora of examples of this, but I will only cite a few to illustrate my point.

  1. Recently, the NY Post reported that 61% of American Jews claim they have “faced bigotry” since last October 7.
  2. According to a recently released survey by the National Opinion Research Council at the University of Chicago 3.5 million Jews have reported that they were victimized by antisemitism in some manner during the past year. This includes violent crimes such as rape and assault and threats such as targeting synagogues, homes and/or businesses with swastikas, graffiti and the like.
  3. Approximately 25% of the respondents expressed fear or reluctance over identifying themselves as Jews, for example by wearing particular clothing or jewelry.
  4. Roughly 40% of college students responded that they felt “uncomfortable” or unsafe at a “campus event.”
  5. Nearly 30% felt that they had been “excluded from a group or event.”
  6. The Anti-Defamation League disclosed that there have been in excess of 150 occasions of “physical assault,” approximately 1,840 instances of “vandalism” and about 8,000 incidents of “written or verbal abuse” against Jews in the past year. Approximately 1,200 of these incidents occurred on college campuses. To put these numbers in some context they represent a 200% increase over the prior year. 200%!
  7. If you know your history you will recognize this as being reminiscent of what occurred in Germany in the 1930s and early 1940s.
  8. What I have described has not been limited to the US. The UN has long exhibited feelings of antisemitism. The membership includes many Islamic countries that have long been sympathetic to the Palestinian or even terrorist viewpoints. Moreover, recently French President Emmanuel Macron has been advocating cutting off arms shipments to Israel. It is important to understand that there are only 15.8 million Jews in the world whereas the Muslim population is 1.8 billion, and a goodly number of them live in the US and various European countries where they wield some political influence. Even though relatively few of them are radicalized, I believe most of the moderates are still sympathetic to the Palestinian cause.

CONCLUSION

The heinous nature of the October 7 attacks should have generated some sympathy for Israel and Jews in general. In fact, as demonstrated above, the opposite has occurred. It has unleashed latent, covert antisemitism, which I believe has always been lurking just below the surface, like an inactive volcano, waiting to explode. The outpouring of blatant, overt antisemitism in the last year is no coincidence.

BH have done nothing to quell the antisemitism either on college campuses or in general. Nor has Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, who is Jewish. They have not pushed back against politicians like Ilhan Omar who have continually expressed antisemitic views. They have not provided support to the US Jewish community. They speak in vague generalities and platitudes, but as I keep saying, actions speak louder than words.

Schumer’s case has been particularly disturbing to me. He is one of the most powerful and influential politicians in the country. He represents NY State, which is heavily Jewish. He, of all people, should be advocating for Israel and the Jews. Instead, he has done the opposite by criticizing Israeli President Benjamin Netanyahu’s prosecution of the war, even calling for him to resign. As I wrote in a previous blog in my opinion, his actions have been despicable.

In my view, the main takeaway from the current climate is that we Jews are not as safe and secure as we think we are in the US or anywhere else. This is no time to be complacent. We have an election next month. Historically, a majority of Jews has voted for Dems, and for the most part they have delivered. However, the BH administration has not supported Jews. They have not been loyal to us. Why should we continue to be loyal to them. When Trump was president, he was a staunch supporter of Israel. In addition, he has exhibited the conviction and strength of character to support Israel regardless of world opinion and to stand up to the antisemites extant in the US. In my view, it is time to switch and vote for the GOP.

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MIGRANTS OR CITIZENS?

It may not always seem that way, but the federal government has a finite amount of money. It cannot fund everything. So, which group should get preference for assistance, migrants or citizens? Most of you probably think that is a “trick” question. It seems like a no-brainer. Of course, US citizens should get preference when it comes to government largesse.

Unfortunately, under the Biden-Harris Administration (“BH”) that has not always been the case. We have all heard the news reports of illegal immigrants receiving a cornucopia of free stuff, such as food stamps, free lodging in luxury hotels, free flights directly into the US often in the middle of the night, free education, and free medical care, among others. The list of freebies is much more extensive than that, but you get the point. What are the sources of funding for this largesse? Federal? States? Local? I’m not sure, but it is probably from a combination of the three. Meanwhile, some states and local governments are heading for bankruptcy, and the federal government is running deficits that are unsustainable.

In many locales the sheer volume of illegals has overwhelmed social services to the detriment of opportunities for American children, particularly with respect to education, social services, health services, and recreational opportunities. Moreover, the government doesn’t seem to have enough funds or doesn’t care to provide basic services to many military veterans. All too often, the Dems have demonstrated a preference to take care of the needs of illegal migrants over those of American citizens.

In the last few days, in the wake of Hurricane Helene a more unbelievable situation has been exposed. As we all know, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (“FEMA”) is responsible for assisting victims of disasters such as hurricanes. tornadoes, floods, and the like. Typically, these victims are in the most dire of circumstances. They have lost their homes and their personal property. They may need emergency rescue from rubble or flood waters. They may be unable to locate loved ones. They are without basic services such as food, water, shelter, medicine and internet services. As I write this it is being reported that some 700,000 homes and businesses are still without power, approximately one week after Helene passed through. This is unbelievable and unacceptable.

People are overwrought. In short, they are suffering through the worst times of their lives. They need emergency help, and they need it NOW, not tomorrow, not next week, not next month, NOW. In times such as this they rely on FEMA to provide those services. Hours matter. Days matter. Often, this is life or death.

That brings us to the current situation, the aftermath of Hurricane Helene. The following is based on multiple media reports. Helene was one of the most devastating storms in recent years. So far, it ranks as #4 in the US since 1950. It has wreaked havoc and devastation throughout the southeast, affecting six states – FL, GA, NC, SC, TN and VA.

According to published reports at least 200 are known dead, and that number is expected to rise substantially as more bodies are discovered in the rubble and in currently inaccessible areas. Many more are injured or missing. The total damage to property is incalculable at this time. Some houses are buried waist deep in mud. Many cannot or will not be rebuilt. Over 150,000 households have already requested assistance, and according to FEMA spokesman Frank Matranga many more will be doing so. NC Governor Roy Cooper reported that entire towns have been “wiped off the map.” As if that isn’t bad enough many claimants have no or inadequate hurricane damage insurance.

