Monday, July 31, 2017

Total fraud of an election in Venezuela.....every democracy in the world should reject this....Where is the UN when we really need them?



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Rangers' Lucroy traded to Rockies..for a player to be named? In '16, Texas sent 2 top prospects to Milwaukee for Lucroy.



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Fumbling Obamacare




Image result for obama care cartoons

Obamacare is on “pause” for the moment. We will probably not hear about it again until the 2018 premiums start hitting the front pages or more areas get left without an insurance carrier. And this is just around the corner!
This is why I believe that some red state Democrats will regret the day that they followed Minority Leader Charles Schumer rather than look out for their voters.    
What if a red-state Democrat had stepped forward and voted with the GOP to begin finding a solution to the problem? My guess is that the particular senator would have sealed his reelection in 2018.
We learned this week that Senator Manchin will be in for a fight in 2018. The GOP in West Virginia is not assuming that the popular Mr. Manchin will be reelected. Wonder how Senator Joe Manchin will answer the question in a future debate: “Mr. Senator, why did you choose to stick with your party rather than West Virginia hard hit by premium increases?”
By next spring, Obamacare will be in even bigger trouble than it is now.      
This is a preview of premium increases for 2018:    
Preliminary analysis suggests some of the most popular plans could see double-digit premium increases. 
Health care consulting firm Avalere analyzed initial rate estimates from eight states and found that premiums for “silver” plans (the most popular plans) are rising 18% next year, after a 12% increase this year.
On top of that, 41% of counties in the U.S. will have just one insurer option on the marketplace.
Wonder how many of those counties are in West Virginia, Montana, Missouri, and the so-called red states?
Obamacare, the next chapter, will be back, but not in the context that Democrats were looking forward to. The next fight will be about premium increases and the program is still called “The Affordable Health Care Act.”
P.S. You can listen to my show (Canto Talk) and follow me on Twitter.


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Sunday, July 30, 2017

The week in review with Bill Katz, the editor of Urgent Agenda


Guest: Bill Katz, the editor of Urgent Agenda.........we will look at the latest shake up at the White House........Senator McCain and Obama Care in the US Senate......the Democrats have a new idea but is it really new...........Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz has a few problems...............North Korean missiles again....................and other stories...........

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A look at national politics with Barry Casselman, The Prairie Editor




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The 2017 Texas Rangers and trading deadline options




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The story of AG Sessions and President Trump plus San Antonio.




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What a Sunday afternoon.......Ivan Rodriguez at Cooperstown and Adrian Beltre looking for # 3,000....flipping channels today....



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Trump & Sessions, Obama Care, Moncada 1953 and other stories




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Illegal Leaks in Washington plus a terrible tragedy in San Antonio




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Saturday, July 29, 2017

You picked a fine time to leave us, McCain



Some decades ago, Kenny Rogers had a very popular hit titled “Lucille.” It was about a woman who left her husband at a rather bad time: 
You picked a fine time to leave me, Lucille
With four hungry children and a crop in the field
I’ve had some bad times, lived through some sad times
But this time your hurting won’t heal
You picked a fine time to leave me, Lucille
To say the least, Senator McCain picked a fine time to leave us.    
Early in the morning, Senator McCain cast the key vote that turned a small victory into an embarassing defeat. It went down 51-49 leaving everyone stunned and some partisans cheering.
To be fair, Senator McCain made a couple of good points but he picked the wrong time to make them.
Yes, this is not a perfect bill. We all knew that but the objective was to move the ball forward not score a 99-yard touchdown pass. The GOP was hoping to move the ball and either score or get a field goal but score. McCain killed that!   
Yes, as the Senator said, it would be nice to have open debates on the U.S. Senate floor. Unfortunately, debate can only happen when the other side has a counter proposal or something to say beyond people will die.   
Senator McCain should have known that the Democrats do not  have the courage to tell us about the tax increases required to save ObamaCare and the exchanges.    
So here we are after Senator McCain allegedly huddled with the 48 Democrats last night to explain his vote.
Last, but not least, Senator McCain ran for re-election in 2016 as a staunch critic of ObamaCare. Wonder how some in Arizona feel this morning?   
Over the years, I have stood with Senator McCain when some on our side attacked him. I voted for him in 2008 and supported his re-election when he was challenged in the Arizona primary.    
However, he really lost me over this. It’s hard to see how any explanation explains this vote. There is a time to be a maverick but this is not it!  
As the song goes: “….this time the hurting won’t heal”.     
We wish Senator McCain well. He faces serious health challenges but a lot of us won’t forget what he did this time.
P.S. You can listen to my show (Canto Talk) and follow me on Twitter.


