Churchill and socialism

Here is a great quote:

"The inherent vice of capitalism is the unequal sharing of blessings; the inherent virtue of socialism is the equal sharing of miseries." -- Winston Churchill

We want Al Gore to run for president

According to some news reports, Al Gore is planning to jump into the 2008 race. (Taipei Times)

Frankly, I hope that he does! Gore will carry Paris but lose Tennessee! (Alarmist global warming claims melt under scientific scrutiny )

Limbaugh plus O'Reilly equals informed audience

Who are you listening to on the radio or watching on TV? Check out the latest study from Pew:

"Judged by their answers to three news knowledge questions, the most informed audiences belong to the political magazines, Rush Limbaugh's radio show, the O'Reilly Factor, news magazines, and online news sources. Close behind are the regular audiences for NPR and the Daily Show." (Pew)

I feel great! Why? Because I am part of this group except for watching The Daily Show!

Ann Coulter has a point about John Edwards!

They are both silly! Nevertheless, Coulter has a point about Mr. Edwards (That was no lady -- That was my husband) It was silly for John Edwards, who is afraid to appear on Fox News because MoveOn.org won't let him, to send his wife against Anne! Edwards should defend himself! It reminds me of Bill Clinton sending Hillary to talk about the "right wing conspiracy".

Did Ted Kennedy kill the immigration deal?

A few days ago, Senator Ted Kennedy sang "Jalisco no te rajes"! Within hours, the Senate proposal began to break down. I'm not suggesting that Ted's voice killed the proposal but it probably did not help!

Listen to Senator Kennedy! (AUDIO: TED KENNEDY SERENADES MEXICAN-AMERICAN DJ -- EN ESPANOL...)

On a more serious note, Kennedy's version of "Jalisco" was one of the most obscene forms of political pandering in years!

The Roberts' Court promotes common sense and school discipline!

Here is the background:

"This case stemmed from an incident in January 2002 in which a crowd of students, townspeople and teachers gathered on a public street in Alaska across from a high school to watch the Olympic torch relay pass in front of them as part of a parade in support of the upcoming Winter Olympic Games.

Student Joseph Frederick wanted to make a statement about his First Amendment rights in front of the television crews covering the event. As the crowd thickened, he unfurled a banner with the message "Bong Hits 4 Jesus." (Supreme Court Rules Against 'Bong Hits 4 Jesus' Student)

Today, the Roberts Court said this:

"We hold that schools may take steps to safeguard those entrusted to their care from speech that can reasonably be regarded as encouraging illegal drug use."

Common sense. It's common sense, unless you are an angry liberal who does not understand common sense! Our culture should support teachers and principals against immature young people.

Congratulations to Frank Thomas!

In the 1990s, Frank Thomas was the best right handed hitter in baseball. In fact, he killed the Rangers!

Yesterday, Thomas hit #500 and became the 21st player to join one of the game's elite groups.

Well done Frank! Keep hitting them!

On Immigration, can we finally do it right?

Thankfully, this bloated "comprehensive immigration reform" died today. It was a bad bill but it did have some good parts that should be revived in different legislation or executive orders.

Now, we can actually start doing something constructive about a serious problem. This is a great opportunity for Pres. Bush to sign a few executive orders!

First, close the borders. I mean close the borders. Make it clear that illegal crossings will not be tolerated anymore. Let the word go out that you can not find work in the US if you cross the border without papers.

On this point, Pres. Bush should increase the National Guard presence to 30,000 and treat the porous border like a national security problem. It is!

Second, go after the employers who are hiring illegals. Pres. Bush should borrow this idea from Newt Gingrich:

"...the Internal Revenue Service audit those companies that are deliberately and repeatedly hiring illegal aliens...rather than focusing on illegals who are trying to work, we should concentrate on those who knowingly hire them, and make the penalties so expensive that they stop hiring illegal workers." (Newt's immigration plan)

If businesses need these workers then they should sponsor them under our current H-1 visa laws. Otherwise, make it very expensive by going after the employers.