I see two overriding problems. Firstly, FEMA has been slow to provide relief services to many of the areas of devastation, particularly remote areas of North Carolina in and around the Blue Ridge Mountains. As I said, the devastation wrought by Helene was widespread, covering several states including many areas that are relatively inaccessible. That said, FEMA has not done its job. The relief effort appears to be disorganized. People are dying for lack of assistance. FEMA should be doing more.

In the meantime, there have been reports that rather than accepting assistance wherever and whenever it is offered FEMA has actually been slow-walking or even blocking some relief efforts initiated by private citizens. For example, it’s been reported that FEMA has been slow-walking or even blocking Elon Musk’s efforts to restore internet communications in affected areas through his Starlink satellite system. This would be unconscionable.

The other overriding problem is that according to multiple media reports FEMA is running out of funds. It may not have sufficient funds to respond to Hurricane Helene, which is ominous in and of itself. But, even worse, Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, who supervises the agency, has told reporters that FEMA will not have enough for the rest of the hurricane season, which runs from June 1 – November 30. He stated, “we are expecting another hurricane hitting. …We do not have the funds to make it through the season and what is imminent.”

Biden, Harris and Trump have all toured the area to assess the damage firsthand. Fine, but that is little comfort to those affected. According to Biden it will cost “billions of dollars to deal with this storm and all the communities affected.” Where will the funding come from? It will come from Congress, of course, in the form of a supplemental bill, but the lawmakers will have to act quickly and decisively, two traits they are not known for. Furthermore, Congress will not be back in session until after ED. The leadership will have to figure out a way to get it passed before then. And that is just for Helene. I agree with Mayorkas that we should expect and anticipate other hurricanes before the end of the season.

But that begs the bigger question. Where is the money that is supposed to have been available right now. Congress provides FEMA’s funding every year. The agency gets an operating budget and a disaster relief fund. The funding is to be used to pay for relief from natural disasters such as floods, hurricanes, earthquakes and the like. In addition, the money is to be allocated to pay for rebuilding from past disasters and to protect communities proactively from prospective disasters. When and if its funds run low it can and does request Congress for “immediate needs funding.” Congress recently approved an additional $20 million for this, but apparently it is mostly gone.

One might ask, how could this happen? What is the remedy? Where has the funding gone? Why didn’t FEMA anticipate this shortfall and request sufficient funding before? Why delay until it’s a crisis? Good questions.

Like most everything else, the answer appears to be political. According to the NY Post, Fox News, various GOP politicians, including Donald Trump, and outside observers such as Elon Musk a major reason for the shortfall is that BH have authorized diverting some $641 million in the current year from FEMA’s emergency fund to pay for various services for migrants. During the last two years the figure is reported to amount to around $1.4 billion. According to the NY Post the DHS has admitted that it “allocated” funds from FEMA’s Shelter and Services Program for funding migrants’ needs.

If this is correct it is downright scandalous and perhaps illegal. In any event, it is another clear case of the Dem government giving preference to illegal migrants over US citizens. Rep Matt Gaetz has reported that his office has received multiple reports from “whistle blowers” confirming this misuse of funds.

Meanwhile according to multiple media reports FEMA has offered affected families $750 for groceries. That paltry amount won’t begin to cover a family’s needs.

Texas Governor Greg Abbott urged Mayorkas and FEMA to “immediately stop spending money on illegal immigration resettlement and redirect those funds to areas hit by [Helene]. Put Americans first.” He is not alone. Congressman Jim Jordan was more blunt. “The Biden-Harris administration took more than a billion tax dollars that had been allocated to FEMA for disaster relief and used it to house illegal aliens. … They’ve abandoned American hurricane victims in NC, GA, FL, SC, and TN [and VA].” Their remarks were echoed by many others.

The Dems and their allies in the media deny these allegations, but I believe them. It is plausible to me. All that migrant money had to come from somewhere, and the feds have been known to play games with interagency funding before.

CONCLUSION

This is another example of the incompetence and deception of the BH Administration. They secretly reallocated funds to pay for migrant services. In doing so, they have severely depleted FEMA’s funds. They acted surreptitiously hoping that no one would find out, because they knew it would be very unpopular, very damaging politically, and possibly illegal. Now, it appears that there may not be sufficient funds to care for Americans who have been devastated by Hurricane Helene, and there is a risk that there will not be sufficient funds for prospective natural disasters this year. They figuratively got caught with their hand in the cookie jar.

The Dems and their allies in the media are denying this, but they have lied about many other things in the past few years, so I don’t think they should get the benefit of the doubt in this case. I would like Congress to commence an investigation into this matter to ascertain the perpetrators of this gross misuse of funds.

Moreover, we should keep in mind that the election is only one month away. In my last blog I opined that the manner in which KK handles this and the other three serious problems I discussed – the dockworkers’ strike and the wars in Ukraine and the ME – would have a profound effect on the election. She could be a hero or a zero. She dodged a bullet with the dockworkers’ strike with a temporary settlement. Good for her. But so far it appears that her handling of this issue will damage her prospects. Two of the devastated states, Georgia and NC, are swing states, and people will likely remember her incompetence on ED.

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VANCE-WALZ DEBATE

Last Tuesday, October 1, the first, and probably only, debate between VP nominees J. D. Vance and Tim Walz was telecast on CBS. The network reported that an estimated 43 million persons watched it. This sounds like a lot, but it was a sizeable decrease from the estimated 58 million who watched the 2020 VP nominee debate between Mike Pence and Kamala Harris.

For the most part, as one might expect, the post-debate analysis of who won followed along party lines. As I said after the Trump-Harris debate the key is not who “won,” but the post-debate effect on the polls. Often, they are not synchronized. So far, the post-debate polls have moved slightly in favor of Trump, but the race remains extremely close, and an unforeseen external event could be decisive. More on this below.