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A show from 2013: Military history with Barry Jacobsen




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Friday, July 28, 2017

A look at national politics with Barry Casselman, The Prairie Editor


Guest: Barry Casselman, The Prairie Editor.......we will look at the state of our politics on the day after the GOP failed to pass a repeal..........what was Senator McCain thinking in casting the decisive vote? Where does this go from here? The Trump administration seems to be in a state of chaos and it does not look very good................................and other stories............

Click to listen:





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Keep Venezuela in your prayers this weekend.........the next 72 hours will be hard..........it's time for Maduro to go and fast.



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The situation in Venezuela is really bad.....US orders embassy families out.....violent clashes are expected....bad legacy of Chavez



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Red state Democrats choose Schumer over their states.....they will be reminded of this by GOP challengers in 2018.




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"Team of Rivals: The Political Genius of Abraham Lincoln" by Doris Kearns Goodwin


This is a very interesting book about the Lincoln presidency.   It tells the story of how President Lincoln surrounded himself with "rivals".   



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The “donkey blues”



The GOP is divided, a division that has grown over years. ObamaCare’s repeal effort has revealed real frictions.     
However, the Democrats have huge problems, too. It starts with their ideas and an effort to rebrand the party.
Steve Malanga has a good analysis of the party’s search for ideas:   
At the state level, the party faced a sustained run of bad results that included losing some 900 local legislative seats, while watching Republicans capture 31 governorships. 
Republicans now boast 25 state “trifectas”—in which they control the legislature and the governor’s office—compared with just six for Democrats. 
 
To comprehend the magnitude of Democratic losses, consider that Republicans hold more power in the states than at any time since the Civil War.
Democrats knew after 2014 that they had serious problems. A party task force examining that year’s election results acknowledged the stark losses. But the group’s recommendations for revival were bland at best, focusing largely on organization and infrastructure rather than on ideas that might appeal to the electorate. 
Recommendations included expanding voting rights, working harder to control redistricting, and building an “open and accessible” party. 
The resulting document said almost nothing about policies except in the broadest terms, and ignored the fact that Republicans were winning in many states with an agenda that included fiscal restraint and a pro-business approach to economic growth. And the task-force report made no acknowledgment that the increasingly leftward drift of the party had driven away many of its traditional blue-collar constituents. 
As early as 2013, trade unions whose membership once formed part of the Democratic Party’s core were in revolt against the Affordable Care Act, the growing power of public-sector unions, and the increasing influence that the environmentalist, no-growth agenda had on the party. 
Many of those trade union members defected to Trump in 2016.
The problem is that they don’t have any new ideas. They are simply painting the donkey in a different color but it’s the same message of “class warfare”, “identity politics” and “Trump is awful.”    
Furthermore, how can you rebrand a party by having Nancy Pelosi outline the new ideas? Does anyone, including most Democrats, believe that Pelosi has any new ideas?
As we’ve seen in several special elections, the Democrats have a message problem. They can’t connect with people who own small businesses, mothers who believe that boys and girls go to different bathrooms or naturalized U.S. citizens like me who believe that “sanctuary cities” are an insult to the rule of law.
We will hear a lot about the GOP’s troubles and we have our share. However, our issues are nothing like those of the Democrats, a party still thinking that the answer to every problems lies in more government.
Hank Williams or B.B. King would call it “Having the donkey blues!”
P.S. You can listen to my show (Canto Talk) and follow me on Twitter.

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Sorry Senator McCain...your vote makes no sense..premiums are shooting up in Arizona and elsewhere & you do this....why?



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Do we need another book explaining Hillary Clinton's loss? Dems need to move on....



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Thursday, July 27, 2017

Can the "transgender agenda people" calm down? The military is about winning wars not promoting social agendas or identity politics.



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Memo to GOP Senators: You promised to repeal Obama Care........get it done and send it to conference with House.



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Memo to red state Democrats up for reelection in 2018......Obama Care is collapsing and you are doing nothing.....shame!



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Off day and Yu Darvish is still a Texas Ranger...there are rumors that Washington and LA interested.....what can Texas get in return?



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The 2017 Texas Rangers and options at the trading deadline with Dave Michaels

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Guest: Dave Michaels, DFW sports journalist and radio show........we will look at the options for the Texas Rangers at the trading deadline..............plus other stories..................