As a last resort, encourage US businesses to take their cheap labor operations to Mexico. Hire Mexicans legally in Mexico! Frankly, why isn't Mexico doing this? Pres. Calderon should order every Mexican consulate in the US to work with US businesses to take these cheap labor operations to Mexico.

Third, Pres. Bush should issue an executive order reviving the "brasero" program which gave employers and employees an opportunity to work together.

The "brasero" program was killed by the Democrats and the labor unions. It's time to bring it back! The "brasero" program was effective because it understood that most Mexicans were looking for work rather than permanent residency or citizenship.

The Senate deal is dead. Our problems still exist. We need assertive leadership that deals with the border and dishonest employers!

Congratulations to Craig Biggio!

For 20 years, we've had the pleasure of cheering for Craig Biggio of the neighbor Astros!

Last night, Biggio became the 27th major league to reach 3,000 hits! In fact, he had 5 hits in last night's game.

Biggio is a great player and a wonderful community guy! We need more professional athletes like Biggio!

Mario Loyola on our Thursday show

Mario Loyola is a fellow at the Foundation for the Defense of Democracies and a contributor to National Review.

Today, we will talk about Mario's articles on Iraq, Iran, Castro and Chavez.

The interview will be available all weekend. Just click the icon!

The idiot celebrity syndrome

Take a celebrity with lots of money. Add a Democrat Party desperately exploiting every form of victim hood. What do you get? The Idiot Celebrity Syndrome.

You can add Paul Newman to the growing list of idiots living in Hollywood:

"I was proud to stand with Democrats against an imperial president back then.

And I am proud now to stand with a new generation of Democrats against a president who poses what I believe to be the biggest internal threat to American democracy in my lifetime.

"You can take your pick of issues where Republicans are seriously damaging this country: Iraq, global warming, civil liberties.

But I resent them most for how they've destroyed the American spirit by using xenophobia and fear to hold onto power.

It's scare-mongering pure and simple, and it is the only thing Republicans have left to offer." (Word of the day: 'scare-mongering' )

Newman did not explain whether former VP Gore was engaging in scare tactics when he gave a 1992 speech ( Video.) attacking the first Pres. Bush of leaving Saddam in power.

Also, Newman did not explain how Pres. GW Bush's remarks about Iraq's threat differed from anything said by both Clintons, Gore, Kerry, etc.

In the end, this is just another case of celebrity madness.

The story of the pants has a happy ending!

Here is a story with a happy ending:

Court Rules for Cleaners In $54 Million Pants Suit

This is a story about a legal system out of control. These crazy lawsuits are costing us all lots of money and creating backlogs in the courts.

For one day, there is a justice in the world!

Keep swinging, Rudy-G!

Today, Rudy Guiliani blasted the Clinton years over terrorism:

"Islamic terrorists killed more than 500 Americans before Sept. 11. Many people think the first attack on America was on Sept. 11, 2001. It was not. It was in 1993," said the former New York mayor.

Giuliani argued that Clinton treated the World Trade Center bombing as a criminal act instead of a terrorist attack, calling it "a big mistake" that emboldened other strikes on the Khobar Towers housing complex in Saudi Arabia, in Kenya and Tanzania and later on the USS Cole while docked in Yemen in 2000." (Giuliani Slams Bill Clinton on Terrorism)

It's about time!

The Roberts Court is doing great!

Presidents come and go. However, the Supreme Court Justices survive them.

There are disputes over Iraq and immigration. However, the Roberts Court is working out exactly as advertised.

This is a conservative court! Cheers for Pres. Bush's appointments of Chief Justice Roberts and Justice Alito.

There were three important decisions this week. The first one limited the rights of citizens to sue over perceived violations of the separation of church and state. The second one supported high school authorities who suspended a student over a banner they said challenged their anti-drug message. Also, there is the ruling to uphold the law banning a controversial late-term abortion procedure. All of these were 5-4 votes, another sing that Pres. Bush has made a difference.

Chief Justice Roberts is a young man. He will write many more rulings. However, so far so good!

Conservatives may be angry with Pres. Bush over immigration. However, they have to love his Supreme Court appointments and their conservative opinions!