My analysis and opinion of the debate is as follows:

  1. Both candidates were unusually cordial to one another. There was some animosity but not nearly to the level of other debates. It was almost as if the two of them were going out for a beer after the debate.
  2. In general, Vance seemed more polished, more professional, more presidential and in better command of the facts and issues. On the other hand, Walz came across as uncomfortable, nervous and jittery. A few times he exhibited a “deer in the headlights” look.
  3. Once again, the moderators were biased in favor of the Dem. For example, even though all parties had agreed that the moderators would remain neutral and refrain from fact-checking they did so to Vance on a few occasions. Finally, he had to remind them that it had been agreed beforehand they wouldn’t do so.
  4. I objected to the selection of questions. For example, there was no question regarding the violent protests in 2020 that wreaked destruction on many cities, including Minneapolis. As you may recall, Walz had resisted requesting assistance from the MN National Guard for several days. Moreover, he and his wife kept the windows in their home open the better to see, hear and smell the protests and fires in Minneapolis. How weird was that? There was no mention of Walz’ “stolen valor.” He retired from his Guard unit (essentially quit) when he heard it was going to deploy overseas, which has drawn much rancor from other members of his unit. Finally, there was no question on fracking, which is one of, if not the, key issues in the key swing state of PA. These were all issues on which Harris-Walz was vulnerable. I would have loved to hear Walz’s explanation regarding them.
  5. Walz had two particularly bad moments. He uttered two sound bites that people will remember, even those who did not watch the debate. They will likely be repeated over and over again on social media and in political advertisements. (1) He confused a trip to China with one to Hong Kong. That was when he uttered his soon to be famous “knucklehead” comment. The second one was when he stated he had become “friendly” with “school shooters.”
  6. Walz’s best moment occurred with respect to the 2020 election. Vance was reluctant to acknowledge that Trump had lost, but he did denote that Trump had asked demonstrators going to the capitol to protest “peacefully and patriotically” and that Trump had repeatedly requested additional security, which was denied.
  7. The Dems continue to bring up two issues about which they lie – the 2025 Project and abortion. Trump has repeatedly denied any knowledge of or involvement with Project 2025, and he has reiterated time and again that pursuant to SCOTUS’ recent ruling the issue of abortion has been relegated to each state where the voters will decide that state’s policy. Give it up, already!
  8. Walz was weak regarding the ME conflict. He refused to state that Harris’ support for Israel was “iron clad.” Vance pointed out that there had been no conflicts during Trump’s presidency.
  9. The analyses of most commentators fell along party lines, although the NY Times opined that “Vance dominated the debate,” and some members of CNN’s post-debate round table said they were “disappointed” with Walz’s performance. Full disclosure: CNN disclosed that according to its post-debate instant poll there was no “clear-cut” winner.
  10. On the GOP side, Newt Gingrich was particularly effusive in rating Vance’s performance. He commented that he (Vance) showed “exactly how to do it (the debate).” He added that Vance “handled the [biased] moderators [well] and vindicated Trump’s judgment in picking him [as his running mate.”
  11. The implication was that Harris exhibited poor judgement in selecting Walz. That renewed speculation that PA Governor Josh Shapiro would have been the better choice, but he was passed over to appease the antisemitic leftwing of the party.
  12. Initial post-debate polls have shown a slight movement in favor of Trump, but the race remains extremely close with any advantages in the swing states still within the margin for error. Matt Towery, pollster and Fox News political analyst, declared that Vance had the better performance, and that Trump should receive a “bump” (in the polls).
  13. Robert Cahaly, chief pollster for the Trafalgar Group, was particularly impressed with the manner in which Vance handled the issue of climate change. Vance had pointed out that if Harris and her allies truly cared about the effect of fossil fuels on the environment, they would seek to use American-produced energy as it is much cleaner and more environment-friendly than energy produced elsewhere.

CONCLUSION

I wouldn’t place too much emphasis on the VP debate. All the polls say the election remains a virtual dead heat. There is still a month to go before ED, although early voting has already commenced in some states.

History tells us that a lot can happen between now and ED to influence the election. For example, there are four current events – the destruction wrought by Hurricane Helene, the war in the ME, the war in Ukraine, and the dockworkers’ strike – any one of which could have a decisive effect. Harris has the chance to boost her candidacy or doom it depending on how she handles them.

Also, there could be some unforeseen event such as a 9/11-style terror attack, another deadly natural disaster or some other unforeseen event. For example, some of you may recall Superstorm Sandy, which occurred on October 29, 2012 and had a significant impact on the 2012 election.

This is a most critical election, and all indications are that it will be historically close and go down to the wire. Stay tuned.

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KOMRADE KAMALA’S RADICAL TAX PLAN

Komrade Kamala (“KK”) has proposed a radical new tax plan. Like many socialist proposals at first, it appears to be attractive but upon detailed analysis the luster fades rapidly, and the warts become evident. As always, “the devil is in the details” and one must beware of unintended consequences. Read on, and I will explain.

Essentially, KK’s plan is a wealth tax, and its intent is a redistribution of wealth. This is consistent with classic socialist/communist doctrine, which should not be surprising given Harris’ real “core values” that she espoused during her entire political career until she became the Dem nominee for president. Many of its provisions are consistent with the proposed Ultra-Millionaire Tax Bill of 2021, which was sponsored by Elizabeth Warren, Bernie Sanders, and other far-lefties. That particular bill was not passed for various reasons, but the general idea of it is still popular with the far left.

As I have explained repeatedly, at her core KK is a socialist/communist. Her basic instincts are to replace capitalism and free enterprise with government administration and control in virtually all aspects of one’s life. She has advocated replacing our capitalist economic system, which is based on free enterprise, competition and private sector decision-making, with public sector (government) decision-making. For example, she has been advocating government-administered price controls in the economy to eliminate what she perceives as “price gouging” even though there has been no evidence of it. Similarly, under the guise of providing everyone, including illegal aliens, access to free healthcare she has been advocating an aggressive revamping our healthcare system to a single-payer system that would be administered and controlled by the federal government. Her proposed tax plan would be consistent with those precepts. As we have seen time and time again, anything administered by the government becomes plagued with inefficiency and waste.

Like most tax plans hers is complicated. Moreover, it is too vague and not well reasoned. Even proponents of the general idea should realize that there are a multitude of rough edges that need to be clarified. Like I said above, the devil is in the details and beware of unintended consequences. Below please find my opinions and comments regarding KK’s tax plan.