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Health care fantasyland

obamacare-cartoon-1

The New York Times, a.k.a. the paper that will defend Obama’s legacy down to the last executive order, has attacked the GOP Senate over its health care vote. 
This is a bit of the editorial:  
The details are complicated, but most Americans understand that these proposals would be incredibly cruel and needlessly devastating, which is why polls have shown that few people support the partisan repeal effort. 
A recent Kaiser Family Foundation poll found just 28 percent supported the Senate bill to repeal and replace the A.C.A., while 71 percent wanted Republicans and Democrats to work together to improve the law.
The Times regrets the lack of bipartisanship and what they refer to as “the travesty”.
 
First of all, I’ve been looking all morning for an editorial from 2009-10 condemning the partisanship of Democrats in passing the AHCA. I cannot find any. Perhaps they meant to print it and forgot about it.
The Times must think that we’ve been living in some health care paradise since the AHCA went into effect. On the contrary — Obamacare has meant high premiums, deductibles, and insurance companies bailing out here, there, and everywhere. I’d be happy to introduce one of their reporters to a young couple in our area who simply cannot afford it.  It’s tough to afford an insurance premium that exceeds your mortgage payment.
Second, these Obamacare polls are complete nonsense. Most Americans are not under Obamacare. In other words, they have employment-based coverage. According to a recent study, 49% of Americans have group coverage. Medicaid and Medicare add up to 34%. In other words, about 15% of Americans are impacted by Obamacare. 
How can you do a poll on Obamacare when 85% of Americans are not under it? It’s possible that some of those under Medicaid started out looking for Obamacare but that’s still only 20%. Again, how can you take “popularity polls” about something that most Americans are not participating in?
As far as these polls, let’s remember what David Harsanyi, Senior Editor at The Federalistjust wrote:  
It is true that Obamacare repeal legislation — whatever the specifics happen to be — is going to be unpopular. 
Why wouldn’t it be? 
It’s not merely the revisionism practiced by many in the media in regards to Obamacare. If people are persistently told that the GOP is preparing to “slash” Medicaid by a bazillion dollars and “revoke” the insurance of 26 million people, the average voter has every reason to be concerned. 
And if there isn’t a single Republican lawmaker out there effectively slapping down these misleading claims, voters will be. Republicans certainly can’t rely on factcheckers.
The GOP has done a lousy job of countering all of these claims about the consequences of repealing Obamacare. My hope is that they will start doing so now that there is a plan that they can put their signature on.
Last, but not least, the GOP keeps winning special elections where the Democrat runs protecting Obamacare. The GOP is also raising more money than the Democrats. These two facts tell you all you need to know about these polls that claim that Americans have fallen in love with the Obamacare that they hated for years.
P.S. You can listen to my show (Canto Talk) and follow me on Twitter.

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Wednesday, July 26, 2017

Trump and AG Sessions, Obama Care & the GOP, transgenders in the Army plus we remember Moncada 1953


We will look President Trump's comments about AG Sessions...what in the world is it all about?.........The military and transgenders.............Obama Care and the GOP......McCain's great Senate speech.....we remember July 26, 1953 and Moncada in Cuba..............plus other stories................

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President Trump is 100% correct on transgenders....the US Armed Forces are not for social experiments....their mission is to win wars.



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Why the attacks on AG Sessions?

Image result for trump sessions images

President Trump is exactly right about about this Russian probe. It’s one-sided, with too many Democrats in the Mueller team. It’s silly, since no one has found one darn bit of evidence of collusion between the Trump team and Russia. Finally, I agree that AG Sessions should not have recuse himself, having done nothing wrong.    
At the same time, what is the point of comments and now a tweet saying that AG Sessions is weak?   
Add to this the predictable story based on unnamed sources that the President is talking about firing AG Sessions.
  
Sorry, but I don’t like it!   
AG Sessions comes across as a southern gentleman and maybe President Trump wants an “in your face” New Yorker. However, AG Sessions is quietly going after sanctuary cities and promoting the President’s agenda.    
Like some of you, I did not get on the Trump bandwagon until after the nomination. I had my doubts about his temperament and commitment to conservative positions.    
Nevertheless, I give President Trump very high marks on foreign policy.   
He is correct in holding the GOP accountable on ObamaCare.  
He has a connection to blue collar Americans in the Rust Belt not seen since President Reagan.   
President Trump has great potential, as Andrew Klavan wrote:   
In fact, it seems to me — a reluctant Trump voter — President The Donald has done a pretty darn good job so far. Rough-hewn, inexperienced and sometimes too much of a loudmouth for his own and the country’s good, he has nonetheless managed to increase American freedom and productivity while dragging us back from the brink of the Moribund European Socialist Please-Kill-Us-Mohammed anti-Western vision of the last guy who held the office.
There’s the great Supreme Court pick, of course. Plus he’s eliminated sixteen old federal regulations for every new one put in place. He’s made American foreign policy sane again by re-aligning us with Israel and pulling out of the nonsense Paris climate accord. You can talk about the non-wall all you like, but the drop in illegal border crossings under this president is, according to the head of the National Border Patrol union, “nothing short of miraculous.” Stock market’s up. Unemployment’s down. Housing sales are up. ISIS is down. Oh, and Trump’s brutal thrashing of our utterly corrupt and dishonest news media has been a joy to behold.    
I agree that President Trump should be furious that the media does not talk about this but is “Russia consumed.” However, President Trump does not have to Tweet everything that he is thinking or scold his staff in public.     
It would be a huge mistake to fire AG Sessions. It would take an eternity to approve a successor and the Democrats will turn the hearings into a circus. It also sends the wrong message about loyalty, the one thing that you really need when your enemies are united to bring you down.
P.S. You can listen to my show (Canto Talk) and follow me on Twitter.