Tuesday radio show: A Senate vote follow up!

Ira Mehlman, National Media Director of FAIR (Federation American Immigration Reform) joined us for a conversation about the Senate vote and the future of immigration legislation. (The Senate voted 64-35 in favor of restarting debate )

As I wrote before, I think that border security and the fence come first. After that, I'm open to dealing with those here. I do not support deportation. However, Mexico needs to understand that the US can not be its employer of last resort.

Keep an eye on Romney

Mitt Romney was on Bill Bennett a few days ago. As of today, Romney is doing quite well in Iowa and New Hampshire. He is running behind on national polls but they are not as relevant as specific states!

Can Romney win the nomination? Yes, he can!

Doug Wilson is right on target:

"I believe voters are attracted to Romney because of his three-part vision for America, one that seeks to build and maintain a strong national defense, a strong economy, and strong families."(Mitt Romney's Strength)

Romney brings three unique attributes to the table:

1) He was a very successful businessman. He understands that profits matter;

2) He understands The War on Terror and China; and,

3) He and Anne have been married 39 years!

Low taxes, strong on national security and a commitment to family values puts Romney in a strong position to get the nomination.

Keep your eyes on Romney.

Abortion and more unintended consequences

My opposition to abortion is twofold:

First, abortion is the taking of a human life. In 1973, the US Supreme Court legalized abortion in the US. It is estimated that 30-40 millions abortions have taken place since Roe v. Wade!

Second, I do not agree with the Roe v Wade rationale. I do not believe that a right of privacy supports abortion. Furthermore, abortion laws should be decided by citizens in their respective states. Let Texans, rather than federal judges, decide on abortion.

Beyond morality and federalism, we are painfully learning and suffering the growing consequences of abortion:

"In the United States from the early 1970s, when abortion was liberalized, through the late 1980s, there was a tremendous increase in the rate of out-of-wedlock births, rising from an average of 5% of all births in 1965-69 to more than 16% two decades later (1985-1989).

For blacks, the numbers soared from 35% to 62%.

While not all of this rise can be attributed to liberalized abortion rules, it was nevertheless a key contributing factor." (It's Not Enough to Be 'Wanted')

Abortion is bad for society and specially children!

The Dallas Tollway is running again!

It's Monday so the Dallas Tollway is running again. This cartoon is for those of you who got stuck on the tollway this weekend!

Smile, it's only a tollway!

Who cares about Iran dissidents?

Take a look at some of these pictures!

Iran is cracking down on dissent. They are also cracking heads and beating up dissidents:

"Question: Will these photos be blared across the front pages of the international media with as much disgust and condemnation as the photos of Abu Ghraib or the manufactured Gitmo Koran-flushing riots?

Answer: Fat chance.

Question: What do leftist apologists for the Iranian regime have to say about the

brutal, appalling, and escalating crackdown on human rights? Yeah, you, Rosie.

Answer: Nothing.

Question: Will the same moral cowards who sat silently while Mohammad Khatami, former President of Iran, advocated executing gays during a Harvard lecture stand up now against this barbarism?

Answer: Of course not." (Michelle Malkin)

Once again, we are seeing the incredible hypocrisy of the international left. They go nuts because of GITMO or Abu Gharib but will say nothing about this.

Where are the marches? the outrage?

Chemical Ali will soon join cousin Saddam

Today, we learned that 'Chemical Ali' was sentenced in Iraq. Why did they call him Chemical Ali? Because every Iraqi knew that he was a first rate criminal. (Did someone tell the Kurds that Saddam did not have WMDs?)

Talk radio is a business not a right wing conspiracy

In the late 1980s, most AM stations were dying in the US. They could not compete with FM stations over music formats. After all, who wants to hear music on the AM band rather than FM?

Rush Limbaugh and talk radio saved the AM dial. Limbaugh started a trend ("opinions on the radio") and it literally saved the AM dial and created lots of jobs all over the US radio. Today, Limbaugh reaches 20 million people. Sean Hannitty reaches over 10 million listeners!