With respect to the “wealth tax” provision:

  1. According to the Tax Foundation such a tax has never been implemented in the US. A handful of other countries have tried it, but most were forced to abandon it due to unforeseen problems.
  2. The proposal would penalize savers, discourage economic growth, discourage entrepreneurship and investment in start-ups, decrease employment, and increase the trade deficit, among other ramifications.
  3. For starters, according to Wikipedia the paramount issue is that some legal scholars question the constitutionality of such a tax. Article I, Section 9 of the US Constitution precludes any “capitation or other direct tax.” Because of this clause in 1895 SCOTUS declared that a federal income tax was unconstitutional. Subsequently, Congress passed the 16th Amendment, which made a federal income tax constitutional, however, the amendment did not cover a “wealth tax.” This matter would have to be resolved or else the proposal would be “dead on arrival.”
  4. Its primary purpose is to eliminate, or at least substantially reduce, the wealth gap by mandating that the uber-wealthy pay their “fair share.” What does that phrase even mean? What would constitute a “fair share?” It is so vague as to be meaningless. Is it a higher percentage? If so, how high? Also, how does one define “wealthy” or “uber-wealthy? I suppose all that depends on one’s economic status and one’s political point of view. But you can see how the murkiness complicates the issue.
  5. It is fashionable, in some quarters to want to punish the rich for being rich. These people want to take away some of their wealth and spread it around. This ignores the fact that income and wealth disparity is a natural consequence of our free market, capitalist system. Some people will always be more ambitious, more industrious, smarter, more willing to take chances to succeed, or just be luckier than others. Our system rewards that. The attitude of the masses should not be to confiscate wealth from the rich, but to aspire to become rich, themselves.
  6. In my view, “equality” means “equal opportunity.” It does not advocate some sort of balancing act where the rich keep giving and the needy keep taking until everyone has an equal amount of wealth. That is fatuous on its face. History tells us it cannot be legislated. Even in Russia there is a small group of rich and superrich persons, and the vast majority are poor.
  7. In the opinion of former Treasury Secretary, Janet Yellen, the cost of implementation, administration and enforcement of a wealth tax would be extremely expensive, cumbersome and problematic.
  8. How would assets be valued, particularly illiquid ones such as land, a farm, a ranch or a business? In my opinion, this would be the most inequitable and troublesome aspect of KK’s proposal. Taxpayers would be required to pay tax based on an unrealized gain with respect to assets that they had not sold. Therefore, they might be forced to sell their business, farm, ranch, or house to raise the money to pay the tax. This particular provision was most troublesome to the Tax Foundation as well.
  9. Furthermore, who would ascribe a value, the owner, the IRS, a government bureaucrat with limited knowledge of the worth of the asset, or someone else? This would be a particularly troublesome issue.
  10. I presume the IRS would enforce the tax. That would also be problematic. Public confidence in the fairness and competence of the IRS is at an all-time low, and no one would want more government intrusion in their lives.
  11. Inevitably, the wealthy would find and exploit loopholes. They always do. Consequently, there would be contested valuations and lawsuits with all the ancillary problems.
  12. Some wealthy would be tempted to transfer assets out of the country or perhaps relocate. Such people have the wherewithal to do so. The question is would they have the motivation? This became a problem in other countries that had enacted a wealth tax, which ultimately forced them to abandon it. For example, in 2018 France’s President Emmanuel Macron noted that it had resulted in brain drain, loss of jobs, and flight of capital. This could be negated by including an “exit tax” in the proposal, although I’m not sure how it would work or if it would even be legal.
  13. Very likely, it would discourage foreign investment in businesses, real estate and the like.

In addition to the aforementioned wealth tax KK’s tax proposal would raise tax rates on corporations. Presently, thanks to the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 (“TCJA”) enacted during the Trump presidency the US has a very competitive corporate tax rate of 21%. This encourages both domestic corporations to remain in the US and foreign corporations to invest here. That translates to economic growth and lower unemployment.

In addition, the TCJA reduced individual tax rates. Unfortunately, the TCJA is set to expire in 2025, and KK will be unlikely to extend it. Therefore, the corporate tax rate will revert to its pre-TCJA level of 35%. Consequently, corporations will be incentivized to invest elsewhere rather than in the US. Also, corporations typically pass on such tax increases to you, the consumer, in the form of higher prices, which feeds inflation. More bad news, individual tax rates will also revert to pre-UCJA levels, which means a top rate of 39.6%.

CONCLUSION

Frankly speaking, the KK tax plan would be an unmitigated disaster for most individuals and the US economy as a whole. Don’t be seduced by her “mantra of tax the rich” and make them “pay their fair share.” As I said, this is a typical lefty idea. It sounds good on the surface, but it would lead to unforeseen problems in practice. If one takes the time to analyze it in detail the warts become apparent. It’s just a ploy to divert your attention away from the disastrous Biden-Harris economic policies of the last 3 1/2 years.


KK thinks that her plan will raise more revenue to pay off the deficit. In my opinion, it will have the opposite effect. Directly as a result of the Biden-Harris Administration’s wild, irresponsible deficit spending, notably the stimulus packages that were enacted against the advice of even progressive economists, the budget deficit is already projected to exceed $2 trillion this year. Moreover, absent policy changes it is projected to double to $4 trillion within ten years. Folks, this level of spending is unsustainable.

She and her advisors who developed this proposal have demonstrated repeatedly that they know next to nothing about economics and business. It’s astounding but true. History tells us unequivocally that tax increases stifle economic growth, and tax reductions spur economic growth. Growth actually results in increased revenues. Many of you will remember the Reagan Tax Cuts, which illustrate my point. Don’t be gaslighted.

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MY NIGHTMARE

I am living in a nightmare, a horrible, never-ending nightmare from which I fear there will be no waking up. So are all of you, except the difference is I am cognizant of it, whereas many of you are not.

What nightmare, you say? Simply put, we are on the cusp of electing a true Marxist/Communist as president of the US. I never thought I would see the day, but in five weeks I may. We are about to do to ourselves what Russia, China, Germany, Japan, and all of our other enemies through the years have not been able to do. We have repelled all those who would take away our freedoms, who would destroy our way of life.

What no one has been able to do to us, we are about to do to ourselves. Who, you may ask? Why, you may ask? If you don’t know, that is the root cause of the problem. The “who” is easy. It’s Kamala Harris, AKA “Komrade Kamala.” The why is more complicated.

The best answer I can ascertain is that half the country has a deranged, irrational, unwarranted, misguided hatred for KK’s opponent, Donald Trump. Many of them don’t know why they hate him so much; they just know that they do. It’s not necessarily his policies; it’s him, personally. They continue to parrot what they hear from his opponents and the biased media. “He’s evil; he’s a Nazi; he’s Hitler; he’s a threat to democracy; he’s a tool of the Russians; he’s Putin’s pal; if he were to become president, he will be a dictator; he will never leave office.” As I have discussed in previous blogs, these characterizations are preposterous. They have no basis in fact. None. He already was president. You may not have agreed with some or all of his policies. That is your right. But he was not a dictator.