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2009: Lack of civility? Did they say anything about how Bush was treated?






Wimpy Dems?

Yes, very wimpy Dems with an incredible sense of selective indignation.

Steve Chapman recalls how the angry left treated Pres Bush:

"It's generally forgotten that on Inauguration Day in 2001, Bush was greeted by thousands of protesters who threw eggs and bottles, made obscene gestures and carried signs jeering, "Hail to the thief" -- a reference to the legal fight needed to settle the outcome of the election.

To the protesters, he was a corrupt enemy of democracy."

It was that way for much of his presidency.

Remember how Bush was treated over Katrina?

Back off Dems! Get some spine!


August 2010: None of the allies followed President Obama in Afghanistan




July was a bad month for US troops in Afghanistan:

"NATO announced yesterday that six more US troops have died in Afghanistan, bringing the death toll for July to at least 66 and surpassing the previous month’s record as the deadliest for American forces in the nearly nine-year-old war." (
Boston.com)

What's going on? Why aren't other NATO countries living up to their responsibilities?

First, this is another example of how "wimpy" the Europeans are. They have no spine and will "cut and run" as soon as the going gets rough.

Second, it puts to rest the campaign garbage that the Europeans did not work with Pres Bush because he was abrasive or not a good listener.

They are not working with or listening to Pres BO either!


2010: Remember when President Obama got no one to send troops to Afghanistan?





Last night, Pres BO once again told the world what it wanted to hear.

In other words, Pres BO preached the value of "multinational operations".

What's wrong with that picture?

Nobody is following Pres BO anywhere!

The world loves this man but nobody is sending troops to Afghanistan.

It looks more and more like it will be the US and UK doing all of the heavy lifting in Afghanistan.

Again, Pres BO talks a good game about working with other countries. However, his record as a "nation organizer" is no better than his work as a "community organizer" in Chicago.


Tuesday, July 25, 2017

The story of AG Sessions and President Trump & another word on San Antonio


Guest:  Frank Burke, co-author of 'A law unto themselves', contributor to American Thinker & businessman........ We will look at President Trump's comments about AG Sessions........why is President Trump doing this to a man who has shown 100% loyalty to him? What does it say about President Trump's managerial style? The San Antonio immigration or human smuggling incident raises serious questions about border security and sanctuary cities......the GOP and Obama Care.........plus other stories.................

Click to listen:






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2010: Remember when we were talking about Julian Assange and leaks?




Back in 2010, we were having a huge controversy about leaks.

We repeat that leaks are bad for the country.   They are also illegal.

The great William A. Jacobson, Associate Clinical Professor, Cornell Law School, called it exactly right back in 2010:
"Julian Assange should have been indicted by now, and if the law did not allow more punitive measures in this circumstance, then the law should have been changed after the first document dump.

Assange is an enemy of our country and should be treated as such."
The Obama administration looked weak and impotent back then.   The Trump administration should not make the same mistake.


2010 and we were also talking about leaks


Image result for leakers clip art images

We are having a serious debate about leaks and the Trump administration in 2017.   

Back in 2010, we were having the same conversation and hitting The NY Times hard for their irresponsible publishing of classified information.

We asked back then:  Who is minding the store?  How did this happen again?

Marc A. Thiessen raised a good question back then and it applies to today's problems:
"What action did the Obama administration take to prevent the impending release of such volatile information?

State Department legal adviser Harold Koh sent a strongly worded letter urging WikiLeaks to cease publishing classified materials.

I'm sure that made Assange think twice."
Where was the Obama administration the last two times that Wikileaks posted classified information in 2010?   

Let's hope that the Trump administration comes down very hard on leaks, and specially, the people who leak classified information.



2006: Remember when the San Francisco school board decided to eliminate the ROTC?