Why is talk radio conservative? I don't know for sure but it is. The best answer is that conservative talk radio has listeners and liberal talk radio does not:

"Left-wing talk radio has failed to produce a true political talk star that might entice programmers. Liberal network Air America continues to struggle; it recently relaunched with new owners and a fresh lineup. The closest progressives have come to a radio star is Ed Schultz, now on more than 100 stations." (Talk radio decidedly right of center By Rick Bird)

Question: What's wrong with that? The liberals have not been able to succeed on the radio. Why blame conservatives for that? Blame the liberals!

At the end of the day, privately owned radio stations respond to listeners and the advertisers. Radio is a business except for NPR which is subsidized by the federal government.

Why blame conservatives? Blame the liberals who are not supporting liberal hosts!

Doom and gloom update: Get ready for global cooling

We've had some fun with global warming over the past year. To be fair, I believe that we should be concerned about climate change. I want clean water and air as much as anyone. After all, I have to breath the air and drink the water, too!

At the same time, we need to be rational about it. Today's environmentalists are not rational. They hate capitalism and use global warming to push their socialist agenda. (A little sanity about global warming)

Now, we hear that global cooling is on the horizon:

"This just in from Chicken Little: It's a cloud, not the sky, that's about to fall. So button up your overcoat. Earth is about to cool off.

"It's global cooling, not warming, that is the major climate threat to the world," says Timothy Patterson, director of the Ottawa-Carleton Geoscience Center at Carleton University in Canada. He sets out in Toronto's National Post a fascinating and wholly credible argument, backing up what many of his scientific colleagues regard as nothing less than blasphemy." (A coming cold day for a warm globe)

What's next? Who knows? Global warming, global cooling! Who knows what the doom and gloom crowd will come up with next?

The good guys are killing lots of bad guys this weekend

"You've no doubt heard of Paris Hilton, and of Rosie O'Donnell as well. We're pretty sure you know what Barry Bonds is up to. But have you ever heard of Arrowhead Ripper? The likely answer is no." (Al-Qaida's End? )

Check out some of these headlines:


2 al-Qaida Leaders Captured in Iraq


17 Insurgents Killed Near Baqubah


"[T]he battle is going very well. A big fight seems to be brewing. As of about noon in Baqubah on the 22nd, there seems to be a lull in the fighting. A calm. This is about to get wet. At the going rate, al Qaeda in Baqubah will soon have two choices: Surrender, or die." ("Surrender Or Die")

U.S. May Reduce Forces in Iraq by Spring

Unfortunately, soldiers are killed in war. Yes, we did lose 15 soliders over the last few days. We have 10,000 guys at war with Al Qaeda in Baqubah. I wish that we could fight a war without casulaties but that's not possible.

Yet, something is going on north of Baghdad and it may have a huge impact on stabilzing Iraq. The mission is clear:

"The end state is to destroy the al-Qaida influences in this province and eliminate the threat against the people. That is the No. 1, bottom-line, up-front, in-your-face task and purpose." (Army Brig. Gen. Mick Bednarek)

Stay tuned.

Are kids playing too many video games?

Put me down as someone who would rather play catch than Nintendo. However, too many kids are spending too much time in front of the TV.

It's time to show kids the outdoors. Take your kid and show him the outdoors.

Disconnect the video game and play a real game!

Why doesn't Michael Moore make a movie about these guys?

In Cuba, there are many political prisoners. In fact, most Cubans would love to be transferred to GITMO. At least, the Red Cross and the Western media are allowed to travel to GITMO. Furthermore, someone actually cares about your rights at GITMO.

Check out:

"Families and friends of eight independent Cuban journalists who have been unjustly imprisoned since 2003 say that the health of their loved ones has seriously deteriorated in recent months amid poor prison conditions and insufficient health care.

In a series of interviews with the Committee to Protect Journalists, relatives and friends described health problems ranging from diabetes and a tumor to pneumonia and cataracts. In some cases, they say, the journalists have received little medical attention. They say hot and unsanitary prison conditions have exacerbated the medical problems.