When he lost his bid for re-election he left office voluntarily. Sure, he questioned the veracity of the result, but it was his right to do so, particularly since it was a very close election. This was not unique. I have discussed this issue in a previous blog, and there is no need to repeat it all now. Suffice to say, students of history will recall that many other losers have challenged election results all the way back to Andrew Jackson challenging his defeat by John Quincy Adams in 1824. Hillary Clinton is still claiming she won in 2016. The media doesn’t criticize her for that.

Labelling him as “evil,” “Hitler,” or a “Nazi” is not only false; it is dangerous, provocative, irresponsible, and disrespectful of the memory of the millions whom the Nazis murdered in the Holocaust. One may disagree with some or all of Trump’s policies, but those who label them as those of a Nazi are merely showing their ignorance of what the Nazis really did. Hitler was in a class by himself with respect to “evil.” I trust I don’t need to edify you as to what he did. Finally, one should be careful when one labels an opposing politician as “evil.” Serial killers are evil. Mass murders are evil. Terrorists who murder innocent people are evil. A politician who espouses a different opinion than you is not evil. To label him or her as such gives a deranged, unbalanced person the idea that he has license to murder that person. As a matter of fact, many people believe that was the root cause of the two attempted assassinations of Donald Trump.

On the other hand, most of KK’s supporters, due to ignorance or inattentiveness, are unaware of KK’s true values and policies. Indeed, I have talked to many of them and invariably they don’t have the foggiest notion of most of KK’s policies. No one does, probably not even KK herself. Their reasons are a version of, “well, she seems nice;” or “she would be the first woman of color to be president;” or “she’s better than Joe Biden;” or “she’s not Trump.”

Those are ridiculous reasons. Anyone who votes for her on that basis without understanding her policies and their effect on him or her and the country as a whole is acting irresponsibly. Such a person is making a mockery of the precious and sacred right to vote. It is incumbent upon each of us to do at least a modicum of research so we can vote from knowledge, not ignorance.

I can understand why so many people are being gaslighted. KK rarely speaks in public, and when she does it is highly controlled, highly scripted, with a teleprompter, and with a friendly journalist who will ask softball questions and won’t ask follow-up or clarifying questions. She only speaks in platitudes, slogans, or generalities. She is mendacious. All candidates exaggerate, obfuscate, and twist the facts. She has taken it to an extreme. She downright lies. She knows a compliant media will not challenge her nor fact-check her.

I could write an entire blog on this, but I will give you one glaring example. Abortion has been and still is a “hot button” issue. In fact, it is probably the only issue the Dems have, even if it is specious and spurious at this point. KK is or should be cognizant of this. Nevertheless, she has been claiming that Trump is in favor of a national ban on abortion. That is simply not true. He has never said that. In fact, he has said he supports the recent SCOTUS ruling. Additionally, even if he wanted to it would not be within his power to enact such a ban. Pursuant to the recent SCOTUS ruling it is up to the citizens of each state to decide its own abortion law. There is no longer a standard national abortion policy, nor should there be. No one person or group of persons should be allowed to impose their beliefs on the entire country.

KK won’t disclose any specifics, because she knows that if the voters were aware of what they truly were she would lose in a landslide. So far, with the assistance of a biased media, she is getting away with this strategy. She has been answering all questions with the same canned responses such as she wants to “help the middle class, the rich should pay their fair share [whatever that is], and everyone should have the same opportunity to succeed.” She never explains specifically how she will achieve these goals, nor why she has not done so in the past 3 1/2 years, nor why she isn’t doing so right now. This should tell you that she is, in the words of Joe Biden, “full of malarkey.”

In my opinion, if you’re going to vote for a person who intends to wipe out 275 years of the best political, economic and social system the world has ever seen at least have the facts, at least be aware of what you are doing. In my experience, most of her supporters are not, don’t know, or don’t want to know. As my good friend and loyal reader Rich F. is fond of saying, “my mind’s already made up. Don’t confuse me with the facts.”

All they know is they hate Trump. Why? What did he do? What did he say. Many of them don’t know, and they don’t care. They just hate him, and they refuse to vote for him. My friends, that is irrational. They believe that by not voting for Trump they are punishing him. Not true. They would be punishing themselves, as the saying goes, “cutting off their nose to spite their face.”

Yes, Trump would be disappointed. No one likes to lose. But he would quickly recover. He would return to his previous life, which was just fine thank you very much. On the other hand, the rest of us would be left to suffer the consequences, which would not be pretty. Hence, my nightmare.

Our Founding Fathers would be rolling over in their graves. All the people who died for this country in all the wars we have fought for some 275 years would be rolling over in their graves. Your children and grandchildren will be wondering “what in the hell were you thinking.”

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TRUMP RALLY AT NASSAU COLISEUM

On Wednesday, September 17, Trump hosted a massive rally at Nassau Coliseum located in Uniondale, NY. According to multiple media reports there were some 60,000 requests for tickets to the venue. People were lined up outside for hours hoping to get a seat inside. This is typical of every Trump rally. There were seats for only 16,000 fans. The rest were content to watch and listen outside on large viewing screens. According to multiple published reports the crowd was friendly and orderly, and there were no incidents of rowdiness or violence. Most importantly, no assassination attempts.

The primary purpose of Trump’s appearance was to provide a boost to various GOP candidates who are embroiled in tough House of Representatives races in Nassau and Westchester Counties. Additionally, he has hopes of winning NYS. Currently, that seems unrealistic. However, Lee Zeldin, who lost a close gubernatorial race to Governor Kathy Hochul in 2022 denotes that at this point in his campaign a Siena poll reported him to be down 17 points, so I guess anything’s possible.

One significant issue he discussed was Harris’ record with respect to antisemitism, Hamas, and Israel. He asserted that she has done “absolutely nothing” to counteract the “surging” antisemitism in the US. She has not condemned it or even acknowledged it as a problem. Furthermore, she has demonstrated a pro-Hamas/anti-Israel bias with respect to the Middle East. He “challenged” Harris to “disavow the support of all Hamas sympathizers” who are supporting her and her campaign and there are many including some members of Congress. Of course, she will never do that because she needs their support to win, and they are in alignment with her “core beliefs” anyway. I have also discussed this issue in previous blogs, as well as expressed my incredulity as to why any Jew with a sense of history and who believes in the importance of Israel would ever vote for her.