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In 2006, we discussed that the San Francisco School Board decided to eliminate ROTC.    It was a hot topic on talk radio as well as the blog pages.

Why did they do it?  Because of the military's position on homosexuality back in 2006.

Since then, the US Senate dropped the "don't ask don't tell" policy in 2010 and homosexuals can serve openly.

Let me repeat that I feel that military officers, not politicians, should decide these issues.   After all, it is military officers who understand the impact that these social changes will have in the readiness and morale of troops.   In other words, I was always willing to live with whatever decision the military leaders made.

My problem back in 2006 was not about homosexuality.   It was about eliminating the ROTC from schools.   

After all, it was wrong to blame the military for what was essentially a political decision by President Clinton in 1993.

It was insane to go after the ROTC but typical of a city living in another planet.


2009: Remember the attacks on Miss California?




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Back in 2009. Carrie Prejean, or Miss California, was the target of some awful attacks.   It was ugly and maybe a sign of things to come from the angry left.

As you may recall, Carrie Prejean was a pretty young man who became Miss California.    

As my readers know well, we don't write posts about the beauty pageant.

However, Carrie became the target of ruthless and vicious attacks. Check out this awful post: YOUR ENLIGHTENED MAINSTREAM

Why the attacks?  Why are they attacking a young woman?


As you may remember, Miss Prejean simply expressed her view that  marriage is between a man and a woman.

To say the least, "the peddlers of diversity" couldn't handle diverse opinions.   They preach it but have little room for any one with a different point of view.      

We don't know where Miss Prejean is today.   We hope that she is doing well and remembers that many more of us stood with her during that difficult time.

Later, she wrote "Still standing": 







Doggett exploits dead Mexicans

Image result for democrats illegal immigration clip art images

It didn’t take long for Rep. Lloyd Doggett, a Democrat who represents parts of San Antonio, to blame the lack of immigration reform for the San Antonio incident.
As a supporter of a form of immigration reform, i.e. temporary work visas but no path to citizenship for some here without papers, I find Doggett’s remark predictable but silly.
First, Democrats had large majorities in the House and Senate and didn’t do anything about it. Can anyone remember 2009-11? I didn’t hear Representative Doggett blast President Obama for promising to deliver on the much-publicized immigration reform promise from the 2008 campaign.
Second, this is about human smuggling and further evidence that some kind of organized crime, not the old fashioned “coyotes,” are moving people.
A “coyote” is a guide who walks you across the border for a fee. Over the years, I’ve heard of good and bad coyotes, specifically referring to people who knew or didn’t know the routes to the U.S. They were generally opportunists out to make some money but rarely did we hear about violence or mistreatment of people. In other words, a “coyote”s” reputation was built on how well he did his job. This is how he’d get “referrals” for future business. 
Lately, we hear about people being mistreated or forced to carry drugs to the U.S. This is an indication that someone has taken over the business from the “coyote.”
This is a story from the LA Times that persuades me that this was a well-planned operation rather than the aforementioned coyote who got you over the border:
Surveillance video from the store showed that, before police arrived on the scene, several vehicles approached the truck to pick up many of the truck’s survivors, he added.
Some of the trailer’s occupants escaped into the woods, and McManus said his officers would search the area Sunday on foot and by helicopter.
“This is not an isolated incident,” he said. “This happens quite frequently. Fortunately, we came across this one. Fortunately, you know, there are people who survived.”
In May 2003, 19 people died when they were abandoned in a trailer at a truck stop in Victoria, Texas. The truck driver, Tyrone Mapletoft Williams, was convicted and is serving a sentence of nearly 34 years.   
Naturally, we will wait for more police reports before jumping to a conclusion. Nevertheless, I see the signs of an organized operation:
1) We’ve seen how criminal gangs bring people over and then demand more money from the families already here. They lock up people in a home and leave them until the family shows up with more cash;
2) It could be that the people in that truck were being punished for not carrying drugs over the border. In other words, this whole incident may be a signal that you will carry drugs or end up in a truck dead. Don’t underestimate the ruthlessness of these people!
Last, but not least, how does a truck full of people cross the border? Where did the driver pick up these people in Texas?    
It is a messy and horrible story that highlights the perils of illegal immigration.   
It would be better for people like Representative Doggett to remind people south of the border that it is safer to enter the country legally, as many have done. Unfortunately, asserting that this terrible incident is a consequence of no immigration reform will only bring more people anticipating to be legalized if they survive the desert, deadly snakes and even travelling in a hot truck in the Texas summer.
P.S. You can listen to my show (Canto Talk) and follow me on Twitter.




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