Pre-existing ailments have worsened in prison, the families and friends say, while a host of serious new illnesses have arisen among those jailed.

Twenty-three of the 25 journalists imprisoned today in Cuba were jailed during a massive crackdown on the independent press in March 2003. After perfunctory, closed-door trials, the journalists were handed prison sentences of up to 28 years in prison on antistate charges stemming from their reporting. The journalists had worked for independent news agencies, filing stories by phone and fax to overseas news outlets and Web sites. Cuba is one of the world’s leading jailers of journalists, second only to China". (In Cuba, health of jailed journalists deteriorates)

Where is Michael Moore when we really need him?

P.S. Beyond Cuba, Moore should read this:

"But as P.J. O'Rourke once commented, if Mike thinks health care is expensive now, just wait until it's free." (Michael Moore's Shticko - Michael Moynihan, Reason)

I don't care that journalists support liberal causes!

Yesterday, there was a lot of buzz about journalists and political contributions.

Aren't Journalists Allowed To Be Americans? by Ed Morrissey is a good summary of the story about journalists favoring Democrats 9-1!

All of this started because of a headline on The Drudge Report. (THE GREAT DIVIDE: REPORTERS GIVE DEMS MONEY OVER REPUBLICANS 9 TO 1! )

Actually, I don't care as long as journalists give us full disclosure. Journalists should be required to tell us where their money goes. It should be included in their bylines. In other words, don't pretend that you are objectively covering the horse race when your money is on one of the horses!

Beyond that, I'm not surprised or shocked that journalists favor liberals 9-1.

Last, but not least, this is not going to help the media. They've lost a lot of credibility in recent years.

P.S. Of course, we did hear yesterday that liberals are worried about talk radio. They think that talk radio is dominated by conservatives. (Right's Reign on Talk Radio Called 'Structural Imbalance') Did these people say anything about the afformentioned 9-1 ratio?

The surge and new tactics in Iraq

For weeks, we have been reading about the "surge". Based on recent reports, the surge is on:

"HALLELUJAH! For the first time since Baghdad fell, our military in Iraq has a comprehensive, integrated plan to defeat our enemies." (WINNING ON OFFENSE By RALPH PETERS)

Are we finally playing to win? Let's hope so:

"The largest offensive combat operation in Iraq since the end of Operation Iraqi Freedom in 2003 is now underway outside Baghdad and in the city of Baquba, the command center of al Qaeda in Iraq.

The Baquba operation is an offensive involving 10,000 U.S. soldiers backed by attack helicopters, close-air support, Strykers and Bradley fighting vehicles.

Their mission is to capture or kill members of Al Qaeda in Iraq in and around the capital of the terrorist regime calling itself the Islamic State of Iraq.

There are thought to be as many as 2,000 of them in and around Baquba." (Fighting al Qaeda in Iraq)

There are some great field reports from Michael Yon:

"The combat has only just begun, and media has now figured out this is serious business."(Operation Arrowhead Ripper: Day One)

For more battlefield details, check out Operation Phantom Thunder: The Battle of Iraq by Bill Roggio.

The bottom line is that something is happening in Iraq. Our tactics have changed and the enemy is running.

General Petraeus has a plan. So far so good!

Thursday's show: A review of the Mexican situation

Allan Wall joined us for an update of the Mexico situation on Thursday's show. The program will be available in the archives all weekend.

Allan discussed a couple of recent developments, specially the challenges faced by the Mexican military.

Secondly, we spoke about the drug cartels and the border.

Third, Allan discussed some tax updates from Mexico's Congress.

Enjoy it. Allan was very informative. Again, you can read Allan's weekly column at Mexidata.info.

It's not OK at the Dems' corner!

It wasn't supposed to happen this way:

Liberals boo Clinton on Iraq

Rep. Pelosi responds to boos on war

What's happening? The liberal base is angry because Democrats are not pulling the trigger and cutting off funding for the Iraq War.

The base fell for the Dems' "new direction" talk. I guess that this what happens when fall for poll readers!