Another key issue was illegal immigration and the border. Anyone who has been paying attention is aware of the failure of the Biden-Harris Administration to deal with this extreme crisis. Harris, the “Border Czar,” has basically denied its existence. She keeps blaming Trump for Congress’ failure to pass the border bill that BH backed, but she doesn’t disclose that the bill contained severe flaws that would have made the crisis worse, not better. She also neglects to acknowledge that BH could resolve the matter immediately by executive order.

Trump’s policy fix for illegal immigration is well-known. Among other things, he has asserted he would finish building the border wall, require illegals to remain in Mexico while awaiting approval to enter the US, halt the flood of fentanyl and other illegal drugs that are killing thousands of Americans, curtail sanctuary cities’ lack of cooperation with the feds, empower ICE to identify and locate the illegal aliens currently residing in the US, and carry out “the largest deportation operation in the history of our country.” You may say, “how could he do all this? The answer is he did do it, all of it, during his presidency.

One final note on this issue. Yesterday, a whistle blower came forward with some explosive revelations. Testifying before a US House Committee on Homeland Security Aaron Heitke, a retired San Diego Border Patrol Chief disclosed that the BH Administration severely hampered their efforts by, among other things, reducing their manpower. Furthermore, his sector was experiencing an “exponential” increase in “Significant Interest Aliens,” i. e. those with “significant ties to terrorism.” Nevertheless, the BH Administration instructed him not to report this increase, because it “was trying to convince the public that there was no threat at the border.”

It is worth noting that according to the NY Post since Biden was forced out and replaced by Harris Trump and Vance have participated in excess of 70 interviews, press conferences and rallies with a wide variety of audiences and answered a multitude of questions. In contrast, Harris has done three interviews since July 21, that’s right three, all with “friendly” interviewers who ask her general, vague questions with no follow-up and no fact-checking. Walz has been largely MIA. And yet, despite this disparity the polls have continued to report them to be within the margin of error. Moreover, some of them have published contradictory results. For example, yesterday, I saw one poll that reported Harris ahead in Michigan, and another poll taken during the same time period that reported Trump ahead.

The Dem strategy, which I predicted months ago, appears to be working just like it did with Biden in 2020. It is very simple. Hide from the media, say as little as possible, do not answer any questions directly, disguise your far-left policies and beliefs, blame Trump and the GOP for everything, and rely on the media to support you. Also, convince the voters you have changed your views from far-left to moderate, and then after the election you can revert to your true policies. Harris has been insisting that her core values have not changed. Believe her.

The NY Post has denoted that at this rate Harris will have granted the fewest interviews of any major party’s nominee ever. I have discussed this gaslighting strategy, in detail, in previous blogs, and there is no need to regurgitate it here.

Harris has been flip-flopping on virtually all of her policies; the media has let her get away with it; and many, if not most, voters are totally unaware of it. This strategy worked in 2020, and so far, it is working again in 2024. How else can one explain the close polls. I have no doubt that if voters were cognizant of Harris’ true values and policies she would lose in a landslide. You know it; I know it; and, most significantly, her handlers know it.

Even in these softball interviews Harris has had some “awkward” moments, many of which have been well-chronicled in the media. For instance:

  1. On how she would implement her policy of slavery reparations, which she has advocated, she told the National Association of Black Journalists, “We need to speak truth about the generational impact of our history, in terms of the generational impact of slavery, the generational impact of redlining, of Jim Crow laws.”
  2. On how she would bring down prices she told Philadelphia’s ABC outlet, “We as Americans have beautiful character. We have ambitions and aspirations and dreams. But not everyone necessarily has access to the resources that can help them fuel those dreams and ambitions.”
  3. As stated in the Atlanta Journal Constitution with respect to her mandatory gun surrender program, which is a thinly-veiled gun confiscation program, she has stated that “police could walk into the home of legal gun owners to confiscate their weapons.”
  4. Another favorite non-sequitur has been “The children of the community are the children of the community.”
  5. She also has an annoying habit of altering her speech according to her audience. I view this as a demeaning and transparent attempt to identify with the audience.
  6. Lately, she has been answering every question by relating how she was “raised in a middle-class family” (not true) where every household had a neat lawn. Huh?

None of these responses comes remotely close to answering the questions. I’m not sure what she said, and probably she doesn’t either, but those “word salad” responses are typical. None of the questioners asked a follow-up question. They just nodded sagely and moved on to the next fatuous question.

CONCLUSION

Something must be done to tone down the rhetoric before someone gets killed. This is the most contentious and divisive election I can recall. Trump has already been attacked twice, and he is the obvious primary target, but, in actuality, any politician could be assassinated at any time. No sane person should want that, (note the word “sane.”)

In my view, virtually all of the hate rhetoric has come from the Dems and their supporters and has been aimed at Trump. Much of it has come not from deranged crackpots, but from politicians (such as Biden, Harris, Hillary Clinton, and Chuck Schumer), members of the media (such as The View ladies, Morning Joe and various anchors and guests on CNN and MSNBC), and other “responsible “people who should know better. Even worse, it’s also became a favorite tactic to blame Trump for his own assassination attempts! It is one thing to criticize someone, but it is irresponsible to call someone “evil,” “Hitler” and a “threat to democracy.” For one thing, it is not true. For another, it is disrespectful and insulting to Jews and other victims of the Holocaust. In addition, it actually diminishes the extent of Hitler’s turpitude. It was truly incomparable. I have discussed this in previous blogs, and there is no need to repeat it here.

The Atlanta Journal Constitution has reported that 28% of Dems and 17% of all respondents felt America would have been “better off” if Trump had actually been assassinated. That is shocking, but it is a good example of the moral decline of America. I’d like to think that America is better than this. At least, I used to think that, but now I’m not so sure.

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2ND ASSASSINATION ATTEMPT ON TRUMP

This is unbelievable, unacceptable and unprecedented. Just nine weeks after Trump was nearly assassinated while speaking at a rally in Butler, PA there was a second attempt. As you all know by now, on Sunday Trump was playing golf at the Trump International Golf Course in West Palm Beach, FL. A gunman, armed with an SKS rifle was able to create a sniper’s nest in some bushes bordering the sixth and seventh holes of the course and lie in wait for some 12 hours for Trump to pass by. Only by a stroke of luck was the Secret Service able to thwart him.