On another front, Senator Reid needs to think twice about calling anyone incompetent:

"This is not what the Democrats had in mind: after five months in control of Congress, they have driven the institution's approval rating down to the lowest point ever measured by Gallup: only 14% of respondents expressed "a great deal" or "quite a lot" of confidence in Congress." (Sinking Like A Stone)

It gets more interesting than that. There are now many House seats in play! (Democratic Congress shows cracks By Donald Lambro)

It's early but the polls don't look good for Senator Hillary Clinton:

"When registered voters were asked which party they would like to win the White House, they preferred a Democrat over a Republican by 8%. But in a race pitting Mrs. Clinton against Mayor Giuliani, a Republican, the former New York mayor was favored by 10%.

Mrs. Clinton's showing against Mr. Giuliani was the starkest example of how the general Democratic edge sometimes narrows or vanishes when voters are given specific candidates to choose between. The poll also showed Mrs. Clinton trailing when matched against two other Republicans — Senator McCain of Arizona and a former Massachusetts governor, Mitt Romney." (In Polls, Clinton Loses to Republicans BY MICHAEL FINNEGAN)

Again, you cannot bet your life on such early polls. At the same time, the trend cannot be good news at Hillary Clinton's headquarters.

Why is Senator Clinton having troubles? Because she did not stick to her original position on Iraq.

In fact, Clinton's position is two fold problem. On one hand, the loud left "booes" her. On the other hand, she has exposed herself in the general election when she won't be speaking to a room full of Code Pink Ladies.

40 years of Sgt. Pepper's

It was 40 years ago this month that Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band hit the record stores. Today, there are still people buying it. In fact, there are many people who have this album on LP, cassette, 8-track, reel to reel and now CD.

In 1967, Sgt. Peppers was The Beatles' 8th album. It was innovative because it was a collection of songs rather just singles. In fact, no single was ever released from Sgt. Peppers. It also had differet recording techniques and wonderful cover artwork.

It was very different. Yet, was it The Beatles' best album?

My answer is no. I think that "Rubber Soul" and "Revolver [UK]" are better. Sgt. Peppers gets a very strong B-plus.

Great economy: Why are Democrats at war with prosperity?

Question: Why are Democrats declaring war on those principles that create prosperity? Because this is not your grandfather's Dem party.

The Democrat primary is now a refuge for the American left. In fact, the Dems' primary voters have more in common with European leftist parties than they do with former President John Kennedy or Harry Truman.

In simple terms, Kennedy and Truman would not be nominated by today's party. Wonder why the Dems have lost 7 of the last 10 presidential elections? Look at their nomination process! (The Anger Of The Left By Thomas Sowell)

The Democrats want you to believe that the US economy is a disaster. It's hard to make that case with 4.5% unemployment and very low inflation.

What's the status of our economy:

"In the quarter-century since 1983, Americans have lived in a country that has enjoyed noninflationary economic growth 95 percent of the time. They have come to think of this as the norm. They give politicians, particularly Bush, no credit when the economy performs this way, and they complain querulously about the slightest irritations, such as gasoline prices that in real dollar terms are far lower than they were in the early 1980s." (Open-Field Politics by Michael Barone)

Bottom line: We are doing pretty good! Why are there lines at every US embassy around the world? Because we are doing pretty good.

As I wrote before, beware of the politician who wants to tax the rich. Beware of the candidate who wants to give you so much security that he takes your freedom away.

In other words, beware of today's populist Democrats!

Another report on BBC bias

For some time, I have been saying that the BBC has lost its way. It is anti-US, anti-Israel and a leftist lonely hearts club.

Thankfully, I am not the only one:

"THE BBC is institutionally biased, an official report will conclude this week.

The year-long investigation, commissioned by the BBC, has found the corporation particularly partial in its treatment of single-issue politics such as climate change, poverty, race and religion. It concludes that the bias has extended across drama, comedy and entertainment, with the corporation pandering to politically motivated celebrities and trendy causes." (BBC report damns its ‘culture of bias’)

Who went crazy first? The BBC or The New York Times.

I don't know the answer. Like The NY Times, the BBC has gotten too partisan in its coverage.

The blogs and politics

This week, Tuesday's show will be on Monday because of travel plans.

Our guest was Ed Morrissey of Captain's Quarters, one of the top blogs in US politics.

We will discuss the impact of blogs in our politics, such as the left wing bloggers and Senator Reid. We will also review the impact of conservative blogs on the immigration debate.

Check it out!

Fix the border and everything else will happen

Yes. We need a thoughtful immigration bill that rejects amnesty and enforces the border.

Frankly, we have the framework for such a bill in the US Senate right now!

Everybody wants to secure the border. That's like Politics 101 after 9-11. So let's do it! Build the fence and move more troops to the border. I am confident that the public's cynicism will recede if they see concrete results from a border protection policy.

Like always, Charles Krauthammer hits the right note:

"Fences work. That's why people have them around their houses -- not because homeowners are unwelcoming, but because they insist that those who wish to come into their domain knock at the front door." (We Agree On Border Security, Don't We?)

So let's go ahead and finish the fence.

After that, take inventory of who is in the country and issue them a biometric identification card.

After that, go after any employer who hires someone without the ID card.

After that, sit down with Mexico and give them some economic incentives to shake up their economy. Let's remember that we can not fix our illegal immigration as long as Mexico continues to underachieve.

After that, give people a chance to enter into some path to residency. I agree with Rasmussen:

"Once the government actually enforces the border, then the debate can begin on all other aspects of immigration reform.

Then, the same politicians who were stunned by their misreading of the public on this bill will probably be stunned to learn something else—most Americans actually do favor a welcoming and open immigration policy.

The United States is a nation of immigrants. It is also a nation of laws. Voters want to honor both aspects of the national heritage. And, like good parents trying to instill values in their children, voters want their elected representatives to do the same."

The Duke 88 need to face the public!

Thankfully, Nifong will be held accountable for his irresponsible behavior. (Former Duke Prosecutor Nifong Disbarred)

Yet, there were many other irresponsible parties in this charade.

Let's start with the college professors who signed that letter last year:

"Who can forget Duke's Gang of 88 radical professors who supported the on-campus lynch mob that issued "wanted" posters of the lacrosse players?

In good postmodern style, the Gang of 88 has attempted to put its past under erasure (Professor Johnson commented here), but Duke students who exceed the Gang in maturity and responsibility remember." (What about the gang of 88?)

Duke University may not be able to fire some of these professors. However, the media and public should hold them accountable for their reckless comments.

Happy Father's Day

"I think Father's Day ought not to be a celebration of every man who managed to procreate, but instead a time to honor those increasingly rare men who are actually good at fathering." (TONY WOODLIEF)

In so many ways, I am one of those men who had the good fortune of having a great father. Like my two uncles, my dad came to the US and started all over again. Like my two uncles, he is now enjoying the benefits of retirement, the joys of grandchildren and reading my blog!

My thanks to all of the fathers, uncles and grandfathers. Keep up the good work! We need fathers!

In fact, most of our society's problems are directly related to the absence of good fathers!

Happy Fathers Day!

Why doesn't Harry lead rather than take cheap shots at our military?

"Why is Reid in such a lather? Because he can talk, but can’t produce" (‘Orrible ‘Arry Reid by Jed Babbin)

This is hard to believe. Harry Reid is the Senate Majority Leader but he can't lead a majority of anything. I like what Dean Barnett wrote:

"I had always felt Harry Reid was the kind of vanilla-flavored parasite that a political system like ours inevitably mass produces.

In other words, I didn’t think his presence was any big deal.

We’ve seen his type come and go with regularity the past 200 years.

What’s amazing and sad is that in such consequential times, a lightweight like Reid is making an impact. He may well be remembered as the most contemptible and least honest public servant to come down the pike in a generation.

After all, you can tell a man by the company he keeps." (The Contemptible Harry Reid (Also: Sargent Peppers Nutroots Marching Band!))

Show me something Sen. Reid. Cut the funding and accept the consequences of your decision.