An alert SS agent was walking the course one hole head of Trump when he spotted a rifle peeking through some bushes bordering a chain link fence between the sixth and seventh holes. In a matter of minutes Trump would be passing by at which time the would-be assassin would have had a clear shot from some 300 yards away. A shot like that is so easy that the chances of the gunman failing to kill Trump would have been minimal. The agent fired at the man who then fled. An alert private citizen was able to note the license plate on his car, and the police were able to apprehend him in short order.

America is no stranger to assassinations and assassination attempts of presidents and presidential candidates. According to Wikipedia there have been numerous attempted assassinations of both presidents and presidential candidates, too many to list them all here. The first was Andrew Jackson in 1835 while he was president.

According to my research there have been three attempted assassinations of presidential candidates prior to Trump. Teddy Roosevelt and George Wallace were wounded, and RFK was killed. Four sitting presidents have been assassinated. How many can you name? You get bonus points if you can also name the year. See the answers below.

Decent people can take a deep breath that the attempt failed, but there are a multitude of questions that need to be addressed prospectively. For example, according to multiple media outlets:

  1. The area in which the assassin was nesting was well known not only to the SS but also to others as well. Apparently, it has been a favorite hiding place for paparazzi seeking to take surreptitious photographs of celebrities. So why was it left unattended?
  2. Obviously, Trump’s SS protection has been inadequate. Why wasn’t it enhanced after the first attempt on his life?
  3. Is it a problem with manpower, training, funding, planning, leadership, a combination of the foregoing, or something else more sinister? Could certain people who view Trump as a threat to democracy, or worse, be embroiled in a conspiracy to intentionally leave Trump vulnerable? Food for thought.
  4. Routh was able to construct a sniper’s nest and hang out for some 12 hours without being noticed. Why? How?
  5. Security at the Trump National Doral, where Trump also plays frequently, is similarly lacking.
  6. Only the golf course in Bedminster, NJ seems to provide appropriate and adequate security for Trump when he plays there. For one thing, the police restrict public access by closing down nearby roads.
  7. The SS admitted that it failed to “sweep” the golf course beforehand, but it failed to provide a reasonable excuse. In addition, it stated that it didn’t have the resources to protect Trump on a golf course. That is absurd on its face. Many presidents have played golf from Eisenhower to Obama, and the SS managed to protect them just fine.
  8. Why didn’t the SS have a drone on site. It doesn’t take a lot of manpower to operate a drone, and they provide an extra layer of security.
  9. The Palm Beach County sheriff, Ric Bradshaw, disclosed that Trump’s SS detail was “lighter” because he is not the president, only a candidate. This strikes me as illogical, inane, ill-advised, and incredulous, and if true, needs to be rectified immediately. Common sense, which as we all know is not common, holds that Trump is not your typical candidate. He is a controversial figure whose enemies both political and non-political, have vilified him ceaselessly. Therefore, he is much more likely to be attacked. He has been twice already, and the likelihood is there will be more attempts. He definitely needs a higher level of protection.
  10. The federal government claims the SS is short of manpower and money. Biden and Schumer have claimed that Congress needs to pass an appropriations bill to resolve the matter. In the words of Joe Biden, that is pure “malarky.” According to published reports the SS budget is $3.8 billion. Furthermore, if more funds are needed the feds have the power to reallocate funds from other agencies, such as Homeland or the FBI, especially for an “emergency,” which this clearly is. Also, the SS could “borrow” law enforcement personnel from the state or local police. Of course, this would require a certain degree of coordination and cooperation, which, as we saw in Butler, seems to be another deficiency. In my opinion, by the time Congress passed such a bill it would be weeks if not months. The election would be over, and Trump could very well be dead. Besides, House Speaker Mike Johnson, and others have opined that the problem is a “manpower allocation [issue], not a funding issue.” I would agree.
  11. Routh is clearly unbalanced. For instance, he had published a book in which he openly called for Trump’s assassination. Moreover, in April he tweeted that “democracy is on the ballot, and we can’t lose. … You can’t lose if your opponent [Trump] is dead.” Those actions should have landed him on the FBI’s radar. Somehow, it didn’t.
  12. Incredibly, much of the mainstream media has been praising Roof as a “super-citizen” and a “crusader for causes.” Huh?
  13. Where has Mayorkas been? As head of Homeland Security he should have been all over this. He has been MIA, just like he has been regarding the border and everything else for which he is responsible.
  14. The best news I have heard is that Governor Ron DeSantis has directed Florida law enforcement to conduct a thorough investigation. He is one person who will get answers, which have been sorely lacking.

I maintain that the continued vilification of Trump by his political opponents and the mainstream media is the chief cause of the two assassination attempts. It is one thing to disagree with him politically. That’s protected by the First Amendment of the Constitution, but in my opinion characterizing him as “evil,” a “Nazi,” “Hitler,” or an “existential threat to democracy” as they have done and continue to do crosses the line. Rather than try to calm emotions the Dems and their allies in the media have doubled down on the vitriol. For example, just today, Hillary Clinton referred to Trump as “a danger to our country.” Even worse, various bloviators on CNN and MSNBC blamed Trump and the GOP for the attempted assassination and accused them of trying to “rile up” their political base. Truly, they are suffering from a terminal case of TDS.

In our political system we are free to disagree with political opponents. That does not make them “evil.” These above characterizations merely incite unbalanced persons to violence, which is exactly what we are seeing now. Biden, Harris and their allies in the Dem Party, the media, and elsewhere need to tone it down. It is irresponsible, and furthermore it is not true. Have they forgotten what Hitler did? Maybe so, which is a whole other problem.

CONCLUSION

Trump’s haters and opponents have been trying everything to defeat him for nine years for example, falsely accusing him of treason, insurrection and being a threat to democracy, impeachment, rigged Stalin-style “show trials,” imprisonment, disqualifying him from the ballot in certain states, and now assassination. He has prevailed every time, so far. As I said above, there have been two assassination near-misses in just nine weeks. It is clear that the policies and procedures of his SS protection detail are insufficient and need to be addressed. Is anyone doing that? I hope so, but I don’t know.

The impressionable crazies out there will keep trying. We have been lucky so far. The law of averages dictates that we can’t be lucky every time. The assassin only has to be lucky once. I fear that sooner later one of them will succeed in assassinating Trump, and no sane person wants that. Note, I said sane.

One could characterize some of Trump’s critics as deranged, but that is a subject for another blog at another time. By the way, has anyone thought through the constitutional crisis that would result if Trump were, in fact assassinated while still a candidate or if he were the president-elect?

Quiz answer: Abraham Lincoln – 1865; James Garfield – 1881; William McKinley – 1901; and JFK – 1963.

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ARE YOU BETTER OFF TODAY THAN YOU WERE FOUR YEARS AGO?

In my opinion, this election is very simple and straightforward. No need to make it more complicated than it is. No need to overthink it. It comes down to one basic question. It’s an old expression, almost a cliche, but it is just as relevant today as it was 45 years ago when I first heard it. “Are you better off today than you were four years ago?”

I’m talking about you and your family. In my opinion, no part of most Americans’ lives is better than it was four years ago. Some people cite the rising values of their IRA and 401K accounts as the result of “bull” financial markets. Good for you if that is the case, but chances are inflation has eaten away most or all of those gains.

Inflation is eating most of us alive. Inflation is pervasive and relentless. Once it grabs hold of a country’s economy it is tenacious. When unchecked it has destroyed many a country’s economy, for example, post-WWI Germany and present-day Venezuela.

Our current inflation is manifesting in every aspect of our lives, sometimes obviously, sometimes more subtly. According to multiple media reports some 2/3 of households are living paycheck to paycheck. Many families have been paying for necessities with borrowed money, incurring credit card debt or by withdrawing funds from their IRA or 401k accounts. Their income increases, if any, have not kept pace with the rate of inflation due to reduced hours, layoffs or their employer closing or relocating. This is not sustainable.

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (“BLS”) the Consumer Price Index (“CPI”) has risen nearly 20% in the last three years. Of course, some categories have risen more than others, but I will highlight a few of the more significant ones.

For example, let’s look at food. According to the BLS the CPI for food has increased slightly more than 20% over the last three years. Some products have risen more than others; but that is the average. In addition, some products and brands of products have experienced supply chain interruptions for various reasons. There can be many causes of supply chain interruptions, but rising costs are generally a contributory factor.

When you buy groceries are you able to afford what you did four years ago, or do you find yourself having to cut back? Are you able to buy the same quality or quantity of meat? Are you able to buy meat at all, or do you have to settle for a cheaper substitute? Can you even find the foods or the particular brands you prefer? How about the prices of staples like milk, eggs, and cheese to name a few examples? Have you noticed that packages of food are smaller? Have you noticed that rolls of paper towels and toilet paper don’t last as long as they used to? No one actually counts the pieces, but it’s obvious there are fewer. These are but a few examples. When you eat out have you noticed the smaller portions and higher prices? In case you were wondering these are rhetorical questions.

How about gas at the pump? Even though prices have decreased recently, that is misleading since gas prices can and do fluctuate widely in the short term due to a variety of external factors. According to AAA the average price of a gallon of regular gas at the pump was $2.41 in January 2021 when Biden-Harris took office. The latest price is $3.23. That is a 34% increase. The price of fuel permeates every aspect of the economy.

The story is similar for other products such as clothing, shelter, loans, and virtually any and all other goods or services.

The quality of life has been deteriorating significantly. We are being overwhelmed by illegal aliens. No one knows how many of them have entered our country, but the most reliable estimate is 20 million. An untold number of them are terrorists, gang members, drug smugglers, women and children traffickers, and others who would do us harm. They have been distributed all throughout the country. Gangs have virtually overwhelmed and taken over some small cities, such as Aurora, CO. Not coincidentally, the rate of crime has skyrocketed, and it has become random and unpredictable. It’s not just in large cities like NYC, Chicago and LA. No area is safe. Many of us are afraid to venture out. We take our kids to school or the bus stop and pick them up lest they be harmed.

Whose fault is all this? Well, ask yourself, who has been in power for the last four years? Which party’s policies have been the root cause of the current situation? Those are rhetorical questions. We know the answer; it’s the Dems.

Don’t be deceived by the spin doctors and bloviators in the Dem Party or their allies in the media. They can try to deflect blame onto Trump or whomever else all they want. The simple, inescapable fact is they been in charge. They have called the shots. They have gotten us into this mess. What in the world would make you think that they can extricate us from it?

Harris has been trying to distance herself from the highly unpopular Joe Biden and his highly unpopular policies. She cannot. The inescapable fact is she has been his vice president. She has bragged that she was “the last person in the room” when decisions were made. She is equally culpable.

Don’t pay any attention to the celebrities and media mouthpieces who politicians use to bombard you with their “expert” opinions (favorable to them, of course). Celebrities may be very good at what they do – acting, singing, sports or whatever – but most of them know less than you about economics, personal finance or anything else outside of their limited area of expertise.

They don’t live in the real world. They preach to us about illegal immigration, sanctuary cities, and crime, but most of them live in a protected bubble. Most of them live in gated communities protected by security guards or in luxury apartments with doormen. When they venture out many of them have personal security to insulate them from the public.

They don’t buy food at the grocery store. They don’t buy gas at the pump. Many of them don’t even drive a car, fly commercial, or personally buy any of life’s necessities. They have other people for that. Many of them fly in private airplanes. They don’t have the same life experiences as you do.

Moreover, most of them are not objective. They are supporters or donors or have their own agenda. For example, remember the 51 ex-government officials who signed a letter that the Biden Campaign produced in 2020 stating that the contents of Hunter Biden’s laptop were Russian disinformation? That was debunked but, of course, after the election. Those signatories should be embarrassed to have put their name to such a document.

Don’t be distracted by extraneous issues. Who cares if this candidate was a womanizer 20 years ago? Who cares if that candidate was mean to a child on the playground when he was ten years old, or was wild in college? Don’t be distracted. Most of us were involved in stupid or embarrassing incidents when we were younger. That is irrelevant now. What matters is the present and the future.

CONCLUSION

In my view, the number one issue in this election is the same one it always is. I believe renowned Dem strategist James Carville said it first, and it has been repeated many times and in every election. “IT’S THE ECONOMY, STUPID.”

Regardless of how the Dems try to spin it, they are the party that is responsible for the present state of our economy and everything else. Don’t be distracted or gaslighted by other issues. They may be important, but they are secondary to the economy. They don’t matter if you cannot feed and shelter your family.

Don’t be distracted about what the Dems and their supporters say about Trump or your personal feelings for him. Vote for number one. Vote for you and your family. Your kids and grandkids will thank you.

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