Show me something Sen. Reid. Lead your majority and get something done!

Dems and Reps striking out!

It's not any fun being a politician these days. Nobody is popular in Washington DC. The political class should be grateful that Americans can't stop their direct deposits every two weeks. Otherwise, there would be a lot of politicians without pay.

Byron York is a White House correspondent for National Review. Today, he examines the situation:

"That’s right: Bush 29 — Congress 23.

The 23 percent rating is one point below Congress’s rating in October 1994, just before Democrats lost the House and Senate in a historic landslide. That was at the end of 40 years of Democratic rule of the House.

Now, we’re just a few months into the party’s control of Congress, and it appears people have had it with the new management. Of course, they showed in November that they had had it with the old Republican management.

It’s a good thing there’s not an election next month, or nobody would win." (The year of bad feelings, and not just toward the GOP )

What's going on?

The Democrats over promised on Iraq and reform. They can't do a darn thing about Iraq and won't touch earmarks (Hogs on the Hill) now that they are running the show.

The Republicans are deeply divided on immigration. There is a huge battle between the party and the base.

What's next? I don't know. However, the politicians should be happy that nobody is running anytime soon.

A little sanity about global warming

Vaclav Klaus is President of the Czech Republic and a strong supporter of freedom and the US.

By the way, why do they love Pres. Bush in Albania and the Czech Republic? Because these people were part of the old USSR world. They know what it's like to live under a police state. They appreciate that the US stood with them. They cheered when Pres. Reagan spoke about the "evil empire".

Today, Mr. Klaus took issue with the global warming fanatics:

"The author Michael Crichton stated it clearly: “the greatest challenge facing mankind is the challenge of distinguishing reality from fantasy, truth from propaganda”.

I feel the same way, because global warming hysteria has become a prime example of the truth versus propaganda problem.

It requires courage to oppose the “established” truth, although a lot of people – including top-class scientists – see the issue of climate change entirely differently.

They protest against the arrogance of those who advocate the global warming hypothesis and relate it to human activities.

As someone who lived under communism for most of his life, I feel obliged to say that I see the biggest threat to freedom, democracy, the market economy and prosperity now in ambitious environmentalism, not in communism.

This ideology wants to replace the free and spontaneous evolution of mankind by a sort of central (now global) planning." (Freedom, Not Climate, is at Risk)

Great! How do you say grand slam home run in the Czech republic?

The global warming movement has become a refuge for those who hate capitalism.

Of course, we must be concerned about our environment. However, we must be rational about it!

Unfortunately, Gore and his fanatics are not rational!

Gore has been looking for a life purpose since his home state of Tennessee broke his heart and voted for Bush in 2000.

My advice to Gore and the global warming zealots is to talk to Mr. Klaus and shut off all of the hot air and gloom and doom!

Forgive me for spoiling your weekend with Gaza!

Again, forgive me for spoiling your weekend. This is for those of you who think that we can pull out of Iraq and everyone will go back to selling insurance and playing little league soccer.

Look at Gaza!

There is chaos and mob rule next to Israel. Who is behind it? The answer is Iran. Who else but Iran?

Iran has been committed to a titanic struggle with Israel and the US since 1979. They are not going to change their objectives because we walk away or change political parties.

Iran is looking for weakness. They will match our weakness with more terrorism and animosity towards Israel and the moderate regimes in the area.

So what's next:

"Viewed in together with the Eido assassination in Lebanon earlier this week, events in Gaza are fairly described by Mervyn Wurmser as part of a regional offensive against the United States and Israel by the Iranian/Syrian Axis. The rise of Hamas in Gaza represents the extension of Iranian influence to Israel's south. The result is untenable. It constitutes one more chapter in what Churchill called "the gathering storm." (Tehran calling)

It's more obvious than ever. Iran is the problem. We can distract ourselves with global warming, Obama-isms, Hillary-isms, Edwards-isms, and investigations of Attorney General Gonzales. Sooner or later, we have to deal with Iran.

The US will support Israel. However, it's tough to be optimistic about the Middle East when the world does not take the terrorists seriously!